May Nogoy is a London based up and comer who is known for her statement clutches and belts. They remind me of something a super hero would wear, but when you see them on a model (above) they aren’t as noticeable as one would think.

Un coup de foudre, that’s the French phrase for “love at first sight.” It’s a rare occasion when I find something I’d lie, cheat and steal to have, but an evening stroll in Tribeca led me into a girl wearing the leather studded booties pictured above. I contemplated kicking her knees and swiping the boots off her feet, but I decided a compliment  would be the less delinquent route. Introducing shoe designer Els Proost, her company, Elsa Shoes, easily ranked at the top of my latest obsessions.

Proost has quite the resume having designed shoes and accessories for Dries Van Noten, Emporio Armani, Maison Martin Margiela, Costume National, Hussein Chalayan, Angelo Figus and more, so there’s no doubt why they’re so damn gorgeous. Craftsmanship,comfort and a “fashionable amusing twist” reign among Proost’s design goals, and it’s safe to say she achieves them with every pair she constructs. Like the woman who married a rollerc0aster, maybe i’ll join the bandwagon and marry Elsa Shoes. Now that’s what I like to call a bright future!

Find more photos like this on ENVY

Check out more from Elsa here! Oh, and if the girl with the studded booties is reading, watch your back!

Australian brand We Are Handsome makes swimwear with iconic retro imagery printed on the pieces…

Ivory Skies, a London based designer t shirt label launched online in early to mid 2009. Owner Carlo Salanitri, inspired by indie rock fashion and mystical ancient images came up with a concept that is totally unique and one of kind. His concept was to blend rare, ancient, and iconic images with his own modern designed cuts, always striving to produce a t-shirt that is a cut above the rest in style and design.

Slip on one of the Ivory Skies tees from their Ebony & Ivory collection and you’ll be joining in on a cult phenomenon of people wearing apparel featuring ancient iconography art etchings. With a following in Europe and a lot of interest from Australia and America, Ivory Skies is definitely doing something right amidst an overly saturated t-shirt market.

The master plans to continue collecting ancient relics from around the world, with the ultimate goal of finding the essence of the trend. It is predicted that the frequency of gatherings will increase exponentially starting in London’s trendiest markets, both east and west and spread across borders and transatlantically to the scenes in Paris, Berlin and New York.

Find out more about Ivory Skies tees and their brand by visiting their site here.

Today was a chilly and gloomy one in New York City, but thanks to the fun and refreshing designs of Taryn Leigh Slawson, I’ve got hope that the sun will shine again! I had the pleasure of meeting Slawson at a party last winter and her bubbly and spunky personality is beautifully reflected in her designs. As a recent graduate from Colorado State University’s Apparel Design and Production department, Slawson had the opportunity to work with British designer Sue Stemp as well as women’s wear designer Diane Von Furstenberg…it’s no wonder why her collections are so colorful! Now, the proud designer of four collections under her name, Slawson is carving her name in Denver’s emerging fashion scene. Her designs range from girly and edgy to soft and romantic, a versatility so crucial for today’s young designers. Say hello to Denver’s future in fashion!

Check out more from Taryn Leigh Slawson here or shop her collection at Etsy!

Structure might be a big element in the fashion world, but you can’t get any more structural than the skeletal accessories by Patrick Veillet. Besides designing an array of head, neck and eye-wear as well as bone-like jewelry, Veillet is a vendor of perfume, cosmetics and other accessories. The pieces look more like works of art than wearable jewelry, but I’d be a happy camper to get my hands on some of these brilliant accessories!

Check out more from Patrick Veillet here (I hope you can read French!)

LINK LOVE: Haute Macabre

Today’s popular culture craves the sexy, the beautiful and the bizarre. I haven’t seen this expressed as clearly as fresh-faced Serbian designer Marko Mitanovski did during London Fashion Week. As one of the three “Ones to Watch,” Mitanovski showed an over-the-top collection filled with S&M, Renaissance elegance, a gothic twinge and animalistic elements. Comparably speaking, Mitanovski is the Alexander McQueen of new London blood, showing his expertise in theatrical, costume pieces. Definately looking forward to what Mr. Mitanovski has in store for us in February 2010!

