Sandra‘s Closet

Vault, Gucci’s experimental concept store, announces the arrival of its high summer collection. For the latest seasonal chapter in Vault’s tale, the warm sun, clear blue skies, and tranquil waters are subverted to become the canvas to picture eclectic summer stories through the depths of imagination.

Eight brands from around the globe have contributed to the selection that encompasses ready-to-wear, jewelry, shoes, and accessories for women and men curated for everything from carefree seaside getaways and outdoor adventures to the season’s most anticipated formal celebrations and rituals.

Vault Summer presents an array of styles and aesthetics by young brands as well as by fabled houses possessing decades of history.

Agua by Agua Bendita offers women’s beachwear and dresses hand-embroidered by Colombian artisans with native plants of Italy and the brand’s home country.

Emerging New York designer Connor McKnight puts forth a range of ready-to-wear for men inspired by vintage outdoor attire.

Parisian menswear brand Husbands delivers a complete selection of sartorial essentials marked by timeless formal tailoring.

A collection of minaudière clutch bags by Judith Leiber Couture includes playful reproductions of the brand’s highly collectible archival designs, showcased in museums such as London’s Victoria & Albert Museum and The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, among others.

Maison Michel proposes a selection of expertly crafted hats — both timeless and playful — for women and men.

Prounis Jewelry presents precious and semi-precious pieces crafted from 22-karat gold and responsibly sourced South Sea pearls, tourmaline, emeralds, and other gemstones.

Rowing Blazers introduces an array of signature rugby shirts alongside casual and elevated styles for men.

Joining the Vault line-up for the second consecutive season, Vans continues to surprise with its iconic silhouettes imagined in vibrant new colors and prints.

Transposing the hazy spirit of the collection, a campaign by Max Siedentopf blends references and clichés in a playful twist where Hollywood Glamour, slackers and tongue-in-cheek humor find common ground. With an emblematic blend of elegant formality and chic insouciance, an exuberant cast of characters embraces the laidback grandeur of a lakeside getaway in scenarios that ultimately showcase the dreamy reality of Summer.

Created exclusively for Vault, the limited-edition Vault Summer capsule collections will be available only online on gucci.com from May 22, 2023.

LoL, Sandra

Photos: © Gucci
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Mary Quant (Feb 11, 1930 – April 13, 2023), one of the most influential figures in the fashion scene, died at age 93 peacefully at home in Surrey, UK. Being credited with making fashion accessible to the masses with her sleek, streamlined and vibrant designs, she is also known as the pioneer of the mini skirt and hot pants. While this claim has been challenged by others, it became the trademark of her style, and she is cited as the inventor of this style. However, Mary Quant liberated more than just our legs. Her real legacy was more profound, and her vision of female freedom still feels as fresh as it did back in 1955.

Dame Mary was the daughter of two Welsh teachers but was born in Blackheath, London, in 1930. She gained a diploma in the 1950s in art education at Goldsmiths College, where she met her husband Alexander Plunket Greene, who later helped establish her brand and with whom she married until his death in 1990. The couple had a son, Orlando, who was born in 1970. In 2014, she was made a dame for services to British fashion in the Queen’s New Year Honours list.

The V&A Museum, which hosted an exhibition about Dame Mary’s designs in 2020, wrote: «It’s impossible to overstate Quant’s contribution to fashion. She represented the joyful freedom of 1960s fashion, and provided a new role model for young women. Fashion today owes so much to her trailblazing vision.»

Quant initially sold clothing sourced from wholesalers in her new boutique in the Kings Road named Bazaar, that she had opened in 1955. Being the first concept store in the world, she created a special environment, including music, drinks, and long hours that appealed to young adults. A groundbreaking service at that time – this environment was unique for the industry, as it differentiated from the stale department stores and inaccessible high-end designer store environments that had a hold of the fashion market.

The bolder and more unique pieces in her collection started garnering more attention from media like Harper’s Bazaar, and an American manufacturer purchased some of her dress designs. Because of this attention and her personal love for these bolder styles, she decided to take designs into her own hands. Initially working solo, she was soon employing a handful of machinists; by 1966 she was working with a total of 18 manufacturers. A self-taught designer inspired by the culture-forward «Chelsea Set» of artists and socialites, Quant’s designs were riskier and more unique than standard styles of the time.

