Miyashita-san

A tempest had just ravaged my apartment: in the process of preparing outfits for New York fashion week, I've tried on nearly everything in my winter wardrobe yet my creativity seems to run dry as a bone. Times like these, I look to the greats for design intervention.

Number (N)ine and The Soloist creative director Takahiro Miyashita, in one of the few full portraits of himself online, photographed by An Unknown Quantity

There is a richness to this look, almost like a novel that each time you re-read you discover something new. The subtlety of the off-blacks fading to navy, the contrast of the washed denim and the dirty dark yellow, the silhouette of the high-waisted coat and his loose top with the oddly hemmed jeans, and the intrigue of sunglasses at night... and wait... is he wearing a dangling earring?? It's all so fresh and inspiring. The plan is to keep staring at this photograph until his style osmoses to mine, and somehow, some way, the coat and the boots materialize in my closet.

photograph via An Unknown Quantity

House of 950's Maiden Voyage

House of 950 is a new label started by my friend Eric Holbreich, a designer I used to work with, and his partner Alice Spies. I would describe their clothes as experimental, clean and minimal, awkwardly charming, and ultimately very wearable. I had a little chit-chat with co-founder Eric about starting his new line, his inspirations, plans for the future, and wishes of dressing the almighty Tilda Swinton.

House of 950's debut collection lookbook

Tell us about your line and why you decided to start it.

House of 950 is a collaborative workshop that focuses on garments that are often unisex and multifunctional. We think about the use of garment. How can people interact with it, how comfortable is it? We wanted to bring back the innovative craft where the make and finishings are just as important as the original idea. We manufacture everything in New York City so we can monitor the process and make sure everything is the highest quality possible.

Where are you two from and how do your roots influence the way you make clothes?

I’m from Indianapolis and Alice Los Angeles. Alice thinks about simplicity and comfort all the time she thinks that is what L.A. is all about. Indiana is a really clean, flat place with lots of trees and open spaces. I don’t feel comfortable in very fitted clothes, but I like everything to have a clean look.

Who/what else influences your design?

When we start designing a garment, we will have a general idea of what it should be. We don’t really draw, or if we do it is usually of a pattern piece. When we make the garment, that’s when we play with it, what could it be, could it be something else. We then think about what is missing in clothing that we think should be there, like a detail on the cuff, or a hidden pocket in the seam. We want the clothes to be convenient and recognizable but at the same time different and simple.

Tell me about the odd, graphic shapes that your clothes are made out of.

The shapes that our clothes make are usually related to the function of the garment, or the elimination of a conventional seam and the replacement with another type of seam. Most of the garments have no fixed closures. To close the garment a person has to first choose a way to wear it. The clothing allows the user to express their own idea of how they want it to look like. The Amish shirt for example has four different silhouettes. The user has the option to choose which one is right for their mood.

House of 950's Amish shirt

And the prints?

This collection we collaborated with the artist Alphonse van Woerkon. We transformed his portrait of Kiki Smith into a textile, and then turned it into a shirt. We didn’t want it to be a recognizable face, but we wanted elements of Kiki to show through. You can see her eye and her nose, but the panels of the shirt cut it. It makes it more abstract and interesting.

the Kiki Smith shirt, one of my favorite pieces in the collection

You deal a lot with interactivity and customer participation (in your presentations, the lookbook). Why do you think this is essential to your brand?

Our brand is about the customer. We want them to feel involved in the process as well as the company itself. We are building the House as a collaboration between us as designers and the customers. We don’t like the idea of being singular, or alone. Interactivity, I think, would be the perfect one word description of who we are and what we want to be. We created this idea called the Minute Museum, where the traditional museum is reversed. The people who come to the exhibit, are the exhibit themselves. We use this to allow the people to interact with the clothes as well as showcase the clothing on real people.

the drawstring jacket, which I had dubbed "the noose jacket"

Tilda Swinton comes to you the day before a big premiere and begs that you dress her. What will you put her in?

