it was cunning it was done with style

First order of business…congrats to Gracekat on winning the giveaway!

As we know, today was the launch of the highly anticipated +J line at Uniqlo. I had set my alarm to go off early but somehow jolted awake an hour later than scheduled and when I finally arrived, my heart sank- the line nearly went around the block. Don’t any of these people have jobs???

I had the advantage of knowing exactly what I wanted to get but I had a hard time finding them in the right color and size combinations, as much of the stock was depleted already, though it was only a few hours after the doors had opened.

What I tried on:

This long coat would have fit impeccably had I been able to find one in my size, otherwise it was perfect. Same goes for the shirt underneath, with Jil’s signature collar. Wish I could explain the details of the shirt that make it so well-constructed.

Would have snapped this up but I couldn’t find it in black. I’m particular about the way jackets fit- I like them to fit really snug and cut razor sharp, with high-set armholes. And sleeves always tend to be too long for my arms, but not these! They were the perfect length

In the end, I met the two pieces halfway and got this long wool blazer. Love the ever so slightly nipped waist. They were all made of this soft, lightweight yet substantial wool blend, not cheap, thin or scratchy at all. (PLEASE bear with me…having serious camera issues right now, even the DSLR is on the fritz.)

In honor of the occasion, I decided to break out my new (old?) Jil Sander collection boots from fall 2007. Bought them last month for something like 85% off!

After thinking it over for a bit and looking through my closet, I’m seriously considering exchanging the long blazer for the short one as I don’t have many jackets that length. Impulse is also a factor here as I’m increasingly drawn to the details of the former…the slanted pocket for example. Guess I’m headed back there…

Back on the Grind

Look who’s back….the hiatus from blogging was necessary as I was feeling frazzled, uninspired and overwhelmed by the pressure of keeping up with the ~blogosphere~ (typing out that word makes me cringe so hard).

Especially at a time where everything supposedly new and exciting just seem like unecessary additions to an already over-saturated and homogeneous market. It seems like a lot of these new young brands pop up solely to target bloggers and their often young readerships with renditions of the same white-hot trends over and over again and have no viable plans for sustaining their labels. When people allow themselves to be pandered to so easily, why not? It might be too early to tell, but I expect we’ll be seeing a lot of unfortunate flame-outs in the not so distant future.

And the homogeneity doesn’t just end there. Everything is simply “sooo killer”, wicked, extreme and hardcore 2 the max these days, it seems. Nice Cramps and Misfits shirts, I wonder if much of the populace in question have ever listened to a single song of theirs before. (Personally, I’m not a fan and think it’s absolutely heinous to wear a shirt of a band that you know nothing about in earnest.) Dressing in a certain style is one thing, but you shouldn’t really have to change your whole persona to fit the look and get the “cred”.

Wondering if I should even bother trying to catch up and read the backlog posts? It might be impossible at this point, haha.

( Vogue Paris via tFS)

On a more positive note, start saving your pennies for +J, Uniqlo’s line created in conjunction with Jil Sander.

It’s not just hype!! I was beyond fortunate enough to assist on the shoot for the campaign and scrutinize every single piece in the line. None of the images released so far do any justice to the collection!

There are THE best wool coats, razor sharp trousers, blazers, shirts, super soft cardigans and so on. The quality and fits are goooood. Personally, I’m looking to pick up one of the blazers and a coat, so you can be sure I’ll be there bright and early when it’s released in October, obligations be damned!

And the campaign is really beautiful too…wonder when the rest if it will come out?

Shot by David Sims and styled by Joe McKenna, longtime Jil Sander collaborator- he used to style her campaigns and shows when she still had ownership of her namesake brand, so he definitely knows what he’s doing. I was a bit dubious of the choice to use Isabeli Fontana for this at first, but it just shows how very little I know about such marketing matters… she looks great and really showcases how elegant and impeccable the clothes are.