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This Diamond-Packed Apple Watch Cuff Is Authenticated by an NFT

  • July 9, 2023

Entrepreneur Nicole Steel is on a mission to fuse old-world craftsmanship with Web3 technology, in an effort to fight against counterfeiting and onboard more people to blockchain by speaking their language.

On Tuesday evening during Paris Haute Couture Week, she unveiled a collection of luxury connected cuffs for the Apple Watch—the latest product offering from La Maison Steel, the brand she founded in 2019. 

Her “born on blockchain” SmrtKuffs—which start at $290—range from entry-level leathers from French tanneries through exotics, all the way to a limited edition, made-to-order high jewelry version crafted by a Paris-based atelier.

Another look at the SmrtKuff accessory for Apple Watch. Image: François Goizé

Another look at the SmrtKuff accessory for Apple Watch. Image: François Goizé

That rendition features over 400 VVS diamonds totaling 2.5 carats, set in white gold palladium and requiring some 136 hours of hand workmanship. The cuffs are designed so that Apple’s smartwatch can be worn under the wrist, so your messages don’t flash up for all to see. 

Each smartwatch accessory features an integrated NFC chip that lets users access both a digital ID and information on provenance secured via an NFT on Polygon, an Ethereum scaling network.

Where exotic leathers are concerned—all International Crocodilians Farmers Association certified—the digital passports feature a product’s CITES certification, i.e. the additional permit necessary for trade with certain species, ensuring sustainability and traceability.

Gmoney in Paris: How Emerging Tech Is Redefining Luxury Fashion

“I love old-world craftsmanship and luxury but I wanted to connect it with blockchain technology and the value that brings,” said Steel, the former real estate investment analyst, citing concerns about the global counterfeit market as the genesis of the idea. 

“I really want to be a part of that solution,” she said. In fact, the area has always proved of interest—the subject of Steel’s senior thesis was international money laundering. 

Steel’s

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1997, the year of the ‘Big Bang’ of contemporary fashion

  • March 24, 2023

By Maria D. Valderrama

Paris, Mar 5 (EFE).- Alexander McQueen, Gianni Versace, John Galliano… The year 1997 was full of events that completely transformed the fashion industry, so much so that now the Palais Galliera, fashion museum in Paris, dedicates an exhibition to it.

Fashion headline Vogue spoke in its “Big Bang” editorial in 1997, referring to the explosion of creativity and new energy that was taking place.

“It is an extraordinary year, compared to the decade and within the recent history of contemporary fashion. There was an explosion of talent and creativity, and within the luxury industry there is a certain development that ends in what we know today as the contemporary fashion,” said Miren Arzalluz, director of the Palais Galliera.

That year he left collections that, due to their innovation and the questioning of beauty canons until then, entered the Fashion History books, among them the “Body Meets Dress, Dress Meets Body” by Comme des Garçons. With it, Rei Kawakubo completely distorted female forms, by stretching the fabric, and giving it lumps and bumps.

Martin Margiela presented his famous Stockman collection, turning linings and patterns into Couture clothing; Tom Ford ushered in hypersexualized fashion with his unisex “G-String” thong.

Jean-Paul Gaultier and Thierry Mugler made their Haute Couture debuts. Two irreverent Britons, John Galliano and Alexander McQueen, turned the Paris of fashion upside down when they were appointed to the reins of the Christian Dior and Givenchy brands, respectively, with creations that the critics of the time called “costumes.”

They were 12 months full of proposals that broke with the previous cycle, in a period of economic and social crisis, and when it seemed Paris had exhausted its role as the cradle of world fashion.

An upheaval similar to the one that occurred in 1947, after World

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Japanese fashion designer Hanae Mori dies at 96

  • September 16, 2022
Japanese fashion designer Hanae Mori dies at 96
Japanese fashion designer Hanae Mori dies at 96

Tokyo: Japanese fashion designer Hanae Mori, who cracked the elite world of Parisian haute couture, has died at her home in Tokyo aged 96, Japanese media reported Thursday.

Nicknamed “Madame Butterfly” for her signature winged motif, over the decades Mori´s luxurious creations were worn by Nancy Reagan, Grace Kelly and numerous other members of high society.

But she was also a pioneer for Japanese women as one of a tiny number to head an international corporation.

Mori died on August 11, Kyodo news agency said on Thursday, citing her office, without giving further details.

Public broadcaster NHK and other media outlets also reported the news, saying a private family funeral had already taken place and giving the cause of her death as “old age”.

Mori´s trailblazing career took her from Tokyo, where she started out making costumes for cinema, to New York and Paris, where in 1977 her label became the first Asian fashion house to join the rarefied ranks of haute couture.

Her first collection abroad, in New York in 1965, celebrated the theme “East Meets West”.

Japanese fashion greats such as Issey Miyake, who died earlier this month, followed in her path.

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Japanese fashion designer Hanae Mori dies

  • September 15, 2022

published : 18 Aug 2022 at 05:45


Japanese fashion designer Hanae Mori, left, with a fashion model wearing one of her creations in Paris in 1977. (Photo: AFP)

TOKYO: Japanese fashion designer Hanae Mori, who cracked the elite world of Parisian haute couture, has died at her home in Tokyo aged 96, Japanese media reported Thursday.

Mori died on August 11, Kyodo news agency reported, citing her office, without giving further details.

Nicknamed “Madame Butterfly” for her signature winged motif, over the decades Mori’s luxurious hand-crafted creations were worn by Nancy Reagan, Grace Kelly and countless members of Japanese high society.

But she was also a pioneer for Japanese women, one of a tiny number to head an international corporation.