First of all we would die. Then we would pull it together and put her in the Portrait Shirt and the Thai-Tie Pants hands down. Then we would probably die again. We know she would look amazing wearing those two pieces!

Plans for the future?

We are going to keep doing what we are doing! We are just starting and we have a long way to go. Every day is exciting and a new territory for us. The idea of creating our own path and it working, is amazing. (and frightening!)

photographs via House of 950

The Dandy Project x Meltin' Pot

Italian denim company Meltin' Pot had approached me to collaborate with them and style my favorite pieces out of their fall collection into three looks that I will share with you today. Shooting it was a lot of fun, and a little painful too, I must admit, prancing around the city mid-December jacket-less, and sometimes pants-less as well, but the clothes were Milanese as they come---form-fitting, without a whisper of vanity sizing, and I, ever the diligent blogger-collaborator, wanted to showcase this best I can. Here are the looks, aptly titled for easier comprehension.

The Rodeo Dandy

(Meltin' Pot denim shirt and jeans, Number Nine shoes, vintage cuff, native American watch band on Casio watch)

I wanted to lend an air of dandiness to the rugged double-denim look by slicking my hair back clean, stuffing a pocket square into the shirt pocket, and accessorizing with bold native American jewelry.

a cock-print Eton of Sweden silk pocket square in the pocket of the denim shirt

my Navajo-customized Casio with turquoise and coral

The Seaside Sweater

(Ray-Ban aviator sunglasses, Meltin' Pot navy sweater, vintage DIY cutoff shorts, Gucci shoes)

This chunky navy Meltin' Pot sweater reminded me of country clubs and yachts and the seaside. I paired it with my own vintage white cutoff shorts and classic Gucci loafers.

adorned with a vintage gold tie clip from my mother

a nod to the Italians: Gucci horsebit loafers in green suede and red webbing

The Urban Huntsman

(Ray-Ban aviator sunglasses, vintage cashmere scarf, Thom Browne cardigan, Meltin' Pot olive green pants, vintage Florsheim shoes)

I loved the fabric and fit on these Meltin' Pot olive green pants, and the color reminded me of an urban huntsman. On a stroll around New York City's Central Park, I wore it with a plaid cardigan and a thick Scottish cashmere scarf.

the mix: a plaid cardigan and a cable-knit scarf all under a vintage camel coat with a pin from Old Hollywood and a lapel flower by Hook+Albert

Italy and America

photographs by Mikee Tuason

clothing c/o Meltin' Pot

Meltin' Pot on Facebook

The Bag Maker's Project

A few weeks ago, I met this guy at a party at the Soho Grand, a bag designer, and he pulled out his phone and he showed me his stuff, and it was minimal and masculine and elegant---New York is great just like that, filled with brilliant, creative people who make beautiful things. Last week, I paid a visit to Will Lisak, the designer, and while he let me watch him craft a custom-order for a client, we had a little chat about his line ETWAS.

the ETWAS Standard # 1, the company's first bag (photograph via ETWAS)

The bags are elegant and minimal and simply crafted out of thick, sturdy leather. They are certainly heavy, and though the brand has plans of doing bags in lighter, thinner leather, there is a charm in carrying the rugged, thick-skin leather bags that only become more beautiful with age.

Tell us about ETWAS. What do you make, and what makes it different?

ETWAS is premised on the idea that the design of systems has more impact than just designing products. We want to make graceful objects in an equally graceful way, using means of production to reflect and manifest the aesthetic of our customers. When you buy an ETWAS bag you are not only conveying your sentiments through image, your aesthetic will is acting upon the world in more tangible ways.

ETWAS' designer, Will Lisak, at work

What made you shift into crafting bags after working in graphics and illustration?

