Everyone knows that tennis is Anna Wintour’s uncontested sport of choice, luring her away from Fashion Week each September (to Queens, no less) to watch Roger Federer play in the U.S. Open. But on Fashion’s Night Out, another match is making a play for the fashion set’s affections: the perennially underappreciated game (sport?) of Ping-Pong.The designers of rag & bone, Burkman Bros., Shipley & Halmos, and Rogan are facing off at Barneys men’s Co-op in a doubles contest of agility and athleticism. We interrupted their training regimens a week before the big match to see how they think they’ll fare against the competition. (the Cut)

(capsule), together with colette and Pigalle, celebrated Stussy’s 30th Anniversary with a rooftop BBQ during the Paris show this past June.  Check out the video that was just released here.  There is strength in numbers.  Congrats!

Please provide me with a brief background about your company- when was it started, why? By whom? What is the collection known for – what’s the signature style?

TIEDEKEN is a Berlin-based fashion label founded in the beginning of 2010. The designers are Regina Tiedeken and Tom Keller.  Regina Tiedeken was part of the label “vonwedel & tiedeken“, whose graphic design was significantly shaped by Tom Keller.  The former Westwood assistant and the product designer now also offer menswear as part of their collection. TIEDEKEN is not only a fashion label.  They also aim to position themselves in their previous fields of graphic, multi media, and costume design.

Their first collection was called TETRAHEDRON.  Tetrahedron, a volume made of four equilateral triangles, is the most stable unit one can imagine.  At the same time it is simple as well as functional, minimal as well as aesthetic.  It is more than a geometric figure.   It is an ideal, a symbol for what Richard Buckminster Fuller stated in the sentence “Doing the most with the least”.

What is the designer inspired by for SS2011?

The new collection, HUMAN SCALE, was inspired by statements of economist Fritz Schumacher.  He claimed a come back to human scale, a come back to small clear units, could often solve large, unmanagable problems a lot better than complex and complicated constructs.  Schumacher’s ideas, which he compiled in his book ‘Small is beautiful’ in the mid 70s, are not only inspiration for the Berliner designers’ current collection. They even influence their working methodology, life philosophy and general mindset.  Just like in their first collection, where the tetrahedron was their icon, HUMAN SCALE is built on elaborate cuts and patterns, reaching a great effect with little input. Also, the shape of the tetrahedron appears again in the new collection.

Launched in the fall of 2009, Jules Power is a Toronto based womenswear designer with a signature style. Best known for a sexy and colorful take on contemporary fashion, Jules creates uniquely polished casual pieces with charm. Relaxed tailored jackets and tunics are mixed with slouchy sweats to create comfortable yet edgy looks.  Jules envisioned the concept while on maternity leave, identifying a void in the market for high quality sweats in new and flattering silhouettes. The inspiration for the S/S 11 line comes from “lots of people watching at amazing music festivals because everyone puts lots of effort into their outfits at the festivals even though they are trying to look as though they just threw it together” she said. Key items for S/S include the Slouch Sweat Pant which is an amazingly soft, skinny pant, the Rebel Blazer and Batik Corset. Grey, being much softer than black or white, is the base of the collection layered on Olive Green, Tangerine, Teal and lots of Tan. “We are very excited about breaking into the international marketplace so showing at (capsule) is big news for us!.” Considering all the ‘cool kids’ attend awesome music festivals and everyone wants to be a cool kid, Jules Power is on her way to headlining and shouldn’t have any trouble breaking into the international market. See the S/S11 collection at (capsule) women’s September 21-22 and check out these exclusive pics of her line after the jump. (Santho Goonewardene)

Read on for an interview with Vera Balyura, the founder and designer of the brand and be sure to check out her SS2011 collection at (capsule) Women’s NYC Sept 21-22.

Please provide me with a brief background about your company- when was it started, why? By whom? What is the collection known for – what’s the signature style?

VeraMeat was started in 2008 by Vera Balyura in NYC. We are known for unique rings like a ‘Dinosaur Eating Fried Chicken’ and necklaces like ‘Hippo Shark Eating A Hot Lady’ who’s hitting it over the head with a bone. We also have a wonderful selection of elegant Bad Ass Knuckle Dusters & super dainty thin rings with an amazing amount of detail like the ‘Power Animal ring’, ‘Mystery Hugs Ring’, ‘Vampire Crown’ and ‘Pretty Bird’.  Vera is the designer and face of VeraMeat as she modeled for DNA & Nathalie’s in Paris before starting design.

What is the designer inspired by for SS2011?

I’ve been inspired by pets as power animals, the mystery of prehistoric creatures and the blood sucker craze.

What are some key items of the collection for SS2011? What is the core color palette?

We have a ‘Puppies knuckle duster’ that was featured on Style.com, and a ‘Camera Land’ necklace that will be in Teen Vogue next month.  We also have a spine series that’s really picking up steam.

