Plus Brunello Cucinelli launches eyewear
Words by ELIZABETH VARNELL and MAX BERLINGER
Riviera Romp
Provençal stripes riffing on the spirit of Hubert de Givenchy’s summer estate, Le Clos Fiorentina, in Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat join other sun-soaked patterns comprising the French house’s GIVENCHY PLAGE collection of lightweight pieces playing up key house signatures. Essentials including bathing suits, beach towels and hats are the building blocks of the breezy offering. Terry separates, crop tops, white denim, natural cork platform mules and Voyou or G-Tote raffia bags round out the women’s designs along with seaside linen staples including pajama pants. Linen cover-ups — in caftan or jacket-length variations — with sky-blue stripes, lemon-print silk twill or in ivory silk linen all reference the house founder’s atelier coat recreated for Greta Garbo as a beach wrap. In addition to linen trousers and structured shirts, designs for men are made with Japanese seersucker and organic silk while Le Clos 52 graphics on T-shirts nod to the house founder’s retreat and the year he opened his couture house. givenchy.com. E.V.
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Jean Watch
As PAMELA ANDERSON continues her personal evolution via her recent memoir and a new barefaced minimalism, she has partnered with denim brand RE/DONE to re-create designs that reflect her most memorable silhouettes. Her straight-legged jeans turned heads in the ’90s, and she’s bringing them back as sustainable staples. The collaboration includes recycled fabrics, California-grown regenerative or organic cotton, and upcycled vintage denim in low-impact washes complete with vegan leather back patches. There are oversize chambray shirts, fitted denim versions, square-necked bodysuits, hoodies, denim wrap skirts, jean shorts, even a wide-brimmed bucket hat from a woman who knows about blocking the glare. Her face fronts an abbreviated classic tee, and another is emblazoned with the phrase “Pam’s Guide to Happiness.” shopredone.com. E.V.
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Charmed, I’m sure
FENDI is getting personal with Make Up Your Peekaboo, a selection of accessories users can add to bags to play up particular aspects of singular style this summer. A wide assortment of mix-and-match charms, straps, and handles gives new life to favored carryalls. Bespoke designs can also be created by adding accessories to new Peekaboos in naturally grained leather or artisanal raffia for hotter months. Add a Pico charm that resembles the Peekaboo design down to the matching leather or consult a fortune teller charm printed with eight guiding words that can answer all of life’s questions. Strap You bag straps are also updated in leather or raffia, and a new maxi FF motif diamond metal chain comes in silver or gold. Removable handles for ISeeU small and petite sizes are available in single or multiple colors. No bag will ever be the same. fendi.com. E.V.
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Making Waves
HUNZA G, which is celebrating 40 years in swimwear, knows no bounds when it comes to flattering designs. With ’80s-style seam-free, high-thigh cuts and unique sustainably sourced crinkle fabrication featured in flamboyant colorways, the brand is an unstoppable force in the beachwear industry. Popular among most (and with a one-size-fits-all ethos), the brand has become a social media sensation with celebrities like former C cover star Rosie Huntington-Whiteley. Returning to Los Angeles, Hunza G is laying down roots with its first U.S. brick and mortar, a 1,200-sq.-ft. space in West Hollywood offering its signature beachwear, ready-to-wear, and accessories. 8402 Melrose Ave., West Hollywood; hunzag.com. R.R.
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A Sight for Sure Eyes
Who wouldn’t want to see the world through the eyes of Italian designer BRUNELLO CUCINELLI, he of the ridiculously plush cashmere sweaters and the elegantly relaxed tailoring? Well, we just got one step closer, thanks to his eponymous brand’s recent launch of sunglasses and eyewear. Consisting of 14 styles — 10 sun and 4 optical — the lenses are both modern and timeless, evoking the sun-kissed glamour of a day spent boating along the Amalfi Coast. Each frame is meticulously constructed, sometimes by hand, from world-class materials like handsome acetate or refined titanium; many of the crystal lenses are tinted or colored to give the wearer the impression of twilight, or aperitivo hour, Mr. Cucinelli’s favorite time of day. brunellocucinelli.com. M.B.
