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We sat down with Erik Mannby of Plaza Uomo and Matt Hranek of WM Brown to discuss the current state of print publishing and the future of fashion and lifestyle magazines.
Grab a drink and join us for the Happy Hour!
Memorial Day sales will not be the same this year, and neither will our shopping. The current health crisis has profoundly altered both the ability and the desire of people to buy fashion items.
As usual, we are here to help you make the best decision on how to spend your hard-earned dollars – starting from a list of brands and shops that are offering never-seen-before markdowns.
Shop mindfully.
Shopping for face masks is only the latest of a series of habits that define our “new normal”.
We are now advised to cover our face partially in order to help slow the spread of coronavirus whenever we are outside in the presence of other people.
Face masks do not replace social distancing, which is still the most effective way to curb the spread, but they offer an additional layer of protection for both the wearer and the people around him/her.
Since it is imperative at this stage that people do not buy and hoard medical equipment essential for frontline workers, we scoured the web (and our affiliate list) to find alternative options. These masks don’t take away equipment from front line workers, and they might help keep these companies afloat while they wait to resume their regular production.
If you’d rather try your hand at sewing following the tutorial of a tailor, check out this tutorial to create your own face mask using any cloth you like.
Happy shopping and stay safe.
Although the development of the suit as the global modern outfit is grounded in the courtier, military then urban apparel of Western Europe, it has experienced many local adaptations, probably none as subtly distinctive as the Japanese take on contemporary menswear.
You may have read the excellent Ametora, How Japan Saved American Style by W. David Marx. The book showed with detailed historical accuracy how Japan’s youth adopted the Ivy League style in the late 1950s as a rebellious stance and transformed it in their own way, ultimately developing an original approach to classic style and even changing the way we look at denim as not just a rough cloth but as a possibly refined one. One could say that Japan’s acute sense of aesthetics made them keen selectors of the best the West had to offer — incidentally, Japan is a leading market for jazz and has developed a thriving industry in special editions and reissues, showing their true understanding of cultural otherness.
Many brands and tailors all over the world have put a halt on their regular production and stepped up to help with the coronavirus crisis and the tragic shortage of equipment we are currently facing.
PPE is vital to people working on the front lines and we are facing a dramatic challenge as doctors and nurses are risking their lives to care for the sick without adequate protection.
If you are a sewer, you can apply to be a volunteer and make masks and gowns for medical staff through various organizations. You can check out this thread on the forum for more information.
Research suggests face masks may be effective in containing the spread of the virus, but please refrain from buying them if you’re not working on the front lines or are not sick as per the CDC guidelines.
[Update: as of Friday April 3, the CDC has officially recommended wearing cloth masks in public. This recommendation does not replace social distancing.]
Instead, you can take on a project and try your hand at a DIY face mask following a tutorial published by I Sarti Italiani, a sartoria in Sicily that was one of the first to convert their production to PPE for doctors, policemen, and people unable to work from home but providing essential services.
Here’s what you need to make a DIY face mask:
– Fabric (ideally cotton or wool, no jersey)
– Lining (cupro bemberg, rayon, silk, but if you don’t have any of these you can just use your fabric of choice)
– TNT (non-woven) fabric (alternatively, you can use baking paper)
– Elastic band or ribbon
Download the PDF Face Mask Pattern created by I Sarti Italiani and print it 100% scale.
Video copyright: I Sarti Italiani
Let us know if you found the tutorial helpful, and please stay safe.
The entire state of California was the first to have been told to stay at home, by order of the governor. In an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19, the nation’s most populous state — almost 40 million residents — must now practice shelter-at-home protocol (click here to see what that entails).
“Home isolation is not my preferred choice,” Gavin Newsom admitted, “but it’s a necessary one.”
Since then, other states have followed suit, with more to come. Have you always wanted to work from home and management said no? Well hallelujah brother, because by government decree, you’re following orders, and your commute time shrinks to zero, as does your use of body wash. Are you searching for the right way to reply to that email, or looking at coronavirus memes? Who knows? At last you can microwave fish leftovers in your dirty pajamas without your pesky co-workers complaining, the sensitive freaks.
