Nice little article from the NYTimes about the NYC shop here.
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Boris Bidjan Saberi
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^Just came here to post it. It was a cute article, I've copied it below for those whom clicking is too much:
"Boris Bidjan Saberi had a cold. Or the flu. Something like that. Anyhow, the point is he was sick, and it was an unusual state of affairs in his atelier. Look at a picture of him: He’s a hardy guy, strong, resilient. But this time, he was under the weather, and that was a problem.
Not because of his health, though of course we wish nothing but the best of health for Mr. Saberi and all those around him. No, it was because of something else — it was because of the jackets.
Mr. Saberi makes ornately detailed, strikingly proportioned leather jackets that exude a nomad warrior confidence. The leather is meaty but supple. The stitching is homespun but executed with industrial rigor. And even as they hang in the store, waiting for an adventurous soul to pick them up and try them on, they look as if they have already been through the wars, as if they have been sculpted by the sweat of men who weren’t willing to sacrifice protection for comfort.
We were looking at the jackets, myself and an employee of the Saberi store, who was relating the story of the craft that goes into the making of the jackets. The sleeves that are pre-bent at the elbow — those are “body-molded,” she said. What a fabulous euphemism, I said, because yes, they certainly did look as if they were worn by a human. In fact, you could say they looked as if they were being worn by a human as they were hanging on the rack, so much space did each one require.
But this was no euphemism, she noted. The leather that was so creased? It was dipped in water to loosen it up, then worn by an actual person for a couple of hours to be broken in and given its weathered effect.
That person: Boris Bidjan Saberi.
So when Mr. Saberi has a cold, hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of jackets just sit there, unmolded. Unmoldable, even, because no one else in the atelier knows quite how he does his breaking in.
When I heard this story, I was one of a handful of customers in this very spacious store on a dry, quiet block over by the West Side Highway. Arranged like an art gallery, with high ceilings and ample space between racks, the room is impossible to fill by design. Not that it ever would: On three trips to the store, this was the only one in which I ever shared the room with other customers.
There are certainly customers for this one man’s mildly mad method, but by design, not too many. Look, I’m not going to talk about prices beyond the broad sketch — several-hundred-dollar translucent T-shirts, $1,000 hand-knit scarves, $5,000 leather jackets. And Saberi doesn’t do e-commerce: “Our garments are best experienced in person, and we welcome your visit. We are located in Lower Manhattan, in a quiet corridor,” reads a note on the website.
So you go, and you contemplate. Take in the ninja hoodies with asymmetric zippers, the shorts that look like potato sack diapers. There are thoughtful thumb loops everywhere. On the more conventional side, there are white leather sneakers with strips of black leather applied to them willy-nilly, and also lush scarves that scrape the floor.
Hanging on the rack, the jeans looked as if they’d been flat-pressed into a bowlegged shape. But when I tried on a pair, there was nothing irregular about them. They were skinny but sagged at the bottom — as denim should be — and the pockets bore the markings of a tremendous amount of by-hand labor.
What’s notable about all this high-intensity luxury is that it arrives without even a hint of flash. It doesn’t telegraph ostentation. The piece in the store that looked the slickest, I tried on. It was a black leather button-down shirt, thick and with the faintest sheen. (It also came in creamy white.) The cuffs had cleaved cutouts that resembled hooves. It seemed guaranteed to make you look like an awful person.
When I slipped it on though, small flecks of leather began to come off the inside of the sleeve onto my arm and hand. It was disintegrating, as if I’d just ripped it off the animal. It was primal, morphing, a living thing. This was more luxe than luxe.
Back at the racks of leather jackets, I was trying to parse the fine points. Some of the coats were treated with what looked like a sticky oil. The differences between the fall jackets and the spring ones were sort of negligible — a looser collar, a nominally thinner leather. (Some of the leather is horse, some is calf.) They mostly hung on the body the same way, which is to say eagerly, with gecko-like determination. You would have to peel it off, if you were inclined to remove it, which you might not be, because they come with a bit of magic.
When you put one on, your beard instantly grows thick and ragged, and your hair develops a weighty, oily sheen. The jacket has already been through the gantlet, and it transfers that information to you when you slip it on. Keep Mr. Saberi healthy — he knows too much."
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Originally posted by p2h View Postgood to see there is still devotion for half gods... I gonna read it one more time jerking with right hand and cuddling my BBS jacket with the left one...
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Originally posted by Monoral View Post^
Why? personally after reading that I will be wearing BBS more loudly and proudly than ever
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It's cool that he's being featured, I want his business to continue succeeding like any other. What I don't like about articles like this though is definitely what some have alluded to, when things look like they become worn for reasons other than just liking them. BBS is worn so that we look manlier! It's the first step in a brand being sought out for someone to look cooler and not just sought out because it is genuinely appreciated by its consumer or a healthy mix of both . It has shades of the route Rick Owens has been playing with recently but just like Rick, I'm not going to stop wearing BBS.Last edited by eleves; 03-09-2015, 12:45 PM.Originally posted by FaustHOBBY?! HOBBY?!?!?!?!?! You are on SZ, buddy - it ain't no hobby, it's passion, religion, and unbounded cosmic love rolled into one.
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Originally posted by cjbreed View Posti don't understand what you are saying here.Originally posted by FaustHOBBY?! HOBBY?!?!?!?!?! You are on SZ, buddy - it ain't no hobby, it's passion, religion, and unbounded cosmic love rolled into one.
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Originally posted by guardimpI would like to see BBS do better while not dropping the quality. Too many brands discussed here go under due to lack of mainstream regard. Sure, the people who find in in the NYT are not typical SZ posters - but does it matter?Originally posted by FaustHOBBY?! HOBBY?!?!?!?!?! You are on SZ, buddy - it ain't no hobby, it's passion, religion, and unbounded cosmic love rolled into one.
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Originally posted by guardimpI would argue Boris already has started designing like shit. His new stuff pales in comparison to the stuff from 2-3 years ago, and yet the price has skyrocketed. This article is merely a symptom of his changing output.
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Prices are going up, but I don't see any decrease in quality and I examine each collection pretty thoroughly. It's definitely not "declining like shit." Talk about hyperbole. Can you point to specific instances in quality decline?
Prices should come down a bit this season for the US market because of the strong $$$.Fashion is a form of ugliness so intolerable that we have to alter it every six months - Oscar Wilde
StyleZeitgeist Magazine
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Yeah that declining quality arguement is a bit bullshit dude. Makes me question if you've even handled any recent BBS.. The quality is damn impeccable in most cases. As for the aesthetic direction Boris is taking the label, that's obviously down to personal preference. I for one, am enjoying his newer output.
Although I probably won't be able to afford much of it until a couple of years down the line"The heart sings while the wallet weeps. I'd say that's a pretty fair trade." -interest1
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Sounds more like people talking out of their ass just to pour some shit. Typical Internet.Fashion is a form of ugliness so intolerable that we have to alter it every six months - Oscar Wilde
StyleZeitgeist Magazine
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Originally posted by Macabre View PostYeah that declining quality arguement is a bit bullshit dude. Makes me question if you've even handled any recent BBS.. The quality is damn impeccable in most cases. As for the aesthetic direction Boris is taking the label, that's obviously down to personal preference. I for one, am enjoying his newer output.
Although I probably won't be able to afford much of it until a couple of years down the line
I would argue Boris already has started designing like shit. His new stuff pales in comparison to the stuff from 2-3 years ago
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