Picture this: You pull into work ready to start your day, reach into your pocket to check your cell phone…and it’s not there. What do you do? Panic? Go through your day feeling like you’ve lost a limb, not knowing if someone is trying to reach you? Emerging designer Zebina Masse explores this attachment we as a society have to our electronic devices in her latest collection: a thesis project that explores the outward, tangible expression of the human soul. “I imagine our souls as being housed in our electronics,” said Masse. “It’s like a part of us is living in that object and when we’re separated from it, we almost feel physical pain from it.” Masse is an Apparel Design major in her final year at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD). Interestingly, Masse didn’t always know she was going to pursue fashion. Prior to RISD, she received an associates degree in liberal arts with a concentration in visual arts from Cape Cod Community College. It was there that personality tests kept pointing her in one of two directions: a math teacher or an artist. While technically good at math, art was a path that “just made sense” for Masse. “I was always one of those weird, quirky, artistic types,” she said. “I’ve been making clothes since I was pretty young, just as a hobby.” Well, that hobby is starting to turn some heads. For her final thesis project, Masse is creating a collection of six looks with matching handmade shoes that keep with her clean aesthetic. The looks feature lots of natural, nude colours and a combination of delicate knit-work and resin. “I let the knitting machine guide me,” said Masse, who prefers to be hands-on in her design process. “I don’t like to just concoct things in my head. I like to work with materials; I’m very moved by fabrics.” The collection is inspired by the book His Dark Materials, particularly the concept that people’s souls are housed inside animal demons that morph with them as they grow older and change and eventually mature. “I really love animals, and I love the idea that you have this animal character that’s connected to you so strongly like that,” explained Masse. “I love the idea that the soul is housed outside of the body too.” Masse built on that core concept, exploring the idea that our souls “live” in our electronic devices. The resin in her pieces—a synthetic material—represents that digital and plastic place our soul resides in the digital world. “When we lose our phones, it’s almost painful,” she said. “I saw these intense connections to my concept.” For more work from Zebina Masse, visit her website at zebinamasse.squarespace.com.  

It’s all about bold pattern and colour this season and men are asked to go big or go home. Modern camouflage, vibrant florals and pristine white are must-haves for spring and summer. Short Stories Suiting just got turned on its head. Voluminous Bermuda shorts were the new match to well tailored blazers on the runways of Jill Sander, Fendi Balenciaga and other heavy hitters, making short suits one of the most controversial trends this year. We’re not certain men will take this look into the boardroom, but hope to see the more daring fashionistos try it off-duty. White Knight There was major white noise happening on the runways of Vivienne Westwood, Comme des Garcons and Louis Vuitton. All-white suiting is a tricky look to pull off; the secret is to mix textures and fabrics to ensure you don’t look like you just walked off a cruise ship. Try silk with linen, or cotton with wool. Camo-Chameleon Just when you thought it was safe to come out, the camo trend is sighted again. The print first returned in 2012 and keeps popping up in major collections from Valentino to Dries Van Noten to super hip Ami. It’s been updated in flashy colours and slightly altered patterns to keep it looking fresh. You’ve got your marching orders, now go forth and be fashionable. Hit the Clutch Men’s bags are nothing new, but this season we saw an evolution from structured leather bags to what would be traditionally considered more feminine, soft clutches. Flower Power Embracing florals might have been the most consistent command from the spring/summer 2014 shows. Prada and 3.1 Philip Lim were favourites in executing the print with interesting, kaleidoscope patterns and beautifully contrasted colours. If you’re not ready to go full bloom, try incorporating florals into the details with a patterned tie, pocket scarf or a button-up layered under a blazer.  

Bid farewell to the quirky florals and pastels of summer. Fall 2013 menswear is masculine, sleek and refined. The Statement Scarf An easy accessory to update your fall wardrobe, the statement scarf started trending on city streets first. Earlier this year, street-style photographers snapped shot after shot of fashionable men wearing everything from printed bandanas tied neatly above collars to oversized, knit scarves wrapped in thick layers. The sidewalk-born trend found its way into designer collections by Kolor, Yohji Yamamato, Trussardi and Gucci. Solid colours are best for pairing with various topcoats, but if you’re looking for a more playful approach try it in a folk inspired print, or the season’s other hottest trend - plaid. Camo-tion Some of the season’s best menswear collections incorporated camouflage into their fall offerings. Some designers showed the print in its traditional tones, while others reinterpreted camo through deconstructed prints and surprising colour combinations. The season’s standout was surely the sleek, black on black camo executed by Valentino. Need for Tweed Tweed blazers, vests, topcoats and suits had menswear models looking absolutely academic this season. J. Crew and Ralph Lauren produced stunning tobacco brown suits in the scholastic fabric, while Paul Smith enveloped models in oversized, grey tweed topcoats over colourful fall layers. Plaid Fad Fall and plaid have been in a long-term love affair for years, so it’s not surprise the pattern is back for another seasonal fling. DSquared2 breathed fresh life into the fall favourite, crossing vibrant blues and greens on sheen fabrics. The mad plaid suits presented by Valentino were absolutely exquisite in tailoring, while Saint Laurent took it grunge in collared zip-up jackets.

