Causing us to set aside minimalist ideals, the new interior trend sweeping the world of design is that of refined eclecticism — a happy mash-up of quirky details, cool tones and accents of brass and gold. It’s a bold look to pull off, but when done right, results in spaces that feel opulent, unique and ultimately welcoming.
Top photo: Tamarama penthouse by Greg Natale
It’s officially Fashion Revolution Week. A time to pause for thought on how we consume, wear and dispose of our clothes, this week offers an opportunity to take a stark look at how fashion truly impacts the environment. Hint: it’s much more than you think.
The fashion industry is the second largest polluter in the world — after oil. Let that sink in. Untreated toxic waste-waters get dumped from factories into waterways and huge amounts of fresh water is wasted for producing fabrics like cotton — the ratio currently sits at around 20,000 litres of water to 1kg of cotton. Not only that but microfibres from fabrics (minute, plastic-based particles from synthetic textiles that shed when washed) often end up in the ocean and have become a major polluting factor, ending up consumed by the fish we eat and one of the reasons why humans are ingesting more plastic in their diets than ever before. If all this wasn’t enough, synthetic textiles like polyester can take up to 200 years to decompose, meaning that most of the clothes we throw out (around 72% of the average wardrobe is made from synthetic materials) become landfill fodder and are ultimately hugely detrimental to the environment.
Fashion also contributes significantly to harmful greenhouse gas emissions (10% of global output) – a major byproduct of its manufacturing and transportation of garments. What’s more, synthetic fibres are made from fossil fuels and require far greater energy input to create than natural fibres. These cheaper fibres also emit N20, which is apparently three-times more damaging than CO2.
In light of the damning statistics, we thought we’d cut through the noise to bring you a simple guide on a few things you can do to affect your fashion consumption.
1.Educate yourself
This means on the issues at play but also on the brands you should be turning towards. In reaction to the growing concern with how fashion affects the environment, a number of brands (both well-established and new) have put sustainability at the forefront, answering the question of whether to choose a piece that is beautiful OR good for the environment by saying, well why not both? Some of our favourite brands championing the cause include Maggie Marilyn, Rachel Mills, Stella McCartney, BITE, Chief Studio, Edun, Allbirds, Paris Georgia, KITX, Maison Cleo, KOWTOW, Marine Serre, Elliss, and E.L.V Denim. Although there are many more.
Some of the certifications to be aware of include Bluesign, Eco-Cert, Global Organic Textile Standard, Oeko-Tex, Cradle 2 Cradle, the Fairtrade mark and the Global Recycle Standard.
Good online resources for more information on the environmental effects of fashion can be found on websites such as Fashion Revolution, and Sustain Your Style.
2. Buy higher quality or second hand
It’s pretty simple really. A beautiful piece bought from a brand putting high-quality craftsmanship at the centre of its designs will last significantly longer than a trendy, seasonal one. Yes, the temptation to buy clothes in bulk from fast-fashion retailers is there. But if you take a good hard look at what you actually need and save up to spend slightly more on one or two pieces (as opposed to five or six), you’re not only consuming less, you’re consuming smarter.
The other side of this, is the burgeoning market for second-hand fashion, seeing online consignment stores like The Real Real and Vestiaire Collective grow exponentially over the last few years (The Real Real has even opened physical stores in LA and New York). Making second-hand purchases feel as luxurious and exciting as buying off the rack, these businesses are helping the industry adopt a more closed-loop cycle.
3. Explore other ways of getting rid of old clothes
Instead of throwing out clothes you’ve tired of, try selling them on or donating them to places where you know the pieces will actually reach those in need. The City Mission in Auckland is a great place to donate unwanted clothes (especially warm ones ahead of winter) while other local initiatives like Koha Apparel are establishing more direct links between those who have clothes to give away and those who need them.
Another way to make use of clothing that is unwanted is to rent it out. That dress you bought for a ball once could be rented out to others who need something specific, thus giving the piece more worth per wear.
4. Get behind causes
Donating time and money to causes is an obvious way of affecting change. Fashion Revolution established itself as a platform for spreading awareness about the detrimental effects of fashion via its viral hashtag #whomademyclothes. On its website, it lists a number of things we can do as consumers to get behind the cause including letter templates that can be sent to policymakers and brands, donation options and educational resources.
