AAA Topman Competition WINNER....

To celebrate the launch of the 2nd round of the AAA collection at Topman tonight in London's Oxford Street, LSod was lucky to offer a tee and scarf from the range, courtesy of of Topman UK.

To win, you had to answer this question...

'If you were a rebel without a cause, which THREE icons of rock, dead or alive, would you roll with?'


The winning answer was this, by JOSH SMITH...

Kurt Cobain - A gentle giant of the music world, a definative style icon and aural ledgend as well as the voice of a generation. Bonus points for being married to Courtney Love!

Freddie Murcury - Constantly rated as the greatest showman, Freddie was an entertainer, and a man that knew how to party - though never turned his back on his roots.

Jim Morrison - More than just a name at Woodstock, he was a pionner of Rock yet with a very calming roll that made the 60s swinging before any others.

LOVED the names - some of the most influential, varied and original I have read, and the reasons were awesome. Email me for details on how to claim your AAA prize.

Well done to everyone who entered, some great entries!

COMPETITION: Topman AAA Collection

Topman, once again, come put on top as they preview the 2nd drop of the new AAA collection on Friday at the Fashion Friday event at the UK's Oxford Circus flagship store.

And to celebrate, Topman teamed up with the blog and is giving Last Style of Defense readers the chance to win two pieces from the collection, below.








The AAA collection is a Rock 'n' Roll inspired offering, which will be previewed at the Fashion Friday event, where lucky shoppers will recieve the scarf, with every purchase.

But you LSoD readers, have the chance to win a t-shirt AND the scarf, by answering the following question. There are rules and instructions, so read carfully.

'If you were a rebel without a cause, which THREE icons of rock, dead or alive, would you roll with?'
The most creative and interesting will win the prize. Simple. Just comment on this post. Now for the instructions and rules.

*Open to UK residents only*

1) Comment with your three names, followed by your name.
2) If you want to add a reason, that is cool, but not essential.
3) The closing date is Friday (30th July) at 6pm - the time of the Topman Fashion Friday launch.
4) The winning name will named at 6.30pm so check back, and if you are the lucky winner, drop me an email.

Good Luck!!

Forgotten Heroes by RoCoCo London

These spooky images are from RoCoCo London, a duo partnership label designed by Suneil Setiya and Angel, which has become a successful and desirable label.

This collection is very minimal, but uses some superb fabrics that drew inspiration from a reaction against modern society. The collection, to me, has echos of early McQueen with the fantasy, dark imagery attached to the collection. Also in doing this, the clothes in this story make them the focus of the shoot, not the models.

Morever, great thinkers and creatives such as James Dean, Marlon Brando, Jack Nicholson, Albert Einstein, Orson Welles, George Orwell are deep influences in the making of this 'Forgotton Heroes' collection.
This quality is reflected also in the making of the garments, using Italian cottons for the coats and suits but shows a slight ruggedness with the raw finishes and inside-out seam details. Jackets combined denim with suede and jersey. T-shirts, a staple for any designer, are combined with jersey and suede too, with prints such as the heart made of knives where aggressive meets soft.

RoCoCo launched this collection at the Paris Trade Fair in June, and will be coming to London Fashion Week in September. I look forward to seeing it, and the girls, then!

EY! Magteen

***THIS POST CONTAINS SCENES OF A SEXUAL NATURE - ALTHOUGH IT IS VERY HOTT***




If you have not heard of EY! magazine by Luis Venegas, then check it out. For this issue, they have teamed up with stockist American Apparel, giving away some limited edition pants, seen in the first video.

It has been dubbed as the most exciting magateen in the world, that is sexy, colorful and fun that focuses on agency models as well as Europes hottest boys from the street - fresh, raw talent.

But don't buy it yet, it's out, but I have not got mine yet!

EY!nspiration. Qiqe Alfaro! from Luis Venegas on Vimeo.

EY!nspiration. Aaron Frew! from Luis Venegas on Vimeo.

Be A HERO...

Hero magazine is a bi-annual newcomer to the scene, being only on it's 3rd issue. It focuses on new model talent, their profiles and background with a little bit of editorial. Priced at £7.50 (order online) from all good and specialist magazine stockists.

This brilliant story shot by Stefan Heinrichs and featuring Keno is a very colorful homage to Versace, with Ingo Nahrwold's styling using vintage Versace. The garments go right back to Gianni Versace collections in the early 1990's, so not only is this an excellent visual homage to the late Versace, but it captures the historicism of his legacy.