From ultra feminine pink, to the plaids of 90’s grunge, this season leaves plenty of options for wardrobe play. Grunge Goddess Leather, plaid, studs and ripped jeans galore. This trend actually encourages you to return to your angsty teen wardrobe and rep rebellion. Saint Laurent demonstrated the grunge trend in its most ready-to-wear version with leather pants, schoolgirl plaid dresses, and multi-zipper embellished miniskirts. All styled with fishnet stockings and buckled, black biker boots. The key to executing this trend on the sidewalks? Leather, plaid and looking like you didn’t try at all. The It-Pant Comfort has been crowned queen of fall fashion, appearing in relaxed silhouettes from top to bottom. The loose-fitted trouser is an autumn must-have and looks absolutely chic paired with heels and a more tailored top. On our most wanted list are the perfect slouchy pants from sister superstars Mary Kate and Ashley’s, The Row. The fall collection showed the trend in its most wearable form – simple, black, classic. Coat Room The world’s runways made it very clear - bigger is better when it comes to fall coats. Cocoon shapes and dropped-shoulders draped models in shows from Carven to Marc Jacobs, Chloe to Acne. Wool, mohair and leather were the star fabrics for this effortless, but exaggerated silhouette, but pattern and colour had no limits. Go for a sleek and traditional grey topcoat as seen by Emporio Armani, or flaunt the trend in all its glory with an elegant pattern such as Rochas floral silk opera coat. Think Pink To the surprise of us all, this feminine hue might be the colour of fall/winter 2013. Pink starred in many designer collections and is the focus of some of the season’s most illustrious fashion editorials, including the September issue of British Vogue starring it-model Cara Delevingne. The cotton candy shade stood out in a season of more androgynous trends imagined mostly in outerwear. Prada executed the colour on sophisticated plaid trenches, while Miu Miu paired it with playful polka dots in floor length jackets. Carven prescribed the trend in a double-dose: a show stopping, oversized, boiled wool coat in bubblegum pink. Let the lusting begin.

Have you ever inspected, fondled or wore a garment that was priced at over $25,000.00? If I narrow the parameters and eliminate fur pieces from your options, you may find it difficult to think of the last time (if ever) that you’ve come across something with such a considerable price tag. Recently, I had the privilege of getting a very close look at a Fall 2013 Balmain Ready-to-wear jacket that was by all accounts...divine. The craftsmanship that goes into a piece like this is overwhelming and all too obvious within the first glance. That every inch is encrusted in jewels and glass beads raises the jacket from common to Fabergé in about 5000 hours. And even though its mass resembles a bag of stones you’d never complain while wearing it? Not when you put it on and every eye is affixed to you like a blogger to a front row seat at fashion week. The thrill of wearing a piece like this is incomprehensible until you’ve worn something quite like it which... as I’ve mentioned above, is quite rare. Taking into account all the intricate handwork and dumbfounding exquisiteness that makes up a piece like this, is it worth it? When you consider a Kazimir Malevich painting such as the Suprematist Composition (blue rectangle over the red beam) which sold for just over 65 million or Mark Rothko’s No 1 (Royal Red and Blue) painting that recently sold for a staggering 75 million; dishing out $25,000 on a jacket seems like pocket change. Especially since the item you’re owning is a sanctioned piece of art and a piece of history created by Head Designer Olivier Rousteing of Balmain. You might even call it an investment seeing how resale on premium designer clothing is becoming more and more profitable. The mention of Malevich and Rothko is not to, in any way demean their works but rather draw a parallel between the art that these great artists produce and their relative prices. Haute Couture has always had its hands wrapped around the leash of the fashion world and dominating the runways, and rightfully so. With every centimeter designed by hand, each piece measured and cut precisely, each bead sewn on one-by-one not to mention the personalized fittings that go along with the sale of each look on the runway - shouldn’t the couturiers get to turn the head of the fashion industry in whichever direction they please? I used to think so. But since Haute Couture has decreased measurably as a subsidiary industry within fashion, Ready-to-wear brands have stepped up there game and are filling in the gap. So... who has the power now? Thankfully the “power” still resides with the buyer. They get to choose how fashion creates, what pieces are magnificent and if fashion truly is an art form. The Balmain piece I was lucky enough to try on is owned by a good friend of mine who, when asked whether they would rather spend the money on a similar piece from a Ready-to-wear brand or start shopping Couture, said “Isn’t this Couture?” And aside from countless fittings, isn’t it?

- Photographs by Tracy Grabowski - Styled by Sandra Sing Fernandes - Hair by Alexander Daniel, Chantal Girard, James Abu-Ulba for Davines - Makeup by Sylvie Desroches for Jane Iredale - Sofia / Wylie at Next Models Paris

  - Photographs by Roberto Magliozzi - Styled by Sandra Sing Fernandes - Hair by Chantal Girard for Davines - Makeup by Valentina Lordanova for MUD Studio Milano, Olga Bordoni - Loredana Next Models Milan

- Photographs by Tracy Grabowski - Styled by Sandra Sing Fernandes - Hair by Sarah Cameron for Davines - Makeup by Sylvie Desroches for Jane Iredale - Natasha at Next Models Paris