Updating the Look...

Having seen the best and the worst of the Spring 2012 collections, Nota Bene Pulse highlights the key pieces, considering both wearability, in context of the style-conscious man, and how these items fit into one’s existing wardrobe.  Read on to ensure that you are shopping smartly and that what you buy will take you into next spring stylishly, not as a fashion victim 

Paris: Menswear Spring 2012

Wacky patterns, inaccessible trouser shapes and dozens of deconstructed jackets…  How exactly do the Spring 2012 menswear collections measure up to the Nota Bene man? 

Material Girl

Accessories designer Bea Valdes combines diverse components to maximum effect. There is no mistaking an intricately embellished clutch or bracelet of hers. These are statement pieces for the confident dresser

Cuff Love

Vintage-jewellery curator Lynn Ban turns designer with her distinctive new line of bold and beautiful pieces

Moda Operandi

Fashion insiders Lauren Santo Domingo and Aslaug Magnusdottir are transforming the exclusive world of trunk shows with Moda Operandi, a revolutionary new website where members can order looks directly from the runways almost as soon as a collection has been presented 

For What It's Worth

Nota Bene Pulse weighs in on Giovanni Bedin’s latest collection for the House of Worth and wonders if these pieces, which we see as unwearable, have any relevance in today’s couture

Haute Stuff

This spring’s Paris Couture Week brought small but significant elements of surprise from almost every design house.  From the high-octane glamour and folly of Jean Paul Gaultier and Christian Dior to the beautiful delicacies of Valentino and Elie Saab, Nota Bene Pulse reviews the whirlwind of decadence and drama that formed the Spring/Summer 2011 Haute Couture collections

Campbell McDougall

Canadian-born Campbell McDougall is creating a buzz in Berlin with his self-described “nomadic shop,” Darklands.  Nota Bene Pulse sits down with the boundary-pushing retailer to discuss his take on selling fashion, where the most stylish people are and why Shanghai is on his radar…

Anne Valérie Hash

The award-winning, Paris-based designer opens up about couture, her capsule collection and the best bed in Paris

The Art of Issey

Issey Miyake returns to the creative helm with the introduction of his latest line, the futuristic 132 5. Collection

Yunus & Eliza

In 2007, sculptor Eliza Higginbottom went to a London foundry to have one of her designs cast.  She was immediately intrigued by what she saw and asked Yunus Ascot, an artist working there, to teach her the casting process…

Barbour Shop

It’s been 75 years since Barbour introduced the iconic “International Jacket.” To celebrate, it’s being reissued as a very special limited edition

Dior

Michael Kors

As Michael Kors gets ready to launch a glorious French flagship store, his largest in Paris (and the world), he gives Pulse the exclusive insider scoop

Jean-Pierre Braganza

Jean-Pierre Braganza is going from strength to strength. Since presenting his first collection in 2004, the London-based designer has become the one to watch, rising from under the radar to ruling the runways. Nota Bene Pulse sits down with designer to discuss his Canadian childhood, latest collections and where to get the best tarte à l’orange in Paris

RAKE’s Progress

Masterful tailor Clive Darby is the keeper of the cloth at RAKE, a new clothing brand he’s designed with the international man in mind

Haider for Him

He describes it as an “exercise” in design rather than an official launch, but Haider Ackermann’s first menswear collection has us hoping there’s more to follow

High-Tech Tailoring

Nanotechnology meets sharp style as cycling-gear source Rapha and Savile Row-tailor Timothy Everest put a new spin on the jacket.

Brunello Cucinelli

Brunello Cucinelli is somewhat of an enigma. He is an internationally acclaimed designer renowned for his luxurious cashmeres, clothing collections and accessories, yet cites philosophers and saints as business role models. Here, he sits down exclusively with Nota Bene Pulse to discuss his utopian work environment, his Fall 2010 collection and everything in between, from the Renaissance to favourite restaurants

Case History

Maison Delvaux, the Belgian purveyor of luxury leathers for over 180 years, has teamed up with Antwerp designer Bruno Pieters to create the 1829 Men’s Line, a range of subtly refined bags that temper modern minimalism with easy elegance