POST CARDS FROM KENT: DESIGNER NANA BOATENG

Historically, August has been the month for the fashion set to withdraw and vacation on their island or continent of choice in an attempt to re-charge for the brutal September grind (aka fashion weeks all over the place!) One of our favorite designers, Nana Boateng, followed suit and checked in with us while on vacay.


england - kent is a county in southeast england with a fine reputation. the abundance of orchards and gardens in the region have lent to it being called, "england's garden," and so it's no wonder menswear designer, nana boateng, opted to choose it for his summer holiday. the beverly hills based, ghanian born clothier has been staying in a country home there for the past seven weeks. as he tells the blay report though, it's certainly not a case of all play and no work. in fact he's been sneaking in business trips across the channel to france and to the london. expect lots of new developments come fall. but in the meantime, i beg, get into his athletic-chic get up. it makes me want to play a sport myself, or at least watch men do it. i'm sure my good friend laila would agree.

WE LUST THIS: CHRIS SUAVE T-SHIRTS

Graphic tees are relevant again with these chic, snarky, pop versions which pay homage to current events -and characters - in fashion.


new york - who is chris suave? google him baby. the art director has lent his services to many a fab company from the new york times to alexander wang. how graphic tees fit in there, i have no idea. but he is slowly being known and loved and adored for them. i spotted his 'god don't like ugly' tee on new york magazine online and then logged on to his website where i saw a ton of equally ch-ironic ones (yep. that's chic + ironic). they are all avail for about $35 a piece.

ODD NEWS OF THE DAY: CHRISTIAN AUDIGIER TO DEBUT IN PARIS

paris - christian audigier, the creative maestro behind the 'ed hardy' empire is debuting his next collection in paris. so somewhere between galliano, gaultier and mcqueen, will be audigier's trashtastic swarovsky studded tatoo heart tees. why? some things money just should not be allowed to buy.

image via: nymag.com

THE DEFINITION OF GOOD NEWS: VIVIENNE WESTWOOD'S SON TO LAUNCH A MENSWEAR LINE

london - i'll admit it: i had no idea that vivienne westwood even had kids, let alone two uber successful ones. her first son, joe corre is the founder of my favorite lingerie brand agent provocateur. her second, ben westwood is a noted photographer who is now launching his own line of menswear. no images have been released yet, but the line will initially be sold at corre's new stor, a child of the jago in london.

ARE YOU READY FOR H&M'S LATEST COLLABORATION? IT'S JIMMY CHOO, BIOTCHES!!!!

worldwide - i hate to get extra spicy in my headline, but it is what it is. h&m is serving the masses high fashion on a hot platter and they have (almost) outdone themselves with the latest collabo: jimmy choo. the lux brit label will be working with h&m to debut a line of shoes and bags which will be retailed at over 250 h&m stores world wide. but are you ready for the kicker? jimmy choo will also design a range of clothing to compliment the accesorries. and men will not be left out of the festivities either. jimmy choo will debut a collection of shoes, bags - or murses if you will - and clothes for men. this is beyond beyond. i'm not a hard core j.c fan at all (give me a louboutin or ysl or top shop unique shoe any day) but i have to respect what tamara mellon, creative director and founder of the label has been able to do in a little over ten years. she states in the press release, "We are privileged to be among the fashion greats who have been affiliated with H&M, to be designing a collection that will appeal to fashion-savvy, street-smart women and to be including some great pieces for men, too. Jimmy Choo will bring a sophisticated, fashion forward, accessible, glamorous collection to H&M – the perfect party pieces to buy now and then wear out that night!” she aint lying. this is going to be a spectacular debut. shout out to margareta van den bosch, creative advisor to h&m. this woman has zero idea who i am, but i've blogged about her in the past and absolutely adore what she's done with h&m: primarily engineering these spectacular collaborations and creating a very covetable signature collection within the h&m brand. zandile blay

photo: van den bosch and mellon above, below the duo fitting a model; courtesy of laforce&stevens

Z ZEGNA TO SHOW IN MILAN

new york - okay, but why weren't they showing there all along? z zegna, (known for their fabulous mens suits part of the ermenegildo zegna family) has decided that after five seasons of showing during new york fashion week, they will now show in milan. in an interview, ceo gildo zegna said, "as an italian brand the move to show in milan, the menswear fashion capital, is a natural evolution for z zegna. this strategic decision has been made in order to highlight z zegna's positioning & brand identity."

pic: sexy tom ford with gildo zegna. source: contessanally

AN ACCESSORY THAT 50 CENT WOULD LOVE AND P-DIDDY MIGHT NEED

www - so guess what you are looking at!? a pocket square - yes. but not just any old pocket square. this, my lovely blaynista, is the first ever bullet proof pocket square. dandy's with a love of danger might be attracted to this military grade lemon kevlar handkerchief. it was designed by liborious a company which wisely says in regards to this product: "The 21st century ninja dandy bullet-proof handkerchief made of Kevlar is exclusively sold at Liborius. The store and designer take NO responsibility for schmucks and wooden-heads who feel compelled to test the endurance or resistance of the textile in any way."

image via men.style.com

MY GUERILLA INTERVIEW WITH MENSWEAR DESIGNER NANA BOATENG OUTSIDE HIS SHOW

new york - love nana. known him for years. i just wrote about him for paper's cornered style section and decided to do some video to boot. check out his gear!

