Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Down with massclusivity - Luxury = Individuality and custom made gloves.

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts
  • Faust
    kitsch killer
    • Sep 2006
    • 37852

    Down with massclusivity - Luxury = Individuality and custom made gloves.

    All in one blog post. Some fine little points though, and I totally ADORE that photo of Milan. I am saving it on my computer. Well, whadda ya think?

    Dear hearts, the ubiquity of luxury brands has reached such epidemic proportion in the main cities of Europe and America that you’re hard-pressed to buy anything that isn’t unbranded or covered in vulgar hardware and logos. It’s not that I’m against luxury brands per se, but I refuse point blank to be used as a human billboard, especially after having paid a princely sum to buy the item in the first place. Don’t get me wrong: If you can’t live without a logoed handbag/wallet/jacket/shoe/knickers, go right ahead, knock yourself out. But just how special do you feel knowing that hundreds of thousands of other folks are walking around in exactly the same gear as you? Is that luxurious?


    Milan’s Galleria Vittorio Emanuelle II.
    So much time and column space gets devoted to the fast-losing-its-luster subject of “luxury” — really I’m so bored I could cry. The simple fact is that luxury was, is and always will be centered on bespoke goods and custom products. End. Finish. There is no such thing as “new luxury.” That’s a silly concept invented by desperate marketing execs and their harried clients. Luxury is the precise intersection of high-quality materials, perfect form, functional design and the utmost skilled craftsmanship. Luxury is not lots of diamonds on things. It’s not everything slathered in foie gras, and it’s certainly not the latest starlet with her own scrubby fragrance that smells like floral bog cleaner and will end up down the pan in a year. Hilary Duff? Oh puh-leeease. But don’t get me started on scent.
    Since the beginning of Luxe City Guides, we’ve featured what we call Advanced Shopping — shopping for people who like to go the extra mile. We devote space to the craftspeople and artisans of each city who will custom make shoes, leather, suits, glass, paper, fragrance, furniture, whatever, entirely unique to you. It often takes a great deal of time and effort to unearth these entries, but I’ve always felt that having something made for yourself is one the best memories of a city you can possibly take home. Here are a few favorites among the hundreds of stores and workshops we feature. By frequenting them you are keeping alive their craft and making a clear statement that luxury is, in fact, individualism. Farewell, ubiquity. Hello, gorgeous.
    La Crasia Gloves in New York
    Hundreds of styles in every color imaginable for men and women, as well as custom designs. Full-length opera gloves in purple polka-dotted antelope? No problem, madam. 1181 Broadway, Eighth Floor; (212) 803-1600.
    Caroline Groves in London
    Let all the other gals run after the Choo Choo train. Caroline’s unique, vintage silhouettes are entirely made to order with wonderful details like antique buttons, buckles or grosgrain ribbons and feathers. 37 Chiltern Street; 011-44-207-935-2329.

    Caroline Groves shoes.
    Dimitri Bottier (Paris)
    Hidden away in the Crockett & Jones store, Bottier crafts superb bespoke and made-to-order brogues for men, including his signature no-seam escarpin, using ultraluxe and rare hides. 14 rue Chauveau-Lagarde; 011-33-1-44-94-01-74.
    Lorenzo Villoresi (Florence)
    Villoresi’s scents can be bought ready to wear, but why not splash out for a custom-blended fragrance from the king of spice and all things nice? He’ll guide you through the process in his fabulously old workshop in Oltrarno. Via de’ Bardi 14; 011-39-55-234-1187. By appointment.
    Maurizio Grossi (Rome)
    Want your own David? The Grossis can carve anything to order (and ship), from obelisks and inlaid tables to vases, busts and eerily realistic marble fruit. Via Margutta 109; 011-39-6-3600-1935.
    Sevan Bicakci (Istanbul)
    For guys and gals looking for something a little bit different — in fact a whole lot different — check out the astounding gem and hand-painted miniatures on the Ottoman and Byzantine-inspired cuff links and rings at this hidden Aladdin’s cave of bling. Gazi Sinan Pasa Sokak, Room 3 Kutlu Han 14, Nuruosmaniye, Sultanahmet. 011-90-212-520-4516.

    Sevan Bicakci rings.
    Retail therapy — there’s nothing like it!
    Until next we blog… TTFN
    Fashion is a form of ugliness so intolerable that we have to alter it every six months - Oscar Wilde

    StyleZeitgeist Magazine
  • reborn
    Senior Member
    • Aug 2008
    • 833

    #2
    Milan photo

    That pic is awesome. And sadly very true in most major cities.

    PS: Luxury should not intersect with mass appeal. It should squarely line up with individuality.

    Comment

    • theetruscan
      Senior Member
      • Jan 2008
      • 2270

      #3
      Dimitri certainly looks to make wonderful shoes.
      Hobo: We all dress up. We all put on our armour before we walk out the door, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that we’re trying to be someone else.

      Comment

      • Avantster
        ¤¤¤
        • Sep 2006
        • 1983

        #4
        Great article. Some of the comments

        13. September 2nd, 2008 | 12:07 pm luxury?
        i think luxury is where you feel most comfortable. and it could be a cardboardbox. but as long as your happy its luxury. i dont need. the nicest apartemnt or rings to be happy. i define luxury.

        - Posted by brooke
        let us raise a toast to ancient cotton, rotten voile, gloomy silk, slick carf, decayed goat, inflamed ram, sooty nelton, stifling silk, lazy sheep, bone-dry broad & skinny baffalo.

        Comment

        • theaddict
          Senior Member
          • Apr 2008
          • 2011

          #5
          I think the pic speaks for itself. Luxury branding with Luis Vuittons and Mcdonalds on the other side...
          Enviormental freaks, move away! My scarf will travel around the world and back!

          Comment

          • Barims
            Member
            • Aug 2008
            • 45

            #6
            That's an excellent photo, if a little unsettling - aside from featuring the world's grandest Maccie D's, the idea of places so saturated in branding really uglifies a place (see also: Dubai). As for the article, I'm reminded of something Elkann once said: "No logo and you don't advertise for anyone. Mass luxury is not my luxury." Good finds too
            ________
            indica strains
            Last edited by Barims; 01-21-2011, 07:50 PM.

            Comment

            • reborn
              Senior Member
              • Aug 2008
              • 833

              #7
              other wacky combos

              I am sure somewhere out there one can find other juxtapositions:

              Hermes and Taco Bell

              Dior and Pizza Hut

              Gucci and BurgerKing

              etc.

              Comment

              • Faust
                kitsch killer
                • Sep 2006
                • 37852

                #8
                LOL. I don't know about Hermes though :-)
                Fashion is a form of ugliness so intolerable that we have to alter it every six months - Oscar Wilde

                StyleZeitgeist Magazine

                Comment

                Working...
                X
                😀
                🥰
                🤢
                😎
                😡
                👍
                👎