Dame Mary named the mini skirt after her favourite make of car, recalled its «feeling of freedom and liberation» . She said: «It was the girls on King’s Road who invented the mini. I was making clothes which would let you run and dance and we would make them the length the customer wanted. I wore them very short and the customers would say, ‘shorter, shorter’.»

In 1988, Quant designed the interior of the Mini (1000) Designer (originally dubbed the Mini Quant, the name was changed when popularity charts were set against having Quant’s name on the car). It featured black-and-white striped seats with red trimming.

Quant’s designs revolutionized fashion from the utilitarian wartime standard of the late 1940s to the energy of the 1950s and 1960s’ cultural shifts. Modern fashion owes a great deal to the trailblazing 1960s designer Mary Quant. She stocked her own original items in an array of colours and patterns. From skinny-rib sweaters, to coloured tights and ‘onesies‘, you will be amazed that Dame Mary also revolutionized the high street with trousers for women, as well as accessories, tights and make-up, while using the daisy brand design that became synonymous with her creations. Quant looks changed the way we dress, proving there was more to Mary than just miniskirts.

Here are some things that you might not know about that are credited to Mary Quant:

THE JERSEY DRESS

Quant saw the potential for easy jersey garments as outerwear in the ’60s. Leading then the jersey dress boom by producing thousands of designs in hundreds of different colors, including different shaped collars, sleeves, zips and buttons, with skirts swishy or straight, the jersey dress became a driving force in the democratization of style.

TIGHTS

Where would the modern women be without stretchy tights, in black, or a choice of colours? Sixty years ago, most women were still unquestionably wearing stockings in the shade «American Tan» (black stockings were a hangover from the Victorian era). Held up by garters, or attached to a separate suspender belt with hard metal clips, stockings were fiddly and uncomfortable to wear. Skirts meanwhile fell below the knee to keep all this hardware, and naked thighs, firmly hidden from view. Mary Quant, always looking to develop new ideas, wanted stockings and tights in bright colors, such as mustard yellow, ginger and prune, as well as black – the perfect accompaniment to her knee-skimming skirts and dresses which enabled women to dance, run and move. She partnered with the Nylon Hosiery Company, set up in 1954 by the Curry family, who had recently emigrated from India. They developed a technique of making long stockings which joined together at the top, and were specially dyed to contrast and co-ordinate with Mary Quant separates. The partnership proved to be long-lived, with an ever-expanding range of new colours and patterned knits, including the 1966 «Highball» glitter stockings in silver, gold, green, blue and red.

TROUSERS FOR WOMEN

From skinny jeans and culottes to harem pants, bell bottoms and power suits, trousers have been an essential part of fashionable women’s wardrobes for over 50 years. This was thanks largely to Mary Quant, who was one of the first designers to promote trousers and suits as fashionable womenswear. When Quant opened her famous boutique, Bazaar, trousers and jeans were popular with female students and subcultures on the outskirts of mainstream fashion. Appropriating trousers for women remained a strong theme throughout Quant’s career, as she pushed towards an increasingly androgynous look, playfully challenging established gender norms.

THE SKINNY-RIBBED SWEATER

As with many of Quant’s designs, the inspiration for the skinny-rib came from childrenswear. In her 1966 autobiography, she describes how she «pulled on an eight year old boy’s sweater for fun» and was «enchanted» with the result. Six months later, Quant had put the skinny-rib into production and «all the birds were wearing the skinny ribs». Pinafores paired with sweaters were the building blocks of Mary Quant’s Ginger Group – the wholesale label she set up in 1963, which promoted good-value, mix-and-match separates.

PVC RAINWEAR

In the 1960s, Quant was «bewitched» by polyvinyl chloride (PVC), «this super shiny man-made stuff and its shrieking colours… its gleaming liquorice black, white and ginger.» (Quant by Quant, 1966). The plastic-coated cotton was a new material in the fashion world, having previously only been used for protective garments. Quant launched her «Wet Collection» in April 1963 at the Hôtel de Crillon, Paris, featuring entirely PVC garments. The show was attended by influential fashion editors, and it earned the designer her first magazine cover for British Vogue, featuring a brilliant-red PVC rain mac.

