THE SLIGHTLY USELESS TRAVELING GUIDE
FASHION PHOTOGRAPHY TEA & RUBBISH YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT LONDON
TABLE OF CONTENTS DEDICATION TO McQUEEN LONDON FASHION WEEK INTERVIEW WITH DUKE DUMONT TOM SYKES PHOTOGRAPHY TEA + CRUMPETS ARCHITECTURE IN LONDON MAP OF THE UNDERGROUND
+ FREE BEETLES POSTER!
A L E X A N DE R c UEEN MQ
A L E X A N DE R c UEEN MQ 1969 - 2010
Alexander McQueen was born in London on March 17th 1969, the youngest of six children. He left school at the age of 16 and was offered an apprenticeship at the traditional Saville Row tailors Anderson and Shephard and then at neighbouring Gieves and Hawkes, both masters in the technical construction of clothing. From there he moved to the theatrical costumiers Angels and Bermans where he mastered 6 methods of pattern cutting from the melodramatic 16th Century to the razor sharp tailoring which has become a McQueen signature. Aged 20 he was employed by the designer Koji Tatsuno, who also had his roots in British tailoring. A year later McQueen travelled to Milan where he was employed as Romeo Gigli’s design assistant. On his return to London, he completed a Masters degree in Fashion Design at Central Saint Martin’s. He showed his MA collection in 1992, which was famously bought in its entirety by Isabella Blow. Alexander McQueen shows are known for their emotional power and raw energy, as well as the romantic but determinedly contemporary nature of the collections. Integral to the McQueen culture is the juxtaposition between contrasting elements: fragility and strength, tradition and modernity, fluidity and severity. An openly emotional and even passionate viewpoint is realised with a profound respect and influence for the arts and crafts tradition. Alexander's collections combine an in-depth working knowledge of bespoke British tailoring, the fine workmanship of the French Haute Couture atelier and the impeccable finish of Italian manufacturing. In less than 10 years McQueen became one of the most respected fashion designers in the world. In October 1996 he was appointed Chief Designer at the French Haute Couture House Givenchy where he worked until March of 2001. In December 2000, 51% of Alexander McQueen was acquired by the Gucci Group, where he remained Creative Director. Collections include womens ready-to-wear, mens ready-to-wear, accessories, eyewear and fragrance (Kingdom 2003 and MyQueen 2005). Expansion followed and included the opening of flagship stores in New York, London, Milan, Las Vegas and Los Angeles. The following awards have recognized Alexander McQueen’s achievement in fashion: British Designer of the year 1996, 1997, 2001, and 2003, International Designer of the Year by The Council of Fashion Designer's of America (CFDA) in 2003, A Most Excellent Commander of The British Empire’ (CBE) by her Majesty the Queen in 2003, GQ Menswear Designer of the Year in 2007.
IT’LONDON S THEFASHION CHANGING OF THE WEEK AUTUMN/WINTER 2010
Designer names: Maki Aminaka Löfvander and Marcus Wilmont. Origin: Maki is from Japan and Sweden. Marcus hails from Denmark.
Aminaka Wilmont
Career highlight: “Seeing our previous collections sell out on net-aporter.com. It is an incredible affirmation that our creative vision has relevance to others.”
Designer name: Amanda Wakeley Origin: London, England Design background: Amanda is self-taught, “I made clothes from the moment I grew tall enough to reach the foot of the sewing machine”, she comments. She worked in America for an influential New York designer and retailer, whilst keeping up her own designs on the side. She soon gained the confidence to launch her brand, Amanda Wakeley.
Amanda Wakeley
E SEASONS Designer name: Tim Soar Origin: London
Tim Soar
Career highlight: “Let's hope it is still to come!”
Designer name: James Long Name three things that are inspiring you for autumn/winter 2010: “Laurie Anderson, Ethan Cook and blood types.”
James Long
Designer name: Michael Herz designs womenswear for the label. Origin: Michael was born in South America and moved to the UK when he was 11. He is half South American, half English.
Aquascutum
Career highlight: “Putting together the first Aquascutum show.”
JOHN
PAUL KETTLE RINGO
CUP CUP RINGO
KETTLE
CUP
PAUL CUP
CUP
RINGO
JOHN
PAUL
CUP CUP
CUP
JOHN
EAR CANDY BY LONDON, FR DUKE DUMONT ELECTRO/HOUSE
Known for his stomping, electrotinged productions and high energy DJ sets, Dumont burst onto the scene in 2006 when he won the Diesel U Music contest, and has since risen to fame with remixes of groups like Bat for Lashes, Mystery Jets and Mekon. On Fabriclive 51, Dumont proves himself to be quite the nimble selector, pulling together disparate tracks by Bodycode, Scuba, Green Velvet and Late of the Pier. As he explains: "I'm not trying to promote a genre with this mix; the ethos is simply to make something that I'll still really love in a few years' time... It represents what I play: groove-based, bordering on the techy side and all with a sense of emotion, which a venue like fabric allows me to express."
TRACKLIST 01. Saturn V - "Come Into My Life" 02. Audio Soul Project - "Reality Check" (Vincenzo remix) 03. Bodycode - "Imitation Dub" 04. Argy & The Martinez Brothers - "Debbie Downer" 05. Federleicht - "On The Streets" (Kollektiv Turmstrasse's Let Freedom Ring remix) 06. Alessio Mereu & Matteo Spedicati - "Attraction"
ROM LONDON
07. Gerd & The House Vectors - "We Bring U Muzik" 08. Green Velvet - "They Came From Outer Space" 09. Late Of The Pier - "Bathroom Gurgle" (The Duke Dumont remix) 10. Scuba - "Hundreds & Thousands" 11. Ieyasu Tokugama - "Ryozen" 12. Floating Points - "K&G Beat" 13. Idioma - "Landscapes"
DON FORG YOU PASSP PICTU
N’T GET UR PORT URES!
SEKYS MOT YHPARGOTOHP
Sheffield, England 23 Years Old Male
TOM SYKES PHOTOGRAPHY
CRUMPETS.* The Making Of. serve with tea.*
and enjoy!
Crumpets, of "tea and crumpets" fame, are pan-fried English Muffin-like tea breads.
1/2 cup warm water
They are cooked almost completely through from one side in crumpet rings or large cookie cutter rings about 3" in diameter.
1 tablespoon active dry yeast
2 teaspoons sugar or honey 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour or bread flour 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1 1/2 cups milk
In a large bowl, stir the sugar or honey into the warm water. Sprinkle the active dry yeast and let it sit until it bubbles, about 5 minutes. Stir in the remaining ingredients. Cover and let it sit for about half an hour in a warm place. Grease a griddle or frying pan and the crumpet rings or cookie cutters. Place the rings on the cooking surface and preheat. Pour about 3 tablespoons of batter into each ring and cook over medium low heat about 10 minutes. The top should be full of holes when they are done. Remove the crumpets from the rings and brown the other side, if desired, for a minute. Repeat until all the batter is used. Makes 16 crumpets.
ARCHIT ECTURE
IN LOND
ON: THE DETAIL
S, RECTANGLES
& APPARTMENTS