Shipley & Halmos is perenially solid, a favorite season after season, and upon seeing their new stuff for Fall 2010 -- and kicking back with designers Sam Shipley and Jeff Halmos and pups Pilot and Roscoe in their down-home digs -- we love the brand even more.
The newest pieces in the Shipley & Halmos repertoire read more like careful additions to an ever-evolving, growing aesthetic than something altogether new. The central theme for the autumn revolved around movement -- clothes that move in a practical, everyday way, and, we think, move across time and trends. We got lost in textures in the yummiest oversized chunky-knit mohair sweater; a delicate, precisely draped silk blazer is satisfying; and outerwear blending rabbit, wool and leather was particularly stunning. Classic items anchor the batch, but these are trenches, tees, blazers and trousers you've not seen before. A particular favorite of ours was the striped bateau, like Paris in the springtime during a post-modern renaissance.
And the prints! We forgot about prints. S&H used a modern but muted approach of photographic motifs on slightly feminine silhouetts, emblazoning garments with screenprints of graphic bar codes and blurred exposures of fireworks and tree branches made somehow to evoke watercolor.
Visiting the dudes' light-filled Nolita studio was an informative treat. Having designed bookshelves and drafting tables to fill the eclectic space, the duo's interior design skills rival their fashion in terms of its contemporary timelessness and ultimate comfort. Shipley & Halmos have infused their clothing with the same yin and yang balance that permeates their studio, and it shows. Really, the mix of old and new, soft and edgy seems to speak to the collaboration between two very different, but essentially harmonious designers. The studio is where all the magic happens, and with a jolly mix of modern graphic art and vintage found items mingling with a casual atmosphere, it's not hard to imagine it incubating such a knockout new collection.