LOUNGEWEAR AND HOT PANTS

Writing in 2012, Quant recalled how she discovered the «house-wear» market in the US around 1965 and decided to bring this new concept to Europe. She designed «a collection of jersey tops and hotpants in striped jersey-knit fabrics with matching bras, pants, socks, leg warmers and minis – all using knitted fabrics of various thicknesses and weights». The idea of special clothes for lounging in at home was quite a change in mindset for most of the British public – who only had the ubiquitous dressing gown until then. The range included brightly coloured jersey and stretch towelling one-piece suits, with short zip-up versions and full-length styles that included feet. These easy-to-wear garments were the ultimate in comfort and freedom, made in the fun colours that were at the heart of Quant’s brand. Quant’s experiments with loungewear can be seen as the forerunner to the contemporary «onesie» craze.

WATERPROOF MASCARA

Quant also made her mark on the makeup world. Her cosmetics line, with its daisy logo and colorful crayon formulations, shared the same sunny, childlike outlook as her fashion. And she brought the world a truly innovative invention: waterproof mascara.

BOB HAIRCUT

Mary Quant made London swing in the early 1960s. But her look was completed by the liberating geometric haircuts of Vidal Sassoon. In 1964, Vidal Sassoon provided Mary Quant, then 34, with her signature haircut, that is now as closely associated with Quant as Sasson. The Bob is the most trending hairstyle at the moment again.

One of the most important figures in fashion, Quant’s influence can still be seen on catwalks. Rest in Peace, Mary, thank you!

LoL, Sandra

Photos: © Mary Quant, V&A, AP
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This is truly breaking news –  Colette, the famous Parisian concept store, is closing down after 20 years. Saint Laurent will be taking over the Rue Saint Honoré location.

The founder of Colette, Colette Roussaux, and her daughter, Sarah Andelman, in their store.

Founded in 1997 by Colette Roussaux, the house has been led by her daughter Sarah Andelman in recent years.

The boutique became renowned for its extreme fashion edits, from high end designers to upcoming street labels, Colette had it all and combined this choice with an eclectic mix of lifestyle products. You could always find up-and-coming designers, such as Proenza Schouler, Mary Katrantzou and Rodarte.

Mary Katrantzou with me wearing her «Jewel Tree Dress» at Colette.

Personally speaking, I went to many fashion events that were hosted at Colette and it was always a pit stop during fashion week for inspiration. I shopped next to Kate Perry and partied with Mary Katrantzou during her launch event with Longchamp.

Colette, you will be missed! Stay tuned, the next breaking news will be coming up shortly as H&M will be announcing their next designer collaboration today!

LoL, Sandra

Photos: Courtesy of Colette, via Agnes Dherbeys for The New York Times, © Sandra Bauknecht

Last week, I flew to Bangkok to attend the opening event of the fifth edition of the Cabinet of Curiosities by Thomas Erber. After Colette in Paris, Browns in London, Andreas Murkudis in Berlin and Maison Kitsuné in New York, the annual exhibition went the first time to Asia. Thomas Erber has been an acclaimed journalist, writer and special correspondent in the fields of travel, culture and trend for 15years. In addition, he also works as a brand consultant.

Barom Bhicharnchitr to the left and Thomas Erber to the right with me

In collaboration with Barom Bhicharnchitr, founder of the Siwilai concept store, located in Bangkok’s new mind-blowing shopping mall Central Embassy, Thomas Erber curated the biggest cabinet ever.

Containing the finest pieces from the fields of fashion, design, high jewelry, art, photography and more, renowned brands such as Paul Smith, Maison Kitsuné, Harumi Klossowska, Marquis de Montesquiou and many more have created a unique or very limited edition piece, aimed at enhancing the essence of his artistic work or brand and especially created for the Cabinet of Curiosities by Thomas Erber.

