the underground of underground fashion...

There seems to be a new label every month from places like London, Antwerp, Stockholm...Seeing progressive designers from countries with a less exposed fashion industry makes me quite excited. Here are a few I find interesting:

Czech:

Romania:

Thailand:

Mexico:

Progressive Basics?

There are such discrepancy between more avant-garde fashion and the basics, much like the industry itself. Johanna's collection really blurs the boundary between the two. The whole look is very superhero-like, but when looking at each individual piece, it's really wearable.

Clothes that Change with Time

Very inspiring concept, dress changes shape as balloon shrinks, from Finnish designer Minna.

Size of the balloons and their shrinking time create the draping of the dress.

I remembered having a similar discussion about clothes that change with time with Chinese designer Lizibin in Beijing. He tried to develop a kind of shoes which there's a graphic on the sole and the graphic gradually unveils as the sole erodes after walking. The pair of shoes thus changes overtime...

This concept ties back to Brett's piece in Project White T-Shirt, which he buried the white t-shirt for 185 days under his garden, showing that the world "ate" the t-shirt.

Fashion is often superficial, pieces with a more progressive concept such as the balloon dress would be seen as a dress with some drapings. People rarely look beyond the physical form of clothing, not to mention pursuing a deeper understanding of the interaction between clothing and time...

Damir Doma vs Gandhi vs Fabrics Interseason

The first look from Damir Doma this season really reminds me of Gandhi. The rope, the glasses and of course the walking stick, essentials of the Gandhi look...