Bonnie and Clydes in Chicago...

Chicago may be the Windy City, as I found out back in May, but it is also becoming a Fashion Forward one. For the city's most visionary store Bonnie and Clydes hosted the Fashion Salvation event at Salvage One last month.

Using a mixture of the apparel on sale at the downtown store, the night was a visual delight for the creative forces in Illinois, as apparent from the pics below. Alexandrew Razzano (first left) was one of the forces behind the event, which has become one of the most talked about in recent times.

Going Dutch with Kim Bakker

Holland, although famed for quirky and traditional items such as clogs and tulips, has also long been a country that produces some incredible design talents. From the wilds of Amsterdam to the flat spaces of Apeldoorn, creative talents, such as Kim Bakker; below, are bringing menswear back from the couture capitals, and back onto the streets.

This is the fifth time the Dutch designer has produced the NŌN by KIM collection, where by like past collections, the designs of 'UNCONTACTED' show the intriguing concepts and challenging master craftsmanship of contemporary menswear. What I think is amazing about Kim Bakker is the ability to reinterpret peoples vision of menswear and user her signature use of lines, abstractions and volumous silhouettes.

The collection and designer have given menswear a contemporary offering, to those who are creative thinkers. Moreover, each piece has a dedication to quality and almost a connection between designer and wearer.

The inspiration for the collection is vast but what shines through is the focus on contemporary art forms such as new media and interactive art. But what ever the inspiration, what ever the background and thinking, it is an aesthetically pleasing, and exciting offering from a great Dutch designer.

The Coterie and LSoD...

So I have been a bad blogger and have not posted since Tuesday. I would love to say it is because I am away somewhere, but I have been at home working on a presentation.

For I am presenting at an evening tomorrow night, in London, in front of a group of VIP fashion and beauty figures. With my PowerPoint presentation behind me, and notes to the side, I am taking about fashion blogging and the SS11 trends - as well as LSoD and me, personally.

So LSoD will be back in full swing Thursday.

Visual Tales of the Reckless

Visual Tales is a newcomer to the online publishing world, but the menswear publication is fast becoming a popular favourite. The first issue, as well as this, is a celebration of reckless youth, as well as angst and rebellion. These in turn, are key words in the editorials lexicon, as well as being represented in the whole aesthetic.


Through conceptual to tell-it-like-it-is images and film shorts, the publication brings together leading creative talents and established models and personalities, resulting in collaborations of the highest order. The final outcome is intended to inform, to educate, to stimulate, and to inspire.









This photo shoot, previewing the AW10 collection by Siki Imparkchoonmoo, entitled Meet Mr. Speed, the photographer Leonard Greco captures the carefree and sexualized classicism, and social taboo, of the fast living youth. With references to religion, the collection has its ambiguous moments but is captured with a hott, and cheeky, sexual wink. It is worth sharing, because it has become on of my favorite magazines of late.

Visual Tales magazine can be read online on the website www.visualtalesmagazine.com.

Courtney Mc, An English Girl in Paris...?

Courtney McWilliams is one of the hottest new designers of our generation in London, producing a collection that won rave acclaim at the RCA Graduate Show 2010 a couple of months ago.

Her collection, a selection from the look book below, has been shot for Vogue Homme Japan, and Hysteria magazine as well as Slashstroke are featuring her work too. What's more she is interviewing at Givenchy this week, so McWilliams maybe a name that holds weight in Paris even more, after famously featuring in La Figaro and Le Arte.












Photography by Michael Mayren.

Domingo Rodriguez

A few months back, I blogged about the super talented and extrondinary new designer Domingo Rodriguez. The Graduate Fashion Week 2008 Menswear Award Winner and Esquire magazine's '7 Brilliant Brits' has just shown his SS11 collection in Paris, which is featured in the video below.



Domingo has told me he is also working on a special collaboration which will be launched during September's London Fashion Week, but whilst it's all hush hush, al will be revealed soon. So between now and Domingo breaking his silence, enjoy the look book images below, photographed by Fabien Kruszelniki.

Urban Quilting at Urban Outfitters

When I visited the flagship Urban Outfitters store on Oxford St, London a couple of weeks ago, I was excited to hear about this range, launching in September.

The Lavenham heritage collection is a classic range of jackets and accessories, but these quilted coats are the highlight of the collection so far. They were originally created for horse riding in 1972, but similar to the Barbour, have become quite the on-trend piece.

The price of these exclusive Jackets are £120.00 and are available from Urban Outfitters from September onwards. Can. Not. Wait!