Do the dip
Via a bold pair of jeans or a collectable handbag, the options for tie-dyed pieces are endless
A desire to connect with handmade objects has manifested into a renewed love affair with tie-dye. While this trend has been going strong since last summer, designers continue to play with the psychedelic technique in unexpected ways. Maria Grazia Chiuri, creative director at Dior, taps into tie-dye’s free-spirited mood by splashing its hues across her newly loosened up silhouettes. Gabriela Hearst takes the rainbow route with a wide range of colliding colours on a cashmere blouse, while Louis Vuitton keeps it monochromatic with an indigo kaleidoscope print on its deluxe hat box-style bag. For those just looking to dabble in a little riot of colour, consider Spa Boy’s dipped vintage denim, Alberta Ferretti’s three-toned bucket hat or the Elder Statesman’s splotchy socks. – NADIA PIZZIMENTI
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A Dior anorak is covered in an array of tie-dye stripes.
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Alberta Ferretti bucket hat, $480 through albertaferretti.com.
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Gabriela Hearst blouse, $4,730 through net-a-porter.com.
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Box bag, $11,600 at Louis Vuitton (louisvuitton.com).
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Spa Boy jeans, $180 through spaboy.biz.
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The Elder Statesman socks, $205 through matchesfashion.com.
Get in gear
Men’s-wear label Adsum elevates attire meant for the great outdoors
Adsum is one of New York’s fastest growing men’s-wear labels and often touts its founding in Brooklyn and American Northeast inspirations. But the two minds behind the brand share a secret: they both have Canadian roots. Pete Macnee, its founder and creative director, was born and raised in Toronto. Christian Rice, the label’s art director, spent his teen years in the city as well, before attending Queen’s University where he met Macnee in the mid-2000s.
The brand launched in 2015 on the strength of a single jacket Macnee had designed. In just six years, Adsum has gained a loyal international following by collaborating with the likes of Adidas and Reebok and opening a flagship boutique in Brooklyn. Its sportswear is understated and functional. Crisp, plaid windbreakers are cut from water-resistant seersucker. Vibrant work shirts are done up in lush Italian moleskin. The clothes often feel intrinsically Canadian with overt references to the Group of Seven and the 1972 Summit hockey series. “A lot of what we do just comes from my gut,” says Macnee, who has been leading Adsum remotely from Toronto since November.
This season represents a major step forward for Adsum. To accompany spring and summer collections inspired by road trips and outdoor adventure, the brand will be releasing a Survival Pack. Featuring specially roasted coffee beans, incense, a compact sleeping bag and packable puffy slippers, it marks the label’s first foray into designing products beyond clothing. “We just love good design,” Rice says. “We love making things and I think we can apply our way of thinking and seeing to anything. This is hopefully just the start.” – YANG GOH
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For more information, visit adsumnyc.com.
Take flight
For sunny days ahead, these shades rework the timeless aviator
The aviator frame is a classic of the eyewear world, the kind of silhouette that never loses its cool. For summer, designers tinkered with the shady standard to ensure it stays in the spotlight. Some brands dialled up the glam (see Balmain’s larger-than-life lenses). Loewe went back to the future, reworking a frameless design, while Vehla steered in the opposite direction with a bulkier tortoiseshell acetate frame. Many versions play up the style’s best attributes. Cazal’s navigator glasses are topped with a heavy bar, while a pair by the Row x Oliver Peoples blend clean and nostalgic aesthetics. Italian brand the Attico is known for its own throwback vibe and its collaboration with Linda Farrow produced a perfect pair of oversized tangerine specs. If you prefer rose-coloured glasses, Alexander McQueen has your hue while Bottega Veneta’s streamlined model is a more neutral option. And what would designer sunglasses be without their conspicuous logos? Fendi moves its branding from the temples to even more in-your-face mirrored lenses. If these sunnies make a statement, it’s “let it shine.” - N.P.
Illustration by Illustration by The Globe and Mail
Bottega Veneta Aviator sunglasses in black, $460 at Ssense (ssense.com).
Illustration by Illustration by The Globe and Mail
The Attico X Linda Farrow Mina sunglasses in yellow gold and orange, $432 through archivestoronto.com.
Illustration by Illustration by The Globe and Mail
Sunglasses, $470 at Fendi (fendi.com).
Illustration by Illustration by The Globe and Mail
Cazal sunglasses, $956 through cazal-eyewear.com.
