Happy friday our sartorial sisters! “What’s there to be excited about in the world of fashion this week?” we hear you gleefully ask with eager anticipation. Well, there’s a stunning new pre-collection from Bottega Veneta as well as an elegant new brand from Kiko Kostadinov and ASICS. There’s also a new, iconic face at Prada, a Haeckels scent made by Kelly Lee Owens, a new fashion mag to look out for and the winners of the Woolmark Prize are announced. We also have some exciting drops, collabs and prizes from Timberland, Bimba Y Lola, UGG, Valentino, BETTTER and HEAT boxes. Here’s what’s in fashion.



Scarlett Johansson fronts Prada’s latest campaign
There’s a reason Scarlett Johansson is the highest grossing actor of all time. The Tony and BAFTA award winner and two time Oscar nominee has the power to move and captivate audiences with the range of personas she’s portrayed — from delving into teen angst in Ghost World (2001) and the epitome of a cool girl Sofia Coppola lead in Lost in Translation (2004), to the devastating Marriage Story (2019) and, of course, being badass in all things Marvel. Now taking on the role of the face of Prada, she brings that chameleonic energy to the campaign for the Galleria bag. Entitled The Glass Age and photographed by Alex Da Corte, these cinematic images reflect the technicolour codes of the bag itself, drawing them out into the world around Scarlett. Then, the photographs refract and twist different iterations, emotions and stances of the actor, like the many, many, many different individuals she’s conveyed. Most of all, though, with the Galleria bag on her arm, these photographs capture just how much of an otherworldly, global Hollywood icon Scarlett has become. TG
Bottega Veneta drops a decadent pre-fall 2023 collection
We know it may not be fashion week — though you’d be forgiven for thinking it was, what with the seemingly endless rotation of shows staged in far-flung locales — but that hasn’t held Bottega Veneta back from dropping what we would gladly wager to be one of the most impeccably, decadently chic collections we’ll see this year. Forgoing an all-singing, all-dancing spectacle to present its pre-fall 2023 collection, Matthieu Blazy and his team — which includes our very own Alastair McKimm as stylist — offered a reminder that clothes alone are more than enough to drive a point home, and drive a point home they certainly did.
Echoing the concept of “perverse banality” that has undergirded Matthieu’s offering for the house since the very first look of his debut collection — yes, that nubuck white tank and jeans combo — it offers a repertoire of similarly ingenious twists on wardrobe go-tos. In an extension of Bottega Veneta’s answer to ‘is it cake’, the opening look — a boxy, dusty rose tee and a stonewashed denim pencil skirt — is indeed leather. Beyond these haptic puns, though, there’s also space for pragmatism, with the smart, striped dress shirts you’re probably expecting to be hewn from hide — no doubt with a faint eye roll — crafted in silk, allowing for year-round wearability.
This notion of superlative yet approachable luxury is perhaps the main throughline in a collection that’s otherwise defined by its eclecticism. Though much like Phoebe Philo, beneath whom Matthieu worked at Céline, this wide range is less indicative of a scattergun approach than it is of a generous desire to offer customers the means to dress by and for themselves, rather than in line with an aesthetic diktat. Loose fit, double-breasted suiting in dry wools — featuring the now-signature bow-shaped sleeves — suggest a louche intellectual flair, and a columnar dress in acidic crushed velvet and another crafted from yards of black and sky blue georgette arranged in a Möbius drape offer poise with a quirky zing. Deep pile fur coats and a slinky black silk crepe dress with faintly architectural necklines and slashed sleeves offer a directional reading of a classically vampish look, while bobbled knits featuring intarsia renditions of Matthieu’s dog, John John, and écru yarn versions of the house’s abiding signature, the intrecciato weave, imply an almost vintage-y cosiness.
Tough as it is to choose, if we were to pick a standout, it would have to be the pieces that make especially ingenious use of Bottega Veneta’s hallmark technique — jeans, shirts and skirts woven from fine leather strips in bold scarlet, crimson and high-shine silver. In their melding of ostensibly mundane silhouettes with some of the most painstaking craftsmanship you’ll find in fashion, they succinctly capture the mission both of the collection and Matthieu Blazy’s Bottega Veneta at large: to create believable, wearable clothes imbued with the utmost care, consideration and craft. MS

