Paris Fashion Week Men kicked off this season online. In the New Normal fashion shows are not in style. Designers delivered their latest looks via digital platforms. Below are some highlights:
I could not embed the code for Issey Miyake.
Stay Tuned for full reviews.
Paris Haute Couture Week or days have passed. In the New Normal, runway shows are from a past era. Being front row at a Chanel is not immunity from Covid-19.
What I did I think? Without the runway and excitement it felt a bit of a let down. Brands opted for long videos and short films. I had the feeling of watching a long Calvin Klein Obsession commercial. Fashion Week should center around fashion but for some reason it did not. I am not sure why. Fashion houses spent a lot of money showcasing film techniques. For some reason, the clothes took a backseat, a bit strange for a fashion week. As a film buff, one time aspiring filmmaker, part film critic; I would ask some teams, “What Happened”? Fashion Weeks focus on clothes.
#Paris Fashion Week Haute Couture and Menswear Week without runways being delivered online felt like watching 3 hour Calvin Klein Obsession Commercials. #fashion #fashionweek #pfw #hautecouture #Mensfashion #fashionblogger #fashiondesigner #FashionFriday #ootdfashion # pic.twitter.com/0D26KNQQGT
— BlackandPaper (@BlackandPaper1) July 10, 2020
Looking for inspiration, fashion and film have a relationship dating back to the Golden Age of Hollywood. “The Women”, director George Cukor’s 1939 black and white all starer included a 6 minute Technicolor fashion parade. Audrey Hepburn’s “Funny Face” was scene for scene showcase of the actress wearing Givenchy looks. For some reason many designers and their creators decided to take a more expressive artistic sense mixed with the abstract.
Fashion is live spectacle. I prefer fashion week with blank staring models, self important editors, and Borrowed Sunday Best Dressed Wannabes.
Let’s hope for a vaccine soon.
Highlights from Digital Week.
The first Digital Couture Week from the City of Lights. Some of my highlights listed below.
Stay tuned for more extensive coverage.
The New Normal has affected glamour. Nothing has been untouched. The first Paris Fashion Week Couture moved online this season. I expected straight forward presentations but some brands took inspirations from different sources, producing short films.
This is an overview of Day 1.
An added bonus, menswear looks from Hermes.
My reaction to seeing fashion online. I am a bit sad. Part of the fun is attending the shows, soaking in the atmosphere, witnessing the creativity.
Is the future of the fashion business online? I am not convinced. Stay tuned for my video.
Borsalino headwear and film history go hand in hand. The 2015 documentary BORSALINO CITY is being released in an English version. Director Enrica Viola’s work weaves the story of how 163 years ago Giuseppe Borsalino founded a hat atelier in Alessandria, Italy to becoming iconic parts of film history.
His style legacy has been worn by in cinema masterpieces including: “81/2” and “Breathless”. Can any cinephile imagine Boagart without the hat in the final scene of “Casablanca”?
See the film trailer below:
I have a small collection of Borsalino Hats in my closet. Loved! Each piece gets recognised by those in the know.
Black and Paper prepares for the second half of 2020. How do we do it?
Taking CUES!
Like everyone, I am making the most of working out, running in the park everyday, sprinting on stairs. But my gym recently opened with new protocols, less equipment, new routine. Change is good, but I wanted to turbo charge my workout. Garmin watches have a reputation of durability with a fitness following.
My first impressions: A bit complicated to set up but it is my first time with the device. Thankfully, there are many YouTube videos. I managed to get the basic data up and running.
Still working on how to navigate the interface. I took the watch for a run in the park, then a round at the gym. Slowly, I could around to having a digital fitness partner.
Stay Tuned for the unboxing and my opinion on the Garmin 945 watch.
I started looking over the Instagram accounts of the some of the big department stores. All express solidarity with Black Lives Matter. It is great PR.
However, sadly, the shopping experience has not changed over the decades. When I went shopping in the American South with my family as a child I remember store staff following us around. It was part of the routine. 2020, looking over the social media comments, not much has changed, the times or even the geography. Even SPENDING money can be a challenge,
Here are some comments on various retailers social media threads:
Harpers Bazaar takes a look at Black Fashion Designers over the years.
André Leon Talley on the Influential Black Fashion Designers You Should Know https://t.co/OAti3SdL5B
— Harper’s BAZAAR (@harpersbazaarus) June 25, 2020