Allsaints Autumn Collection

By on August 21, 2012 in Fashion, Retail Therapy

I’m a massive fan of Allsaints. Their fabrics are amazing and of such high quality that it would be worth paying their hella high prices even if their designs weren’t so beautiful. I’m a sucker for leather and Allsaints has it in abundance. Jackets, shoes, dresses, trousers. You name it, they probably have it. They also use a lot of hand-dyed italian silk, massive amounts of intricate beadwork and other gorgeous natural fabrics. If you live in England, it’s a double edged sword because while you have all of this available to you, it’s gonna suck your bank account dry. If you’re going on holiday then I say, stop by a store and invest in something right now.

I was also rather taken with their in-store décor. Each one is unique but there is a common theme running through the entire chain. The Regent Street store has made great use of subway tiles, wood flooring and other natural materials while the one in bath has used just about every Singer sewing machine still left in England. I can’t wait to get back there in September and get my shop on.

If you’re looking for guys clothing, take a look at their Men’s collection.

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Some Kids are Too Cute

By on August 20, 2012 in Personal, Photography

How cute is Ethan? He belongs to my cousin-in-law and for some reason he actually likes to listen to me when I ask him to do certain things. Never had that before. I think it’s mostly so he can see the pictures of himself immediately on the camera screen. I don’t normally watermark my images but I definitely don’t want these being used by randoms all over the internet.

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Zara Cape Town

By on August 17, 2012 in Retail Therapy

The first Zara store in Cape Town opens its doors today in the V&A Waterfront, one of the city’s most premium shopping malls. The store occupies a prominent location on the ground floor of the mall and spans over more than 1,400 square meters of retail space. It features the Women, Men and Kids collections which are displayed on a single floor. The store has one entrance and numerous fitting rooms to guarantee a positive shopping experience.

To showcase the Zara recommendations of the hottest fashion trends for its Cape Town customers, the store has more than 30 mannequins on display, in addition to those in the shop windows, totaling more than 24 square meters of display space.

The Cape Town customers will find the new revamped Zara store image, with intimate display areas and quality furbishing that adds to the aesthetics of the layout and conveys a sense of lightness to the store. These diaphanous and unadorned spaces allow a focus on the most important element of each store, the fashion. Sustainability is priority in the architectural design and it is evident in the environmentally friendly fixtures and fittings as well as the eco-efficient installations that are used.

The space created by the new design allows us to show fashion‐forward ideas without superfluous flourish and makes way for neutral and uncluttered spaces. Products are organised into cubes which serve as dressing rooms, intimate areas in which the shopper can create a personal look building from the ideas put forward by the brand. The space becomes a sort of catwalk in which they discover for themselves all the particles making up the Zara fashion universe.

Zara offers South African consumers a unique southern hemisphere collection which is constantly updated by delivering new merchandise to stores twice a week. Zara customers in South Africa can expect a customised range of apparel for women, men and kids where the latest trends in garments and fabrics, most appropriate for the season, are always present.

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KoldproduK and Travelite

By on August 15, 2012 in Videos

Check out the new video from KoldproduK and the good use of product placement by Travelite. I’ve liked KoldproduK since their collaboration with Straatligkinders, so it’s nice to see they’re still going strong. It’s always nice when a SA band does good. Press release and video below:

Local hip-hop band, KoldproduK recently unveiled their brand new music video, Set the Place on Fire; the latest single taken from their current album, Prepare to Rise. Shot in Johannesburg in May, the video features KoldproduK’s charismatic front-man, Möki Sage, on a wild sprint through Johannesburg city streets, clutching a mysterious red Travelite suitcase.

Directed by William Kalmer, the video lives up to its title by featuring explosives, flame-throwers and dare-devil antics performed by some of South Africa’s top skateboarders, BMX riders and parkour athletes. The resilience and high durability of Travelite products is illustrated in the way the star Travelite suitcase is thrown, juggled and snatched between Möki and the various characters with whom he collides en route to his final destination. On arrival at the bustling, riotous underground party, the red Travelite case is finally opened and the rest of the band emerges from its depths for a night of revelry. A variety of brightly-coloured Travelite suitcases form the party’s backdrop; from gorgeous women dancing in the bags to T*Spark singing from her seat inside a Travelite suitcase.

 The inclusion of Travelite in the KoldproduK music video earns the travel brand its own street cred, endorsed by a group that is renowned for their cutting-edge music videos. From withstanding the high-action, high-impact journey to being placed as the hottest item at a trendy underground party, Travelite is portrayed as hard-wearing, high-quality and ultra-cool as well as being capable of holding everything one might possibly need.

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A Not So Wintery Durban 2

By on August 12, 2012 in Out and About, Photography

This long weekend went by way too fast. Today was a bit windy but we headed down to the Point to for a wander. The man in the Coke shirt is Christopher, he’s one of the coca-cola cart hawkers that wander the beach front. He wasn’t too keen on having his photo taken at first but after I thanked him and walked away another hawker called me back and started directing Christopher to take of his beanie and how to stand. I’ll take him his pic sometime next weekend.