Timberland drops a new collab with A-COLD-WALL*
After their first drop with Eddison Chen for Future73 — the project from Timberland where six artists and creatives are given free reign to reimagine the iconic boot as it celebrates its 50th anniversary — the next global voice in the fashion industry to take their vision to the shoe is Samuel Ross. The founder of A-COLD-WALL* brings his renown for investigating and innovating materials alongside a brutalist style and the result is this sleek, stone six-inch boot with its usual detailing peeled back to reveal a clean and minimalist aesthetic. Samuel also reimagined the the 3-Eye Lug Handsewn Boat Shoe — in Black ballistic nylon and premium leather, as well as crafting an apparel collection of cargo shorts, insulated vests, sweaters and parkas inspired by never-before-seen pieces in the Timberland archives. “My earliest memories of Timberland go back some 20 years, to when I was a child travelling around the Caribbean, where my family is from, and seeing the brand’s influence on the culture. In places like Barbados and St. Vincent there is a deep respect for heritage and ensuring the sanctity of craftsmanship. The opportunity to work on a project surrounding the anniversary of the boot immediately pulled a heartstring,” Samuel said in a statement. The Timberland® × Samuel Ross Future73 Collection is available now via *A-COLD-WALL and Timberland websites, Timberland stores and select retailers. A second unique drop is also expected in August. TG

DJ Kelly Lee Owens translates sound to scent for Haeckels
The Proust readers among you will know that scent (well, in A la recherche de temps perdu it’s actually taste, but whatever) has the power to awaken memories that typically lie dormant in our subconscious mind. It’s a fact that award-winning electronic music producer Kelly Lee Owens is acutely aware of, but rather than pen a rambling 3000-page novel pondering the intricacies of memory and time, her desire to explore this notion led her to develop a fragrance that awakens latent remembrances in collaboration with Haeckels. Specifically engineered to elicit experiences that’ll be familiar to us all, Scent08 is the result of a process that echoes Kelly Lee’s approach to building musical landscapes. Sonic triggers are swapped out for olfactory ones, with notes recalling the scent of fresh rain on hot tarmac, the dark caramel tones of Italian roast coffee, and jet fuel and sweet English roses. An eclectic blend, for sure, but one that’s sure to elicit intrigue at first whiff, and a barrage of questions to the tune of: “What the hell does that remind me of?!” To sample it for yourself, stop by Haeckels’ brick-and-mortar locations in London or Margate, or order online here. MS

UGG teams up with Opening Ceremony
To celebrate the 20th anniversary of Opening Ceremony, the 00s-born, NYC-based brand that has previously collaborated with Chloë Sevigny and Spike Jonze has now released a special iteration of UGG’s popular Tasman Slippers. Importantly, the insoles of these unisex mules are made from 60% recycled wool, playing on both brand’s commitment to the environment. Available in black, white, chestnut and oxblood, they also have a versatile formal and casual energy with an exaggerated front buckle, belt-detailing, chunky platform and exposed shearling. They’re launching earlier this month online, and let’s just say if Wednesday Addams was going to buy a pair of UGG shoes, she’d get these. TG



A new fashion magazine drops a new look on a new model every day
“Everyone I know was consuming fashion imagery over social media and I felt that it would be exciting to offer something that was made directly for Instagram and TikTok. Something that felt alive and immediate,” says Natalie Tauger, founder of LOOK ONE magazine. The concept of the editorial is simple: each day they will drop a new story consisting of a new look on a new model, all photographed and styled by Natalie. Working from her Chinatown apartment and collaborating with her friends, the result is an exploration of New York City fashion and culture, and a new visual story from it being told with each new image. The constantly refreshing format makes the magazine a fun playground to explore different styles and identities too: “If we want to change the layout, we can. If we want to shoot older clothes, we can. I’ve been fortunate to shoot models of all different ages, ethnicities, sizes and gender identities. It’s very exciting to have the freedom to say what we want to say, when we want to say it.” Check out the fun editorials on the LOOK ONE Instagram and TikTok accounts. TG



Valentino menswear goes solo for Milan Fashion Week
Once upon a while ago, going co-ed was the hot new trend at fashion weeks, with major brands unifying their menswear and womenswear shows in the name of eroding the stark divisions between gendered collections. It was heralded as a sign of changing times, but, well, those times have only gone and changed again, with numerous luxury houses choosing to return to split presentations. The reasons behind this shift are, of course, multifaceted, but that’s not what we’re here to discuss — we’ll save that for a soon-to-be-published corker of a feature (!!). Rather, we’re here to share that Valentino is the latest to follow suit, choosing to return to the Milan Fashion Week Men’s calendar this June for the first time since 2020. Set to take place at the Università degli Studi di Milano Statale on June 16th, the show will reiterate the significance that the city has played in the house’s story, as well as its commitment to its menswear clientele. Just one month to go to see what Pierpaolo and the team have in store! MS

