Cool Hunting
| 06 November 2006view entries from: this week | this month | view previous day | view next day |
Social Suicide
by m ss ng p eces
Pairing impeccable tailoring with biting irreverence, the London-based label Social Suicide is reinventing men's fashion, one suit at a time. Using the classic male get-up as a canvas—including all its allusions to money, power and war—every piece in their line has its own story about masculinity and modern culture. By collaborating with Joe Morgan and Roy Chittleborough, the same tailors that realized the creativity of legendary British designer Tommy Nutter, Social Suicide is as committed to extending the tradition of British suit-making as it is to upending it.
When CH first came across Social Suicide's wicked sartorial humor earlier this year, it was love at first sight. In episode 54, CH visits Matt Grey (aka Tig) and Simon Waterfall, the two longtime mates behind the nearly year-old brand, at their schoolhouse bell tower-turned-studio in East London to get an exclusive tour of their collection. From the gray "Shark" suit with subtle rose pink gils to Simon and Tig's comedic and brotherly rapport, CH's latest video installment is an intimate look at an exceedingly clever and totally genuine young label.
Ooba Conversion Kit
by Letizia Rossi
Chicago-based furniture company Ooba (makers of the decidedly un-precious conversion kit ($250) which extends the usefulness of the bassinet by transforming it into a play table and toy bin. In keeping with their mission to "create a simpler and more insightful experience for modern living," they balance form, materials and function with sustainability.
Also recently debuted, Ooba's Nest Crib converts into a day bed as your child gets older, somewhat easing the $2300 price tag. Available for pre-order now, the Nest Crib is available in walnut or maple veneers.
via Notcot
Rome Headroom
by Josh Rubin
As autumn begins to give way to winter, dreams of mountain riding start to set in.
Rome is a young snowboard company founded by a couple former Burton board-makers who wanted to get back to the roots of snowboarding—before the days of endorsements, media and big business. Their product is targeted at the 100 day per season rider and those of us who wish we could get that many days in on the slopes.
This season Rome has a new limited edition board, Headroom. Like Agent (which I ride) it's a park focused board that performs surprisingly well all over the mountain. In fact, it has the same composition as the Agent, but with a unique nose and tail shape for better park performance.
Only 500 boards were made and they're only available in 154 or 156 lengths. The base graphics are an homage to Coke's 1980s digital spokesperson Max Headroom.
The Headroom is available this month for $470 at select retailers including tightboards.com.
Karl Escritt's Live Painting
by Jacob Resneck
Karl Escritt is a Kyoto-based graphic artist who's been quietly making a name for himself as an accomplished designer of flyers, posters and t-shirts for the underground music scene in this Englishman's adopted Japan.
Recently, Escritt has made a foray as a performance artist as a live painter. He crafts his artwork over Japanese electronica dance music and remixes the final product to show a collage of visual art and Japonica music. One of his performances can be seen here:
On 12 November 2006 Escritt has a show in Kyoto; 1 December 2006 he hosts the first in a series of monthly Kyoto creative showcases of local talent called Creative Japonica; 10 December 2006 is another live painting in Kyoto. "I also promote and design for various Underground Events in Kyoto and have many more projects planned in the upcoming months," Escritt told us in a recent interview.
Schoolhouse Electric Co.
by Evan Orensten
Schoolhouse Electric Co. is a Portland-based company that's bringing back tried-and-true lighting designs from the earlier half of the 20th century.
The extensive catalog features lighting and glass shades in a range of shapes, sizes and finishes (including hand-painted and art glass). Retro lighting switches are also available. All the materials are American-made. The fixtures are cast in heavy-gauge solid brass and hand-finished; and the shades are hand-blown in West Virginia.
In addition to the catalog Schoolhouse Electric also fills custom orders.
Super-Bastard Box Art
by Jacob Resneck
Undoboy, a talented NYC-based designer, sent us an email recently warning us he's unleashed his latest work: Super-Bastard Box Art Characters. 16 4-inch characters come in a box. The sturdy cardboard dolls have a character painted on each of their four sides and feature different pop-culture icons. The detachable heads and legs can be mixed and matched for added fun.
Born Chean Wei Law and raised in Malaysia, Undoboy is rapidly making his presence felt with his off-the-wall creations that blend his artistic talent and wacky sense of humor. Super-Bastard Box Art is available for purchase online at Karmaloop.
