The Shophound

THE PREVIEW CIRCUIT: Camper Hits Grand Central For A Look At Fall

The Spanish shoe brand CAMPER calls its Fall 2012 "Traveling Winter" so it's only fitting that it would choose Grand Central Station to show the press its latest offerings. Actually, JFK Airport is a little out of the way, and Penn Station is a disgusting pit, but Grand Central has the elegant Campbell Apartment which is where The Shophound found ourself yesterday. It's probably fair to say that a lot of people still think of Camper as a source for winsome, round-toed shoe/sneaker hybrid footwear. There were certainly plenty of those signature styles to be seen, but if you haven't checked in on them in a while, you might be surprised at the current breadth of their line. Most exciting is a continuing series of designer collaborations called TO&ETHER including high-style mini-collections with Belgian designer Veronique Branquinho, Bernhard Willhelm and Mugler creative director, Romain Kremer. Also new was a special group of the brand's asymmetrical "Twins" shoes from the Berlin-based design duo known as C.NEEON, as well as a great group of shoes designed for city cyclists called "LINK" which included reflective patches and cleverly designed ankle straps to gather your trouser hem in so it doesn't get caught in the cogs. We took plenty of pictures, but Camper was kind enough to provide us with photos of the entire collection, so have a look at some of the most interesting pieces in the slideshow below (All product shots courtesy of Camper).

CAMPER (Official Site)

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THE PREVIEW CIRCUIT: A Closer Look At Fall From Burkman Bros, Caputo & Co., and Dockers

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Last week, The Shophound hit a few more of the Fall Collection Previews that are put on by brands who either don't participate in Fashion Week or want to give press a chance to see their wares in a more informal way. Sometimes it's a lot easier to get a handle on a collection this way rather than squeezing it in during the chaos and crush of Fashion Week. Also, sometimes there's food (and swag)

On Friday, we made our way to the Meatpacking District showroom of Caputo & Co. where we got a close look at designer Alex Caputo's leathergoods and accessories as well as his pals, the Burkman Bros apparel collections for Fall (both pictured above). In a sense, it's fitting that the two lines should be shown together as they are both inspired by their designers' travels. While we were familiar with Doug and Ben Burkman's burgeoning label from seeing it in ever more stores, we gained a new appreciation for it by being walked through the line and having all of the details pointed out to us from custom woven jacquard fabrics and intricately patterned knits inspired this season by a trip to Iceland.

As you can see in the photo, Caputo's two-year-old line of cleverly designed bags coordinate effortlessly with the Burkmans' line despite taking their inspiration from half a world away. The Venezuelan-born designer took his cues from Laguna de Atitlàn, a volcanic lake in the mountains of Guatemala whose name translates from Mayan as "where nature gets its color". Caputo works subtle shades of blue and green in with traditional brown leathers and custom handwoven South American textiles in classic totes and duffels with colorblock details and deceptive hidden features like reversibility and convertible straps. To fill them, there was an array of smaller leather goods including iPad cases and leather and waxed cotton bracelets offering bright pops of color. He manages to walk the fine line in Men's Accessories between the kind of practicality men demand and making things interesting without being too flashy or overdesigned. For his efforts, Caputo has garnered some impressive clients in his few seasons on his own, including Bloomingdale's, Scoop, Barneys Co-op and Unionmade in California. All of these previews typically make us want to run out and shop, an urge that was helpfully tamped down when, as we were on our way out, we were handed one of Caputo's striped cotton totes that contained, along with the usual press materials, one of his handwoven leather bracelets, an ikat-striped woven shirt from the Burkman Bros Hawaiian-inspired Spring collection and a few of their signature woven bracelets.

