Ford Fusion High Tea

Hey there,

 

 

You know how they say rather late than never right?   Well I'm about to use that same line but with a tad more embarrassment!

 

However, I'm sure you all know the drill by now.  This time of the year most of us are held down by tons of paperwork, deadlines and basically trying to tie up any loose ends before the year dawns in on us.

 

With that said,  I haven't had enough time to share an amazing event I attended last month. 

 

 The Ford South Africa team were so kind to send over the cutest invitation one day.  It was a box of assorted teas and thus to attend their #fordfusion High Tea on Monday 11^th September.

We arrived at the beautiful location on chapmanspeak, Hout Bay and were met by the lovely ford team on arrival before getting whisked away to the beautifully hidden and tranquil lodge, ‘Tinstwalo Atlantic’.  The event was a bit different to what I’m used to, this one was intimate and hosted a few Cape Town Bloggers, Other media personalities and representatives of the brand. 

We were introduced to the chief group designer of Ford 'Susan Lampinen' who talked us through the design process she and her team in USA Detriot, follow to bring us the end result which is the soon to be launched Ford Fusion car.  South African Designer Suzanne Heyns aslo spoke about the creative process of designing her Runway Collections and how its similar to the design process of cars, taking us on a journey through where she finds her inspiration for her outstanding collections.

 

 

I was very impressed with how informative the event really was.  I know very little about cars so it really boosted my knowledge of how much work and thought actually goes into designing and manufacturing them.  Its safe to say I am excited to see the end result which officially launches in 2015.  Besides the perfect detailing, colours and overall design aesthetic,  the new ford will be able to park itself with out you having to steer.  Now that sounds like a dream right?

 

PS:  Shout out to FORDS amazing team for having us :)

Below is the YOUTUBE video of the event and some pictures/Sketches of the new ford master piece.

 

 

Take Care

 

T H A B I E T       A M A R D I E N

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Spree Spring/Summer 2014

Last week South Africa’s leading online retailer ‘Spree.co.za’ hosted their infamous seasonal lookboard event and this time it was to bring in their latest Spring Summer 2014 collection called “Spree Boutique”.

The fast growing online store has been around a while now and every season they come forth with an even better installation than the last.   More intense, but also just the right amount of fun to keep it playful and leave us all in ooohs and aaahhhhs.  Being in this industry, most of the ‘Fashion ‘events we attend are similar.  A brand trying to do the same kind of different as everyone else.  However Spree never fails to tell us some kind of story through what they send out on the models, walking the show.   I unfortunately wasn’t able to attend the press briefing before the actual event to hear what exactly Creative Director ‘Chris Viljoen’ and Fashion Producer 'Deon Redman' were trying to bring across to guests, although I’m pretty sure everybody took something good and inspiring from it.  I find that having a creative process, finding inspiration and then processing that into art is so much more than just throwing good fashion together. For me Spring should be fun, Colourful and light weight.  Exactly what Local Designers Thula Sindi, Gert Johan Coetzee, Kluk CGDT, Marianne Fassier and Clive Rundle of the "Spree Boutique" collection , showcased on the night.  Good Quality garments for men & women and also from well-established SA designers now brought to you on SA’s fast growing online space Spree.co.za.  I really admire the brand and what they’re doing to change and continuously evolve fashion into what we as fashion enthusiasts enjoy every season as well as their fast delivery service everybody is raving about.   

 

Spree hosted us at the perfectly located Brydun Gallery on Buitengracht street in Boo Kaap.  The all white Gallery was set with accents of spring and pinths which models rotated on as guests and photographers formed a paparazzi crowd and started snapping pictures of the beautiful installation.   It’s been a while seeing everyone, so it kind of turned into the night out someone else had planned for us.  Drinks on tap as well as finger foods to keep us happy, not to mention the obsession that is social printing genius, Nifty250 (gotta love those guys).

Below are a few sourced pictures from SDR Photography

 we are currently experiencing some faults with uploading our event video but will post a link as soon as possible.

 In the mean time, enjoy spring and take care!

T H A B I E T    A M A R D I E N

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

     

GUESS FALL 2014 COLLECTION

American lifestyle brand "Guess" has recently launched their 2014 Fall Collection.  The brand has always been famous for their trendy denims as well as their youthful fashion campaigns all around the world. Recently I've been following the latest season of 'America's next top model 2.0', were girls and GUYS get to battle it out for a $100 000 contract, to shoot an add campaign with Guess, for the first time ever!!!  Besides the usual dramas that comes with reality tv, I got to see and learn so much about what actually goes into shooting these Guess campaigns we see on every back cover of our magazines and what a big deal it means if you are dubbed a "Guess Girl" or guy in the modelling industry.

Any way...

The latest collection will include unique textures and novel trimmings, offering a trendy garment but still holds that true aesthetic value we all as consumers look for when buying clothing.

The Woman

For women, detailing is key this season, so the designers at guess have catered for this and created pieces that have lots of detailing such as lace insets, cut out patterns, zippers as well as studs to give these garments a more edgier look and feel.  Since it's a fall collection, most (if not all) the pieces are denim, and they range from distressed jeans, Jumpsuits, Studded jackets, army green skinny jeans as well as hints of camo here and there.

The Men

Vintage influences lend inspiration to the menswear collection, with washed out denims, washed out chambray shirts and denim jackets being staple items from the collection.  Embroided button downs, plaid printed and faded denim shits compliment the western image guess usually holds on to.  There was also some mixing of textures and fabrics in this collection and some of which are leather biker jackets, double breasted cardigans as well as valvet blazers that creates a modern, refined look for the fashion forward guys out there.  Colours such as deep red and indigo were used to add a touch of sophistication to the collection.

