It’s time to think before we buy. Love what we have. Share what we don’t.
Editors Say With
vast consumerism taking stride within the fashion industry, we have taken a look into designers and brand s who have created concepts around a minimalistic lifestyle incorporating the luxury base point and how these brands have bought this into the consumer world with the concept buying less and buying better. We have taken a look into five designers who are striving forward into the limelight and that are creating not just product but waves in the luxury world at an accessible price point. We have moved into this during the VERY.ME.VERY YOU. campaign which is put in place to encourage our consumers to buy less but better. Every purchase made via the VERY Exclusive site on delivery recieves a reusable bag which upon receiving place an unloved item in and return to the pre post address, the team at VERY will then donate all the unloved items to women who are in need. To enpower women to help create a new lifestyle for themselves. The VERY.ME.VERY.YOU. campaign is there to create change and encourage others that small changes make big d i f f e r e n c e s .
Harwell Godfrey Lauren Harwell Godfrey Spirit of heart & soul
“Have fun and be yourself�
H
arwell Godfrey is a Sanfrancisco based art/creative director. Godfrey specialises in hand made rustic jewelry. Her passion and inspiration originates from Calafornia, where she was born and grew. She looks into the natural scale of the land to capture the essence of it for her work. Moving with the mountains , sea and movement here and creations are strong connected pieces. There is no design process for Godfrey which makes each piece completely unique and exclusive.
Godfrey uses the spiritual connection people have to accompany her pieces. The oversized stones are purposeful into how we react to different energies. The stones/crystals then have leather embossed around them using different embelleshments to enhance the beauty of the product. Throughout a hectic background in art direction and then moving forward into creative direction through the industry. Godfrey found herself atending mass meeting and sticking to deadlines and found that she wasn’t actually creating anything. This was the point where “Live Frieda” started, a connection within masculine meets feminine and the encouragement of balance. Drawn mainly to scale and texture, Godfrey creates intimate pieces to really describe who she is. Her personality and soul come through in each piece which enables a connection between consumer and designer. Keep up with Harwell via her website. w w w. h a r w e l l g o d f r e y. c o m
MINIMAL
LIFESTYLE
Philip Ayler Philip Ayler It came to me in a dream
“This is the strangest thing that has ever happened to me, because i had a dream about this jacket last night”
A
yler an LA based designer previously a musician had a dream about him wearing a maroon coloured bomber jacket. The next day a friend arrived with a gift of a bugandy bomber jacket. This was his inspiration to make his now “go too look” a reality for more.
Ayler uses vintage scrap fabrics from such luxury brands as Armani and Chanel, to make the signiture reversiable bommber. These are fully exclusive and through scrap fabrics makes them, sustainable and completely unique in s t y l e .
Befo he knew it Ayler was contacted by Before Guns ‘n’ Roses staff after hearing about his upcoming success they asked him to design and construct the bands tour jackets. With being in business for only a year Ayler has proved to have created a storm in the luxury world with Gigi Hadid and Kendell Jenner already putting their faces to the product via social media posts. Each piece is designed and put into construction by hand, finished with small embellishments which creates the clear exclusivity of the brand. Keep
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KOJA Irene & Diane Zwetzich Let’s make waves
“There are brands that are using lesser quality fabrics and marking it up three times as high, but we want to be fair to our customers”
K
oja, the Russian word for leather, is a mother and daughter run brand concentrating on a luxury look with a NO TREND policy KOJA look to how fur makes a woman feel. With Diana designing the pieces and her mother Irene overseeing the entire construction process they are becoming a force to be reckoned with. KOJA use ethically sourced fur from vendors in Spain and Italy which they themselves have visited, to ensure the animals they use have been given great care, free range and raised for more than fashion purposes. The construction is then put together in Germany by h a n d .
The pair are for hertiage and chose fur as it is light and durable. KOJA was originally inspired by Irene’s childhood in Kazakhstan where through the winters people would rely on the stregnth of fur and leather to keep them warm. This heritage is a personal one and connects them to the brand and st strengthen what the brand stands for. The duo are currently in a small location and actually hope to stay that way to keep the authenticity alive, they also believe in fair consumption and disagree with the high price levels once moved into retailing. Follow this amazing story of success via w
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Mercedes Castillo Mercedes Castillo Be your own muse
“I’m designing for someone who has the confidence to be their own muse”
C
astillo has been in the fashion industry for almost twenty years, working for such brands as Donna Karen and Tory Burch. Castillo has reached out on her own with the forefront to enpower women within shoe designs. Reaching for her inspiration sourcing from architecture, moving forward using bold colours, geometric shapes and sculpture d e s i g n .
Castillo believes that women of the modern world are more confident and cultured and this helps her within her creativity and the design to enpower the women of the future. Creating a luxury brandon minimalism and energy has worked well and with retailers such as Saks Fifth Avenue and Net-a-porter reaching through to keep the brand soaring. We have no doubt that the lifestyle Castillo is creating we will be seeing more of. Keep
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www.mercedescastillo.com
CUYANA
Shilpa Shah & Karla Gallardo Love More, Buy Less
“We strive to create a content destination”
F
ounders Shilpa Shah and Karla Gallardo’s backgrounds grow through strategy and purpose offering less but achieving greater opportunities for others.Shah recieved her MBA from Berkely Haas School of Business, whilst Gallardo graduated from Stanford School of Business and also collected a Bachelor of Science in applied mathematics from Brown University. They both believe in giving back to artists, craftmanship and people all over the world. Cuyana meaning ‘To Love’ is the essence of the brand. The ethos to look onside your wardrobe and lov everything in it. Fewer, Better things is the philosophy of the brand offering the professional woman a luxury lifestyle at an accessible price. The product base is “essential pieces” for a woman living in a modern world. Their belief is to make something to last. With Shah’s family in India growing up she was taught to shop for purpose, treasure items and not to disregard. With this in mind and using high quality materials and craftmanship the brand is strong in moving forward.
The brand has the woman at the forefront of their mind. Every piece has to be transferable from work to leisure wear and practicality. Their philosophy of “fewer, better things� really puts into practice to almost challenge the notiona fast paced career woman doesn’t have to lead the same away fom w o r k . Shah and Gallardo are both advocates for young female entrepreneurs. taking stands at conferences and mentoring sessions through different universities. With minimalistic movements soaring around strong platforms especially throughout social media, more and more consumers are growing hungry for change and are starting to make a conscious effort to take stock of what they already have. Following CUYANA lean closet campaign, consumers are noticing the benefit and the changes that can be made when we reflect and consider others. Make a difference for others. Keep following the story via their website. w w w . c u y a n a . c o m
VERY.ME
VERY.YOU
VERY.ME.VERY.YOU