I never wanted to make fake things. I decided I needed to pursue a project where I had total control and could design every step of the process. It was impossible for me then to tell a beautiful story via the medium of an ugly publishing industry. I'm not creating stories with vast and ephemeral worlds anymore as I was with illustration, but I am creating a small world and small narrative that is very tangible.

Will walked me through a few of the processes involved in making a bag. Holes are pre-punched into the leather before hand-sewing.

The corners on the thick leather are shaved off and rounded for a better hand-feel.

Lisak uses his own vegetable-based recipe to burnish and condition the leather.

Holes on straps are hand-punched as well.

What inspires you?

People. People with inventive ways of living that allow them to enjoy their lives to the fullest. They are the greatest designers.

my favorite piece, the ETWAS light pack in the special rough out black wax leather

The briefcase can be converted into a backpack by simply untucking the shoulder straps from under the flap.

Your bags are simply made and free of embellishments. What are your views on minimalism and design?

I think for what we are doing it is necessary. We are an egalitarian process, our workers are paid well, we are comfortable, but no one is getting rich. It's not a decadent process. It is empowering to the worker, and on the consumer end it is a bit rugged. Our customers are not afraid to get their hands dirty. So it's a bit socialist in that way I guess. There's not much decadence about it. The design needs to be clean then to be honest, and reflect the values of all involved. Not that I'm against decadence. It's just not suitable for this project.

a tote and the toolbag, which was originally designed to carry tools on vehicles, but has captured the fancy of many a menswear-loving woman

hardware finished with a hand-aged patina

I came across this quote on your website: "Consider not only the things we are making, but the things we are destroying." Tell us about your project, and why you choose to work this way.

I think I may have touched on this in the earlier questions, but basically we are interested in creating the most beautiful thing, and I feel it's cheating a bit when you make a beautiful product in an ugly system, which is easier, but you are making the world uglier at the same time as you are making something beautiful, so you're stuck. Not having much impact, just moving things around. I want to make the world less distasteful.

a sketch of a custom-designed duffel bag for a Canadian client

What are your plans for the future?

Our major plan is take advantage of our means of production in another way--because we are manufacturing ourselves we don't have to place large factory orders, and therefore do not have to standardize so much.

trying out a new mechanical (electricity-free) hand-sewing machine for the possibility of offering a line of machine-sewn bags at a lower price point

I want to make a line of bags that is scaleable, where customers and stores can alter the dimensions to their liking though an online interface. There is a lot of potential in giving people a little freedom, and no one else is really doing anything like this.

Will Lisak, Williamsburg, 1/11/12

ETWAS bags are available here.

The Perfect Black Coat

The perfect black coat did not come to me perfect, and it is highly likely that it won't for you either. Right after it had arrived at my apartment, I wrote down my own fit notes, compared them with what my trusted tailor thought needed some nipping and tucking, and after two rounds of revisions, I'm very pleased to have the classic trim black coat that I hope to wear for years to come. In the dead of winter, when hordes of men walk down the street in what looks to be trash bag shape layered upon trash bag shape of fleece and puffy nylon, it makes a world of difference to put a little effort into presenting yourself smart and tailored.

Illesteva sunglasses, Jil Sander for Uniqlo cashmere scarf, Black Sheep and Prodigal Sons stick pin, Maison Martin Margiela coat, vintage gloves, Uniqlo pants, Paul Smith chelsea boots

Off the rack, the coat was already incredibly beautiful: strong, slightly extended shoulders that fit me to a t, long, sweeping lines on the shawl lapel, and delicious smooth black wool with the slightest hint of sheen. But a lot of work still needed to be done: I had to get the sleeves taken in slim, the waist nipped tiny as possible to provide sharp contrast to the power shoulders, and the entire coat shortened to a much more wearable above-the-knee length from the previously more dramatic and swishy, but less wearable below-the knee. Men's bodies may not come in as large a variety of shapes as women's bodies do, but it is knowing what to do with the subtle nuances of a man's body shape that makes for great tailoring. I think Angela at G&G tailors did an impeccable job at making my vision of the perfect black coat come to life.

