Fashion Films: Valentino, the last emperor

Valentino: The Last Emperor is a documentary film about the life of Valentino Garavani. 

It was produced and directed by Matt Tyrnauer, Special Correspondent for Vanity Fair magazine. The film is an exploration of the singular world of one of Italy's most famous men, Valentino Garavani. The film documents the colorful and dramatic closing act of Valentino's celebrated career, tells the story of his life, and explores the larger themes affecting the fashion business today. At the heart of the film is the unique relationship between Valentino and his business partner and companion of 50 years, Giancarlo Giammetti.

Fashion films: Yves Saint Laurent

Continuing with the section of fashion films, we'd like to propose you the latest one, that was released last week: Yves Saint Laurent. 

Yves Saint Laurent was a French fashion designer, and is regarded as one of the greatest names in fashion history. In 1985, Caroline Rennolds Milbank wrote, "The most consistently celebrated and influential designer of the past twenty-five years, Yves Saint Laurent can be credited with both spurring the couture's rise from its sixties ashes and with finally rendering ready-to-wear reputable." He is also credited with having introduced the tuxedo suit for women and was known for his use of non-European cultural references, and non-white models.

A look at the life of French designer Yves Saint Laurent from the beginning of his career in 1958 when he met his lover and business partner, Pierre Berge.

We hope you like his designs as much as we do and that you enjoy the film =) 

Halloween

Halloween is coming and we'd like to show you about some of the best plans to enjoy the most terrific weekend in London. 

Witch Academy 

The London Eye gets mysteriously transformed into the set of a spooky witch story, featuring the High Witch Priscilla and the evil Grimly Grim (voiced by Harry Enfield). Storytelling, participation and fancy dress are combined for oodles of fun as you get panoramic views across the city.

Ghost Bus Tours 

Roll up for a tour on a Routemaster painted black and redecorated ina gothic vein, to hear half-factual, half-fictional tales about the sinister side of London, delivered by an on-board troupe of actors, stand-up comics and cabaret performers. 

Halloween: Thorpe Park Fright Nights

It's that time of the year again: Fright Nights returns to Thorpe Park. Your ticket gives plenty of time to ride the scary rollercoasters in the dark. 

Webbing availability

You know that Hardy & Parsons gives you the chance to design you own belt. Every belt is made by hand, one by one, that's why you can choose the colour of the leather, the webbing and the stitching.

Today we'd like to show you the webbing availability, so you can start to imagine how your Bredon belt will look like. There is a great variety of colours and styles between the elasticated and non elasticated webbing offer. Check it out!

Billboard 24: Releases of the week

Le Weekend

A British couple return to Paris many years after their honeymoon there in an attempt to rejuvenate their marriage.

Machete Kills 2

The U.S. government recruits Machete to battle his way through Mexico in order to take down an arms dealer who looks to launch a weapon into space.

Romeo and Juliet

When the star-crossed lovers of two enemy families meet, forbidden love ensues.

The Fifth Estate

Through the eyes of Daniel Domscheit-Berg, an early supporter and eventual colleague of Julian Assange, the film follows the heady, early days of Wikileaks to its abrupt end after a series of controversial and history changing info leaks. The website's overnight success brought instant fame to its principal architects, but as their power expanded across the globe, Daniel grew increasingly disillusioned with Julian's questionable tactics and ethics. The rift between the two friends became irreparable and their ideological differences tore them apart, but not before they revolutionized, for better and worse, the flow of information to news media and the world at large.

The Irish Pub

The tradition of the Irish pub. Speaking to pub owners all over Ireland, Alex Fegan gets into the heart of what makes "the Irish pub" the institution that it is.

Which Way is the Frontline From Here?

The "front line" is war-speak that has become a recognised English language idiom, describing an exposed position with nowhere to hide. In one of his videos, we hear Tim Hetherington's voice behind the camera asking to be taken there: to the "front line", the thick of conflict. Unlike the "embedded journalists" in mainstream media, Hetherington was not interested in getting to the gory action, but to the people who lived under its threat every day. Betraying his journalistic objectivity by genuinely befriending the soldiers and rebels he followed, Hetherington captured an intimate understanding of wartime aggression through his photography: macho posturing is sometimes a way to exorcise fear; bravery has less to do with politics than the wish to get home alive. Sebastian Junger's (colleague and co-director of Academy Award-nominated Restrepo) thoughtful homage is as much for his good friend as it is for the young fighters we send off to the "front line".

Patterns

We posted this picture on Facebook and Twitter some weeks ago. Do you remember? 

As you know, patterns are the basis of fashion industry. No matter the quality of the materials and no matter the way products are made, the design is the first step and the most important one to create a good product. Designers think about a piece, they draw it and the result of that is a pattern.

Below you can see some patterns used to design belts. Every line of the drawing is made with great care and detail. And it'll be followed inch by inch to make each belt. Don't you think that patterns themselves can look like authentic designer creations?

Special products: Conical Flask

Apart from the Tantalus, there is another special product within the Drinks Cabinet section. It is the Conical Flask.

Handmade in England in bridle butt leather, the conical flask consists of a leather case lined in suede and a conical drinking glass flask which fits inside it. 

Designed to be attached to the saddle, it can be opened easily with one hand using a thumb whilst still holding on to the reins with the other. 

Don't you think it's a perfect idea for a perfect product?

Special products: Choker

We like special products, designs that are different and unique. We already showed you the Quick Release Belt. Hardy&Parsons is renown for this iconic piece that owes its origins to the firemen of the early 19th Century; as well as, the Drinks Cabinet or Tantalus that combines the skills of a cabinet maker and a master saddler. 