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Top Gehry
Architect FRANK GEHRY’s varied masterworks in Los Angeles are dynamic explorations of materials and fabrications that inform his latest designs for LOUIS VUITTON. His long-standing collaboration with the French house has just yielded a series of limited-edition carryalls pushing the boundaries of its savoir faire and evoking the various textures he has pioneered since launching his firm locally in the 1960s. His favored tropes are included, such as undulating surfaces, dimensional fish, and whimsical takes on straightforward shapes. A crumpled Bear With Us clutch is based on the nonagenarian’s 2014 sculpture, and there are Twisted Box trunks and innovative Capucines complete with resin-petal blossoms. There’s even a Concrete Pockets style that nods to the strikingly unconventional Hall celebrating two decades on Grand Avenue. louisvuitton.com. E.V.
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Clutch and Go
Limited-edition tweed Burn Bags, a collaboration between ST. JOHN and EDIE PARKER, are debuting this summer, complete with retractable lighter holsters. The St. John knits, made from archival yarns, are shaped by Brett Heyman, whose Edie Parker brand is known for its cheeky bags, glittering box clutches, colorful accessories, and home decor. Heyman, who grew up in Los Angeles collecting the array of acrylic clutches that initially inspired her line, incorporates lighters in a host of her designs, even providing mini Bics with the bags. She also stocks ashtrays, coasters, and other cannabis-adjacent accoutrements. The new capsule with St. John includes two smokin’ new designs: a clutch in silver eyelash tweed and a shoulder bag in rainbow tweed. stjohnknits.com; edie-parker.com. E.V.
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Natural Selection
SHALOM HARLOW has joined forces with CITIZENS OF HUMANITY to mark the L.A.-based denim line’s ongoing expansion of its regenerative cotton program, improving yields while reducing chemicals and water used by farmers who supply it. Laurence Ellis shot the model and longtime environmentalist in Malibu clad in the line’s newly debuted regenerative cotton collection, which includes denim jackets, bowleg jeans, pleated trousers, deconstructed skirts, long shorts, and even a jumpsuit. Since the program’s launch two years ago, Citizens has procured more than 3 million pounds of the cotton and is encouraging brands, fabric mills, and farms to switch to the sustainable and beneficial practice. CEO Amy Williams points out that the trademarked Integrity Grown standard gives the natural fiber new transparency, a first step toward big changes. citizensofhumanity.com. E.V.
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Pearls in Pairs
Embellished shoes with perfectly placed pearls give a modern slant to a storied wedding day tradition, and JIMMY CHOO has created multiple variations on the theme this summer. The sculptural square-toed Ottilia has slim minimalist straps and an ankle clasp adorned with a single pearl and crystal, whereas Sacoria wedges include 3,000 pearl embellishments organized in clean lines. Matching Micro Bon Bon evening bags are finished with more than 1,800 hand-applied pearl shapes, a process that takes seven days to complete. The London-based design house is also introducing an ice blue hue in its pointed Didi pumps, Elme ballet flats, Saeda block heels, and strappy Jess patent leather sandals. 250 N. Rodeo Dr., Beverly Hills, 310-860-9045; 2855 Stevens Creek Blvd., Valley Fair, Santa Clara, 408-516-1470; 3333 Bristol St., South Coast Plaza, Costa Mesa, 714-327-0644; jimmychoo.com. E.V.
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Gucci Grows Up in Costa Mesa
Lush fabric-lined walls, ivory boiserie, and geometric marble floors transform GUCCI’s new two-floor Costa Mesa boutique into a residential haven. More than 17,500 square feet house Sabato De Sarno’s new palette-cleansing womenswear designs alongside his latest coast-inspired Lido collection in the reimagined shop that was created following LEED guidelines for energy efficiency. The ground floor features men’s ready-to-wear, shoes, and Valigeria travel essentials. A curving marble staircase leads to handbags, fine jewelry, shoes, and De Sarno’s women’s collections, along with the house’s decor line. Leather goods are also here, including bags exclusive to the new location. 3333 Bristol St., South Coast Plaza, Costa Mesa, 714-557-9600; gucci.com. E.V.
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Mytheresa’s exclusive Dries Van Noten seaside staples
No one does prints or pigmented shades quite like Dries Van Noten, the beloved Belgian designer whose impending retirement imbues his newest floral motifs and vibrantly pigmented shades with an amplified aura of singularity. His latest capsule, launched globally with Mytheresa, has all the elements he has embraced and perfected over the past four decades, including pencil skirts, boxy shirts, lightweight dresses, and his pioneering geometric patterns. The high summer looks, meant for days spent in shore-adjacent locales, includes 25 exclusive pieces amid one of the last collections designed under Van Noten’s personal creative direction. Get them while it’s hot. mytheresa.com. E.V.