The night before, we went up to the Levi's showroom near Times Square for a look at the continuing repositioning project that is the Dockers brand. The label that once stood for boxy, pedestrian khakis is now sufficiently cool enough to attract the likes of menswear icon Nick Wooster, who appeared to be sporting the camo-print chinos that caused such a stir at last season's Docker's preview. Fall brings a utilitarian point of view to what is now a full sportswear line, with workwear and military touches and lots of plaid shirts. Have the ideas been filtered through a legion of stylebloggers? Probably, but an upscale but well-priced line could certainly do worse, and the line looked appealing as we perused it on mannequins throughout the showroom. As is expected at a Levi's brand event, there was plenty of food and drink, this time focusing on picnic style classics with mini sliders and fried chicken wrapped with bacon on a stick. We really had to get out of there before we gorged ourself on those, but also because of the unseasonably warm weather which made the office, like many others around the city, swelter a lot more than anyone would have predicted given the time of year. Sadly, we couldn't wait around for the custom monogram to be finished on the complimentary pair of khakis each guest received, so they promised to send them to us. Seriously, we were about ready to melt, but between the two events, we have at least one Spring outfit marked off our list.

THE PREVIEW CIRCUIT: Looking At Spring 2012 From ASOS and Oakley

We are almost ready to start the Holiday Season, but we are still finishing up with previewing next Spring. This week, The Shophound got a chance to take a look at upcoming collections from the UK's largest independent online fashion and beauty retailer, ASOS.

Unfamiliar? Well you couldn't be faulted too much for that. The company only started its U.S. site a little over a year ago. While ASOS offers a multitude of well known brands, we got a look at its private label offerings for women and men which, running from fast-fashion to contemporary price ranges for premium items, are not unimpressive.

In a manner similar to Topshop, the design teams at ASOS impressively translate Europe's more adventurous trends into more accessible looks for a broader market at great prices. There was a touch of Balenciaga here and McQueen there for example, but well synthesized. The fun thing about the brand is that it is not afraid of straying from the middle of the road. Their collections had various different design themes, but mostly reflected a serious look back at the 1980s, and, get ready to feel old, a nostalgic look at the 90s. One special collection is inspired by and manufactured in Africa, while another premium line incorporates exclusive prints for more daring eveningwear. For men, there was an impressive group inspired by contemporary Japanese design, but from there, inspiration tended to run more in line with American designers with a preppy group echoed labels like Gant Rugger and Burkman Brothers and an appealing tailored collection that owed a debt to Thom Brown and Band of Outsiders. A British-made shoe line (below) featured interesting combinations and red rubber soles which easily reminded us of a certain Mr. McNairy. Overall, however, ASOS is great for giving us a hint about what kind of English and European trends will be making their way over here soon, and a wall of colorful backpacks suggests that totes and messenger bags will be giving way to the schoolkid's favorite bookbag in the coming months.

Later that evening, The Shophound stopped by Oakley's SoHo showroom for a less elaborate presentation with a highly enthusiastic staff eager to show off their updated womens collections for next Spring. A new design team has lightened up the women's fitness offerings to shake off the brand's image as a more rugged men's label. Being Oakley, there was an abundance of eyewear cleverly designed with fashion and fitness in mind featuring special details like nose pads that won't slip when you sweat and won't catch your hair when they get pushed over the forehead (Imagine what a improvement those features can make). Other highlights included swimwear featuring pieces specially designed for Olympic volleyball champ and Oakley spokesperson Kerri Walsh. As the first official Olympic eyewear sponsor, the brand also showcased a well designed collection designed for the 2012 games next August featuring clever technical details and just enough red, white and blue to be patriotic without looking like the 4th of July every day. These style will start appearing in Oakley's SoHo and new Times Square location early next year, and they certainly made us think of Oakley in a new light.

THE PREVIEW CIRCUIT: A Look At Spring From CAMPER & Forever 21

The Spring Previews keep coming. This week, The Shophound took ourselves downtown to the Exhale Spa in the Gansevoort Hotel in the Meatpacking District to get a look at what Camper has in store for us next season. The popular Spanish footwear brand keeps moving ahead. This season they are showcasing the "Ocean Race Collection" (above) developed for the sailing team Camper is sharing with Emirates Team New Zealand in the Volvo Ocean Race which is going on right now.

The treatment pools in the spa gave the scene a pleasantly muggy summery atmosphere. Other highlights include fresh collaboration collections from Jasper Morrison, Mugler designer Romain Kremer and a continuing team-up with Bernhard Willhelm. Other new developments include the casual brand's first actual high heel women's shoe that combines the continuing demand for chunky, high heels with Camper's reputation for comfort. for our trouble, We left with a big, red Camper beach towel and as much breakfast as we could scarf down.