Do you have any big news coming up in the next few months that you’d like to tell the world about?

We just got picked up by Rocks in Fred Segal, the Santa Monica store & we’re doing (capsule) in NY Sept. 21-22 which we’re super excited about!

You’ve already met the Whillas and Gunn brand at (capsule) men’s shows over the past few seasons. For SS2011 the company is bringing its women’s styles to the (capsule) show in September. Whillas and Gunn is part of a family company from Australia that has been producing quality outerwear since 1972. They specialize in mainly oilskin cloth and heavy canvas products. “Inspired by passionate, rugged hands on people who lead interesting lives, which lead us down to a coffee farm in Antigua, Guatemala where we stayed on a family run coffee farm wedged between two huge volcanoes,” the collection features that rugged, outdoorsy look that’s so hot in menswear right now but almost impossible to find in womenswear. Classic outerwear styles come in natural fabrics like hemp, linen, cotton and light-weight oilskin with a punch of color like mustards, powder blues and reds to suit the Antigua environment.

Read the rest after the jump.

“In my mind, I thought about how I see Dockers and my memories of them while growing up,” Mr. Alan said. “I have a 1970s math professor in mind.”

Ouch. Mr. Alan actually described his khaki design approach as “sort of eliminating the doofy-ness,” which is probably not something that the Dockers marketing team will be repeating in an advertising campaign.

But the new rage for khakis in designer fashion calls for pants that don’t droop in the rear, nor billow at the thighs, nor fall short of the ankle by more than precisely one inch (unless, of course, they are artfully rolled and worn without socks). And Dockers has been trying to freshen its image in the face of an increasingly competitive pants market.

“The stars in the universe are definitely aligning,” said Steve Evans, a Dockers senior vice president. “If we see a khaki wave coming, we should be on the front of it.”

Mr. Alan, who also designs collections for Urban Outfitters and a line sold in Japan called Blacker, created three styles of khakis ($128) for Dockers, including a slim cut, in addition to some narrowly collared poplin shirts ($148), military jackets ($248) and neat ties ($48) in tartan or fine-wale cord that can be buttoned to the shirt as if they had a built-in tie tack. Mr. Alan said he is eager to get his hands on his own designs.

“Recently, I’ve started wearing modified khakis,” he said. “But I’ve been tailoring them because, in general, they’re a little too roomy for me.”

Please provide me with a brief background about your company- when was it started, why? By whom? What is the collection known for – what’s the signature style?

Toni Francesc studied at the Instituto Catalan de la Moda in Barcelona from 1986- 1988 and shortly after created the Toni Francesc S.L. Company, specialized in a young sofisticated  woman, with an urban and natural style in his collections. Toni is an enterprissing man who takes care of innovation and experimentation.  Besides commercial success of his collections, Toni has also collaborated with several prestigious television, theater and Spanish productions serving as their wardrobe designer. He has garnered tremendous press and attention throughout the industry for his unique vision and abstract designs. Francesc has participated in Fashion Week’s around the world such as, Hong Kong, Madrid, Mexico and Moscow. He has presented the Spring/Summer 2011 collection during Mercedes Benz Fashion Week at the new IMG location, Lincoln Center on Tuesday, September 14, 2010. This has been the third season Francesc has shown his collection during New York Fashion Week. September 2009 was the first season the designer was chosen to take part in fashion week in the U.S.  All his shows in New York have been very well received by the industry and Francesc also received highly favourable reviews in the press.

What is the designer inspired by for SS2011?

Toni Francesc tranfers a forest-based concept to a city environment with “Urban Forest” – Spring/Summer 2011.  This concept leads us through an intelligent forest in which we feel closer and more in touch with our natural surroundings.  Wood becomes the symbol of this collection, as it has for the eco-friendly consumer, one who is committed to the environment and seeks to achieve a new and modern appeal based on the recycling of natural elements.  “Urban Forest” is a collection that is just as versatile as wood itself. In this respect, depending on its treatment, wood can present its most natural dimension, as witnessed in tree bark, or its most elaborate side, including carved and moulded wooden forms.

What are some key items of the collection for SS2011? What is the core color palette?

The Collection’s clothing items present a series of rough and enveloping forms combined with other cleaner volumes and straight, milder lines. The range of colours derives from natural landscapes, based on a predominant use of neutral shades such as beige, white and grey, tones that contrast with flashes of light in the form of yellow, turquoise and coral.  The materials employed boast their own organic language, based on combinations of natural fibres such as linen, cotton and silk, thus endowing these clothing items with texture and a sense of life

Do you have any big news coming up in the next few months that you’d like to tell the world about?

Visit our new website at www.tonifrancesc.com and follow us in facebook: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/profile.php?id=641175291&ref=ts

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