Siwilai concept store

On top of the more than 80 guests from more than 20 different countries participating, 4 world-class Michelin Star chefs and renowned musicians are participating in the event that will take place until December 21st 2014 at Siwilai & Central Embassy as well as at an additional surprise venue for secret events.

The extreme, natural-minded scenography perfectly integrates to the shapes of this post-modern spaceship that is Central Embassy.

And now let me show you my favorite pieces that are now on sale:

PERMANENT GUESTS

FRANCOIS CHAMPSAUR
INTERIOR & OBJECT DESIGN — EST . 1996 PARIS, FRANCE

Origami Lamp
Moulded, lasercut steel
Edition of 6

The French interior designer François Champsaur arrived in Paris from the Southern capital of Marseille in the 1980s, with extensive aesthetic studies at both the Ecole des Beaux-Arts and the Ecole Nationale des Arts Décoratifs, leading him to pursue his own practice to much acclaim. The lamp is laser-cut in steel and assembled with invisible welding, its sides lacquered individually in black, grey accentuated with yellow, and royal blue.

MAISON KITSUNÉ
FASHION — EST . 2002 PARIS, FRANCE

Safari ensemble – cotton
Unique Piece

Maison kitsuné is the playground of Gildas Loaëc and Masaya Kuroki – a hybrid label that criss-crosses between music, fash- ion and design around the globe, from Paris and Tokyo to New York (and now Bangkok!), supporting cutting-edge musicians and making cool clothes to dress them. The kitsuné safari ensemble is a smooth segue from the label’s quirky spirit into the Cabinet de Curiosités, taking their no-fuss, purist attitude into the heart of the jungle. The short-sleeved shirt and the shorts are cut in khaki-coloured 100% cotton fabric and feature the iconic kitsuné fox patch above the left breast pocket – except here he stands facing a new friend, the Thai elephant.

MARQUIS DE MONTESQUIOU
WINES & SPIRITS — EAU ZE, FRANCE

Armagnac Millésime 1975 Rare Armagnac, six last decanters available over three casks
Unique Pieces

An iconic symbol of the French Art de Vivre, Marquis de Montesquiou is a boutique Armagnac house renowned and awarded across the globe for creating one of the greatest handmade brandies in their dis- tillery in Eauze, in the Southwest of France. The Maison offers the last six decanters available in the world of its rare Armagnac Millésimé 1975, a numbered and limited series of three oak casks.

INTERNATIONAL 2014 GUESTS

LE GRAMME
MEN’S JEWELLERY — EST . 2012 PARIS, FRANCE

“Golden Axe” bracelet set
Sterling silver engraved bracelet
Edition of 9

The “Golden Axe” set by Le gramme is a unique piece composed of nine 33g sterling silver bracelets handmade in France, one for each of the nine dynasties of Thailand. Famously known as the “golden Axe”, the map of Thailand is engraved across the nine pieces like a puzzle, remaining an abstract linear design across each piece, emerging only when they are united. Each piece is numbered in the nine piece series and engraved with its weight in the Thai alphabet, with a further symbolic 9 to honour the king Rama IX.

ANGEL CHANG
WOMENSWEAR — EST . 2009 NEW YORK, USA & GUIZHOU, CHINA

Fringed necklace gown – cotton
Unique Piece

Angel’s pleated gown features a floral-etched necklace collar and hand-stitched skirt, the fabric dyed black in August according to the shamanistic calendar of the Miao people. Apart from the lasercut fringe overlay created with Hong kong-based studio The Fabrick Lab, no electricity was used in the creation of the fabric or production of the dress – not even electric lighting –, the entire process occurring outdoors during daylight hours.

PIERRE FREY x TOXIC
TEXTILES & WALLPAPER — EST . 1935 PARIS, FRANCE

“No Toys Allowed” 3-piece unwoven wallpaper design, 3.5m x 2.5m
Edition of 10

Pierre Frey is a Paris-based design studio, specialising in wallpaper and textile design in the French tradition that presents a limited edition three-piece wallpaper design featuring “No Toys Allowed”, a painting by American graffiti artist Toxic, also known as Torrick Ablack. Toxic is considered one of the seminal members of eighties New York street art scene and a peer of both Jean-Michel Basquiat and Andy Warhol, whose artworks capture the youthful energy of Bronx rebellion.

