Eyestylist

  | Eyestylist 30th March 2020

Independent eyewear: Vintage-infused, 4 different ways

Timeless, detail conscious, with a peerless level of craft

Four distinctive shapes, created with luxury materials and precise artisan workmanship. The quality of eyewear designed with dedication and exceptional attention to detail, as it was in past decades, continues to garner attention, underlining traditional values with reflection on genuine workmanship and innovation.

At the German company Coblens, the metal collection ‘Schiffahrtsstrasse’ – with focus on titanium, made in Japan – presents very narrow rimmed classic shapes this season – where every detail is visible, functional and reliable. Aviator and pilot shapes as well as round and multi-sided vintage-inspired glasses provide looks for everyday and multiple face shapes. Above: the soft octagononal model Mole in the Titanium collection, Schiffahrtsstrasse by Coblens. The octagon is a lovely flattering shape which is currently enjoying a resurgence. www.coblens.com

Gauloise by Lafont Paris – glamorous patterning and a monochrome colour palette

The classic shaping of model Gauloise by Lafont Paris is enriched with artistic colour combinations or fabric effects, which add subtle sparkle and delicate light reflections. Visit www.lafont.com for more details on the new luxurious classic styles in their extensive artisan eyewear collection.

Berwick by Savile Row – hand polished rhodium

The Berwick is an iconic design in the British-made Savile Row collection. Offering clean lines with its beautiful architectural brow line and rectangular eye shape the frame has a statement elegance which is both alluring and flattering, highlighting the line of  the wearer’s natural brow line. Find a selection of classic spectacles, monocles and sunglass clips in their online store at www.savileroweyewear.com

Christian Roth – Round-Wav in Amber Smoke – described by Roth as a ‘spacey oval’

Christian Roth continues to present exceptional pieces of design as a part of Dita Group; deconstructing its own precious archive of frames and re-imagining a new paradigm of style. The oval shape of Round-Wav (available as an ophthalmic or sunglass style) is a common thread in Roth’s collections and is significant now as one of the favourite trending ‘vintage’ inspired looks. Roth’s designs have been worn by a host of celebrities in the last decades including Kate Moss, Lenny Kravitz and Kurt Cobain, who wore the iconic oval Series 6558. For more information: www.christianroth.com

  | Eyestylist 26th March 2020

To the future and back

X Terrace annual press preview – for London Hat Week

The annual X Terrace London Hat Week Preview Catwalk Show took place on 16th March at Shangri-La Hotel, at The Shard, showcasing 54 hats made by milliners from around the world.

Milliners were encouraged to use the theme ‘To the future and back‘ as a way to show their vision of the future of their hat designs. Each piece was uniquely inspired by an arrange of ideas such as sci-fi, high tech, environmentally friendly, imagined worlds, and 3D Printers.

Monique Lee Millinery – Shangri-La at The Shard

Monique Lee Millinery was inspired by Renzo Piano’s striking vertical city “The Shard” and within it, a mystical utopia Shangri-La where people will live isolated from the world happily in the future.

Amina Marie Hood’s Mosstro Orbiter

Amina Marie Hood named her hat Mosstro Orbiter which has an eco-futuristic design coexisting in nature and was inspired by the “Fly Eye Dome” designed by R. Buckminster fuller.

London Hat Week Press Preview: Circus hat by JH Milliner (Jennifer Hughes)

The Retro theme allowed milliners to show the glorious eras of the past when hats were the centerpiece of every wardrobe. Many milliners portrayed this theme through vintage fabrics, accessories such as ribbons, feathers and velvet, and by focusing on the elegant shapes and details of the 1920’s-1960’s.

X Terrace London Hat Week: ZELLI hat by Miss Haidee Millinery

The show at Shangri-La Hotel, at The Shard, featured a selection of hats from the upcoming ‘Great Hat Exhibition’, which is part of the 2020 London Hat Week. The models wore outfits selected and styled by Hector & Karger. Hairstyling was by Toni & Guy (Ilford) and makeup from AOFM Pro. The show included shoes from Stivaleria Cavallin and sculptures from Abigail Ozora Simpson. The show was also generously supported by Maxoo fashion platform, Jack Russell Jeanswear, Yooney Choi, and Katherine Elizabeth Academy, and was staffed by fashion students from Coventry University London. Photos courtesy of @xterrace.

X Terrace have announced the forthcoming launch of The Hat Circle, a website for the millinery industry to empower and connect independent milliners around the world with hat lovers everywhere.  https://www.xterrace.com/lhwmilliner

  | Eyestylist 25th March 2020

Optyk Panski, Poland

An eyewear boutique setting trends in Krakow, Poland

A new generation of independent optical retailers is appearing in Poland, as young opticians develop a curiosity and passion for specialising in unique brands. In Krakow, Optyk Panski’s owner Pawel Szpytma established a new style of store in 2016, having taken over the family optical business in 2011. In 2019 the boutique which had moved to a location near Kazimierz and Podgorze, an historic, significant part of Krakow was developed with a contemporary architectural interior and a roster of exciting brands, which started with Tavat (from Italy) and AM Eyewear (from Australia).

Interior: a loft style with modern fittings and chic wood + leather materials

Eyestylist met Pawel Szpytma in Munich in January, and we asked him what had inspired him to open a shop of this calibre: “I was always curious for something new. I really wanted to step up my knowledge and skills. After visiting international optical fairs and discovering many independent eyewear brands, I realized how much more there is to do. When it came to the design of the shop, the idea was to mix a loft look with modern design details. I wanted to create a place with a luxury touch where you can also feel comfortable and at ease. I did a few of the finishing touches myself – I wanted to have this personal bond with the place.”