BASKETBALL PLAYER RAY ALLEN AND HIS FIANCEE TIE THE KNOT: BUT ARE YOU LOVING THEIR GET UP

boston, usa - ummmm i'll put it like this: the bride is beautiful (truly!), but the gown is not. for me, it's a matter of fit and circumstance. it's not that she's a curvy girl - it's that her wedding dress doesn't really seem to fit or flatter. also, if they were going to opt to go barefoot (very quaint idea) then she should really have opted for a gown with a more relaxed and loose finish. as it stands, the fishtail bottom she has is sexy - but waaay too formal for barefoot. i don't exactly live for ray allen's suit either. the boton celtic player has a great body which could have benefited from a suit that was more tailored and less roomy. even if their style is not on point, glad to know their relationship is. love and marriage is a beautiful thing.

photosource: bossip.com

"A WOMAN CANNOT SUBSIST ON DAVID BECKHAM ALONE" SO DIDDY GIVES US NELLY FOR SEAN JOHN

worldwide - oh me, oh my, oh yes!!!! by now i am sure you've heard the news. sean john, the clothing line of rap mogul sean combs, has enlisted american rapper - nelly - as their new spokesmodel for their underwear division. ( now i didn't even know they had an underwear division, did you?) i just spied a promo pic and boy, oh boy do i love it. and i am not even talking about the underwear, which i am sure is equally brilliant.


photosource: nymag.com

I'M VERY LUKE WARM ON DIESEL'S DEBUT SWIM COLLECTION - WHAT DID YOU THINK?

miami - so by now you've already seen photos, especially of singer teyanna taylor, pumping down the runway of diesel's swim show. it was a big deal because this is diesel's first foray into swimwear (very surprising since they've been doing lingerie for a while). that said though, i was very, very underwhelmed by the rest of the show. without the collegiate gimmics (see photos) the swimsuits didn't really stand on their own. it's seemed all styling and no substance, which is quiet disappointing since i've always loved diesel's structured/sultry design. i would have hoped it would have translated into this latest venture.


photo source: coutourture.com

DO YOU THINK HE'S SEXY? GIORGIO ARMANI DOES

italy - taiwanese-japenese actor takeshi kaneshiro is having a very good moment. after landing plum advertising gigs for prada, hyundai and biotherm, he's just landed a plum gig as the new face of emporio armani. the designer hand picked kaneshiro as the star of emporio armani's ad campaign. in an interview with china daily, armani said "he has an inborn attractiveness and looks so charming on and off the screen. his personality as well as good looks perfectly match EA style and that's why he's the very best man for the collection."

TAILORED TO PERFECTION: INDOCHINO OFFERS CUSTOM TAILORED SUITS THAT ARE GREAT ON THE BODY, YET EASY ON THE POCKET

british columbia  - fellas, this one is for you. i came across clothing company the other day while surfing the web and instantly fell in love with the concept. the label is called indochino and they specialize in custom, made to order, specially tailored suits for men. usually something like this (from say...tom ford in new york city or oswald boateng in london's saville row) would run you a few thousand. but with this company you get it for a lot less. it was started in 2006 by university of victoria grad heikal gani with co-founder kyle vucko. in less than three years indochino has gone from a simple business plan to a global brand with offices in british columbia and shanghai. learn more about them and most importantly - check out their suits. this is a great and economical way to get your swagger on boys. 

SAY HELLO TO DETAILS MAGAZINE'S NEW FASHION DIRECTOR

new york - i gotta say: i like his look. his name is michael macko and  starting june 9th he will be the official - and the first - fashion director of details magazine. he will be attending the mens shows in paris and milan for the magazine. previously, he was vice-president of fashion, public relations for saks fifth avenue. i have GOT to imagine that this is  a huuge paycut as magazines pay next to nothing ( i should know!) but all that means is that he's doing it for the love of it and not for the cash. sweet. welcome michael. should you ever need a writer , you know where to find z!  

thanks fo fashionweekdaily.com for the pic. 