Later that evening, we went back downtown to the Ramscale apartment in the West Village for Forever 21's preview. It always surprises us a bit to get invited by a company that we have written less than charitably about in the past, but who are we to turn down an open bar? The presentation though highly edited, was not unlike a visit to Forever 21, kind of random and trend-ish, with offerings divided into  four categories. There was the Asian inspired "Tea Room", grungy "Rebel Yell", 20s and 30s "Retro Revival and "Sixties Sorbet". Most of the people there were busy trying on the jewelry samples that were on abundant display. We were busy trying get more of the tiny bacon cheeseburgers being offered by the willowy waitresses who, as it turned out, were also doubling as models. They sure are thrifty over there at F21, and we'll just leave it at that. We left with a pearl-beaded evening clutch ($17.80) which we later realized contained a gift card of as yet undetermined value. We're not exactly sure what to do with either, but it would be beyond unseemly for The Shophound to complain about insufficient swag.

THE PREVIEW CIRCUIT: Looking At Spring From Levi's, Dockers & A Mambo Launch With Jason Stackhouse Ryan Kwanten

Spring Previews are still coming fast and furious from brands that don't need to be bothered with the New York Fashion Week circus. In the past couple weeks, The Shophound checked out Levi's and its newly revitalized little brother Dockers as well as a new Australian line you won't find in New York City.

Last week, we headed over to West Chelsea, ground zero for these sorts of events, to se what was going on with Dockers. In all honesty, had this been a couple of years ago, we would only have been lured there by the promise of an open bar, free hor d'oeuvres and a lively DJ set from The Roots' ?uestlove, but suddenly, the brand credited for the shapeless chinos that gave Casual Fridays a bad name is doing collaborations with Steven Alan and GQ's Best New American Designers, a group that includes winner, T by Alexander Wang, and runners-up Patrik Ervell, Gant by Michael Bastian, Miller's Oath, Warriors of Radness, and Riviera Club. Suddenly, Dockers is kind of a cool brand, or at the very least vastly improved on the style front. Last week's preview was focused and well edited, highlighting slim, tapered khakis that gave a lift to the classic sportswear looks. There were reversible shorts, updated fitted shirts, and even the cargo shorts looked trimmed down and sleek. We're guessing that those camouflage printed khakis (pictured right) will sell out fast, so put in your orders early. For taking the trouble to go out on a stormy night, we were presented with a pair of Dockers' new slimmed down Alpha Khakis.

This week, we headed over to Stage 37 to see what Levi's has in store for us for Spring. This season, the legendary denim brand ramped up its presentation production values in the cavernous studio. Models casually moved around between ever more elaborate vignette installations (pictured at the top) including a small house built to present the women's CurveID line. Levi's has been very skillful in mining its vast archives to take advantage of the endless trend for vintage looks. For spring, they are reviving their sixties-era Sta-Prest wrinkle-free brand as a counterpoint to the rumpled thrift-shop-hipster look. New technology has not been abandoned, however, as they are continuing their high-tech Commuter line (pictured left) for cyclists and remain committed to the Water<Less program to produce denim jeans with a minimum amount of water usage. A well received collaboration with American brand Filson will continue as part of a Made In USA program for Levi's premium lines, and there will be more selvedge denim next season for those who worry over that inner side seam on their jeans. The whole time we scarfed down some superior deviled eggs from chefs Jeremy Fox & Charlie Parker and listened to string quartet Cello Street reinterpret the music of Lady GaGa and other pop stars. Sadly, since some special ingredients were late to arrive, we missed some special Patron tequila cocktails, but we had to move on.

Next up was Chelsea's Drive-In studios where the Australian beachwear line Mambo was being launched through an exclusive arrangement with Bon-Ton stores which is also home to John Bartlett's exclusive men's labels. With skaters flipping over a half-pipe in one corner and custom t-shirts being made in another over earsplitting music, The Shophound's drinking companion remarked that the whole scene looked a lot like Entertainment 720 from Parks & Recreation. While the cacophony was a little forced, there were sexy models in bathing suits hanging around (below), and who doesn't like that? It all looked like an easy sell for Bob-Ton's mostly midwestern stores. There was also Jason Stackhouse, as True Blood star Ryan Kwanten, looking appropriately scruffy and Stackhouse-like, was pressed into service to promote the brand from his homeland. Luckily, there were no missing ingredients at the bar, and there were plenty of little tacos, tiny meat pies and spicy shrimp (with no barbie in sight). Before we took off with our free t-shirts, we even tried a tiny vegemite sandwich, which didn't taste nearly as gross as we thought it would.