Find more photos like this on Envy.us

LINK LOVE: Must

A collection featuring celebrities faces from the new French brand called Hype Means Nothing can be found on T-Shirts and laptop cases.  Colette was one of the first to stock the brand.

LINK LOVE

A graduate of Central St Martins BA fashion print design program in 2006, de Paula’s signature of soft floral prints and lingerie-inspired ready-to wear seems perfect for the current trend of underwear as outerwear.

Read more

And I don’t mean plastic surgery….designer Amy Thompson utilizes plastic as easily as fabric.

Find more photos like this on CULT

Thanks Ma Fragine

Conceptual collection of Fashion Artifacts depicting a series of eight physical gestures associated with the cause, effect and healing stages of human trauma. Sculptural forms are created around the shape of the contorted female body. By Una Burke

Via Ma Fragine

Super cute and oh so different, these shoes utilize tons of different colors and juxtapose materials. Love Love Love!

Find more photos like this on CULT

Thanks Highsnobette

Death. Demons. Shrimp? The Savannah, Georgia born Shrimp Sauce brings a little mischief to the their debut collection of tees. You can grab the collection which features knives, masked men, wolves and of course, shrimp at their newly opened online store.

Currently on the Finnish edition of Project Runway, Antti Asplund has the most outlandish attire, wearing everything and anything from “Elizabethan poet’s ruff made out of newspaper, or a wee marionette man hanging from his neck.” My new hero!!!

LINK LOVE

Rachel Freire is a London based designer whose debut fashion collection was presented at London Fashion Week with On|Off in February 2009 at the Science Museum in London.  Already her work has been seen in publications such as Dazed and Confused, AnOther, Issue One, Timeout London, Juxtapoz, Illustrated Ape, Art Business Today and Metro London.

Educated at Central Saint Martins, her influences stem from her love of historical costume combined with futuristic imagery. Behind the dramatic silhouettes and decadent embellishments, the pieces are designed to be wearable, durable and flattering.

LINK LOVE

Yassai 7 seeks to Fashionably Change the World by throwing together roughed up metals & ravaged chains with 7 collections that are represented by 7 colors that support 7 distinct causes developing a unique jewelry line on the foundation of giving to others with every bagged item.

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LINK LOVE

Atos Lombardini’s fall stuff is so killer! He adds touches of chains, leather, leopard, and foil, making for great funky pieces that I can’t wait to get my hands on! I’m dying over that military-inspired jacket with the chains on the shoulder!

LINK LOVE: Eclectic Jewelry and Fashion

Based in New York, Amanda worked for Moschino and the shoe designer Alejandro Ingelmo before starting Assad Mounser. The current collection is called ‘Space Oddity’ for the David Bowie song.

Find more photos like this on CULT

Thanks NYLON

Danielle Scutt’s past three Spring/Summer Ready to Wear shows at London Fashion Week were different, and all absolutely amazing.  I love the short skirts, the cut outs, and the crazy hair and hair pieces!  This is definitely a designer worth paying attention to.

Runway Images via Style.com

Main Image via DanielleScutt.com

Hungarian’s Éva Nyíri’s recent graduate thesis collection isn’t for the delicate or faint of heart.
Entitled Black on Black, the goal of the collection was to rethink women’s jackets, making them as versatile as possible. Starting from a common silhouette, she achieved this effect by placing emphasis in and exaggerating different areas: the neck, the shoulders, the chest, and the waist.
Her spot on inspirations differ wildly: Samurai and Transformer type robots armor and protective shields; specific films and music such as Dune, Blade Runner, Ghost in The Shell, The City of Lost Children, Terminator and Portishead for mood, surreal vibe and message; and the quirkiness of Viktor&Rolf designs.

Written by Wicked Halo

California-based footwear label Gee Wa Wa takes an architectural flair for its spring ’10 women’s collection.

The 20 styles offered stay true to the company’s bohemian vibe, featuring bright buckle sandals, metallic low heels and natural vegetable-tanned leather moccasins. The eco-friendly shoes, which range from $85 to $175, are available at select Nordstrom stores and other high-end retailers worldwide.

My personal favorite is the metallic sandal.

Written on Cult Indie

I ran across the beautiful and colorful jewelry of Amanda Assad Mounser who is based in New York. Although fall/winter 2009 is her premiere collection, she has been working in fashion for the last five years. I love her take on the “multi-chain” look along with her use of color.