This Collection is set to hit South African shores February 2014; along with an assortment of accessories including Footwear, handbags, eye-wear, belts and loads of jewellery.

So keep and eye out for this... 

Do have a gorgeous week ahead.

Xx

Thabiet A 

Event | High on heels at Goodhope fm

So I know I said I'd be taking a break from blogging this month, but I think this story is really worth Sharing.  A few weeks back I was taken by suprise when I received an email from my favourite PR lady Ms Katie Coetzee to cover an event at Good Hope fm studios and also to talk on air & judge the in studio contest that took place.

Since this was the first time I would ever be doing something like this, I thought it would be a stella idea to get my good friend and co blogger Yumna  Involved seeing that we're both kind of new to these things and it would really be a great oppurtunity for the both of us. I was abit overly excited (not going to lie) and nervous as well, but we both knew it was an oppurtunity we had to take and run with.

The event was a collaboration between Good hope fm, The Princess Project as well as amazing shoe brand  Madison-footwear South Africa.  The event was attended by 10-15 lucky ladies who were given a very informative lesson on how to walk on heels by the lovely Ms Irit Noble.  Some of them could walk, Some of them were abit unstable but @MsNoble really made them leave that night #HIGHONHEELS and more confident with out a doubt.  This had to be the case after radio DJ Ayanda Tini suprised them all with a live pep talk from the african Mother herself  'Yvonne Chaka Chaka'.  All of this was not only to have a good time for no reason though,  There actually was a really good course behind the hole evening.  Each lucky lady was given a brand new pair of Madison Heels and in return had to swop a pair of their heels for someone less fortunate.  I know the saying goes "A girl can never have enough shoes" but knowing there are young girls out their not even able to say those words really stings.  These shoes, The shoes you no longer wear can make a young lady feel really special on her matric dance night and this is the aim of the wonderful Princess Project. Go ahead girls,  If ther's a pair of shoes or a ball gown you might not wear any longer, Drop them off at the studio and make someone else feel like a princess for the night.

All in all,  I am truley blessed to have been involved in such an inspiring event/project and also being able to meet all the well dressed ladies, Goodhope fm Dj's as well as the master minds behind the oh so trendy Madison Shoes (what a jolly bunch).   The event ofcourse was stacked with foods, sweet treats and the most amazing shoes on display.

Enjoy a few pictures I manged to source and please watch the short videos I created at the event (below), where you can see us live on air and also the girls getting #HIGHONHEELS.

 

Untill next time

 x

Thabiet Amardien

 



All sponsors who were involved

With Yumna (excited) and my sister who recieved a prezzie from Madison



MS Irit Noble giving the girls some tips



With Katie Coetzee



(Images are not my own)

 

CSquared Flagship Launch

 

As some of you may know,  fantastic menswear brand 'CSquared' opened up their first flagship store  on Thursday 27 June at Canal Walk shopping mall.  The brand is about 11 years-old and started out as a branch brand from other well known brand Carduccci.  CSquared is a formal menswear store who's designs and tailoring are distinctly Italian but Incorporated with some modern and stylish trends. 

 



Being fashionably late (as I would like to call it), or simply just reading what was on the Invitation wrong ( Oops), Yumna and I showed up to the already vibing event a bit late and missed all the formalities of the stores official opening.  Luckily for us the party wasn't over as we made our way in store to see the most amazing red velvet blazers, paisley pocket squares, polka dot socks, textured bow ties, satchels, high tops and basically everything a fashion forward male ever dreamt of.

 

The staff were very friendly and circulated continuously to ensure that everybody in attendance was having a good time and had something to nibble on.  I will Definitely be seeing more of them closer to Eid this year.

 

The brand really went way out for their first flagship store as Top billings Celebrity interior decorator 'Aidan Bennetts' was the master mind behind the brilliant decor.  Huge frames hung from the roof,  3D walls came out at you, complementary colours flowed throughout and social check in points placed around the store so we could all check in on our social networks.

 

 



below are some of the photographs I took at the event using Yumna's husbands 550D. (I obviously tossed mine somewhere along the line when I was offered this beauty)

With that said, I would like to wish all my fellow Muslim brothers and sisters a Ramadaan Kareem for this blessed month that lies before us.  I have decided to take a short break from blogging as I really have a lot on my plate (work wise) and would like to spend this month in peace with my family & friends and also practice becoming a better Muslim inshallah.

Until next time

xx

 

Thabiet Amardien 

Pocket squares FTW

Chanel

Instore DJ recking the decks

Finger foods flowed

Love these semi formal High tops

With Zarah (The Perry Book) and Yumna (Cooked Culture) what good peoples

 

 

Bow Tie heaven

Girls at play.tv Executive Producer, Tracy Rosslind and Decor man, Top Billings Aidan Bennetts strike a pose with sunglasses from in store. 

 

 

Zahrah Perry being a hungry child lol

More blazing awesomness

 

Winter Trend 2013 | The Beanie

Beanies have been around for very a long time, but it's only recently that the head piece has become an actual trend around the world.  I like the fact that you can play around with the different colours & textures and you'd still be following the latest trend at the end of the day. 

 

With so much different styles, textures and colours to choose from, I look forward to another playful, stylish and warmly dressed South African Winter ahead.

 

Below are some of my favourite beanies I've seen around town.

 

 

with that said...

I Hope you have a fantastic weekend.

 

Peace & Love

 

Thabiet

 

The White word

 

 

 

 The Bobble

 

 

 

 

 

The Neon

 

The Cat