Here are some causes to get know about and get behind: The World Fair Trade Organisation, Clean Clothes Campaign, the Centre for Sustainable Fashion, the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, the Fair Trade Federation, the Ethical Trade Initiative, the Fair Wear Foundation, Fairtrade International, Textile Exchange, Labour Behind The Label, Traid, and Tearfund.
Gentlemen, take note. No matter how sleek your tuxedo or carefully coiffed your lid, if you don’t have the gift of the gab, you won’t get far at this year’s Heroes. From conversation starters to nailing your nods, use this instructional video as your behavioural blueprint, and rise above the rest on the night.
The ECC team has been in Milan as part of their annual pilgrimage to scope out new products from the city’s renowned Design Fair. Spending the last week immersing themselves in the incredible installations at Salone Del Mobile and Euroluce, here they report back on some of the highlights.
Day One
Field notes: Today was all about settling into Milan and taking in its bustling atmosphere. We spent most of our time exploring the infamous Brera design district before heading to the highly-anticipated press preview for Moooi. Marcel Wanders released his new sofa, the BFF, a soft, quilted modular style. Other highlights included the new chandelier version of the party wall lights launched last December, that actually sung to us via embedded microphones, and the unveiling of a new fabric, Tokyo Blue — a denim from Japan with high durability.
Day Two
Field notes: Minotti’s stand at the fairgrounds was the highlight of day two. An incredible set-up that took 120 people 5 days to construct, it housed a collection that’s widely considered to be one of the most cohesive and impressive in Milan. GamFratesi joined the Minotti team this year for the first time, contributing two new chairs to the collection and Minotti also unveiled the new outdoor version of its Tape Cord range by Nendo.
Day Three
Field notes: Back at the fairgrounds, we spent most of today meeting with suppliers. Highlights included Lapalma’s new outdoor range, the new additions to Glas Italia’s Sherazade door collection — a fascinating exploration of light, glass and geometric shapes — and the Magis stand, where ideas of recyclability and reuseablitiy had been the basis for the brand’s new designs. In the afternoon, it was time to head to Euroluce — the biennial lighting fair that brings the best and brightest to the city.
Day Four
Field notes: Taking advantage of the fact that Euroluce was on (it only happens every second year) we took today to explore the offerings of some of the best lighting designers in the world like Artemide, Vibia and Ingo Maurer. Particular highlights included the entranceway to Flos’ space, which glowed with a sculptural, modular piece called Coordinates by Michael Anastassiades. At the Ingo Maurer stand rubber gloves with lightbulbs attached to each fingertip provided a quirky, creative inspiration.
Day Five
Field notes: Returning to the streets, we explored some of the fascinating offerings around Milan’s various design districts. There was so much to be seen outside the fairground itself. We also headed along to Tom Dixon’s new restaurant, The Manzoni, in which the designer had cleverly planted a number of his new pieces, like his two new chair styles, Fat and an updated Slab. Later on, we headed to the institutional Rossana Orlandi and Nilufar Galleries and their surrounding pop-ups where we found, among other things a fascinating projection of infinite shades of colour.
Last Wednesday night we ventured behind Las Vegas’ red door on K’ Road and ascended the neon-framed staircase to the iconic club. Greeted by an atmospheric space bathed in red light, Akai Doa 2.0 enveloped us immediately in a sensory haze of flashing fluorescents, raucous music and Asahi brews — scarcely giving us a chance to catch our breath before taking our seats.
Illuminated by the various shades of Angus Muir’s light installation (that would change with each of the eight courses), we awaited the gastronomic experience promised. And although expectations were high, especially following last year’s stellar season, Akai Doa’s new iteration exceeded it’s inaugural outing and then some.
Without giving too much away — it really is something you need to experience for yourself — the food, which included delicate dumplings, pork belly with impossibly crisp crackling and fish expertly prepared by Chef Yukio (of Azabu), was faultless. And the Asahi beers alongside various cocktails, like the crowd-pleasing wasabi mule were the perfect accompaniments to the menu.
With the chef putting on a show from a booth at the front, female contortionists sauntering between tables and Soraya Lapread on the decks, Akai Doa 2.0 was immersive, multi-faceted and one of the best nights out we’ve had in a while.
