Reporter | Zhang Xinyu
Designer Virgil Abloh once again showed his cross-border talents to the fashion circle. Now he is not only the manager of the street fashion brand Off-white, the creative director of Louis Vuitton men's wear and the creative consultant of Evian mineral water, he has also created a new eponymous brand Virgil Abloh.
The first collection of the Virgil Abloh brand is a collection of accessories inspired by paper clips. On January 14, Abloh posted a photo on Instagram. The picture shows a box of "paper clip boxes" marked with the Virgil Abloh brand name. The box reads "Recycled Jumbo Paper Clips" (recyclable giant paper clips).
A few hours later, Abloh posted another photo on Instagram, showing himself wearing a necklace made of paper clips and other bracelets. A user named uzi.mustafa commented under this post, "Bro, I guess this necklace costs $2,000." Another user named b1gbruh said: "We all made similar ones when we were kids. "
Abloh said in an interview with "Hanfu Daily" that he plans to display the eponymous brand jewelry series together with Off-white's latest handbags and sneakers during Paris Fashion Week, from January 17th to 29th, at The pop-up shop "Floral Shop" at the Coste Hotel in Paris will support reservations at that time. Abloh said the new brand's collection has little to do with the Off-white brand itself.
Abloh said that the sales method of the pop-up store reservation is different from the previous popular See Now Buy Now, but allows consumers to make reservations first, so that the handbags can be purchased before they officially arrive at the store. Received goods.
“The goal of the Virgil Abloh brand is to launch high-end jewelry suitable for everyone,” Abloh told Hanfu Daily. “This is a collision – it is a paper clip and it is also a special way to cut it. Diamonds.”
In fact, this is not the first time Abloh has launched paperclip-related products. In July 2017, Off-white collaborated with American jeweler Jacob the Jeweler to launch a joint gold paper clip. In addition to the brand names of Off-white and Jacob the Jeweler, this paper clip is also engraved with "Office Supplies".
Off-white previously collaborated with Jacob the Jeweler to launch paper clips. Picture source: Off-white
This time Abloh also wrote "Jacob" in the accompanying text in the post announcing the new brand on Instagram. It is still unclear who this Jacob is. Does it come from the jeweler Off-white has worked with, or is it just taken from a common male name - Jacob, the son of Isaac in the Bible.
In addition to co-branded models, the Off-white brand has also launched a paper clip silver bracelet, priced at US$400, which is currently sold out. To be honest, this makes people curious, why does Abloh like paper clips so much?
Off-white paper clip bracelet Image source: Off-white
Abloh is not the only one who likes paper clips. Many luxury brands have launched paper clips, including Prada, Tiffany and Bulgari. The prices are not cheap either. Prada paper clips are priced at US$185, Tiffany paper clips are priced at US$1,500, and Bulgari paper clips are priced at US$265.
Prada paper clip
Tiffany paper clip
Bvlgari Paperclip
For Abloh, paperclip jewelry seems to be a slightly repetitive creation, but this is still another cross-border attempt for him.
Off-white has previously cooperated with IKEA to launch a joint series, including carpets, shoe cabinets and chairs. Four of the limited edition carpets were snapped up by enthusiastic brand fans as soon as they were launched. Off-white has also launched a joint series "Elevator Music" with the fragrance brand Byredo, which includes perfume, hand cream, handbags and jeans. The list could go on for a long time, but Abloh never stops trying new things.
Carpet launched by Off-white and IKEA. Image source: fashion network
Image source of the fragrance series launched by Off-white and Byredo: Off-white
"My idea is not to just stay in a box," Abloh told "Hanfu Daily" that his favorite flower is wood. Cotton, "When I get old and no longer want to work, I will open a flower shop in a very remote town."
"That shop will be very strange and remote. When the time comes, I'll wrap things up and put my creativity in the bouquet, and who knows, maybe that day will come soon," Abloh said.