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All aboard the Vivier Express
Roger Vivier’s Traveling Icons series of whimsical films — dreamed up by creative director Gherardo Felloni and starring L.A. native Laura Dern — give new meaning to summering in style. Celebrating the intersection of fashion, art, and storytelling, the house has a history of casting screen actresses like Isabella Rossellini, Susan Sarandon, and Catherine Deneuve in short movies. The newest edition finds Dern on a steam train through the French countryside accompanied by the house’s Viv’ Choc handbag, with its trademark buckle and turnkey lock, as well as I Love Vivier pumps complete with whimsical heart motifs. Dern, who dates her first encounter with Roger Vivier shoes to the on-screen footwear Deneuve wore in Belle de Jour, proves traveling in style is not a relic, but rather a requirement. rogervivier.com. E.V.
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Jimmy Choo and Malbon tee up a course correction
Jimmy Choo’s clubhouse takeover, orchestrated through a collaboration with Malbon, elevates limited-edition shoes and golf accessories with a game-ready blend of function and fashion. The clean-cut sport-inspired collection includes high-performance trainers with grooved outsoles and textured diamond cleats, plus a slew of other essentials such as slip-on post-game mules with Malbon’s embroidered Buckets mascot, a limited-edition golf bag, club head covers, a rangefinder cover, bucket hats, towels, caps, and, of course, shoe bags. Jimmy Choo’s creative director Sandra Choi calls the line “playfully glamorous,” and it clearly furthers Stephen and Erica Malbon’s mission to create apparel that’s equally suited to play both on and off the green. jimmychoo.com/en/collections/malbon-collaboration. E.V.
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Prada’s new drop reimagines archival prints
New iterations of Prada Double Match shirts are dropping now and next month as the house taps into a genetic code of designs dating back to the 1990s. Bold combinations pieced together on heavy cotton or silk twill recall beloved patterns and subtle prototypes developed over the past few decades. The spliced retro-inspired shirts — complete with boxy silhouettes, straight hems, and bowling collars — resurface memorable prints like bananas, tweeds, bright carnations, and countless other archival offerings. Stripes meet subtle florals, the lively Megamix print is paired with basic black, and Gerbera daisies abut looping lines. prada.com. E.V.
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A meeting of minds with Mother x Mother Tongue
Mother, the Los Angeles–based denim brand, and Mother Tongue, the biannual print magazine, are joining forces this election year to advocate for reproductive rights and gun control. The resulting Mother Knows Best collection of vintage-inspired socks and corduroy trucker hats nods to women, mothers, and advocates across the country unwilling to accept the status quo. Mother Tongue’s Spring 2024 issue includes Faith Blakeney, Jordana Brewster, Sarah Sophie Flicker, Jodie Patterson, Paula James-Martinez, Elise Peterson, Rumor Willis, and a host of others speaking their minds on the topics. Additionally, Mother is donating $10,000 to both Planned Parenthood and Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund, two frontline organizations advocating for change. motherdenim.com/collections/mother-knows-best. E.V.
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Duster reimagines house dresses
The ongoing interplay between work and domestic realms remains top of mind for Melissa Magsaysay and Andrea Racey, who cofounded Duster, a line of reimagined housedresses, with a portion of proceeds going to structural change advocacy organization Moms First. Magsaysay tapped her heritage for the first utilitarian designs based on lightweight dusters worn by women in the Philippines. Now she and Racey continue to expand on the initial dresses, all of which are outfitted with pockets and meant to suit the multifaceted ways women move through the day from errands, appointments, and meetings to housework, airline flights, and more. The line nods to both the unpaid labor that often falls to women and the ways support, economic advancement, and equality can move them forward. shopduster.com. E.V.
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Talismanic jewelry in the colors of the canyon
From her studio in Topanga Canyon, Savannah King creates jewelry charged with intention. Her latest collection, Our Lady of the Canyon, launches May 21 and has all the hallmarks of the ancient and classical goldsmithing techniques she has honed over the past 15 years. As the rains came down this winter, King created handmade pieces designed to evoke “a feeling of wild awe and oneness with place.” Integrating chain weaving and granulation, King crafted the new line of rings, necklaces, earrings, and bracelets from raw gold crystals. She added ethically sourced, hand-chosen stones gleaning an energetic signature from each using a Taoist lens. Dark Tahitian pearls represent the new moon, and green tourmalines and emeralds — stones of regeneration, renewal, and liberation — honor the wood element in this lunar year of the wood dragon. savannahking.com. E.V.
Portions of this story originally appeared in the Summer 2024 issue of C Magazine.
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