SPRING PREVIEWS: Preview Circuit With DKNY & Kenneth Cole

Yes, folks, it's time for Spring Previews again, and the schedule can be almost as busy as Fashion Week at times. The Shophound will admit that sometimes we go to these things just for the hors d'oeuvres and free drinks, which is how we ended up at an event for DKNY Hosiery to launch a special collaboration with Gossip Girl costume stylist Eric Daman. Frankly, we were really interested in checking out the Dream Hotel in Chelsea where the event was held. For some reason, much to our and the security staff's confusion, we were directed to enter the subterranean Electric Room through the loading dock (despite the presence of a perfectly serviceable staircase from the lobby),  but inside we found a fairly cool bar underpopulated with guests (in fairness, we were there pretty early). There were sullen models looking leggy in their tights (right), but the excitement had yet to kick in and we had to go uptown to...

Kenneth Cole's Hell's Kitchen showroom on Eleventh Avenue for a more conventional sort of preview. With a brand like this the interest is not so much in what's new, but what's filtering down to more accessible labels. In this case it is bright color blocks and the spectre of the '80s (left) including a unlikely mash-up of snakeskin pattern printed on leather haircalf (or cavallino for those who find 'haircalf' too graphic a term) (below). This material made it into shoes, handbags, a skirt, a dress and billowing silk scarf. For men there were the not terribly surprising but well executed multi-colored boat shoes as well as suede buck chukkas with eraser red rubber soles (right). Overall, it looks like fashion-at-a-price will be well served by Cole next Spring. We were only charmed more when upon exiting, we were presented with a little box from Ladurée containing three macarons, a green pistachio, a pink one that smelled like roses, and a creamy caramel one that made us fully understand the appeal of the famous French sweet shop. Our aversion to standing in line on the sidewalk has kept us from sampling the new Ladurée on madison Avenue, and this little bit of swag saved us the trouble, so Yay Kenneth Cole!

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SPRING 2012 PREVIEWS: Eddie Bauer Charges Ahead With A New Look for Spring

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Though Fashion Week is long over, this is the time of year when other brands less reliant on runway shows and trade shows unveil their upcoming offerings to the press. Last season, the eminent outfitter chain Eddie Bauer debuted a new design team who gave a much-needed update to the retailer's formerly innocuous apparel lines.

Spring 2012 finds the team hitting its stride and continuing with their archive focused-heritage approach while adding a potent dose of color that is right in sync with recent trends from the runways. It might take a while for customers to think of Eddie Bauer and Fashion at the same time, but the company has enough faith in its designers to eschew the services of a stylist and let them present their work the way they conceived of it themselves. They made a great case for the brand as a youthful sportswear resource. The entrance of Happy Monkey Studios in Midtown was covered in moss to remind everyone of the brand's roots as a rugged outfitter, and they are even offering camping tents in the season's bright accent colors.

The collection's great strength remains outerwear, with lots of functional (many reversible) pieces inspired by the Eddie Bauer archives including details taken from vintage backpacks. Other standouts included anoraks with drawstring details in heavy knit or chambray, superlight MicroTherm down pieces from the First Ascent label, a long casual skirt in ripstop parachute silk and lots of newly slimmed-down and brightly colored jeans and pants that should go a long way toward banishing the old frumpy image of clothes from Eddie Bauer and give resurgent heritage brands like Gant a run for their money.

What's still missing? A New York City flagship store (though there are locations in Forest Hills and in several surrounding New York, New Jersey and Connecticut suburbs). For most of us in Manhattan, the only opportunity to see the company's new look in person is at a press event like this one. Otherwise, it's an online experience. We think it's about time for at least a pop-up store to reintroduce New Yorkers to the brand's new direction, so consider that request submitted. In the meantime, we will be happily carrying around the bright yellow backpack we received on our way out.

Previously:
Don't Call It A Comeback: Eddie Bauer Revamps And Upgrades for Fall 2011 (04.22.2011)