When his name is mentioned, the tone often becomes pathetic: Virgil Abloh, who became famous as the designer of the Louis Vuitton men’s line, was an exceptional talent in fashion – and above all an exceptional phenomenon. Much about the life story of the American from a suburb of Chicago was extraordinary: a career changer climbs the highest peaks of couture, he is the first black person to take over the creative direction of a French luxury fashion house, his own brand Off-White quickly becomes a cult label – and then of course the early and unexpected death at just 41 years old. The funeral took place in December 2021 and events and releases to mark the first anniversary are slowly rolling in. For example with the new book Louis Vuitton: Virgil Abloh, published by Assouline. Depending on whether you want to spend 120 or 1200 euros for the volume, it will be delivered as a normal hardcover or in a gift box with a cloth carrying bag and white gloves for gentle leafing through. The more than 320 illustrations provide an overview of the eight men’s collections that Abloh designed for Louis Vuitton, as well as his sneakers, valuable collector’s items even during his lifetime. In January, 200 pairs of his designs for Nike fetched more than 22 million euros at an auction. The texts in the illustrated book come from the fashion critic Anders Christian Madsen, who worked with the designer for a long time and does not try to hide how the book is meant about his magnificence, about Virgil Abloh’s “supersized glory” – as a single homage (eu.assouline.com).
Eco box with a difference: the green box for at home.
(Photo: manufacturer)
The gardening year is slowly coming to an end. But that does not mean that you can no longer grow fresh herbs or salads yourself – on the contrary. With a so-called green box of the Berlin start-up “Berlin Green” they are even closer. The starter kit contains a wooden planter with a sophisticated interior, such as integrated lighting and an optimized watering program. According to the instructions, a small indoor kitchen garden can be grown in it, which is managed largely independently via the app and in which the first leaves should sprout from the special substrate after a few days. The young company promises that herbs, salads and even tomatoes will grow almost foolproof regardless of sunlight. Pleasant side effect: the box looks good in the apartment. All you need is a bit of countertop (or desk) space and a nearby power outlet (berlingreen.com).
Sunny yellow and biodegradable: the new “Circle One” cases from Horizn Studios.
(Photo: manufacturer)
In recent years, luggage has become lighter on the one hand (polycarbonate and polypropylene followed aluminum) and smart on the other (can be located with built-in power banks or via GPS). The Berlin manufacturer Horizn Studios has now introduced the new “Circle One” line of cabin cases: The hard shell – available in sun yellow or more discreetly in natural white, blue or black – is made of flax and resin and is said to be lighter than aluminium, more durable than polycarbonate and biodegradable. The handles are offset with grain and nut shells and the zippers are recycled. Horizn Studios is granting a 30 percent discount up to the 30th birthday: “Younger generations are already bearing most of the costs caused by climate change,” says the online shop. Deliveries will start in January 2023 (980 euros, horizn-studios.com).
Notes of apple jelly: Monkey 47 has presented a Berlin gin from the “Experimentum Series”.
(Photo: manufacturer)
Gin – is there anything new? After the hype surrounding juniper schnapps has been going on for years, it feels like a backyard distillery is on the verge of a world career every month, and there is now almost more talk of the right tonic than of gin? Yes, there is still gin news. monkey 47, the pioneer brand from the Black Forest, has launched a variety from their series with the academic-sounding title “Experimentum Series”. The new creation 2y07: Berlin wants to get to the bottom of the spirit of the German capital and the history of its division. The company from Lossburg has combined its basic product with Worcestershire sauce. And in the Dresdner, not in the English version, which means: you can taste notes of malt extract, apple jelly, dessert wine. And gin of course (monkey47.com).
Hard and sensual: the Eau de Cologne study “Uncut Gem” by Frédéric Malle.
(Photo: manufacturer)
The perfumes of the gentleman entrepreneur Frédéric Malle have always had a special status, because with his “Editions de Parfums” Malle defied the usual rules of the industry. With him, the world’s best noses, i.e. the inventors of new fragrances, can appear under their own name and create their own personal perfumes – free from market or label specifications. This is how a very idiosyncratic fragrance library was created, which at the same time is a Who’s Who the perfume scene. A new member is only added to the exclusive ranks every few years, this autumn it’s that time again: Uncut Gem, developed by Maurice Roucel – a doyen among perfumers. Roucel has created dozens of fragrances over the past fifty years, for Helmut Lang, Gucci and Hermès, for example. For his friend Frédéric Malle, Roucel has now actually bottled his own home and work perfume, which had accompanied him throughout his life only as an approximate study. The name Uncut Gem indicates this experimental character: at first glance a raw, masculine Eau de Cologne, which develops very complex, warm tones on closer inspection: laboratory and leather, incense and nutmeg. Special but very interesting (fredericmalle.eu).