Lagos Space Programme and A. Roege Hove win big at the Woolmark Prize
Drum roll please!! And the winners of the International Woolmark Prize 2023 is: Lagos Space Programme and A. Roege Hove! Taking home the Woolmark Prize itself is Lagos Space Programme, the non-binary, luxury, slow fashion project exploring African futures and craftsmanship that was established in 2014. Taking home the Karl Lagerfeld Award for Innovation is A. Roege Hove, the Copenhagen-based conceptual knitwear brand that looks to challenge traditions and bring a modern twist to the established ways of craftsmanship. Each will be awarded $20K and $10K, respectively, and will receive support from leading figures in the industry who also served on the judging panel for the award. This year’s theme was dialogue, looking at fashion and craftsmanship as an important way to speak to and for the next generation. It made sense, then, this year’s ceremony would return to Paris where Karl, Saint Laurent and Valentino first won the award and went on to become legendary figures in the fashion world. With last year’s winners Saul Nash and MMUSOMAXWELL already going on to do great things, we can’t wait to see where Lagos Space Programme and A. Roege Hove go. Congrats! TG



LVMH Prize finalist BETTTER drops a collection of summer suiting
Suiting is hardly the first sartorial category that comes to mind when you think of summer dressing, but one brand set on changing that is BETTTER, the upcycling-led initiative fronted by former Vogue Ukraine fashion director Julie Pelipas. For OUT OF OFFICE, the LVMH Prize finalist’s latest drop, the brand takes tailoring to Tel Aviv’s world-famous beachfront, with pieces crafted from deadstock suits given sensuous, after-work makeovers. A sharply constructed grey jacket features a gaping cutout that bares the back and cleverly frees the right arm, keeping the yoke, collar and left sleeve intact, while the nipped waist of a black coat is similarly subtracted to offer a tonal intersection of flesh. Elsewhere, bralettes are constructed in wool, and the sleeveheads of an architectural jacket are slashed and loosely reattached, creating the illusion of a floating piece. For anyone who thought tailoring was only appropriate for office jobs and formal events, here’s cause to think again! MS

Kiko Kostadinov and ASICS are launching a new brand
Kiko heads! Oh me, oh my, do we have good news for you! This week it was announced that both the menswear and womenswear studios will be taking their relationship with ASICS to the next level, releasing not another cultishly adored collaboration, but rather a whole bloody brand! Titled ASICS NOVALIS, the unisex capsule line will see Kiko Kostadinov, Laura Fanning and Deanna Fanning bring their creative brain power into the ASICS studio, resulting in a line of wardrobe staples “focussed on day-to-day performance and wearability”, a release reads. “There is an emphasis on function and simplicity grounded in the innovative cut, proportions and playful thought that define the Kiko Kostadinov worldview,” it continues. “Garments are typified by their considered construction and minimal embellishment; a no-nonsense rejection of the superficially spectacular in favour of subtle elegance.” Exciting as that all sounds, we’ll have to wait a little while till we see what that looks like in practice, with the first reveal due to take place in October during Paris Fashion Week. While we’re pretty pleased that summer’s finally here, honestly, autumn can’t come sooner for this reason alone. MS


Bimba Y Lola eternalises the spirit of summer with a new swimwear drop
If there is anyone who knows how to dress for the sunny season, it’s Bimba Y Lola. The brand lives in an enviable world where it is eternally summer and their latest drop has our beachwear sorted. Retro square-neck bikinis are covered in large coral prints, alongside pink pinafores, fringed skirts and pearl green silky tops reminiscent of the moving waters. Elsewhere, maxi dresses, bucket hats and the Raffia Hobo bag are made out of mesh, resembling a fishing net, the latter then with a metal logo and long chain caught in its weave. Of course, no retro beach look would be complete without some funky printed platform flip-flops, black out, cat-eye sunglasses and light, colourful headscarves to serve full Hollywood starlet on vacay on your ocean drive. Check out the full collection on the Bimba Y Lola website or in stores. TG
HEAT and FLANNELS launch a new prize for budding fashion entrepreneurs
The explosive success of HEAT, the business where you can buy a mystery box filled with streetwear fashion goodies, is not only genius entrepreneurship, it’s also sustainable by finding a home for deadstock and unsold products. That’s why, British retailer Flannels have partnered with them on a new prize: The Ignite Prize. Three awards will be given out to those with either a business proposal, or a business in its early stages that champions fashion, innovation and circularity. Each winner will receive a £10,000 grant, alongside mentorship from Joe Wilkinson and Mario Maher, founders of HEAT, as well as others within the awards panellists. There is also the potential to work with Flannels on a project too. So, got a unique, stylish and sustainable idea that’s going to change the fashion world? If you’re between the ages of 18 to 25 you can apply for the award through June 9, 2023, here. Winners will then be announced on July 7, 2023. Good luck!!! TG