the perfect black scarf---a ridiculously soft and unbelievably light and warm black cashmere woven scarf from +J, and my new favorite sterling silver whale stick pin from Black Sheep and Prodigal Sons beautifully accentuate the shawl lapel on this Margiela coat

trademark Margiela power shoulders

Subtly colored shoes, like this Paul Smith pair in pale pink suede, help break the monotony of my all-black winter.

photographs by Mikee Tuason

Please Be Fat with Me

There's no suit cut surgically sharp enough to hide the weight I've gained the past few days, but neither is there a vision of myself in the mirror with beauty that matches the pleasure of savoring the unctuous goodness of the holidays' delights. Let me share with you photographs of what I had eaten, as well as an excerpt--two stanzas of a piece I'm working on: "Please Be Fat with Me". Call this my (likely temporary) antithesis to Kate Moss' notorious proverb.

"My dearest, please be fat with me

Come join me in my eating spree

Bone marrow doused and dipped in lard

Truffles creamed, smothered, roast pig charred."

Pig foot “Milanese” with rice beans and arugula at Babbo was the essence of dark, fried pig, in crumbs, compacted, and lightly seasoned with shards of salt.

Osso buco, after the fall

Rock shrimp with butternut squash, sage, and creamy artisanal polenta at Il Pesce, Eataly. Rock shrimp seems to be having a moment, for good reason. It's as if they genetically modified regular shrimp to have the soft, fatty bite of Asian crystal prawns and the robust, shrimpy flavor of tiger prawns.

The sea urchin roe in Eataly's soft-scrambled farmhouse eggs with tarragon was almost like a hyperbolic extension of the eggs: they seemed to be part of the scrambled eggs, only much richer and umami-laden.

The white chocolate-dipped red velvet twinkie at Lulu's just is.

Morimoto's toro tartare with caviar and fresh wasabi is pure theatre: scrape the fatty tuna off the plank with the metal paddles provided, dip in dashi, run through the stripes of wasabi, creme fraiche, chives, popped rice, avocado and the like, and pop in your mouth. Nibble on the sweet mini-plum when done.

rock shrimp again, this time tempura with spicy "Kochujan" and wasabi aioli

the most succulent spicy king crab broiled on the half-shell

Cut into the pillowy sea bass with miso sauce and avocado tempura and the world and your mouth starts moving like the river grass in The Little Mermaid's "Kiss the Girl".

RJ's home-made-from-scratch cornbread stuffing

and my Kung Pao shrimp spaghetti with an extra pound of shrimp.

the tastiest jalapeno blue cornbread at Bobby Flay's Mesa Grill

and to ring in the new year, chicken rings and fried cheese at White Castle.

"I ask of you to hold my hand

When meat meets tongue strand by strand,

I moan, my spit glands go a-throbbing

In my mouth, they gush, ejaculating."

-1/1/12

photographs by Mikee Tuason

The Leather Blazer

The leather blazer gets a bad rap. I've never really seen a leather blazer that is to my taste; often they're unflatteringly cut, poorly made, and just plain unimaginative. But my Hisham Oumlil blazer in the butteriest burgundy lambskin, cut sharp but still swingy, half-zipped and vaguely detailed like a perfecto, is an impeccable rendition of the infamous jacket.

Number Nine sunglasses, leather blazer c/o Oumlil, Brook & Lyn harness, DIY-overdyed Alexander Wang top, sifr band pants, Number Nine shoes

Brook & Lyn's silk rope and Brazilian agate harness is deceptively wearable. Not wearable for me are clothes in olive green and brown, the colors that my top and trousers originally came in. Both natural/synthetic blends, I dyed them in both Jacquard iDye and iDye poly, both in black, and they're now in my daily rotation.

ring of my own design, Cartier Chronoscaph 21 watch

photographs by Mikee Tuason