TRAMUNTANA
ARTISANAL PERFUME — EST . 2002 NEW YORK, USA

“Hay” eau de parfum “Hay” scented candle
Edition of 10 & 20

Claudia de Pablo Vicens created the bespoke “Hay” candle and room spray that both invoke the memory of wet grass after a summer rain, with notes of pure citrus, woods and florals.

THAI GUESTS

JIM THOMPSON x OGREONER
SILK TEXTILES — EST. 1951 BANGKOK x EST. 1995 PARIS

Artwork
Spray paint and Posca markers on 2-ply
Thai silk fabric
Scarf
100% Thai silk twill
Unique Piece & edition of 50

Thai silk company Jim Thompson has kept its founder’s ethos to modernize the Thai silk industry while keeping its craft completely local. The company sustains its own silk farms, mills and design studio, producing all its fabrics in-house thanks to the hands of Thai master weavers, spinners and dyers. For this piece, the brand has teamed up with renowned French graffiti artist Olivier Burel, aka Ogreoner. Off the back of a highly buzzed collaboration with Chanel, which held prime position in Colette’s Rue Saint-Honoré store window during Paris Fashion Week earlier this year, Ogreoner was invited to make his mark in a new country. The artist took his spray cans to Thailand, and after more than 50 hours of freehand work, brought Naga Pitak to life. Ogreoner first encountered the naga at the Jim Thompson House; a mythical serpent, a symbol of protection, it is a hallmark of traditional Thai architecture.

LOTUS ARTS DE VIVRE
FURNITURE, FINE JEWELLERY & OBJETS D’ART — EST. 1980 BANGKOK

Sculpture
Sterling silver parts, crocodile skull with Tiger’s eyes quartz detail, iron wood andleather
Unique Piece

The von Buerens, Lotus Arts de Vivre’s founding family, are a venerable clan of travelers, collectors and creators. Every handcrafted object is an intricate meld of East Asian tradition, modern opulence and functionality. Nearly all their creations are one-of-a kind, and everything is completed in their Bangkok workshop, like The Skateboard Crocodile which is a true piece of art.

LAEND PHUENGKIT x OH FUTON
FASHION — EST . 1987 BANGKOK

“Jacky” shirt  -100% silk-satin
“Ken” shirt – 100% poplin, silk-cotton parts
Photography by Tanapol Kaewpring
Editions of 14

Zurich-born, Berlin- and Bangkok-based Laend Phuengkit may be new to the scene, but his designs have already earned him a Swiss Design Award in 2011 and a showing at Berlin’s Mercedes Benz Fashion Days in 2012. The designer’s unabashed use of traditional Thai and Asian-influenced colours, draping and prints, coupled with his dynamic pattern-making, gives rise to boldly proportioned garments with a demi-couture slant. Hide and Seek marks Phuengkit’s return to his native Bangkok and is, aptly enough, his first collaboration with an Asian artist, Oh Futon. A wearable commentary on human emotions, his shirts invite us to take a closer look and see the stories behind the person.

LOTUS x ATELIER PETER NITZ
CABINET SPECIAL COLLABORATION
LUXURY MAROQUINERIE — EST. 2008 ZURICH, SWITZERLAND

Dragon clutch Alligator, silver, gold, rubies, pearl
Unique Piece

American-born designer Peter Nitz cultivated his eye for antiques and artisanal luxury goods working in a Chicago auction house, before the old world splendour of Europe beckoned him to Zurich. The “Dragon clutch” is an exceptional, one-of-a-kind evening clutch created in partnership with Lotus Arts de Vivre, fusing Peter’s classical romance with the Eastern exoticism of the dragon. Shaped in dark grey, matte alligator skin, the rounded box shape features an engraved frame and is closed by a dragon’s head clasp – its eyes two shining rubies, the mouth clutching a grey pearl.

