6876

A small label from England, doing the things on their own personal way. Outdoor and practical on the one hand but very smart on the other: That`s 6876. Established in 1995, they are now famous for their most sought after jackets the "Capandula" and the "Sonora". I just got in the lucky position to secure myself a brown Sonora jacket after looking for one in my size for a long time. Not very easy, because it seems they produced their stuff in a very limited numbers, which is of course an advantage. 

They were released in a brown and yellow colourway, the yellow ones seem to be very rare and i`ve seen them changing hands for about 300£ . That`s kinda crazy but understandable, the design, the philosophy of the label and the fact that they are very limited create a certain desire to some to add them to their collection. They are very lightweight, but wind and water resistant, the perfect jacket for the upcoming time of the year. It has a certain technical character due to the fabric and the pocket designs and that`s what i like about it most. I hope i can track down a few more 6876 pieces in the future, a Capandula jacket is on top of the list for sure. 

Stone Island Shadow Project - AW 10/11 - Modular Down Vest - Category Augment

Just a wee addition to my collection. This vest can be worn on it`s own and as an inner lining for other shadow jackets. That`s very practical. This vest has been reissued this winter with minor changes but the 10/11 version is a bit nicer due to it`s yellow/mustard lining and a higher neck. Nothing really spectacular but this simple piece features some nice little stone island typical details.

MA.STRUM - S/S 2010 - MA1020 - Quad Field Jacket

... also known as the Torch Jacket. This is one of the very first MA.STRUM jackets of their first summer range in 2010. MA.STRUM was born out of a collaboration and partnership between the designer Donrad Duncan and Massimo Osti Studio. This jacket has already been reissued in a different style, but the original one is still the best, that`s why i have always been looking for the first issue. 

It`s made out of a weatherproof material and came in two different colours, blue and green. The fabric is really amazing, if you look on it in the light you can recognize a slightly shimmer effect, which gives it a real precious look. The sense for details on this jacket is what makes it a "must have" for me. I love little surprises and gimmicks, like the logos on the badges glowing in the dark or the torch attached to the chest area. The torch is solar powered and gets charged through a  window of the little chest pocket where the torch is preserved.  

The whole design is pretty simple, a military inspired field jacket, based on the classic M-65 worn by the US Army in the 60s. But the modern fabric and a few nice details make it stand out from the typical military inspired field jackets you can buy from other brands. 

Being in their second year now, MA.STRUM seems to be that brand you like or you hate. I think you can see a lack of inspiration and a missing courage to develop something new. They come with some interesting colour concepts but are already repeating themselves when it comes to design, but never the less they are producing some future classic which might be sought after in the future, like the torch or the sniper jacket. I will always have an eye on their new releases, because i always find the one or the other piece i really admire and which is worth to be added to my collection. 

Stone Island (Shadow Project) S/S 2009 - Magneto Tylon-R Jacket

 

The Shadow Project is a more experimental platform of Stone Island. This project began in 2008, together with the designers Michaela Sachenbacher and Errolson Hugh, both known for their own Label ACRONYM®. The strength of the Shadow project is its eagerness to go new ways in design and functionality.  New fabrics, clever little details and a whole new understanding of contemporary clothing design coupled with a view into the future.

The Shadow Magneto is a great example for the philosophy of the shadow project. Made of a weather and wind resistant fabric in a lovely burnt orange colour with a nice shimmer effect, this jacket also features a nice little clue: The whole left side of the jacket can be opened and you will find a second layer with 3 extra pockets and a hidden black shadow badge for the more understated look. The fastener to close the first layer and to hide the details is magnet, which snaps up perfectly if you pull the little extra zip up. A really clever and smooth solution and little highlight for every fan of unusual and functional design. This is possibly the best SI piece i ever purchased in terms of design and functionality and colour. This jacket came in blue, green, black and as shown above a burnt orange, which is the pick of the bunch in my opinion. All with a slight shimmer effect to make it really stand out. And as always, no picture can describe it as it really is. 

Stone Island - A/W 2008/2009 - Handpainted Camouflage Field Jacket

                                             

Stone Island always took inspiration from military design, especially when it comes to jackets. The field jacket is probably the most common jacket design in Stone Island`s history. There have been plenty different variations and in the autumn/winter season 2008/2009 Stone Island released something special: the handpainted camouflage field jacket, inspired by a german army field blouse. This jackets are each painted by hand, which makes every jacket in this range unique. You can even see the brush strokes if you take a closer look. This makes the jackets standing out from usual camouflage jacket from the army shop. Not only this, you can also see a love for detail and function at the collar for example, where is a movable piece of garment to close the neck on the front. The jacket comes with the well known Raso Gommato lining, not very breathable but really warm in the colder winter days, especially together with inner removable extra liner.

These jackets came in two colours, brown (as seen above) and green, i prefer the brown version and i think the green version is harder to come by. You dont even see the brown version pop up very often, i reckon these jackets came in a limited nuber. In the last pic you can see the comparison between both jackets.

Stone Island - A/W 11/12 - ICE Jacket

I was sure i want to have this piece of art, when i`ve seen the first leaked pictures of this jacket in january/february this year. It`s a very nice quote of the 1999 ICE jacket Stone Island has done back in the days and its almost the same design. Very oldschool, very vintage looking and a design reminding of the good old days when Massimo Osti was designing the first ICE jackets. 

As you can see above this is a two tone jacket, consisting of two different materials. The yellow thermo coating, which changes its colour when the temperature drops (at about 10 degrees celsius) and a shimmer material on the back. This design has a historical background. Back in the days, when Osti was producing the first ICE jackets, the special colour changing thermo fabric was so expensive that it wasnt possible to use it for a whole jacket without asking for a stupid price for it. It`s a nice touch in my eyes and the two different colours go well together. When the jacket changes its colour to dark brown it almost matches with the fabric on the back.