The perfect way to end a busy week, this year’s Cinema Peroni took place on a Friday and saw us congregate in Britomart’s Takutai Square for an al fresco experience like no other. With crisp bottles of Peroni Nastro Azzurro — in the brand’s sleek, new design — tasty Peroni Limone cocktails and a delicious, three-course meal from Amano, all we had to do was sink comfortably into the striped deck chairs, cover ourselves with blankets and settle in for a screening of the compelling, Perfetti Sconosciuti (Perfect Strangers), as chosen by the Rialto Film Channel.
We should all know by now the devastating effects of the fashion industry on not only the environment but on the lives of the people who work tirelessly behind the seams, so to speak.
But as issues around ethical fashion have grown, so too has a collective realisation among brands that in order to remain relevant, and to continue to benefit from the increasingly liquid millennial market, certain expectations of transparency need to be met. Brands are increasingly opening up their businesses and showing their supply chains, production practices and wage policies, realising that doing so will help them sustain their success in the long term. It seems that simply playing into trends is not enough anymore.
In a bid to keep fashion accountable, Tearfund — a New Zealand Christian aid and development organisation — has teamed up with Baptist World Aid Australia to release its annual Ethical Fashion report. The culmination of 10 months of research, the report gives 130 apparel companies (and the 480 brands that come under them) rankings from A to F, based on five, key factors: Policies, traceability and transparency, monitoring and supplier relationships, worker empowerment and environmental management.
So how did the 29 New Zealand companies included in this year’s report stack up? CEO of Tearfund, Ian McInnes explained how “all participating New Zealand companies, except one, have held or improved their grade in the past 12 months,” which is not a bad start. Here are the stats:
7 New Zealand companies were graded in the A range. Including Nature Baby, Kathmandu, Kowtow, AS Colour and Icebreaker. This number is up from the 5 who achieved that ranking last year.
The average grade for New Zealand companies included in the report was a C+, which is unfortunately down from the B- of last year. That said, there were eleven new companies added to the study in 2019.
Of the New Zealand companies in the higher end of the market, Karen Walker takes the top spot with a B ranking.
Environmental management was added as a new criterion this year, where companies’ impacts on climate, chemical management, water usage, use of sustainable fibres, provision of take-back and repair services and whether they had completed environmental impact assessments internally were assessed. Freeset, Icebreaker, Kowtow, Liminal and Nature Baby all scored highly in this area.
Companies that have improved their grades from last year include Ruby, AS Colour, and Kowtow.
A clear area of improvement for New Zealand companies still remains around the issue of living wages. Only 5% of companies could show that they were paying a living wage to all workers at the final stages of production and under half of the New Zealand companies assessed could show that they had a living wage methodology — showing that the company recognises what a living wage actually is.
While it isn’t an entirely bad result for New Zealand fashion, there is still work to be done. As Tearfund’s Education and Advocacy Manager Claire Hart said, “the fashion industry is moving in a particular direction and that is towards ethical practices, transparency and care for the planet… public demand for transparency and supply chains free of exploitation is only growing.” Access the full report here.
Note, there were 12 non-responsive companies included in the study. This simply means that they chose not to actively participate in the study. Assessment of those companies was based purely on publicly-available information.
We’re all familiar with Superette. It’s been a longstanding source of all things designer down-under (think Camilla & Marc, Bassike, P.E. Nation, One Teaspoon, Zimmermann, Ksubi et al.) and over the years has expanded into five stores around the country. Deciding to go in a different direction for its latest store, Superette has set its sights on global designers and is bringing a raft of ‘findings from afar’ to New Zealand.
Its sixth store, the aptly-named Superette International, has just opened in Newmarket and is positioning itself as the slightly more worldly sibling of the Superette we all know and love. Taking up residence at 8 Kent St, the new outpost boasts sleek interiors by Melbourne’s Design Office, where opulent touches meet reclaimed timber floors and industrial, concrete detailing. It will stand as a raw but polished backdrop for overseas labels like James Perse, Reiko Paris, Janessa Leone, Les Coyotes De Paris and Rag & Bone — with many more set to land in the future.
Aiming to host customers for one-on-one styling appointments as well as playing host to fashionable events, Superette International is feeding our insatiable desire for the new without having to board a plane.
Forget Instagram stars and Hypebeast rappers, let Jeff Goldblum, Daniel Day-Lewis and Vincent Cassel guide you through the cooler months in timeless style.
