Fashion & Art

  1. Behind the Scenes: ASTONISH+Shopstyle with Julia Engel from Gal Meets Glam

    | Blog
    November 2, 2012

    Here are behind the scenes shots from our ASTONISH+Shopstyle video collaboration with blogger Julia Engel from Gal Meets Glam. Shot at Galette 88 in the heart of the Financial District in San Francisco, Shopstyle’s Sara Combs sat down with Julia Engel and talked about personal style and the new Shopstyle website.

    Video producer and cameraman Stone Si gives Sara and Julia directions right before the shoot.

    Sara and Julia surfing the newly redesigned Shopstyle.com.

    Behind the lens: Reviewing the footage.

    Julia having a chat with the production crew.

    The ASTONISH Team’s Melissa Uy, Paula Renee, and Stone Si shooting in the alleyway.

    Melissa and Stone preparing for the next scene.

    Filming Julia and Sara walking into Galette 88.

    And that’s a wrap! The ladies are all smiles after a fun day of shooting.

    Shopstyle’s Tienlyn and Sara excited for post-shoot lunch.

    Stay tuned for updates about our most exciting video collaboration yet!

  2. Five Japanese Fashion Designers to Watch Out For

    | Blog
    October 29, 2012

    By Ryan Larson

    Here are the five Japanese fashion designers that caught our eye during Tokyo Fashion Week and the ones you should watch out for!

    SOMARTA

    SOMARTA was created in 2006 by Tamae Hirokawa who has been presenting the collection at Japan Fashion Week since Spring/Summer 2007. Her collections always feature a broad selection of dresses and tights. Her latest Spring/Summer 2013 collection was a series of graceful dresses and skirts in fanciful hues of blues, yellows, and greens that will be sure to make women everywhere swoon.

     

    Whiz Limited

    Whiz Limited, created by Hiroaki Shitano, is a clever collection of menswear that focuses on the “finest classics” with “individual clothing in mind.” The current Spring/Summer 2013 collection touched on the word “utility” due to the many pockets, buttons, and fastenings that were cleverly placed on the clothes!

     

    DRESSEDUNDRESSED

    Created by the design duo Takeshi Kitazawa and Emiko Sato, DRESSEDUNDRESSED is a “street couture” label that features unisex designs of a very conceptual nature. The duo’s designs have been causing quite a stir on the international fashion front for their stark statement pieces.

     

    JNBY

    Designed by Li Lin, JNBY is a great collection of contemporary womenswear that combines very flirty details with strong, edgy pieces. Through a successful use of vibrant pops of color, subtle metallics, and exposed hems, JNBY’s Spring/Summer 2013 collection shows a wide range of versatility that makes this collection extremely wearable.

     

    ato

    Established by Ato Matsumoto in 1993, ato is a contemporary clothing line that features rich colors, interesting cuts, and eye-catching shoes! The concept behind ato is to create clothes that are “believable” and thus extremely wearable. For his Spring/Summer 2013 collection, Matsumoto really focused on designing clothes that men yearn for: a comfortable combination of function meets fashion.

  3. Inside the World of W118 by Walter Baker

    | Blog
    October 10, 2012

    Now that the New York Fashion Week craziness has ended, ASTONISH fashion editor Minami Takashima and photographer David Geffin paid a visit to the W118 by Walter Baker Showroom in New York City. Minami took notes of the latest collections while David snapped some shots. Here’s an inside look at the W118 by Walter Baker Showroom. (Our verdict: We’re totally in love with the latest resort and spring collections – the pieces are simply amazing!)

    About Walter Baker: While working in finance, Walter Baker’s creative spirit spurred him to pursue a career in fashion. In 1991, Baker finally launched his first label ever, WALTER, which was a collection of tough yet tender jackets and flirty feminine dresses with innovative detailing. Now, Walter Baker has expanded his brands as a global lifestyle brand that includes a wide range of apparel, handbags, and accessories. Walter believes confidence and style are the common threads connecting women all around the world – and they forever inspire him

     

  4. UNIQLO Launch Event: West Coast Flagship Store in San Francisco

    | Blog
    October 8, 2012

    UNIQLO Launch Event: West Coast Flagship Store in San Francisco.
    Photos by Brawlio Elias.

    In 1991, the first UNIQLO store opened in Tokyo’s hyperstylish Harajuku District. Fast forward 1,132 UNIQLO stores later, the first UNIQLO West Coast store finally opened in San Francisco on October 5, 2012. ASTONISH and San Francisco welcomed the Japanese clothing retailer with open arms, starting with a special launch event with the press and special guests on October 4. Celebrating the event were Founder/CEO of Fast Retailing/UNIQLO Tadashi Yanai, COO of UNIQLO USA Yasunobu Kyogoku, San Francisco 49er quarterback/legend Joe Montana, Oakland-born singer/songwriter Goapele, San Francisco celebrity chef Danny Bowien, Founder of Brit & Co Brit Morin, bloggers Anh of 9to5Chic and Annabel Ly of Blushing Ambitions, and many more.

    After a night of celebration, the UNIQLO team prepared for the opening ceremony right after the last guest exited the party. San Francisco woke up the next morning with over 2,000 shoppers eagerly waiting in line for a chance to be the first to shop the flagship store. San Francisco Mayor Edwin Lee expressed his excitement and gratitude for the latest addition to Union Square, which brought in over 500 jobs for the city, and the amazing deals that it offers for locals and tourists alike.

    CEO & Founder of Fast Retailing/UNIQLO Tadashi Yanai with Joe Montana and Chief Operating Officer of UNIQLO USA Yasunobu Kyogoku

    Opening of the sake barrels.

    Here’s to celebrate the opening of the first UNIQLO flagship store in the West Coast.

    Joe Montana, Goapele, and Britt Morin.

    Special guests.

    Blogger Anh of 9to5Chic and photographer Brawlio Elias.

    Blogger Annabel Ly of Blushing Ambition.

    Graphic Designer Van Kim Le.

    Store display in Women’s Section.

    Top level, Women’s Section.

    More displays.

    The ribbon cutting ceremony.

    Mayor Lee declares October 5th “UNIQLO Day” for San Francisco.

    The line of shoppers, which stretched for two and a half blocks.

    UNIQLO Staff eagerly awaiting the first customers.

     

    About UNIQLO and Fast Retailing:

    UNIQLO is a brand of Fast Retailing Co. (FR), a leading global Japanese retail holding company that designs, manufactures and sells clothing under five brands: Comptoir des Cotonniers, g.u., Princesse tam.tam, Theory, Helmut Lang and UNIQLO. With global sales of 820 billion yen for the 2011 fiscal year ending August 31, 2011, FR is the world’s fourth largest apparel retail company and UNIQLO is Japan’s leading specialty retailer. Today UNIQLO has more than 1,100 stores in 13 markets worldwide, namely in Japan, the U.S., U.K., France, Russia, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines and Korea. UNIQLO continues to open large-scale stores in some of the world’s most important cities and locations, as part of its ongoing efforts to solidify its status as a truly global brand. UNIQLO operates an integrated business model under which it designs, manufactures, markets and sells high-quality, casual apparel in line with its ‘Made for All’ philosophy. With a corporate statement committed to changing clothes, changing conventional wisdom and change the world, FR is dedicated to creating great clothing with new and unique value to enrich the lives of people everywhere