BBC Glow in the dark T-shirt

If you’re looking for the perfect outfit to go with your glow in the dark Reebok kicks, look no further than this design from Billionaire Boys Club. Peter Pans of fashion, Nigo and Pharrell carry on refusing to grow up with this tin robot design which lights up when the lights go off.
I’m been quite sniffy about BBC lately but I do like this one. BBC is always a bit more restrained than its sister brand Ice Cream, and its references are more subtle. I know a glow in the dark robot isn’t very subtle, but its all relative.
You can get hold of this at We Sold Out.

CNC Hooded Jacket

With Winter being in full force, you’re
going to need some protection for your head. As a fashion-forward individual
this can be a bit of a problem. Traditional woolly hats tend to make the wearer
look like a life-size condom, which obviously isn’t flattering. Over-sized hats
are an option, but they tend to make the wearer look like a slightly loose
life-size condom.

The only real alternative is a good ol’
hood. But seeing as wearing any old hood can get you kicked out of Lakeside,
you’ll need a stylish one like this hooded
jacket from CNC. The off-kilt zip is a quirk that adds character to this
jacket, giving it an edge over high street clothing. Still not sure if it’s
worth $710 though.

ECAL T-shirts

This is what your insides look like after a big feed and a good sleep. Look at them – they’re so happy.
To celebrate the opening of a new campus, the reknowned University of art and design in Switzerland (AKA ECAL), have asked their alumni to design a range of T-shirts which are on sale through their website. This smirk-some design is by Sylvie Fleury and is sweet enough to give you toothache.
You can explore the rest of the range here – but hurry as they’re selling like hot cakes and are decidedly limited edition.

Triko skatewear

At school, when Mlle. Henri, our new French French Teacher saw that our text books were teaching us that “tricot” was an acceptable word for jumper, she was highly amused. According to her, “tricot” was the equivalent of  “bloomers” or “singlet” – not words young people would use to describe their clothes. How she mocked that Tricolour text book.

Perhaps in defiance of ageist French teachers everywhere, when Hector Estrada launched his own clothing label in 2001, he called it Triko, rescuing the word (sort of) from the dustbin of history…

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McQ Futuristic Hoodie

How did this one pass me by? I’ve  been scrutinising the McQ collection, the diffusion line from Alexander McQueen hoping that it would turn up something wearable, and I totally missed this little number. I suspect foul play.
I have, what you might call a “penchant” for printed hoodies (penchant is French for addiction). However, this one I’m sure you’ll agree is a beaut. What is that print? I wouldn’t even know how to describe it. The only thing it reminds me of is the workings of my Jelly see-through Swatch, which I had when I was about 14. The colour combination is genius.
And what’s more, it’s on sale – sale! – from Factory People. It’s still $188, but that’s peanuts compared to other McQ stuff.

Dior SS 2008 Hoody

As I’ve said before, I’m really not
impressed with the S/S 2008 Dior range. My main gripe with this collection -
aside from the ill-fitting jeans – is the fact that much of it is too
derivative.

The hoody on the left is pretty representative
of their collection – ugly and derivative. It looks like a GSCE student’s
attempt at a Jackson Pollock and the styling is something that Artful Dodger
did to greater effect. Seeing as Dior have dipped lately, hopefully some other
designer will come and take the skinny tailored mantle for a few seasons,
otherwise Pete Doherty will have nothing to wear.

Nom de Guerre High Collar Coat

If you’re not so flush with cash that you can afford a proper overcoat as well as a casual jacket for winter, this High Collar coat from Nom de Guerre offers a good compromise. It’s smart enough to be worn when you need to look posh, but will look equally at home when you’re on a night out or down the pub.
The military detailing is quite current as well, and the thick fleece lining will keep you nice and snug. The high collar is clearly the selling point and it’s a really nice touch – it can be rolled up for extra warmth or rolled down to stay out of the way.
They’re available from Context, but look out for something similar in the forthcoming sales.   

Dolce & Gabbana double breasted pea coat

Pea coats are all the rage at the moment.
We’ve featured them
numerous times and we thought
we’d found all the double breasted pea coats that were worth finding. We were
wrong. This Dolce
& Gabbana herringbone coat features every popular trend without looking
over designed.

With all that said, I could have done
without the shoulder flaps. But apart from that, this coat is as close to
perfection as you can get. As you’d expect, this coat isn’t cheap, costing
£965. It is worth it though and if you can afford it, you might as well get
something worth the money. 

Dior SS2008 Leather Jacket

The Dior SS2008 collection has been
underwhelming so far, seemingly taking out everything that worked and leaving
everything that didn’t. Seeing as we’re optimists here at Brandish, we’ve picked an item from the collection
that’s actually quite nice.

I’m fully aware that ‘quite nice’ is the
worst compliment you can get, as it’s something someone would say about a packet of digestives rather than talking about a clothing collection.
But that’s the best I can say about this leather jacket. It’s not mind blowing,
amazing or any other superlative. It’s just nice.

Acronym Grey Sweat

It’s a bit of a bugbear of mine (one of many) when you have clothes where every inch of them is spangled or bejewelled or ripped or embroidered or printed. I think it looks really crass.
On the other hand, when an item is loaded with lots of small details, like this sweatshirt from Acronym, I really like it.  Head over to The Glade and inspect the details through their nine (nine!) separate close ups. Its really quite impressive. Clever construction has given the sweatshirt some nice seam detailing, and the oddly positioned pockets on the front may not be practical but they look great. There’s also a bit of piping and a small embroidered logo to catch your eye.
All the clever detailing draws you in and creates interest without screaming for attention. Nice job Acronym.

Concrete Hermit T-shirts

Concrete Hermit is a ‘post-neo-old-skool’ T-shirt, print and book shop in London’s fashionable Shoreditch. They work with a number of selected graphics artists to produce their products which are as quietly anarchic as they are desirable.
Their products are also available through their web-shop where you’ll find amongst, other things, these monster T-shirts by Motomichi, which ably illustrate the Concrete Hermit aesthetic: quirky and amusing, with a strongly graphic design.
They’re all fairly reasonably priced too – between £25 and £30. I know North Americans might find that extortionate, but here’s it’s the price of a sandwich.