The Sartorialist

...Where the fly get inspiration.


So if you read GQ Magazine, then you've probably seen Scott Schuman's work. He's been covering (street) fashion photography for 5 years on his blog, thesartorialist.com; as well as for GQ. With 15 years of experienve in the fashion industry, he closed the doors to his showroom and decided to grab his camera & shoot everyday people on the streets of New York that he noticed had a flare for indivualised fashion.

Schuman shoots from a designer's perspective; looking for colors, pattern mixing, proportions, and genre variations. He doesnt judge the entire outfit as good or bad, but rather at its potential for inspiration. In the 5 years he's been posting to his blog, he has parlayed that into a monthly column for GQ, recurring spots on style.com, and even a guest speaker on international fashion industry panels.

I personally know that whenever i see his photos in GQ, i always do double takes. Its as if im seeing the people on the street firsthand. Everyday folks that dont really look like celebritites at all, but simply stand out because they look incredibly well put together. You;ll be surprised how inspiring it is. Even from a non-fashion perspective they are just intriguing to look at.
And i cant spend too much time on the website because it makes me want to dig through my closet and start mixing wild new outfits from the old stale crap sitting around, haha which wouldnt be a bad thing if i had some new ish up in there, but I DONT. So then i go out shopping which leads to trouble, ya feel me? LOL anyway, Scott just finished a book that is being released this month compiled of his favorite pictures from the site archives titled (surprise!!):" The Sartorialist". Its definately going on my list of (usually) random books to pic up next time I'm at B&N. On a related note, im also getting the itch to head back to NY, lol
-Steven

edit: I was unsure about the legalities of posting his picks directly on here, but the post feels so naked without something, so i took a couple screen shots. You may recognize the guy in the first pic. The story behind it is completely random too! lol small world..

Whats REALLY Good?!?

YOYOYOOOOOO!!
It's been a looong while since i've posted something on "Whats Good?". I've been neglectful, i know :( but forgive me. I have been staying busy though, authoring two other blogs, making music, and of courese, new designs! But I'm back, and i brought a few friends.
Since Kirin has always been about creating big things from the little things life gives you, I'm proud to announce our new line: Creation and Destruction. We will soon have a revamped website, complete with new designs, a new lookbook, and new lifestlye section.
Now on to those new friends: Darren Griffin is the new Operations Manager, who will handle the day to day business that keeps Kirin running,as well as being one of the names you may see onsigned onto the tag of the Limited Edition Prints.
And Danni Mitchell is the newest member of the promotions and marketing team whom you may see out on the streets hustling swag, or in your favorite boutique hustling wares. Their bios will be up soon.
In the meantime, they will also be contributing to the new "Whats Good?" where we continue to bring you the latest that we find in fashion, art, and culture from all over this big blue ball of freshness we inhabit. Stay tuned.
-Steven.

BTW if your on Twitter, get at us! @KirinClothingCo.

(MORE) Electric Vehicles

OK, so the Prius may be he number one selling electric/hybrid car in the US, but if other automakers want to compete, they know they have to do it where Toyota failed. By offering sexier, bigger hybrids with faster speed and more interior room. Enter GM...after getting panned for supposedly "killing the electric car" the EV-1, they decided to get off their butts and make up for it by building this concept: the VOLT. Although still labeled a concept, the Volt apparently will be the first hybrid car thats completley plug n go ( although the Tesla is completley electric w/faster speeds and longer carges), and it will be branded under the Chevy moniker. Its designed to run 40 miles on a full charge, but it does have a combustible engine im guessing so you dont get stranded out of town. Since it's still a concept GM hasn't given specs yet but it touts smaller batteries, faster charging times, more passenger room, and faster speed. Apparently production will start when the battery technology is ready which will be 2-3 years. IMHO, this could really put GM back on the map if the production model dropped and looked and operated exactly like the concept. Hell, I'd happily trade in whatever I am driving at the time for a beauty like that. Unfortunately, production models rarely look like the concepts (do they think we're not ready for future ish yet,or what?), and GM is not known for it's reliability.
And while we're on the (rare)subject of Chevy's and sexiness, if you havent seen the 08 Camaro concept thats most definately going into production, go here.

New Updates

We are about to undergo a MAJOR revamping up in this piece. This spring/summer 07 is going to be a whole new Kirin. Look forward to a new (finally!) site, more designs and gear, and more partys, propaganda, and good ol fashion fun! We're also going to split into two lines, the original Kirin, and another, more street friendly line whose name will be revealed shortly. As well, we we're forgoing the winter 06 collection, but due to an extremely large amount of requests for something, we're dropping 2 hoodies on ya next mon.
And YES, the garage sale for the summer 06 will take place very soon. I just have to get all the links set up right. So check back often, make sure your name's on the mailing list, and drop a line at steven@kirinclothes.com for any questions.
-one
steven

Green Super Car(s)

I saw this a couple days ago. I must say I was impressed purely on design if nothing else. It's Jay Leno's Bio-Diesel super sports car. It's got 650 horses and a turbine engine that should be in a helicopter. Just try revving your engine next to this guy at the stop light! Jay says he desinged it to show that clean cars can be fun to drive too (ahem...prius). While bio-deisel is not the greenest energy source (it still burns emissions), the big hype behind it is that it's a renewable energy source. The design inspirations came from jet aircrafts, formula 1 racers, and GM Project cars (which are IMHO the only good designs GM ever releases.) You can definately see the Cadillac inspirations behind it (ahem....sixteen). He thought up the idea with his mechanic, and the GM head of GLOBAL design. Yeah.. not regional, or national, GLOBAL. This man's got that much pull when it comes to autos. Anyway, it's a dope whip but dont slap the poster up on your wall and start penny pinchin anytime soon, this baby's a one off. The only one thats ever going to be built; and it's made just for Jay...


But if your still fiending for a sports car that'll truly let you burn rubber and not the ozone layer,
put those pennies towards this. The Tesla Roadster is the world's first super car that's completley electric. The company was started by two Silicon Valley entrepenuers who put up a bid for the idea and the Lotus designers won. So technically it's a tricked out Lotus, but the ladies'll never know! It gets 0-60 in 4 seconds, 135 miles per gallon (equivilent to a gas powered), or 250 miles per charge. It's only got 2 gears, but you dont need to even switch gears to drive. You can stay in 2nd from the jump. It also only takes 3.5 hours to reach a full charge (that alone would be incentive to take it out and just go all day).And if that isnt fun enough it's got an Ipod jack!! If you want one sign up now playa cause the first models have already been reserved, and I got a feeling the waiting list for the 2008 ones will be longer than the one for the Prius.
-Steven
btw. I couldnt get Blogger to upload the darn pic so I'll try to post it later

Christmas in Black

I found this diggin around...it's a black Ashley Spruce tree made out of PVC with 1500 clear lights...Very untraditional. And yet kinda cool...a little mod, a little contemporary. I'd like to see a whole line of products to fit with the tree ( black, white and silver wrapping paper, tinsel, tablecovers, etc.) It would make your house look like something out of a catalog, but it might be fun for a season or two...and if the black is too dark for you, it also comes in bright red, so you can have a merry Target Christmas.
seasonsdreams.com
-Steven

Kirin On Tv!

I know it's been a while with the posts, but I've been busy getting everything ready for the Fall/Winter seasdon which is coming up very soon! To keep you busy, go check out the latest commercial for the Health Alliance for Austin Musicians or HAAM. Local superstar Kevin Carroll is the star and he can be seen rocking the Kirin "La Luz De La Soul" tee!! And he looks good in it if I do say so myself. Check it out and then go to his page and tell him how good he looks.
peace,
Steven