MAISON TAKUYA
LUXURY LEATHER GOODS — EST . 1987 CHAN GMAI

SofTote (M) bag
Matte black wild niloticus crocodile hide with lambskin leather lining
“Urban T City” bag
Black cashmere calf with wild niloticus crocodile trim
Unique Pieces

“Luxury is about delivering real value and real things,” and to François Russo, nothing personifies this realness like the perfect leather bag. Disillusioned with the generally poor quality of European luxury leather goods, the designer moved to Thailand in 2006 and founded Maison Takuya, a leather goods brand that blends Russo’s French heritage with his fondness for Japanese craftsmanship. The bags themselves, if not perfect, come close : each one is processed and stitched entirely by hand in the brand’s Chiang Mai manufacture. Each step is performed by one of 150 highly skilled Thai artisans under the tutelage of European and Japanese leathercraft masters. (Maison Takuya is also available at Trois Pommes in Switzerland.)

P TENDERCOOL
INDUSTRIAL DESIGN — EST . 2006 BANGKOK

Handcrafted ping-pong table
Hand-casted brass base with Teng wood top and Makha Tae wood inlay
Handcrafted chairs
Hand-casted brass legs with 3D wooden shells and leather upholstery
Handcrafted ping-pong paddle
Makha Tae wood handles and leather upholstery
Unique Pieces

P Tendercool knows tables. Every piece is handmade in-house; no two tables are alike, and P Tendercool knows them all by name. PTppt is a dining-cum-ping-pong table fashioned from reclaimed Teng wood. The tabletop features hand-inlaid marquetery lines and borders, while its base was hand-casted by P Tendercool’s bronze-master Armando; the 1950s net-holders were custom-casted to match. For chairs, two moulded wooden seats were wrapped in hand-stitched leather and set atop hand-casted brass legs. Each chair-back is tattooed – guns, ink and all – with a unique design.

Siwilai, first Thai concept-store with an international impact, perfectly matches the core spirit of the Cabinet and is the perfect place to host several events in their in-store restaurant and coffee bar Rocket Siwilai.

If you are in Bangkok, don’t miss the following:
Masterclass with OGREone on November 28, 2014 at 2pm.
Chef Masterclass: Chef Bertrand Grébaut (Michelin Star) on November 30, 2014 at 2pm.
Party hosted by Jim Thompson and his collar partner Ogre on December 3rd, 2014 at 6.30pm.
Chef Masterclass: Chef Ana Ros on December 7, 2014 at 2pm.
Chef Masterclass: Chef Virginie Laval on December 14, 2014 at 2pm.
Party hosted by Vickteerut on December 17, 2014 at 6.30pm.

Stay tuned for the outfit post coming up soon!

LoL, Sandra

Photos: Courtesy of CDCTE2014 and © Sandra Bauknecht

In Galleria del Corso in Milan: in the space formerly occupied by the Excelsior cinema, the Gruppo Coin has opened the new luxury concept store EXCELSIOR with 4000 sqm dedicated to fashion, food and design on seven floors, built by renowned French architect Jean Nouvel.

The flow of technological reflections takes visitors through a multisensorial shopping experience, from the basement (the Eat’s Store) to the top floor, the home of the luxury accessories. Customers can shop a large selection of beauty products, enjoy the patisserie Ladurée, a Tiffany store and fashion brands such as Givenchy, Chloé, Valentino, Holly Fulton and Proenza Schouler. Believe me, you could spend the whole day in this shopping temple!

LoL, Sandra

Designer clothes

Beauty temple

Olfactory bar

Ladurée

Photos: © Sandra Bauknecht

Colette in Paris, Corso Como 10 in Milan… and now finally Zurich will get its own concept store.

Salvatore Schito, the renowned fashion house is presenting a shop in shop together with Lovers Lane, the place to go for the best shoes and bags in town. The beautiful courtyard will be hosted during spring, summer and early fall by MaDonna Ristorante. So the perfect place to park your hubby while you discover the newest fashion must-haves in the stylish shop, situated In Gassen 14, in the heart of Zurich.

Mark your calendars and this is not an April fool’s on April 1st when the doors will officially open!

LoL, Sandra