Now it is time for another special product: the Choker.

Handmade in England in bridle butt leather, this piece is special because it combines the classics dog collar and lead in one. One end of the strap has a ring and through that ring goes the rest of the lead. That creates a circle, where the dog places his head. The ring moves, so depending on the animal's pace, the lead will loosen or tighten. The other end of the lead has a handle.

This model is also available in webbing and leather combination. You can see all the detail photos here.

Why not try a new way to walk your dog?

Billboard 17: releases of the week

The Cairngorms in Winter

A celebration of the UK's largest and highest National Park, The Cairngorms in Winter with Chris Townsend takes the viewer on a spectacular 96 minute journey through awe inspiring scenery in the heart of Scotland's mountains.

The Clean Bin Project

Is it possible to live completely waste free? In this multi-award winning, festival favourite, partners Jen and Grant go head-to-head in an effort to see who can swear off consumerism and produce the least refuse. Their light-hearted competition brings some laugh-out-loud moments set against a darker examination of the problem waste. Marine pollution expert Captain Charles Moore describes the pacific garbage patch, an island of plastic twice the size of Texas currently floating in the Pacific Ocean; and Seattle-based artist Chris Jordan shares shocking images that portray the large-scale impacts of our 'throw away' society. The result is a beautifully shot film that speaks to audiences of all ages, inspiring action without being preachy, and providing solid ideas for reducing waste at home.

The Way, Way Back

Over the course of his summer break, a teenager comes into his own thanks in part to the friendship he strikes up with one of the park's managers.

Belts' names

We often get asked why do we call our belts with names such as Bredon, Cropthorne, Eckington, Kemerton etc. We did gave you some information about the name of the Quick Release belt some weeks ago, you can find it here. But, we would like to explain you some other meanings...

Well, when we started we thought long and hard about it, the obvious one was to give the belts a numerical code to identify the style, however this somehow had an industrial feeling to it, which of course was far from what we are i.e. craftsmen. So after some careful thinking we decided to call them with names of towns and/or villages in the Worcestershire where our “atelier” is located; which was our way of honouring the beauty of Worcestershire and the people that work and live there, and perhaps encouraging those of you with a curious streak to visit Worcestershire.

So bellow you can find some examples:

Bredon is a medium sized village (2700 residents) on the southern edge of Worcestershire. It lies on the banks of the River Avon and on the edge of the Cotswolds and traces its origins back to over 4000 years ago. For more information on Bredon click here. 

Cropthorne is a small village (600 residents) approximately 12 miles southeast of Worcester. Located on a small ridge overlooking the River Avon, its ancient orchards sweep down to the river and offer clear, unbroken views across the vale to the Malvern Hills in the distance. It is featured in the Domesday Book, and its church dates back to the 12th century. The village has many unique examples of timber-framed thatched cottages from the 16th and 17th centuries, and about half the village is designated as a Conservation area. For more information on Cropthorne click here.

Eckington is a small village (1200 residents) near to the southern border of Worcestershire. The village is surrounded by the River Avon and is renowned for its famous bridge, its village cross and its Norman-period church. For more information on Eckington visit click here.

Kemerton is a small village (400 residents) on the extreme south of Worcestershire. Notable historic features include Kemerton Camp, an Iron Age hill fort surmounting Bredon Hill, on the fort’s south rampart is a two-storey stone tower known as Parsons Folly (or the Tower), built in the mid-18th century by John Parsons V, MP (1732–1805), the squire of Kemerton, who reputedly wished to raise the summit of Bredon Hill to 1000 ft (305 m). Significant buildings include the Church of St Nicholas, Kemerton Court, and Bell’s Castle. For more information on Kemerton click here.

What do you think is the meaning of the rest of the belts' names?

Billboard 15: Releases of the week

Bachelorette

On the night of one of their old high school friend's wedding three irresponsible and capricious bridesmaids reunite for one last bachelorette bacchanal in the Big Apple. They unintentionally create a mess of their best friend Becky's wedding dress, before she marries her sweetheart Dale. They attempt to repair the situation by spending the evening before and morning of the wedding desperate to get the dress to Becky on time before the wedding starts, whilst discovering themselves and what they truly want from their lives along the way.

 

2 Guns

A DEA agent and an undercover Naval Intelligence officer who have been tasked with investigating one another find they have been set up by the mob - the very organization the two men believe they have been stealing money from.

 

Preview of the season: Wrist Bands

Bits Wrist Band

Clinchers Wrist Band

Plaited Wrist Band

We show you our wrist bands, handmade in England with the best leather, as all our products. The last preview of the season comes just before we publish the Hardy&Parsons' catalogue. You can see the online catalogue on our Pinterest profile too. Enjoy it!

Preview of the season: Drinks Cabinets

Conical Flask

Drinks Cabinet

Do you like them? They are two iconic pieces of Hardy&Parsons; the Conical Flask and the Drinks Cabinet. You can find more information about them here and more detailed photos on our Pinterest profile. 

Preview of the season: Accessories

We like to give you solutions to your daily life needs. That's why we have designed some accessories. They are the Pen Case and the cases for iPhone 4 and iPhone 5. 

Below you can see the main new photos of these products. To see more, click here. 

iPhone 4

iPhone 5 

Pen Case 

Preview of the season: Key Fobs

And we continue with the review of the season. Now, it is the time for our Key Fobs. Below you can find some of them but if you want to see all the detail photos, we encourage you to visit our Pinterest profile here. 

Diamond Red

 

Star Black

Stirrup Green

Don't forget to check out our Facebook Fan Page, where you can find updated photos and information about these products.