The making of the Empire Strikes Back: Snow all over the place

So it turns out the frozen wastes of Hoth weren't the only place snow was blowing around during the making of The Empire Strikes Back. There were a few drifts of the Colombian variety going up the nose of Carrie Fisher, as she has now admitted.

Not that it did anything to spoil the film, although it might explain her hostility towards Han Solo. And all this time we were thinking it was because she was a bit cold.

And maybe that's what saved them all from that giant lizard thing on the asteroid. It wasn't a phaser blast which made it sneeze.

These shots are from a new behind the scenes book on the making of the film.

Looks like they had as much fun making it as I did watching it.
More pics can be found at Vanityfair.com

The book is available at Amazon

Le P'tits Velos: riding to pastures new

My first hand painted P'Tits Velo miniature cyclist is now available for sale.

This chap is respendent in Rapha's long sleeve jersey in grey, with black bib shorts, white grand tour gloves and topped off with a red racing cap.

He's riding a Felt bike, mainly because this is the only brand name I could make legible with a paint brush.

I'll be listing a few of his mates in the coming weeks, but don't hold your breath, this one has taken longer than a Tour de France to finish.

Bid on him here.

Acronym FW10 lookbook: Back in black

You know autumn has really arrived when Acronym roll out their collection for the year.

They don't really tend to push the boat out as far as variety is concerned - in fact to the undiscerning eye, this collection would look pretty much the same as those which have gone before it.

But that's the whole point. This is stuff that transcends fashion or fads, manufactured from materials which are supposed to look either forever new, or will wear in so subtly that they will take on a character all of their own.

Which is a god thing, because the price of Acronym has gone through the roof over the past few years. My version of the SS-J7C 3XDRY Softshell Contour Jacket circa 2005 cost me £369 I'm sure. This year it will set you back €660, which even taking exchange rates and inflation into account it quite a mark up.

It's a good job it lasts.



This year's Acronym collection is available now at The Glade

Louis Vuitton, 100 Legendary Trunks: left luggage

There was a time when no traveller would have been without a good trunk in which to transport his valuables to some far flung corner of the globe. Back in those days Louis Vuitton was a luggage maker among thousands.

Everyone had a trunk. Even my dear old great gran. Hers is now located in my shed, stuffed with paint pots.

Who would have realised, back in the days before the Titanic when steaming across the Atlantic for two weeks was considered an acceptable mode of transport, that the trunk as a viable piece of tourist luggage would have sunk without trace too?

These days it's all about the wheelie bag, unless you are of a particularly flamboyant bent possessing of a hefty holiday wardrobe.

The trunk has survived as a living room coffee table cum cushion storage device, and Louis Vuitton, far from being some generic garlic-whiffing luggage maker, has become something of a status symbol.

To own a Louis Vuitton trunk these days would either mean you are super-rich, label obsessed or have a rather style obsessed grandma who has just left it to you in her will.

With any luck it will be battered from many decades traversing the globe.

For those of us without such illustrious inheritance, Louis Vuitton has released 100 Legendary Trunks, a coffee table book (naturally) containing details of the trunks the company has manufactured for some of its more notable customers, including Ernest Hemmingway, Karl Lagerfeld and Sharon Stone.

Beats a wheelie bag any day.

NB: The picture above is an LV trunk in Tommy Hilfiger's gaff and the pic below is a shot of someone called Rinne Allen's living room. Click the pictures to go to the original sites the pictures come from.

100 Malles de Légende| Louis Vuitton from de jeunes gens modernes on Vimeo.

Visvim Zermatt boots: Down at heel

What do you make of this then? Visvim has opted for some freaky heelcap action with its new Zermatt boots and in doing so has launched its latest line of footwear into the realm of Pods or MBTs.

Granted, it must be difficult trying to continually innovate, especially when anyone without their own concept and ideas department is mimicking your every move (adidas), but all the same.

Then again, maybe the jagged heelcap is actually a ruse to expose the copycats. It will now at least be blatantly obvious if this is seen on another brand's designs.

And heelcap aside, this boot is another decent offering from Hiroshi Nakamura. Vibram sole, cork footbed, all that folky vibe stuff that makes you feel like your grand has been well spent funding the hilltribes of Nepal.

But will this ever see the kinds of conditions its name might suggest it should encounter? Not a chance if you ask me.

Via slamxhype

Wall Street 2: Money can't buy you taste

They seem to dress quite well on Wall Street, if Oliver Stone's sequel is anything to go by.

It's all Gucci loafers, Hermes ties and Bulgari rocks. A far cry from my experience of the shopping habits of investment bankers in London. They might splash out a couple of quid on a pair of shoes, but they are more likely to be John Lobb than Gucci, and when it comes to work suits, "what's wrong with M&S?" as my pal Jamo recently exclaimed.

Not quite the exhibition in extravagence you might expect, but then this lot tend to be more reserved in the sartorial department than you think.

They take care with the money they've got. Wearing it, with the exception of a decent Rolex or Panerai, is tantamount to burning it as far as they are concerned.

Why spend it on clothes when it could be spent on holidays, and massive houses, the wife and kids and that Maserati Quatroporte? Not forgetting the pension plan. Who really wants to work past 50 when you're doing 12 hour days?

So we have a financial sector populated by a lot of people with the money but no inclination to dress as well as they could.

So Wall Street 2's designer Ellen Mirojnick got it right with Shia La Beouf in the Central Park scene, when he rocks up in a leather bomber, slacks and loafers, looking like a doorman who has just finished his shift.

Mind you, the suits still look sharp.

Michael Douglas takes Gordon Gekko to the country a little later on in the film with a nice line in subtle plaid sports jackets and there's a whiff of Mad Men in Shia's skinny tonic suits.

Ms Mirojnick, had the suits made by a tailor called Leonard Logsdail in New York. The shirts were made at Anto Beverley Hills, and yes there is a thought process behind the variety of collar designs.

You can read the full interview with Ellen Mirojnick here

The dock in October

OK, it's only just October, but there's a breeze building over St Katharine Docks, and the water seems to have taken on a bit of a shiver. But the boats are looking as picturesque as ever.

What's more, the Kismet has docked. A curvier barge I have yet to see.