A luxury eyewear destination in Krakow

Today alongside Tavat and AM, which have become hugely popular with local Krakow customers, the shop stocks Cazal, SALT. Optics, Matsuda, Moscot and Lesca. “I am still gaining knowledge all the time working closely with brands I admire,” says Pawel. “They have taught me a lot about production and materials. Quality always was important to me and always will be.”

Optyk Pański is located at sw. Kingi 8, Krakow Poland. The name of the shop represents a play on words. It means also “your” and “royal, manor” – representing a place where customer can experience a service above the normal level. Optyk Pański has also become known for their after hours openings for customers and events including exhibitions and Whisky tastings. www.optykpanski.pl

  | Eyestylist 24th March 2020

Georgiana Boboc, Vintage Traffic

Eyestylist had the pleasure of meeting the delightful and enchanting Georgiana Boboc, one of the first pioneers in what we know now as the “social media influencing” industry, a connoisseur of all things fashion – particularly vintage and arguably one of the most genuine, talented and quirky individuals in the business today.

You are strong and confident in pulling off a plethora of colours and patterns in just one outfit – how do you choose what you wear, and why do you think you are drawn to such exuberant, vibrant materials and textiles? Fashion is ridiculous sometimes. It’s so hard to play with colours, I think you need to, or already be super open to wearing a rainbow and still feel comfortable about it and to own it. I’ve never worn something crazy to be the centre of attention – it’s because it puts me in a good mood; colours always do that for me – I was designed to wear them. Vintage is quite colourful actually; patterns, florals, geometrics – that’s why I’m so drawn to it. Most of my statement pieces are very bright.

Georgiana (above and top) in Demure sunglasses by Delalle

As Eyestylist is an accessories platform – what do you think the importance of accessories is in regards to your personal style / in the industry generally?  Oh my god – EVERYTHING – you can be super basic and just wear a white t-shirt, but as long as you have a sparkle of something; it could be a vintage bag that costs five euros, but it has a nice colour or nice details; brassware or buttons can be the focal point of a look. I have always been about details; matching my socks with the colour of my headband – I used to do crazier things in styling, but now I am a bit more chilled – I’m thirty two years old, I tried to introduce more black into my wardrobe but it’s SO hard.

When did this love-affair with colours and with fashion ignite for you – when did you become involved in the fashion industry? Just after I finished high-school, I lived in Romania so I didn’t have access to a lot of the fashion, but I was passionate about vintage before the craze of American bloggers – I started the Vintage Traffic blog in 2008; I was stuck in traffic, on the way to class – to my degree in Journalism, so it was an outlet to me; it was about women, society, models, the idea of ‘perfection’ and what is demanded of women in general – not just about fashion.

Georgiana : Paris is home

Given Vintage Traffic began as a more general fashion news / societal awareness blog – what is your stance on the drive towards sustainability in the fashion industry? I have noticed one of the biggest agencies in Paris – one that manages and organises the fashion shows for top brands has taken action towards sustainability this Fashion Week; they are reducing the plastic / paper waste of the shows they are running – I think that is amazing. It is essentially the overproduction of useless stuff that is temporary, they don’t mean anything to anyone, and they don’t help much, we are just realising that. I am still receiving envelopes from brands, paper invitations, that is so bad. I am conscious of it; I haven’t bought something new in such a long time – what I wear for Fashion Week, I wear for my daily life. Honestly, I don’t like being the same as everybody else so that’s another reason why I‘m saying NO to fast retailing. I love a Victorian dress with an oversized blazer – mixing antiquity with a flash of modernity, a touch of masculinity with a pinch of femininity, adding something androgynous to it – that’s just my style. If I got married again, I would wear a tuxedo.

  | Eyestylist 20th March 2020

Einstoffen

A pledge to show support of independent retailers in the COVID-19 crisis with donation from online sunglass sales

Young Swiss eyewear label Einstoffen is taking immediate action in light of the global health crisis by donating a percentage of their online sunglasses sales back to their long-term optical partners.

Philippe Rieder told Eyestylist: “We have decided to support our customers in these difficult times as much as our strengths allow. From 18th March to 19th April 2020, 50% of the turnover of each pair of sunglasses purchased online will be credited to the opticians in the town where the purchase has been made.”

“We do not want to benefit at the expense of our partners. Our corrective frames will continue to be available only in specialist shops but we hope that this percentage of our online sunglasses sales could at least help alleviate our customers’ losses in some way…”
Einstoffen: sunglasses collection SS20

This spring, the brand has launched its biggest collection yet: ‘Stand Tall, Run Free’ with 40 new styles in titanium, wood acetate and steel. It celebrates independent minds and free spirits with forward-thinking designs, unusual materials and material combinations, with a focus on easy-to-wear design with the occasional ‘surprising twist’.

Einstoffen ‘Stand Tall, Run Free’

‘Stand Tall, Run Free’ stays true to the signature Einstoffen style, mixing natural resources with technical materials and easy-fitting shapes. New eye-catching details include very detailed micro-engravings, sprayed titanium, lenses in multiple colours and tiny wooden inserts. Find out more about the collection at www.einstoffen.ch

EINSTOFFEN is a young eyewear and fashion brand founded in 2008 by four friends from Switzerland. Inspired by nature, art, film and music, the brand has since created shirts, glasses, sunglasses, T-shirts and watches for cosmopolitan individualists with a sense of humour. “In our eyes, eyewear and streetwear, nature and urbanity, Swiss quality awareness and a pinch of extravagance go together very well.”