Onitsuka has been digging about in the archives again, this time re-introducing the Tiger Court 82 trainers.
As the name suggests, the Tiger Court was originally available in 1982 – and only 1982. This is the first time they have been made available since that date. designed for indoor court sports, they have reinforced leather uppers and a new outsole for extra grip and stability on court.
Different colour schemes are available, all retailing for £55.
Find out more at the Onisuka Tiger website
Outside of China, the Feiyue name isn’t widely known, but in that country, it has been synonymous with casual footwear since 1920, gaining a reputation in martial arts circles in the 1930s for producing flexible and lightweight shoes.
And the shoes are still being made in China, using the same shoe-making techniques and factories that made them famous all those years ago. Some of the designs are contemporary, others, like the wonderfully-named Shaolin Soul (pictured above), have a stripped-down design with echoes of a bygone era.
And they’re priced well too – £40 a pair.
The sun might have only just come out, but the winter clothing is already trickling into the shop – and top of my list for a winter coat is this YMC cropped duffel coat.
Cropped – which obviously means shorter than a standard duffel. It also has a detachable hood, , fixed shoulder cape, two ‘hand warmer’ pockets, button cuffs and contrasting camel lining.
Available in black, this retails for £339.99.
Find out more at the Oi Polloi website
First issued in 1964, long out of print and sought after by just about everyone with an interest in classic/vintage fashion and style, The ABC of Men’s Fashion by Hardy Amies is finally scheduled for a reissue in the coming weeks.
It’s re-appearance is down to the V&A, which is reissuing the book as part of its Golden Age of Couture exhibition. And if you have any interest in men’s fashion, this is pretty much essential, breaking down just about every fashion term and item into an A to Z listing, with descriptions for each in Mr Amies’ own witty style.
So if you want to know the difference between a flare and a bell bottom, The ABC of Men’s Fashion will tell you when it’s released in October, with a new introduction by Ian Garlant, priced around £9.99.
It is all too easy to look back at the past with an air of sneering superiority especially where advertising is concerned. Old advertisements are often considered to be naïve and unsophisticated by modern standards. However, this book, 70s Fashion: Vintage Fashion and Beauty Ads, proves that is not necessarily the case and that advertising as we now know it really began in the 1970s.
Admittedly, with the benefit of hindsight, an endorsement of Dingo Leather boots by OJ Simpson with the line “Like OJ, we always mean what we say” will raise a wry smile or two, but there is plenty more to this book. Advertisements for long-forgotten brands like Hubba Hubba dresses and Pachouli Cologne, can be found alongside classic Adidas, Converse and Levi. The Levi models wearing high-waisted, wide-legged jeans actually wouldn’t look out of place in this season’s fashion spreads.
Besides the hundred plus glossy pictures, the book also has an excellent introduction (in English, German and French!), which places the fashions and advertisements in context in relation to music, film and the wider culture.
You can buy this book new from Amazon for £4.49 or even cheaper from their marketplace sellers.
I’m a fan of Georg Jensen designs – stylish and minimalist, they’re almost timeless and certainly a good investment. But these Georg Jensen Mosaic cufflinks by Magnus Steffensen break that mould a little.
Yes, there’s a splash of colour, creating a retro-style design that’s a little bit op art or indeed, a little bit like a mosaic tile or table. The cufflinks are made from sterling silver with an enamel design in a range of colours.
And of course, they’re not cheap, with prices around the £175 mark. Then again, everyone needs at least one pair of good cufflinks.
Find out more at the George Jensen website
