The Bright Side
Infused with colours of the sun, sand and sea, Hermes latest accessory collection is as cheerful as it is covetable.
We could all do with more colour in our lives these days, and Hermes amply delivers a dose of chromatic cheer with its Spring/Summer 2021 collection. Imagine bright orange, yellow and blue colour accessories ranging from pyramid-studded aluminium cuffs to textile bracelets and beach towels to swim shorts. Shoes and silks, too, come in a spectrum of hues. Sneakers feature splashes of colour such as sky blue, blush and coral, while a scarf by designer Daisuke Nomura features a toy horse with a mane resembling a punk mohawk and appropriately clashing hues.
Hermes bags are always a highlight, but this season’s collection is pretty exceptional. Summery hues such as raspberry pink adorn the new Birkin 35 Fray Fray bag in calfskin and H twill canvas (a cotton twill with hand-fringe edges). If you prefer muted colours, there is the Haut a courroies bag in canvas and calfskin in colour combinations such as olive and black inspired by military uniforms. It features numerous pockets, including a removable one for a water bottle. According to Hermes, the bag evokes the spirit of an adventurer because, hey, a mental vacation doesn’t always have to take place at the beach.
01 INSIDE OUT
Subverting tailoring codes has become de rigueur for menswear brands these days, but Dunhill’s Spring/Summer 2021 take is extraordinary. Merging the individualistic New Romantic style of the 1980s with relaxed tailoring, the brand brings to the fore typically hidden materials and techniques. Traditional reinforcing fabrics such as chest canvas, shoulder canvas and /LQHQ +ROODQG GXOO ƓQLVK OLQHQ used by tailors to reinforce seams) are used to construct relaxed, evening or half-wrap jackets. Elsewhere, pad stitching, usually used in internal layers, decorates collars and lapels, are revealed because these hardworking, hidden details deserve their time in the sun.
02 CLEAR VISION
Known for its distinct design language across product categories, Cartier again offers fresh interpretations of its iconic watch and jewellery designs in Spring/Summer 2021 eyewear collection. Recently updated and relaunched, the Pasha de Cartier round-watch family inspires a new pair of Pasha sunnies – round, of course, and detailed with Godron and C de Cartier motifs at the temples. Another standout: Premier de Cartier shades, a navigator design with a full metal construction that mixes the modern and the vintage, DQG UHIHUHQFHV WKH EUDQGōV ƓUVW eyewear collection launched in 1983.
03 A GOOD TURN
Hybrid shoes with a mix of LQŴXHQFHV DQG PDWHULDOV continue to be a trend, and Berluti’s latest City collection VKRH 7ZLVW LV D UHƓQHG WDNH on the classic boat shoe. Two variations feature uppers made from the brand’s patinated Venezia leather or a mix of said leather with Berluti’s signature canvas. The lugged outsole on ERDW VKRHV LV DOVR D GHƓQLQJ characteristic and, despite its chunky appearance, is made IURP D ŴH[LEOH OLJKWZHLJKW rubber. Sealing the fact that these aren’t your average boat shoes are details such as handstitching on the apron and heel parts of the shoe, as well as the D-ring, a decorative feature on Berluti’s leather goods.