Her trailblazing career took her from Tokyo — where she started out making costumes for cinema — to New York and Paris, where in 1977 her label became the first Asian fashion house to join the rarefied ranks of haute couture.

Her first collection abroad — in New York in 1965 — celebrated the theme “East Meets West.”

Japanese fashion greats such as Issey Miyake, who died earlier this month, followed in her path.

Though she shuttered her Paris atelier in 2004, after her last couture show there, Hanae Mori boutiques remain open in Tokyo and her fragrances are still sold worldwide.

… Read the rest
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Hanae Mori, pioneering Japanese fashion designer, dies aged 96

  • September 11, 2022

Written by Oscar Holland, CNN

Contributors Junko Ogura, CNN

Hanae Mori, the first Asian fashion designer to break into the exclusive world of haute couture, has died at aged 96.

The Japanese designer, whose elegant creations were worn by high-profile figures from Hillary Clinton to Empress Masako, died last Thursday, her office told CNN via email. No cause of death was given in the company’s statement, which added that a funeral service has already been held with close relatives.

Born in Shimane prefecture, Japan, in 1926, Mori opened her first Tokyo studio, Hiyoshiya, in 1951, and another three years later. Much of her early career was dedicated to making costumes for the movie industry during a period now considered the golden age of Japanese cinema.

Hanae Mori (second from right) presents some of her creations during a private fashion show at the Japanese Embassy in London in 1972.

Hanae Mori (second from right) presents some of her creations during a private fashion show at the Japanese Embassy in London in 1972. Credit: Douglas Miller/Hulton Archive/Getty Images

But her ambitions were global — even at a time when the names of Asian designers barely registered in Western fashion capitals. Her visits to New York and Paris in the 1960s proved formative, as did an encounter with Coco Channel during which the French designer suggested she try on an especially bright orange suit.

“It helped move the scales from my eyes,” Mori recalled years later, according to a 1990 profile in the Washington Post, adding: “The whole Japanese concept of beauty is based on concealment…I suddenly realized that I should change my approach and make my dresses help a woman stand out.”

She did just that, often blending Western silhouettes with Asian-style motifs, like the butterflies that would later see her dubbed “Madame Butterfly.” Mori staged her first overseas show, themed “East Meets West,” in New York in 1965. And from there she began

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Hanae Mori dead: Fashion designer dies at 96

  • September 5, 2022

Japanese designer Hanae Mori, who cracked the Parisian haute couture world and was dubbed “Madame Butterfly” for her signature motif, has died in Tokyo aged 96.

Over the decades Mori’s luxurious creations were worn by Nancy Reagan, Grace Kelly and countless members of high society.

But she was also a pioneer for Japanese women, one of a tiny number to head an international corporation.

An employee at Mori’s office said Thursday that she died at home “of old age” on August 11, and that a private funeral had taken place.

The designer’s trailblazing career took her from Tokyo, where she started out making costumes for cinema, to New York and Paris – and in 1977 her label became the first Asian fashion house to join the rarefied ranks of haute couture.

The exclusive French club sets exacting standards for their hand-crafted, and extremely expensive, garments.

“When humans work with their hands, their creativity expands,” Mori told AFP during a 2006 retrospective in Tokyo, where a robot modelled a replica of her classic “Chrysanthemum Pyjamas” – a kimono-like robe made from hot-pink chiffon and silk.

In January, the designer summed up her feelings toward the industry in a special column for Japan’s Yomiuri Shimbun daily.

“Fashion is something that pushes you, gives you courage to spread your wings and allows you to have adventures,” she said.

Encounter with Chanel

Born in 1926 in a rural corner of western Japan, Mori studied literature at Tokyo Women’s Christian University before turning her hand to design.

She opened her first atelier above a noodle shop in Tokyo, and came to specialise in dressing the stars of the silver screen.

As Japan’s post-war economy grew, so did her business, which she ran with her husband – a textile executive who encouraged her to visit Paris

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Fashion Designer Hanae Mori Dies At 96: Japanese Media

  • August 23, 2022
Japanese <a href=fashion designer Hanae Mori (L) with a fashion model wearing one of her creations in Paris in 1977″ width=”790″ height=”526″/
Japanese fashion designer Hanae Mori (L) with a fashion model wearing one of her creations in Paris in 1977

Japanese fashion designer Hanae Mori, who cracked the elite world of Parisian haute couture, has died at her home in Tokyo aged 96, Japanese media reported Thursday.

Nicknamed “Madame Butterfly” for her signature winged motif, over the decades Mori’s luxurious creations were worn by Nancy Reagan, Grace Kelly and numerous other members of high society.

But she was also a pioneer for Japanese women as one of a tiny number to head an international corporation.

Mori died on August 11, Kyodo news agency said on Thursday, citing her office, without giving further details.

Public broadcaster NHK and other media outlets also reported the news, saying a private family funeral had already taken place and giving the cause of her death as “old age”.

Mori’s trailblazing career took her from Tokyo, where she started out making costumes for cinema, to New York and Paris, where in 1977 her label became the first Asian fashion house to join the rarefied ranks of haute couture.

Her first collection abroad, in New York in 1965, celebrated the theme “East Meets West”.

Japanese fashion greats such as Issey Miyake, who died earlier this month, followed in her path.

Though she shuttered her Paris atelier in 2004 after her last couture show there, Hanae Mori boutiques remain open in Tokyo and her fragrances are still sold worldwide.

In January, she summed up her feelings towards the industry in a special column for Japan’s Yomiuri Shimbun daily.

“Fashion is something that pushes you, gives you courage to spread your wings and allows you to have adventures,”

… Read the rest
DESIGNER
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