<one>curated has started, and when I look at the items I select for the web, I sometimes wonder, "Is this product really worthy of <one>curated?" I sometimes find myself feeling unsure as well.
Whenever I feel that way, I often look at "Sonya's Shopping Manual," a book by Sonya Park, who is a stylist, the owner of the popular select shop "ARTS&SCIENCE," and a creative director.
The items featured in it—selected with her keen aesthetic eye—are incredibly diverse, spanning not just fashion but also lifestyle and dining: MARGIELA, Levi's, patagonia, Christian Louboutin, BROOKS BROTHERS, NUMBER (N)INE, ALDEN, CHANEL, LAMY ballpoint pens, the PATEK PHILIPPE Calatrava, Baccarat glasses, Riedel wine glasses, Aritsugu kitchen knives, shochu, and even bath towels.
Looking at the lineup, it may seem devoid of any common theme, but as you go through it, you see that each piece is filled with her own particular attention to detail, playfulness, and space, and each item even comes with her insightful commentary.
As I continue through the book, I find myself contemplating her personality and noticing a underlying consistency. It even stirs a curiosity in me to see and own the things she introduces.
When you look at a series of things that appear to be just a list, you begin to find an intent behind them. Humans cannot help but feel that there must be some meaning to the things (phenomena) that exist.
Perhaps that is where we find our own answers.
"What kind of 'line' (criteria) connects these seemingly disparate 'dots' (products)?"
Dispelling my hesitation, I would like to introduce a brand that started in 1999.
FRANK LEDER
DEUTSCHLEDER JACKET
This fabric is commonly known as German Leather. Despite being 100% cotton, it is an extremely thick fabric woven at a high density.
Just like a French moleskin work jacket, the character of the fabric emerges as you wear it in, and the form conforms to the wearer.
It is named as such because, as you break it in—much like authentic leather—it develops a shape that conforms to the wearer's body lines, almost like memory foam.
This is one of the items that best represents the brand.
With the specialized machinery required to weave at such high density, the craftsmen who possess the skill, and the factories involved... this is not an item that will likely be produced forever.
Whether it's acquiring it secondhand or wearing it yourself, the goal is to extract the beauty of the traces created by time and the poignant awareness of what may be fading away, and to pass these things on for a long time to come.
That, in the eyes of <one>curated, is the "line" that runs through these seemingly disconnected items.