FINALLY!!!! MORE PICS FROM THE CHANEL CRUISE COLLECTION. SEE THE LOOKS THAT MADE ME GASP!

for even more photos, log on to www.style.com, where i got these pics.

miami - if you read this blog regularly, then you already know that i am a chanel enthusiast. partiality aside though, the clothes from the cruise collection were in a word: remarkable. in another word: brilliant. in a simple word? flyyyyyyy.  the only moments were lagerfeld and his amazing design team lost me were: the men's clothing (at times it looked more like lagerfeld mini-me's) and the t-shirts (i get it...but i guess i don't want it.) those hiccups aside, i was blown away both by the elaborate production and the range of looks: 74 in all. ironically, they were not as easy breezy as i would like for a resort, but they certainly addressed the needs of rich vacationers who are on holiday to be seen, and not necessarily to relax.  enough of my commentary! enjoy the pics.   

WHATS EFFIN WITH THE HAUTENESS OF THIS SHOT!? NOTHING!

london - jeeze! i try to keep the language vanilla, but some things just force me to get vulgar. case in point this aahh-mayy-zinng shot from the jaiden james spring 2008 catalog. shout out to kate cox for a dope styling effort. log on to jaiden's myspace at www.myspace.com/jaiden_rva_james to see more pics. the line is designed by james ( a faithful blaynista) and rasham agyemang both of south east london. i guess i'm getting a tad bit obsessed, but these boys are good.

OCEAN PACIFIC REALLY, REALLY WANTS YOU TO CARE

rumer willis, in black and white, is one of the "celebs" who will be in op's new ad campaign. (stilettosecrets.wordpress.com)

usa - so blaynista's, i'm a nice girl. warm, friendly, sincere. and honestly, when i talk about brands on this blog, i try my darndest ( darndest is a word only really nice people use as opposed to damndest used by meanies) to stay positive about them, but ocean pacific is testing me. yes, ocean pacific. have you heard of them? chances are you haven't. and chances are even slimmer that you wear it. but if you do i still love you. in any case, i digress....ocean pacific which is sold at wal-mart is rolling out an ambitious new advertising campaign which they believe will draw in lots of customers. it includes rumer willis, wilmer valderrama (isn't this a down grade?), christina milian, kristin cavallari, josie maran, pete wentz and corbin bleu. wow. this isn't enough to convince me to flip through op's look book, let alone buy the pieces. but you know what would? well made, quality garments that will last me season in and season out. why don't companies try more of that instead?

SO KITSON IS KEEPING DVB

posh, presumably in her own label, dvb poses at the launch. (denimiscool.wordpress.com)

los angeles - rumors have been rampant, that popular los angeles boutique kitson was dropping dvb , the clothing label created and designed by victoria beckham. but apparently not. owner, fraser ross, recently said: "...kitson is extremely proud to be selling dvb by victoria beckham. we are fully committed to the dvb collection and our customers and victoria's fans ask for it daily. i've seen next season's collection and i can't wait to get it in store, especially the new dvb men's collection launching this september." so what do you think? something about this comment sounds a touch too effusive. and as with ms. posh herself, i don't know whether to laugh or applaud....

BUT WOULD YOU BUY THIS? PETE WENTZ LAUNCHES CLOTHING LINE

wentz and girlfriend, ashlee simpson.

seattle, washington - no. we may not need more labels selling tees, hoodies,and denim, but nordstrom's clearly doesn't care. that's part of the reason they are assaulting customers (i know i'm being dramatic!) with the clandestine industries, a label that's co-designed by rocker pete wentz. the range will debut at select nordstrom stores and online at nordstrom.com. starting this april, pieces will be available in the clandestine industries store in chicago. in my opinion, the only thing brilliant about this is the business deal wentz struck. as you know, we at the blay report are all about brand expansion. but, i am not a fan of what will surely be a very boring and typical range of clothes. pete nordstrom, exec at the retailer, had this to say about the collaboration, "I think this relationship shows how much fashion and music are linked," said president of merchandising Pete Nordstrom. "In the case of Pete Wentz, here's an artist who's really well known, has a proven, personal interest in fashion design, and happens to have great fashion sense too. It makes for a perfect collaboration between Pete and the BP department where we will carry the line."

BERGDOF IS STEPPING ITS GAME WAAAAY UP

looks like this from balenciaga's fall 2008 collection, should be available at bergdof's in late summer. (style.com)

new york -i'll begin by saying that at the end of the day it's bergdof's. it will always be the epitome of fine shopping. and yet, i am surprised at how many new labels are debuting there so far this year. (by the number, and the fact that these folks didn't already have a presence.) it's been announced that balenciaga will be debuting their store in store on the third floor (next to prada.) lanvin recently got it's own dedicated space on the fourth floor, while tom ford will be debuting in the mens shop in may. this simply sounds like a fashionista's wonderland. i can't wait to check it out when i return to nyc on holiday next in a few weeks.