Some People Call Me The Space Cowboy, Yeahhh

Last week there was a three days fashion exhibition at the Círculo de Bellas Artes in Madrid.

Why such a short exhibition, I don't know, but those who attended said it was worth a look.

I couldn't attend the event because I knew about it once was over but my friend Maria went and took pictures and explained everything to me...

Jockey Underwear, inventor of the men's brief, was celebrating its 75 anniversary. For this memorable date Spanish fashion designer Carlos Díez Díez was called to design several pieces for them.

The exhibition was divided in three sections:

1_ A retrospective of the more significant pieces of the label, from an original linen shirt from 1790 till the Andy Warhol's brief that appear in the cover of Rolling Stones' Sticky Fingers.

2_ The collaboration between Carlos Díez Díez with Jockey for this ocassion. (these are the pictures I'm showing from)

3_ Original underwear from Carlos Díez Díez... that is, underwear used for him. Some of them dated back to 1963.

It's really a shame i found out about the date of this exhibition so late!.

Photos: María Serret

Stylish People.- Screamin' Jay Hawkins

I'd like to start a series of stylish people through the history of fashion... and not only! because sometimes, many, is people who is "not" in fashion the ones who are more stylish because they couldn't care less of what's in and out... they're beyond.
Ladies & Gentlemen, let's start with the über stylish and creeeeepy Mr Screamin' Jay Hawkins.

Jalacy Hawkins was born in Cleveland, Ohio.

"I came in this world black, naked and ugly. And no matter how much I accumulate here, it's a short journey" (source)

He began his career as a conventional blues singer, there was nothing special on him... till the day he recorded his famous song "I Put A Spell On You".

Intended to be a blues ballad, the song ended up being one of the most "cannibalistic" songs ever made, the mother of what will be known as "shock rock".

The reason why this song ended up being the way it is and not the way it was intended to be was the everyone's surfeit during the recording in 1957: Screamin' Jay and the musicians got drunk and wild, they started to play and sing and this is what they brought... a song ahead of their time.
And what a great man.

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Me gustaría empezar una serie dedicada a gente con rollo, gente con estilo personal, alejado de modas y convenciones sociales... gente más alla de su tiempo.
Señoras y señores, empecemos con el inimitable Screamin' Jay Hawkins...

Jalacy Hawkins nació en Cleveland, Ohio.

"Llegué a este mundo siendo negro, desnudo y feo. Y a pesar de todo cuanto acumule aquí, la vida no deja de ser mas que un corto viaje" (fuente)

Empezó su carrera no siendo mas que un cantante de blues sin mayores pretensiones... hasta el dia que grabó la famosísima canción "I Put A Spell On You".

Dicho canción fue compuesta como una balada más, y acabó siendo una de las composiciones mas "canívales" de la historia, la madre de lo que llegó a llamarse "shock rock".

Si la canción acabó de esta forma y no de la manera en que se quiso fue por el simple hecho de la borrachero que los músicos agarraron mientras grababan el disco en la productora. Así nació uno de los temas más adelantados a su tiempo, que nos trajo lo mejor de Jalacy Hawkins.

Vincent Gallo

I know I know, but still, I think he's fascinating...

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Sé todo lo malo que circula por ahí respecto a Vincent Gallo, al fin y al cabo compartimos ciudad y este mundo es un pañuelo... pero aun así, encuentro a este hombre fascinante.

Men Are Just As Vain

I thought it was very funny when Jennine from The Coveted commented in my post about "the Wondercup" that men are just as vain as us...
I totally agree and I remembered the book Manworks.- A Guide to Style that I recently bought following the advice of my dear hubby who knows that I like everything that's men-related (as i said so many times before).

The book was written in 1980 by make-up artist and journalist Stan Place (I wonder if he's the same Stan Place from Maybelline), and it's a men's guide to style (hair cuts, scents, exercise, shaving...). It can be quite hilarious sometimes (80's style) but in general it would be a perfect bed-book for The Sartorialist.
I only miss real images in the book as everything in it is illustration except for the cover; wouldn't be awesome to have some men styles from the 80's?
Some tips from the book...

" Should men color their hair? Yes, if they want to"

" Don't let the word style throw you. Good, bad, or indifferent, a hairstyle is something every man does have --even Yul Bryner and Telly Savalas, who have no hair"

" Scents can be used to create an atmosphere or a mood, to enhance sexual attraction, and to become a part of a person's total image."





