Tried the first beer that was brewed by Robinsons. My family in Texas buy the beers regularly but I have never seen them here.
I remember drinking Robinsonâs bitter around S Manchester fifty years ago, when they used to have lots of nice, unspoilt cornerhouse pubs in working class areas. Consequently I was very surprised when I went to my first and last tennis tournament, that they were the main sponsors of the Northern Tennis Open (takes place in the North just before Wimbledon) The big attraction was Stan Smith, who had just become famous for his powerful serve.
However, today heâs probably mainly associated with a pair of retro sneakers.
See how I cleverly developed the thread drift, by segueing through real ale and lawn tennis history, before bringing it back to fashion?
Actually, none of that was intentional - just loose associations and emissions from a failing elderly mind
Well . . I like the shoes
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Then youâll like this!
âThe most exclusive sandal ever madeâ is a Birkenstock-like piece of footwear with an official Birkenstock cork-and-rubber sole, but with a leather upper made from purposefully chopped-up Hermès Birkin bags. Shock, horror, fashion sacrilege!
If Marcel Duchamp and Tom Sachs had a baby who was raised by Jeremy Scott of Moschino, this is what it might look like.
âWe know some people are going to react with, âWhat is wrong with you people?ââ Mr. Greenberg said. âBut weâre OK being hated. We just donât want apathy.â
Kevin Wiesner, 28, another creative director, added: âWe really think nothing is sacred in our material choices. Normally, no one would touch a Birkin.â
Lukas Bentel, 28, one of MSCHFâs creative directors, explained: âBirkin bags are like a cultural meme, a symbol for a certain kind of wealth.â By âmashing it into a really accessible object,â they wanted to force people to perhaps question that symbolism. Plus, the wordplay really is kind of funny.
This is not the first time an upstart has taken an establishment luxury product and messed with it: Dapper Danmade his name in the late 1980s using logos from brands like Louis Vuitton and Gucci to his own hip-hop fashion ends, and Miguel Adrover stole New York Fashion Week in 1999 with a miniskirt made from a Vuitton trunk. Each time, the luxury brands did not take kindly to the usage, and lawsuits ensued. But as the high end loses its stranglehold on its own image in the age of the social media chorus, Mr. Day has been embraced by the fashion world in the spirit of âif-you-canât-beat-âem, absorb-âem.â Thereâs a good chance Hermès will grit its teeth and do the same.
In any case, MSCHFâs timing is pretty impeccable: Birkenstock, the brand, is with L Catterton, a private equity firm, which is interested in a majority stake. As it happens, one of L Cattertonâs investors is LVMH, the worldâs largest luxury group. No joke.
Never heard of Elton John, Kiss, Bowie etc etc? It is entertainment and no one would have noticed them if they had arrived in a business suit. Old men commenting on youth culture is really quite sad.
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Looks like KISS have aged badly.
They are in their early to late 70âs, what do you expect 
everyone gets old.
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Well, that applies to Kiss of course, but David Bowie already had established his credentials before the outrageous (and often very stylish) clothes. I donât think Elton John was ever particularly outrageous in dress (apart from his specs!). or anywhere near as stylish as Bowie.
Young people always dress to distinguish themselves from their parentsâ generation. Thereâs a big difference between being dressed by a designer as a walking advert and dressing to match your musical style or persona.
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I went to a brilliant exhibition on his clothes at the V&A in London
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When I first saw Bowie in 1969, he was a supporting act on Humble Pieâs first European tour and I wouldnât describe his outfit as âstylishâ. It was a sort of one piece, tie-dyed hot pants thing with spindly pale limbs poking out of it.
Of course his wardrobe did get better, but this ghastly garment lingers in memory, better suited to two year oldâŚ
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I suspect that was the intentionâŚ
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There are some hilarious take offs of the Spam Smiff fart in a wetsuit outfit. One I like was a black sofa with his head on top and words saying coming to DFS soon. As for KISS being old, my family saw them locally in Dallas in concert not that long ago and said they were still as good as ever and Elton John just before xmas gave an unforgettable performance too.
It may well have been the case, but I doubt that in retrospect, heâd have wanted his rendition of the Laughing Gnome to have similarly endured.
The last time I saw Bowie was a bit different, he was a few yards away nervously sat on the edge of large leather sofa in the RCAâs Senior Common Room . He was having a preprandial drink with Eduardo Paolozzi, and the latter was in his element, sprawled across the opposite sofa like an enormous bloated sea lion in a voluminous, chalk striped double-breasted suit. and expounding expansively, By contrast, Bowie was wearing a sharply tailored, powder blue suit , he was scrunched up and nervously picking at a spot on his cheek until it started bleeding. An interesting little cameo. And as always at the SCR lunch was superb.
Back story: the SCRâs the Collegeâs private dining club for staff and alumni, It overlooks Hyde Park and feels like an international hotel lounge, but hung with instantly recognisable works by RCA graduates from Henry Moore to Hockney to Tracey Emin. Itâs also where a lot of art and design world networking takes place. Itâs also possibly the cheapest place to eat really well in Central London (though Iâm sure some SFers will know similarly secret places).
Fashion for anyone
Yes and my old dog loved nothing more than to piss on our beanbag when he got the chance.
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