Bottega Veneta is my favorite brand.

I choose to write about the brand today because this FW I was overall unimpressed with collections shown in NY, Paris, and Milan. There are always house favorites- Prada, YSL, etc. When all the shows were over I found myself always going back to Bottega Veneta.  For something so simple it never got boring.

  In a time where it is trendy to have less, Tomas Maier has been making that his trademark since the beginning of his tenure at BV.  Brought on by Tom Ford to re-vamp the house in 2001 he was an "unknown" quietly designing at Hermes. TM's eye for architecture, texture, and color has brought new life to a brand that was on the way to distinction. Articles say he is quiet man who rather house stalk in cities like Palm Beach or Milan but whatever he does it comes through in his brand's clothes, interiors, and accessories.
 
I look up to individuals like like TM because being young, patience is the hardest thing for me to have.  I have to stop myself from blowing it out, all at once, too fast because of emotion and excitement. TM takes his time and the clothes tell the story. That's why to really understand what BV is about you need to look at other collections as well as the most present. Little by little the collections build on each other to tell you what the brand is about. The home collection, the store's aesthetics, the jewelry- it all speaks the same language in such a understated way.

Other Italian counterparts like D&G, Cavalli, and Gucci pride themselves in the extravagance of accessories. BV's shows will have beautiful jacket with a strong shoe and bag.  That's it. No excess layering.  Just the clothes, bag, shoe and face. Seems kind of naked and natural. If you can look strong without all the excess- that is lux. With his neutral clean palettes this FW he lets the woman wearing his clothes be the feature. Who wants to be less important than your clothes anyway?

More <a href="http://www.vanityfair.com/style/features/2008/09/maier200809">here</a>

or <a href="http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/11/26/style/luxury08-Maier.php">here</a>

With more people crowding the cities each day and technology making the changes that accompany them possible, the new cities of tomorrow are alive and happening. With each year that passes cities layers are becoming deeper and more complex.  Can we keep up? Do we have the money to keep up? More importantly are the people ready to make certain changes that are necessary to live in new urban dwellings that don't infringe on living/ environmental standards?
The New York Times Magazine talks about how the cities of tomorrow we see in the movies are slowly becoming reality. With new buildings being made and old ones being knocked down the artifacts that represented the old city are now being layed out by the new. Even if you don't vote, or don't participate in neighborhood meetings, take note about the changes that are happening around you and think. It is the least you can do, right?