The 2011/2011 field ICE jacket comes with "dutch rope" inner jacket to keep the owner warm and comfortable during the colder winter days. Again a very nice detail to underline the oldschool feeling of this piece.

The jacket comes also in blue and khaki, but yellow is the pick of the bunch in my opinion. Nothing beats a good contrast. 

Carlo Rivetti (CEO of Stone Island) wearing the `99 version

Recently..

Barbour - Dry Fly Jacket

Der Herbst klopft schon an das Fenster und das verlangt nach ausreichend Schutz vor Wind und Wetter, sollte man sein wares und trockenes Zuhause verlassen müssen. Die 1. Adresse um solchen Wiedrigkeiten zu strotzen ist das britische Traditionsunternehmen Barbour, das 2010 einen Klassiker neu aufgelegt hat: Die Dry Fly Jacke. Wie der Name schon verrät, eine dem Angelsport gewidmetes Modell, dass aber auch in der Stadt und auf der Strasse eine gute Figut macht und vor allem seinen Zweck erfüllt. Diese Jacke ist Wind- und Regenabweisend und steht damit in guter Barbour Tradition, schlechtem Wetter zu trotzen. Diese Jacke bietet auch weitere Gimmicks, neben vielen kleinen Taschen kann man diese Jacke auch auf Wunsch verlängern um ein trockenes Gesäß zu bewahren. Mit wenigen Handgriffen lässt sich die Dry Fly in eine Art Parka verwandeln, sicherlich ein Gimmick das gerade beim Angeln sehr praktisch sein kann oder auch vor durchnässten Sitzschalen im Stadion schützt. Aufjedenfall kann man mit diesem Modell nicht viel falsch machen, Barbour Qualität gepaart mit einem kernigen Look, ein Klassiker für den Garderobenständer.

Puma Bluebird 2011

The Puma Bluebird, released in 1982 has been recently reissued. This trainer has been popular amongst Cardiff City Football Club supporters in the 80`s because "Bluebird" has always been the nickname of Cardiff City FC.

This trainer is known for its blue/yellow colourway, but has also been released in maroon/yellow, which reminds a bit of Cardiff`s away colours of the 70`s. When i saw the first pictures of them i said to myself: It`s time for my first pair of Pumas! I have never been a fan of Puma but this release is just great and when they arrived, they looked even better than on every picture i have seen before. The quality is very good in my opinion, the suede feels great and this trainers are very comfortable. But the only reason for me to buy them was this cracking colourway, which really stands out between other recent Adidas releases at the moment and with 60 GBP a really fair price.

Clarks Desert Boot X The British Millerain Co.

Tradition trifft Tradition. So kann man diese gelungene Kooperation der zwei englischen Traditionsherstellern Clarks und The British Millerain Co. beschreiben. Clarks ist ein sehr beliebter englischer Schuhhersteller seit 1825, berühmt durch seine Modelle "Desert Boot", "Wallabee" oder auch "Desert Trek". The British Millerain Co. ist ein Experte auf dem Gebiet der Herstellung von wasserabweisenden Stoffen (z.B. mit Wachs) und das schon seit 1880. Dabei kommen die Materialien beim Militär, bei Seefahrern oder bei der von Regen geplagten Landbevölkerung erfolgreich zum Einsatz.

Der hier vorgestellte Desert Boot vereint somit die besten Eigenschaften beider Unternehmen und dürfte ein peferkter Schuh für diesen verregneten Sommer und den kommenden Herbst sein. Der wasserabweisende gewachste Stoff ist nicht nur funktional, sondern verleiht dem Schuh auch den nötigen kernigen Look, der dem militärischen Hintergrund (als beliebter Freizeitschuh für britische Army Offiziere) diesen Modells mehr als gerecht wird. So gibt es leider schon viel zu viele lächerlich anmutende Versionen dieses Klassikers, bei denen man getrost von einer "verhunzung" sprechen kann. Ein weiteres bekannte Merkmal dürfte die Clarks typische Krepp- Gummisohle sein, die für tadellosen Laufkompfort sorgt. Abgerundet wird das Erscheinungsbild durch die farblich abgestimmten Nähte und Schnürsenkel.

CP Company - A/W 2009/2010 - 20th Anniversary Mille Miglia Jacket

The 20th Anniversary Goggle Jacket, designed by Aitor Throup, has always been a non affordable dream of mine, but now i got the chance to get my hands on this fantastic jacket due to the fact that the prices of these have become a bit more "realistic" (RRP on these was 1500 GBP) They also came in a limited number of just a few hundred pieces (around 300?!).

The goggle jackets have always been a dedication to the famous italian Mille Miglia race, Massimo Osti designed his first Mille Miglia jacket for the drivers of this Race. With goggles as a protection against the wind and a watchviewer lense to have the possibility to check the watch without moving the cuffs of the jacket while driving the car. These details have made this jacket so famous and are iconic for CP Company these days.

The 20th Anniversary Jacket is designed for driving as well. The whole anatomy of this jacket is designed to fit perfect while sitting in the car. It`s even possibel to adjust the jacket into a perfect fit for a driving position. There a re so much lovely details on this jacket, like a little extra pocket, buttons, gloves and of course, the colour. This jacket has been dyed in the famous Tinto Terra style and this gives the piece a perfect field jacket/military look. Military designs have always been a big influence for CP Company and Stone Island Collections. Aitor Throup has hit the nail on the head with this jacket and put a lot of ideas and SPW history into this iconic piece.