We wanted to get out of the wind for a bit so headed off around the development area. If you’ve ever thought that the canal looks like a nice place to swim, don’t do it, for some reason there are Lionfish in it as well as a really rather large mullet. If all the buildings down on the Point looked like the two story semi-detached ones, I think it would be a fantastic place to live. As it is, I’m not sure I could live there.

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A Not So Wintery Durban

By on August 6, 2012 in Out and About, Personal

Yesterday was one of the most amazing days we’ve had in Durban so far this Winter, especially if you got down to the beach before the wind picked up. One of these days I’ll have to do a post on all the dogs walking their owners on the promenade. Enjoy the super short week everybody.

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I Heart Market – August

By on August 4, 2012 in Out and About, Retail Therapy

Is it really August already? The weather was amazing this morning so a lot of people were up and about at the market a lot earlier than the last few months. It makes it a bit harder to stop in the middle of nowhere and take photos and I was a bit busy chatting and sipping on some Lemonade to snap many pics. Mooki Noodle have added a noodle dish to their I Heart menu. If you missed it, then make sure to get it next time. It’s delicious!

Lemonade Recipe (Fresh. Cool. Old-School Homemade Lemonade)
Serves 4-5

2 Cups Freshly Squeezed Lemon Juice
7-8 Cups Water
1 Cup Sugar

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Topshop & Topman headed to SA

By on August 2, 2012 in Fashion, Retail Therapy

One of my favourite stores is headed to South Africa. That’s right boys and girls, TOPSHOP and TOPMAN will soon be available in our country. We no longer have to beg mates to buy stuff for us on all too infrequent trips to the UK or pay exorbitant taxes when buying online. Take a look at the press release below:

Self-confessed one-stop-shop for cool London style, legendary TOPSHOP and TOPMAN will open their first South African store in Sandton City, Johannesburg in November 2012. The House of Busby, together with Edcon, has been granted the exclusive South African franchise rights for the British High-Street style champions. Both TOPSHOP and TOPSHOP MAN will be housed in a flagship 950 square metre store in Sandton City; Johannesburg’s largest and most iconic shopping destination.  A second store is planned for opening in Gateway, Durban in December 2012, with plans for future store roll-outs including Cape Town and shop-in-shops exclusively within key Edgars’ stores.

Established in 1964, TOPSHOP and TOPMAN currently operate over 750 stores worldwide, with South Africa the 37th country to welcome the renowned labels. Originating as a young fashion brand in the basement of former departmental chain, Peter Robinson Ltd, the brands have earned their reputations as major style authorities. The success of what have become iconic brands is based largely on their ubiquitous appeal. Signifying different things to their expansive customer base, TOPSHOP and TOPMAN present the most fashion-forward pieces whilst allowing for personal interpretation and expression by their customers.

Significantly, the South African stores will be directly aligned with their UK counterpart in terms of merchandise and trend offering. Customers will be able to purchase from the same collection as available in the brand’s UK stores, with the focus being on season-suitable merchandise. The dynamic South African space, with a uniquely British shopping experience, will afford customers extensive, on-trend TOPSHOP and TOPMAN collections including apparel, footwear, accessories, lingerie and make-up.

So who’s excited?

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Allen Gardiner Harbour Cruise

By on July 21, 2012 in Out and About, Personal

We bought a harbour cruise deal through Groupon a few months ago and with the deadline fast approaching we all figured we’d best use it before we lost it. The Allen Gardiner was used as an air/sea rescue launch in WWII and has quite an interesting history. Food on the boat is quite expensive but it’s delicious and just the fact that you’re on a boat with a totally different view of Durban allows the pricing to go straight over your head. There are four different cruises on offer throughout the day and the occasional special midnight cruise as well.  Visit the Allen Gardiner website for more info.

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Forever New – Ice Cream Parlour

By on July 20, 2012 in Fashion, Retail Therapy

If you know me, you’ll know I love Forever New. Before the arrival of Zara it was pretty much the only store that served up the latest trends for our current season instead of leaving us 6 months behind. While they are quite expensive when compared to other popular retail outlets, their quality of fabrics and production is really high, and these days that’s something you really can’t value too highly. Below is a selection of my favourite pieces from the new collection.

Ice cream Parlour, the new collection from Forever New, is a carnival of delight featuring geometric patterns, spots and lace in soft and pretty pastels. The collection is elegant and dreamy with textures of candy floss and a colour palette of rainbow ice cream. Sugary pinks, soft turquoise, mint, lemon and lilac are offset with splashes of vibrant neon hues in yellow, chartreuse and magenta. The collection consists of prom dresses and peplum shapes that are feminine and girly with a fresh update of new colours and prints.

Hard case clutches are in statement colours and heels come in an array of candy hues, with new wedge and strap shapes. Accessories are bold in vibrant neon’s and textured metals with torque necklaces that add an edge to the soft and pretty apparel. Treat yourself to this sweet and feminine collection; a pastel perfect introduction to spring.

Ice Cream Parlour is currently available in all Forever New stores.

Please note: All pricing was correct at time of publishing. Neither Forever New nor Cherish will be held accountable for errors.

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