Written on Cult Indie

This great looking eco-friendly tote is made from cotton-hemp canvas and vegetable-tanned leather. I love the design! The brand name is actually fleabags and can be found on their website fleabg.com.

Written on Cult Indie

This shoe was made for lovin….talk about your “walking statement.” Like poetry in motion, this splatter design beauty was created by co-founders and long-standing friends Natalia Barbieri and Jennifer Portman. They set out to design exquisite and sophisticated footwear of luxurious quality. They certainly accomplished their goal! The line is called Bionda Castana and can be found on the website.

Originally from Tanzania, Africa, Twiga started as an art collector and shifted to creating this beautiful, bold wooden jewelry that’s been popping up all over magazine spreads, department stores, and museum shops. Twiga has also founded The Mbinga Children’s Organization, a non-profit that builds schools in Tanzania. Philanthropy and great, artistic jewelry? I think I’m in love. Check out more of her stuff on her site!

LINK LOVE: Eclectic Jewelry

Based in London, Kerrie Luft designs shoes with an emphasis on novelty of materials and construction. Inspired by Art Nouveau she creates shoes that are wearable art.

Thanks Highsnobette

Working with luxurious fabrics to create the ultimate fashions, Andy TheAnh isn’t stopping for anyone! You name it and he does it, pants, shirts, dresses, jackets, and all with their own sense of versatility. Coming straight from Canada, we’re lucky his designs have graced us with his presence.

Think business woman meets chic style and there you have it; high-end fashions that make everyone want to stop and stare.

GALLERY: Andy TheAnh designs

A designer who finds antique pieces and transforms them into wearable art.

Jolita Jewellery loves creating new pieces from antique market finds.
Mixing together a range of different objects that otherwise would have ended up in a clearance bin, Jolita Jewellery gives them a second lease.

Adorn your wrist with Vintage Fly bracelet. The focus of this piece is a sterling silver brooch found during one of the trips to vintage markets. Decorated with amethysts and set on a chunky sterling silver chain it is a stunning one-of-kind piece. A cluster of different types of chains is dangling off the fly as if forming a long tale. Due to the specific technique used by the designer, the bracelet resonates antique look.

Definitely a must buy for any vintage loving indies out there.

LINK LOVE: http://www.cultindie.com/xn/detail/2394740:BlogPost:71205

Margiela and Laugesen’s most promising apprentice brings avant guarde to the forefront with a second collection of covetable pieces.

This collection has so many gorgeous textures that I barely know which one to comment on first. Ok, I do… it’s the lace.

Most times when I see this get used, it’s usually on a horrible body con dress or something to that effect – but how the designer worked with it here is so refreshing. Speaking of the designer, she is Lina Osterman, a former apprentice to artisans Margiela and Laugesen, who has started this second line of her own as a means to work outside of the confines of her Pudel line.

And taking advtange of that fact, she is; as I said before this is just a textural treat and is filled to the brim with covetable pieces.

I am particularly in love with the dress and knits. The linear detailing on some of the pieces is something special, and the fact that it is black detailing on black fabric, in turn adds quite a bit of depth and additional texture to the pieces.

I think the birth of Osterman’s second line to further her creative endeavors has proved to be a great idea and I can’t wait to see what the future holds for her – and to see what she has for us in the future.

stockists: UK – Tokyo / for more info please visit her website.

Written by Cult Member: Inya

LINK LOVE: http://www.cultindie.com/xn/detail/2394740:BlogPost:70856

Combining modern design, environmental friendliness, sustainability and social responsibility is Berlin based shoe company, Trippen. Stemming from timeless classics and short-lived trends, founders Michale Oehler and Angela Spieth have broken away from traditional footwear with their one-of-a-kind designs and constructions. With local, small production and competitive prices make even the pickiest ethical buyer go crazy over these funky finds. Unlike most designers who create a seasonal collection, Trippen’s existing styles remain  available with new designs added to the mix. With shops located throughout Europe and Asia, us USA buyers will have a tougher time getting our feet on Trippen shoes, but about 300€ (plus shipping of course) will take your kicks on a transatlantic journey to your doorstep!

Check out Trippen here!