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Lasts summer the news was that Italian Loro Piana had decided to sell a majority stake in the business to Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton LVMH and the sale was finally completed last December. Another breaking news regarding the brand was published in December when it was announced that Mr Sergio Loro Piana, one of two brothers that took over the business after their father in the 1970s, and who continued to develop the brand and really expanded it into the luxury retail markets, had passed away at the age of 65. S/S ´14 I’ve said it before, personally I'm a big fan of the company and their overall aesthetics, but especially fond of their look books featuring beautiful and most inspiring illustrations. Field jackets, suede...

In terms of recognizable “brand identity” Eleventy is one of my personal favorites. The visit at their booth in the first day of the fair did not really surprise me - as the company seemed to continue playing by their strengths - keeping things simple and clean, offering a diverse and “easy to combine” selection that would make a great base to build a wardrobe for any men. As usual, in terms of colors Eleventy trusts the basics - blue, grey, brown and burgundy. However for the upcoming fall the color palette has been slightly darkened. Lighter grays have been complemented with darker hues and tones in general a bit deeper shades and tones have been used. Even the blues and other...

Behind Carmina there is the Albaladejo family that has been making shoes on the island of Majorca for almost 150 years. The company itself, Carmina Shoemaker was found in 1997 by José Albaladejo, even though it was just to continue a long tradition together with his family. Visiting at their booth is always a pleasure and this time in Florence was no exception. Carmina shoes are made using best possible leathers (including Horween shell cordovan of which special treatments the company is renowed and more exotic leather choices such as alligator, crocodile and lizard), all shoes are goodyear-stitched and made with the same techniques, consistency and perfection as their English counterparts. Read about the eleven steps of making Carmina shoes from here.  Regarding the presentation...

“Wanted: style” Cantarelli is one of those that every time seems to try and come up with something new for the layout of their stand. This time the theme was “stile ricercato" which translated would be "Wanted: STYLE" representing the theme of the collection. The booth was with pictures of Italian-American gangsters, some dressed nicely, some more looking like they were captured for a "mugshot” which on the other hand gave the booth an impression of being a closet full of gangsters hiding out behind a #menswear wardrobe. In terms of colors the collection features variety of different shades of blues mixed with gray and neutral tones of beige and brown from light to darker ones contradicted by touch of orange, rust and even...

Feeling and dressing up in a light way are the key concepts of Tombolini - expression of the present days mixed with tradition that the idea of contemporary way of living without any excess. The suits and jackets of the brand are the emblem of the concrete quality and the cut shows and proves the ability of doing things well and durable at the same time.  Simple colors, soft shapes and clean lines together with the “lightness” and refined style are the key elements that guarantee Tombolini’s success season after season. The S/S ´14 lookbook that was shot at the beautiful landscape of La Riviera del Conero makes one to long for summer that still seems to be far away at...