Concrete Playground Fashion News | August 21 2014

Teen Choice Awards

The Teen Choice Awards has never exactly been an issue of Vogue. Celebs dress young whilst trying not to give off then whole mutton-dressed-as-lamb vibe, and all the universally accepted rules of fashion largely soar right out the window. This year was no exception. Every second starlet on the carpet rocked a crop top, a trend that would never fly at any other event, and bold patterns or colours of some sort. Don’t get me wrong, crops aren’t so bad all the time. Especially this Nike one. But does it seem odd to anyone else that the time when stars choose to bare the most skin happens to be at a children's’ award show?

Les Mills Fashion Rules

Crops aren't so bad on some occasions. When exercising, for example, crops are actually super handy tools that can prevent drowning in one’s own sweat. Which is where that awesome Nike sports bra I mentioned earlier comes into it. Unless you go to Les Mills of course. In a bit of a sports fashion industry scandal, it has been released that Les Mills asks that only athletes wearing Reebok or Les Mills custom clothing stand at the front of their gym classes. This caused a bit of social media outrage, with angry Les Mills-goers rebelling against the apparent uniform required for their gym of choice. The gym responded, saying that their members were welcome to wear whatever they wished, at that the notice for Reebok of Les Mills clothing wearers was only for one filming session to promote their latest collaboration with Reebok.

Rita Ora x Adidas

If you’re not a Les Mills member who has been condemned to Reebok for life, then you might be more interested in Adidas' latest collaboration. A new collection inspired by pop sensation Rita Ora is dropping in selected Adidas outlets this week. The shoe is pitch black, crafted from soft leather to give a sleek street kind of vibe. Glow in the dark tooling adds extra detail to the otherwise basic design, and Rita's signature yellow highlights the luminous, 3D micro-knifed reptile print in a way that makes a simple shoe come to life with even the slightest of movements from the wearer.

Puma's Forever Faster

Another leading sports brand stepping up their game is Puma, with their brand new collection ‘Forever Faster’. The platform feels like the beginning of a rebranding mission, and their latest aspiration is to be the fastest sport brand in the world. The new Puma comes across as uber confident and self assured. Potentially the Kanye of sportswear, their new mantra is to embrace being first, being the best and being adaptable. Puma prides themselves on an ability to identify innovation in their industry, and being able to incorporate such innovation into their product lines. With their campaigns starring the notoriously egotistical Usain Bolt, along with football icons Mario Balotelli, Sergio Aguero and golfer Rickie Fowler to name a few of their featured sports celebs, the brand exudes determination, bravery and a whole lot of Puma pride.

New York City Ballet Goes Designer

Another venture that turns away from using standard, run of the mill cat-walking, face-pouting, airbrushed-looking models to use as coat hangers for fashion, is being employed by the New York City Ballet. In an attempt to make ballet high fashion, the organisation has teamed up with an all-star line-up of top designers to scratch up a few trendy tutus. With Alexander NcQueen’s Sarah Butron, Carolina Herrera, Valentino, Mary Katrantzou and Thom Browne all singing up to the challenge, it is clear that the Ballet wants to keep things classy and sophisticated through their employment of some of the most classical designers from over the globe.

A Taste of Spring by Moochi

And whilst we are on the topic of class and sophistication, it would be a crime not to mention Moochi’s latest ‘Taste of Spring’ collection that drops in stores today. The range follows the current trend for neutrality by way of colour palate, with sharp monochromatic tones being broken up by a gradient of softer, neutral shades in between. The whole collection is inspired by feminine silhouettes and structural draping, giving off fashionable yet graceful yet practical vibes.

ilabb{eden}

Another new collection to get excited about is ilabb’s latest range. The new line came hand in hand with the brand new ilabb flagship store in Mount Eden. The shop opened its doors with the launch of its latest Manufactured Heroes Summer 2015 range. The latest collection bleeds cool and casual, and features a few pieces that are set to become your summer staples. The range focusses on two contrasting looks. One celebrating the lighter side, with multicoloured, busy prints and the other being a darker representation of their running heroes theme, with lots of black, a little white, and some comic book-like print images. The collection is refreshing and on-trend, and sparks a little drama with the whole good-cop, bad-cop thing it has going on.

Marr Factory

Speaking of top designers, New Zealand’s own fashion royalty are making last minute adjustments and show planning in prep for next week’s Marr Factory. The week long lead up to New Zealand Fashion Week is hijacking Ponsonby’s Golden Dawn and transforming the space into a full catwalk kit out thanks to Bombay Sapphire. Stephen Marr’s six Marr Factory shows span from August 17-23, with Autumn Winter 2015 collections shown for industry, and six Spring Summer 2014 shows that are open to the public. Karen Walker, Nom*D, Zambesi, Workshop, Helen Cherry and Kate Sylvester have all confirmed their presence at the shows, and they’ll be followed up with a final “MF Gatecrashers” show by five young designers. The last show features brand new labels Eugenie, Harman Grubisa, Penny Sage, Glen Prentice and Georgie Alice and it is first come, first served with no door charge.

New Zealand Fashion Week

The second bit of fashion that New Zealander’s can begin to anticipate, is Fashion Week itself which stretches from August 25-31. It’s no New York, but rumour has it that the only week of the year that our country dedicates to the what we’re wearing is undergoing a bit of a revamp this year. Our fashion scene is getting stronger by the day, and the just-released line-up is looking promising for a better than ever week of shirts, shoes and shows. If you’re still feeling hard done by, you can always get amongst the bargain deal that is on Artsy. You could be attending Milan Fashion Week next year for the crazy sale price of just $100,000. Yes, that’s right. For today only, just $100,000. They’re practically giving the tickets away. Ha. Or you could use the money to grab a new Mercedes S550, or this cool church in Northland, or an actual army tank… But the choice is yours.

Cheap Monday Giveaway

Just to end on an awesome note. The alternative and uber hip Swedish fashion label Cheap Monday has expanded. Not only are they responsible for designing bad-ass denim and basics, but they've delved into the world of accessories. In a collaboration with Specsavers the group has come up with some pretty sick eyewear. The range comes in twelve styles, multiple colours and different looks, but the common theme of a raw edginess comes through in each of the frames, to compliment CM's best selling distressed jeans.

And but of course, we have a prize to give away including two $100 wardrobes up for grabs, so enter your details below to be in to win.