Eventhough I am liking less and less H&M stores, I must say that I admire the way the swedish company is able to create new brands that appeal to people : COS and its minimalistic aesthetic, Monki and its young quirky appeal and now & Other Stories. When some time ago Garance Doré told about this upcoming brand, I thought I will go and have a look once it will be launched. Something I never did because..well..I forgot ! But Caterina of Not Just A Pretty Dress made a post which enabled me to discover this new H&M baby so here I am with my personal thoughts about its aesthetic and a wishlist (which will definitely stay a wish if you read below).
When I stumbled upon & Other Stories site, I immediately thought about Tumblr and the collage used by fashion designers to develop their concepts and show to others what is the mood, the atmosphere of their collection . The homepage looks like a huge moodboard with its mix of pictures, videos and gif images. A mix that just like a fashion designer moodboard makes you understand the universe of the brand : a very feminine, chic, glamour and dare I say both experimental and dreamy world (if what I just wrote made sense for you, hats off!) . And eventhough you are here to buy, this ingenious moodboard will make you forget you are a consumer, instead you will feel like a wanderer. A wanderer suddenly brought into a world where each piece of clothing, each pair of shoes and each bag has a story, but instead of drawing our attention on the items, & Other Stories prefers us to focus on the small details of what they sell. One thing that particularly caught my attention was the extreme care given to two of our senses : the eyesight and the hearing. Their video Bag & Other Stories is definitely a great example of the brand's concept:
This said, their prices aren't really friendly, I would even say that they are my worst enemy. But what can I expect from a luxury brand if not to be expensive ? Some would argue that for a luxury brand & Other Stories is pretty affordable. I agree. Affordable for someone who unlike me is NOT student. Writing this, you can't imagine how much I want to flee from my current state. People I SO BADLY want to be economically independent to give myself the right to be extravagant every now and then (on a reasonable scale obviously), and spend 195€ on such a bag (if you are economically independent, not afraid of having a big hole in your bank account, and additionally love my wishlist, feel free to click on the words in bold you will see below ) :
I guess I fell in love with it because it reminds me of the schoolbags of a time but with an original twist : the way it is worn and the fact it is actually a double satchel.
I was surprised not to be more attracted by the clothes, but what surprised me more was the fact that I actually spent quite the time admiring their shoes when I am not even a shoes' fetishist. So let's begin this shoes show !
3 # Fabric slippers
I could have add more shoes to this list but I think that these four pairs sum up pretty much who I am : I like feeling feminine and elegant without giving up my comfort but I am definitely the type that enjoy the most FLAT shoes.
What are your thoughts about & Other Stories aethetic ? How do you shop as a student ?
I've only just recently discovered & Other Stories. I really love the feeling you get from the website (I've never been to an actual store) and I found loads of items on the site that I loved. Totally agree that the prices aren't all super reasonable but hopefully the quality is quite good? xx
ReplyDeleteHello Jennifer,
DeleteSusie Bubble wrote a very complete post about & Other Stories, I just tweeted you the link to her post. I have never visited the physical shops eventhough I would really like to, but I'll have to fly to London to do so. So I'll wait for its opening in Milan.
What they do is lovely but yes their prices are not super reasonable but according to Susie the quality is here !
Thanks a lot for your comment!
What can I say, I love it, like I love COS and Monky, but I can only afford H&M ha! that is why sometimes I just go vintage or second hand.x
ReplyDeleteHello Victoria,
Deletewhereas COS is definitely out of my reach I consider Monki more available above all when you pay attention to their Facebook page where you can learn WHEN to buy. Once they made flash sales where you could buy all their jeans for 10 €, and this is only an example, they give you plenty of opportunities to buy their goods at nice prices if you are careful.
About vintage, here in Italy, I have never found vintage pieces which are not expensive, since it has become a trend everything went crazy, but there is still Ebay to save me for finding great vintage pieces at a good price. For second hand, I like shopping in France where I know where to go :).
Thanks a lot for your comment it's always a pleasure to know you pass by here ;)!
Thank you so much for the kind mention! I'm glad that you discovered this brand reading through post! Your wish-list is lovely and I'm sure that - like H&M and COS - they have great sales as well! Caterina
ReplyDeleteYou are welcome ! I believe they will make great sales, their concept is lovely, it is just that now, as a student, I know I can't think about buying their items now. It is also the same for COS eventhough I really appreciate this brand.
DeleteThanks a lot for passing by and your comment !