Jeff Goldblum —The elegant eclectic
Everyone loves to love Jeff Goldblum. And why wouldn’t they? He’s a universal treasure. Perhaps it’s his perpetually quotable roles (like Dr. Malcolm in Jurassic Park) or his penchant for conspicuous patterns that makes him such an icon. Whatever the reason, Goldblum’s style is one that balances fun and fancy with deft precision. His ability to pull-off a turtleneck is enviable. And his thick-rimmed glasses prove that adopting a ‘signature’ accessory is important for any man. To emulate Goldblum this autumn, pair high-necked tees and fastened top-buttons with blazers and denim jackets. Add a pop of colour somewhere — even if it’s just a pair of outrageous socks — and buy up large on the loafer front. Bonus points if you can come up with your own catchphrase.
Vincent Cassel —The effortless flâneur
Ah, the elegance of the French. Call it a generalisation but you’d be hard-pressed to find an exception to this rule, and Vincent Cassel is certainly not it. Sartorial expertise comes easily for this actor. Having mastered the art of casual suiting and perfected the rolled sleeve, Cassels’ understated style has a certain ‘je ne sais quoi’ that demands emulation. Opt for darker colours, denim shirts and luxuriously laid-back linen if you want to contend with Cassel. Tame strict tailoring with relaxed polos, and try a French accent on for size.
Sir Daniel Day-Lewis —The ageless cool-kid
Widely recognised as one of the greatest actors of his generation (or any generation for that matter), Sir Daniel Day-Lewis might have retired from Hollywood, but his role as a bastion of style is the one he embodies beyond the screen. Being the strong, silent type lends this actor an air of untouchable coolness. And despite his penchant for workwear pants and field jackets, his outfits always boast idiosyncratic touches. For those embracing the Day-Lewis look this season, don’t dabble. Embrace the ‘method’ of the man himself and commit fully, or not at all. Beanies, boots and brooding are the keywords to keep in mind.
Music is a unifying force. And in light of recent events, what better time than now to be thinking about coming together to listen to records with friends and family. So we thought we’d consult some of the best in the biz’, Holiday Records, to get the lowdown on the albums and artists we should be adding to our ‘heavy rotation’. Focusing this particular list of recommendations on female musicians and bands, Ben and Joel walk us through five records we should be listening to right now.
The Coathangers –– The Devil You Know
This is an album we have been thrashing in
Our Favorite Track: “Bimbo”
Sharon Van Etten –– Remind Me Tomorrow
Sharon Van Etten, most likely known for her dark but strangely upbeat, melodic single ‘Every Time the Sun Comes Up’, has just released a new album Remind me Tomorrow. She again draws on her potent singer-songwriting skills, mixed with silky synthetic basslines and impressive instrumentals to deliver a critically acclaimed album that has been lauded as her most intoxicating and impressive record to date.
Our Favourite Track: “Seventeen”
Sharon Van Etten is playing at The Powerstation on June 5th.
Aldous Harding –– Designer
Although technically not released yet, we love the melodic first single, “The Barrel”, off Aldous Harding’s upcoming album Designer. Her hauntingly beautiful and unmistakable voice, over a simple piano chord progression and plucked guitar is worth a listen. The undeniably catchy tune from this award-winning Kiwi singer will have you listening to it on repeat. We can’t wait for the album which is set for release in late April 2019.
The music video is a perfect accompaniment to the beauty and unease of the single and is a must watch.
Tiny Ruins –– Olympic Girls
This is another favourite New Zealand indie-folk ensemble, fronted by the mesmerising voice of singer-songwriter, Hollie Fullbrook. It’s a
Our Favourite Track: “School of Design”
Fazerdaze –– Morningside
Fazerdaze is a project by Kiwi Amelia Murray that was recorded entirely in her bedroom studio in Auckland. It has resulted in a dreamy pop record that has unsurprisingly been played almost daily in our store this year. Her amazing voice is guided by synthy keys and some fantastic drum rhythms that will have you listening to it from beginning to end in your own bedroom soon enough.
Our Favourite Track: “Lucky Girl”
Albums available from Holiday Records (with the exception of Sharon Van Etten –– Remind Me Tomorrow — which will arrive soon).
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