Illustration by Illustration by The Globe and Mail
The Row x Oliver Peoples sunglasses, from $503 through oliverpeoples.com.
Illustration by Illustration by The Globe and Mail
Balmain sunglasses, $1,150 at Holly Eyewear (hollyeyewear.com).
Illustration by Illustration by The Globe and Mail
Vehla Dixie sunglasses in honey tort and graphite, $177 through vehlaeyewear.com.
Illustration by Illustration by The Globe and Mail
Alexander McQueen square aviator sunglasses, $427 through farfetch.com.
Illustration by Illustration by The Globe and Mail
Loewe Anagram sunglasses in gold and brown, $740 at Ssense (ssense.com).
Hybrid model
A Tissot timepieces marries elements of classic and smart watches
Aside from being worn on your wrist and displaying the time, most smartwatches have as much in common with traditional watches as a Bitcoin does with a silver dollar. This means that anyone who likes the aesthetics of an analog timepiece and the functionality of a smartwatch usually has to choose between one or the other. Tissot’s latest creation, the T-Touch Connect Solar, however, offers a compelling third option.
A smartwatch with deep roots in the craft and culture of Swiss watchmaking, the model combines all of the style of a steel sports watch with the advanced capabilities of a 21st-Century wearable. With a 47-millimetre wide titanium case, functional pushers and 100-metre water resistance, it has all of the precision tooling and robustness you would expect from a brand that’s been making high-quality mechanical watches since the 1850s. Thanks to its unique tactile sapphire crystal, the T-Touch Connect Solar’s traditional two-handed watch dial also transforms into a multifunctional touchscreen serving up e-mail notifications, activity tracking and calendar alerts at a glance.
Tapping different points on the watch’s scratch-proof ceramic bezel unlocks features such as an altimeter, compass, countdown timer and chronograph, but this watch’s most impressive innovation might be its least obvious. Unlike other devices that require nightly charging on a dedicated docking station, the T-Touch Connect Solar contains a photovoltaic cell hidden beneath its dial that generates enough juice to power the watch for months. That makes it not just better looking than most smartwatches, but more reliable as well. – JEREMY FREED
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Tissot T-Touch Connect Solar, $1,325 through tissotwatches.com.
Dial it up
Chopard’s collectable watch literally plays with diamonds
When Caroline Scheufele first proposed the idea of a steel watch with free-floating diamonds, a foreman at Chopard’s watchmaking workshop told her it couldn’t be done. She was undeterred. “I wanted a watch that I could wear all day long: at the gym, in the office or for a dinner in town,” says Scheufele, Chopard’s co-president and artistic director. That vision came to life in 1993 with the launch of the Happy Sport. It featured a pebble-link bracelet and seven sparkling diamonds that danced over the dial. This season, Chopard honours Scheufele’s tenacity with Happy Sport The First, a tribute to that groundbreaking design. Created in a limited edition of 1,993 pieces, it pays homage to the original with a few 21st-century upgrades. The automatic movement is now designed and produced entirely by Chopard, while the case is crafted from Lucent Steel A223, a hypo-allergenic alloy made from 70 per cent recycled metals. – J. F.
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Happy Sport The First watch, $13,100 at Chopard (chopard.com).
Sunscreen upgrade
Treat your skin while shielding it from UV rays with these luxe new formulas
NATURAL WONDER
This silicone and fragrance-free day cream contains broad spectrum natural SPF 30 while hydrating skin with glacial water sourced from the northern Pacific coast of Canada.
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Odacité Sun Guardian, $87 at The Detox Market (thedetoxmarket.ca).
BODY CHECK
Suitable for all skin types, this Canadian-made body lotion can be applied on wet, damp or dry skin, making it easy to work application into your daily post-shower routine.
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Laboratoire Dr Renaud Sunscreen Lotion Body SPF 30 Broad Spectrum, $70 through ldrenaud.com.
AQUA FIT
With its ocean-friendly formula, Shiseido’s face and body sunscreen remains effective in high heat and the water. – CAITLIN AGNEW
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Shiseido Ultra Sun Protector Lotion SPF50+ sunscreen, $59 through shiseido.ca.
Throughout the summer, new features from The Globe and Mail Style Advisor magazine will be appearing on Saturdays in The Globe and Mail. Subscribers can find the fall fashion and beauty edition in The Globe on Sept. 10 and catch up on back issues online at tgam.ca/styleadvisor.