/// Este post es en honor al comentario que Jennine de The Coveted hizo respecto al post que publiqué sobre el "Wondercup". Ella, muy sabia dijo que "los hombres son tan vanidosos como lo podamos ser las mujeres...".
Me recordó el libro que me compré hace poco siguiendo el consejo de alguien bien cercano me dió sabiendo el vicio que tengo con todo lo relacionado con la moda de hombre titulado Manworks.- A Guide To Style.
Es un llibro para hombres y cómo mejorar o desarrollar su estilo... Fué escrito en los años 80' así que a veces peca de "pasado", pero en general es una maravilla.
El único "pero" es la ausencia total de fotos... todo es ilustración excepto la portada... y siendo un libro de los 80' no estaria nada mal ver algun que otro modelito de los de entonces...

A Lifting For Him, A Lifting for Us (our spirits)

Dear Claudia at The Paris Apartment found my avatar "very disturbing" for obvious reasons, and it's a shame because I took that picture (yes, it's real) in order to put some fun in the blog. Given the circumstances, I hope this post finds no one disturbed because I think is very interesting and revealed...


My friend Andrea, always in search of information about useful fashion (she's a Costume Designer), found a new type of underwear for men and right away sent it to me; she knows I like all kind of men's wear related subjects.

The new garment arrives in response to our need for "lifting"; if ever women "needed" a lift for their bosom (under the name of Wonderbra), men now need a lift for their, ehem, under parts, under the name of WonderCup, thanks to Aussie label aussieBum. As aussieBum founder Sean Ashby puts it "This design uses all of the natural assets of the person, whether they be big, small or indifferent."

Please do not miss the "behind the scenes" of the ads. Priceless.

// Claudia de The Paris Appartment considera mi avatar algo "inquietante"... cosa que no fué mi intencion cuando hice la foto y la publiqué. A mí me parece que da un poco de alegría al tema, no?. En fín, visto lo cual espero que nadie se ofenda con este post porque va de eso, de paquete y la mejor manera de "elevarlo".
Mi amiga Andrea, siempre a la búsqueda y captura de cosas relacionadas con la vestimenta (ella es diseñadora de vestuario) encontró el equibalente del Wonderbra femenino para los hombres, el Wondercup... para aquellos que necesitan un pequeño lifting... No os perdais el "making of"!.

Paned Slops, Hell Yeah.

I said it before and I say it now: old fashioned related men's attire contemporary collections (did I make it clear?) are my soft spot. I think men knew about fashion more back in the days than they do now, or at least they were interested in it and experimented with all kind of shapes and colors; have you read the amazing and super expensive book A History of Men's Fashion? ... you'd know what I'm talking about. Oh, where did all those men go?.
For this reason French designer Romain Kremer's A/W 07-08 collection has gone at the top of my "favourite men's wear look's list" of the season. The way in which he has designed paned slops mixing them with the most futuristic and Prada-like of the sweatshirts has brought me back the fashion pleasure's thrills.
Romain won the Special Award for Creativity in the 20th Festival International de Mode et de Photographie à Hyères in 2005... and I don't wonder why. A designer to keep an eye on.

Our Love For Old Fashion Keeps Growing

When I attended Paper mag Un-Hollywood Film Series and saw the video of bleach haired, Paris-based designer Two Tom, I got very curious and started to explore a little more about his work.

Illustrator and fashion designer, I felt in love with his world of Querelle-alike figures and his designs that remind me the best XVII male attires. His collection for the Festival International of Hyéres was such a pleasure for an old fashion lover as yours truly.

Going through my collection of XVII male plates, i did my very own selection of similarities: cavalier hats, bows, brocades, embroidered vests, feathers, ribbons ... It took almost 400 years for this fashion to come back, let's welcome it then with open arms!

A Rakish History

The New York Public Library is home of the exhibition A Rakish History Of Men's Wear.
Throgh nearly 200 illustrations, pictures, watercolor sketches... from the library itself, the show features the history of men's wear from antiquity to present.

I may say this show was a little dissapointing to me at the beginning; you enter in this cold (literally) room, all dark wood and stained-glass windows with nothing else but books. Nor cloths or manequins around. Sad.

But then you think, ok, i am not in the MET or in the FIT Museum, i am in the Library, therefore, just paper...

So you relax and start enjoing the show which, after all, it is a very very interesting one.

The show is ornanized into ten thematic and roughly chronological sections that take you through the life of outcast and powerful men.- kings, popes, courtesans, gays, transvestites, celebrities... as they were, mind you, the ones to be brave enough to do new things in fashion. You will re-discover men like Beau Brummel, Frank Sinatra, Versace... and many others which names may be not recognized but not so their fashion conquests.

The images are very descriptive and some of them are a real gift for the fashion lovers.