Raeburn Design

by Tim Yu

Christopher Raeburn cleverly constructs high-end street wear from re-deployed parachutes and military fabrics. Sourced from uniforms of specific countries and vintages, Raeburn creates elegant pieces of clothing in stark contrast to the combat-ready materials from which they were made. We especially like the Parachute Jacket (pictured) for its breezy look.

Using mainly recycled materials, these ethically-correct garments are produced in England. The outerwear features fresh patterns influenced by bad weather conditions and survival techniques. An extreme attention to detail and quality have won Raeburn much praise and he was recently listed in the new book, "100 New Fashion Designers."

View recent collections at Raeburn Design. Their online store is in the works but until then contact them directly at their site to purchase.

Images courtesy of SHOWstudio. More after the jump

Architectural Clothes: Interview with designer Nahum Villasana

by CH Contributor

by Ezra Natalia

A normal work day for Nahum Villasana, the man behind Architectural Clothes, lately includes waking up before six in the morning to make it to his day job teaching English at an elementary school in Mexicali, Mexico. After the school day ends at three, he goes back to his house to start working on clothing designs. He often knocks off at around six or eight in the evening, but sometimes, if he has a project, he'll be up until two or three in the morning. And the weekends? You'll find him on Saturday mornings teaching the History of Universal Costume at the design school where he studies.

The latest collection to result from Nahum's rigorous schedule is called "The Armored Body." The thinking behind it, he says, was a "review in the way the body can change. It's looking for an escape in something that is designed for the self, an emphasis on the structure of the body. The body offers us an opportunity to imagine new forms in clothing structure, to protect the human with a variation of garments, as garments need a body to become a pair.”

When I asked how he came up with these breakthrough ideas and put them into action, Nahum revealed how he rarely does sketches. Instead, he chooses to visualize the shapes and cuts, and materialize them immediately over the final fabrics. If he likes the final result, whether or not it ended up as he had it in his mind, he'll stay with it. Sometimes the mock-ups lead to more ideas, or sometimes he'll just separate the pieces again and use them in other projects.

Nahum has wanted to design clothes from a young age, and would also like to try his hand at sculpture or architecture—sculpture to develop his sense of aesthetic and architecture to learn about the space in which you can work. "But I will continue doing clothes," he says. "It's something I enjoy." When asked about local designers he admires, he says "I don't know so much about designers in my town because it is not so big, but there’s a friend of mine named Beatriz Torres who I admire so much. The aesthetics that she has been developing are very rigorous and unique, not to mention how avant-garde they are. She also knows so much about the history of costume, which is a subject that I teach at the design school.”

For more on Architectural Clothes, contact Nahum by e-mail. More images after the jump.

GeniusRide Smart Car Rentals

by CH Contributor

by Laura Neilson

Despite all the steam and excitement generated by the long-awaited arrival of the Smart Car on U.S. roads, rental companies for the little roadsters are surprisingly scarce. In fact, (other than our beloved Zipcar) GeniusRide is currently the only company with a fleet of Smart Cars available for daily, weekly and monthly rentals in the New York metro area.

While other rental companies tend to charge extra for tiny cars like Mini Coopers, which are often considered "exotic" or "luxury" rentals, GeniusRide's prices are as low as $80 per day (perhaps you're paying per square foot?). Each nine-foot coupe or convertible-top cabrio arrives with a TomTom XL 330 GPS unit—and by "arrives," we mean it. GeniusRide will actually bring the Smart Car to you. And if you've never driven one before or unfamiliar with its optional tiptronic gear shift system, you can get a brief driving lesson first. "We want to make these cars as accessible as possible," says Ary Bouskila, the company's president. He often delivers them himself.

Due to the incredibly high demand for these petite imports (depending on the region, the waiting period to purchase one is nine-14 months), Smart USA doesn't offer mass sales to rental companies. Instead GeniusRide built its fleet by initially buying up "orphans" from various dealers. Just under a year old, the Englewood, New Jersey-based company now has 52 Smart Cars in its keep. And with the holidays fast-approaching, a gift certificate for a rental might be the best evidence that big things do come in small packages.

Cole & Son Fornasetti Wallpaper

by Lost At E Minor

We are in love with the new Fornasetti collection of wallpapers from Cole & Son. If you're into Damask patterns, oddities, and a hint of the early surrealists, this wallpaper has your name written all over it. Cole & Son has been around since the 1800s and has become one of the oldest and most respected wallpaper companies in the industry. We're ready to cover our walls in the new Fornasetti already. Merry Christmas, us!