Falling in love with a brand’s style is easy. Now if only said brand’s marketing department asked you what you really wanted or if their entire collection could fit into your busy lifestyle without concessions on style, quality, and individuality. The Fold did just that, and the results are getting the brand and the women who wear it noticed in all the right places.
   Armed with an MBA from the London Business School and a Ph.D. from Cambridge, brand co-founder Polly McMaster fulfils the archetype of the high-achieving businesswoman who knows her strength. What you may not know is that McMaster studied fashion at night school while earning her graduate degrees in business and molecular biology. ‘I always loved fashion, right back from when I was in school,’ McMaster recalls. ‘I even took evening classes to make my own clothes since I couldn’t afford the ones I liked in the shops.’ Though she chose science as her initial career path, she never abandoned her love for art and fashion.
   ‘My decision to set up my label, the Fold London was a mixture of instinct and numbers.’
   While in business school, she met fellow fashion fanatic and future partner Cheryl Mainland. Together they crunched the numbers and envisioned a fashion brand that fused everything they loved about clothes and knew about business. ‘The idea for the Fold came out of understanding the professional woman’s needs in her daily life and trying to create a stylish, contemporary wardrobe particularly focused around work,’ asserts McMaster.
   After surveying over 8,000 businesswomen across the globe, the Fold has pinpointed what women are looking for in workwear. The Fold’s collections define the needs of career women through versatile pieces that are designed to create a clean, modern æsthetic. Form follows function, but design is never compromised in its pursuit. Luxury in its truest sense, the Fold’s garments are unique, high quality and indulgent. To view the Fold London’s spring–summer 2021 collection, visit www.thefoldlondon.com.

Above: The Fold London co-founder Polly McMaster

Dr Martens and Suicoke have collaborated on two sandals, which fuse the former’s Lorsan sandal with of the latter’s mainline silhouettes.
   The capsule collection comprises the Boak (NZ$360) and the Depa (NZ$340), made from Dr Martens’ Black Smooth leather. The sandals feature both companies’ branding, clip buckles on the Boak and Suicoke’s pull-tab on the Depa, and finished with Dr Martens’ heel tab and yellow welt stitching.
   Suicoke said in a press statement, ‘Dr Martens and Suicoke share a mutual understanding and unique approach to design that consistently challenges creative development—utilizing only the highest-quality materials.
   ‘We don’t design to a specific demographic, but simply to make something special. It shouldn’t be distinguished from us but rather by the consumer. They are the ones with the freedom and right to choose the product if it fits their lifestyle.’
   In New Zealand, Area 51 retails the capsule collection.

More praise
Living Nature has scored another accolade for its Glamorous Natural Lipstick no. 16: an Editor’s Choice award in the Beauty Shortlist Awards 2021 in the UK. The lipstick had already been highly commended in the UK’s Pure Beauty London Awards 2020.
   Glamorous Lipstick no. 16 has a rich red shade, along with natural waxes, butters and oils, including certified organic shea butter and jojoba oil. It retails for NZ$33, at participating pharmacies, health stores and at livingnature.com.

Top rated

A’kin’s Replenishing Hand Cream has recently been voted by Beauty Heaven’s members in Australia as the best natural beauty product for hands and feet, and it’s not hard to see why. It’s a combination of its lightness, its natural composition, and its scent. It absorbs quickly into the skin, getting to work with its jojoba, organic lavender and shea butter. Users found it effective and keeps hands soft and moisturized. More at akin.com.au.

Out of the woods
Van Cleef & Arpels’ Bois d’Amande eau de parfum is a woody scent whose notes come from the vegan cedar tree found on the eastern side of North America. The scent is reminiscent of an almond tree in bloom, and is prolonged upon contact with the skin with musk and vanilla bean. Retail price in France is €145 for 75 ml.

Nigel Shafran/Self-Portrait

Bridgerton’s Phoebe Dynevor is the face of Self-Portrait’s autumn–winter 2021–2 collection, photographed by Nigel Shafran.
   Given the UK’s difficulties with COVID-19, Self-Portrait forged on with showing its key looks with a more down-to-earth campaign, rather than a traditional fashion show, opting to photograph at Dynevor’s home in London. The aim was to capture a day at home with Dynevor, ‘finding joy in simplicity and solitude’.
   Malaysian-born Han Chong, Self-Portrait’s founder and creative director, noted, ‘As I was designing this latest collection, I was thinking a lot about the British sensibility and that effortless approach to British style, which I am so often inspired by. I felt we needed to work with someone to bring this to life rather than present the collection in a traditional show format, and having captured the hearts and imaginations of so many people over the last few months, I knew Phoebe would be the perfect woman. The moment I met her, I loved how down-to-earth she was whilst still having this incredible spirit and energy that perfectly emulates the attitude and values of the Self-Portrait brand. She is warm, independent, sensitive, expressive and completely captivating. It’s been a real joy getting to know and work with Phoebe and I’m incredibly excited to have her on this journey with us.’
   Dynevor added, ‘I was delighted and honoured that Han chose me to work with him and such a talented team on his latest collection. I first spotted one of his dresses on a photo shoot and it was an instant love affair. Han’s collections for Self-Portrait have always been an inspiration, I love the strong structures he creates from such delicate and stunning fabrics and this collection is a testament to his incredible work. I’m so proud to be a part of this new project and hope to have a chance to wear the pieces when life goes back to normal again!’
   Chong creative-directed the campaign, and was joined by Marie Chaix as stylist, Isamaya Ffrench on make-up, and Gary Gil on hair.
   The season sees a reworking of Self-Portrait’s staples, as well as new, relaxed styles, with an emphasis on simplicity and lightweight fabrics. Dresses, knitwear, cardigans and jumpers form part of the collection, in fabrics ranging from organic cotton to recycled polyester chiffon.
   Self-Portrait uses responsibly sourced fibres and began introducing organic cotton and recycled chiffon and polyester in 2019. Last year it introduced recycled viscose.
   The collection will begin retailing in July, both online at self-portrait-studio.com, and offline at Self-Portrait stores (including flagship stores in London, New York, Bangkok, Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu, Shenzhen and Taipei), and select retailers.

Net-a-Porter, continuing to make headway in China, has announced a partnership with Art021, the 21st contemporary art fair at the Shanghai International Art Festival. On February 9, Net-a-Porter and Art021 launched a public art project to identify the Incredible Female Artist for 2021, someone who is ‘delivering the art spark for incredible people’.
   Film and TV actress Tan Zhuo (譚卓) was also announced as the celebrity judge of the project, alongside a group of luminaries from the art world. Ten female artists have been nominated: Chen Dandizi, Feng Bingyi, Lei Ziyi, Liu Wa, Liu Qinmin, Su Yuxin, Tan Xiaoshi, Wang Yuyu, Zhong Diming, and Zhang Fengyuan. Each will submit one work inspired by the theme ‘She said,’ to be exhibited at the Beijing Jingart Expo later this year. The winner’s work will be exhibited at the Net-a-Porter booth at Art021 in November, and she will also receive an award.
   The artists also created a series of limited-edition tote bags for Net-a-Porter, with profits going to the Shanghai Wenshe Art Foundation to support female artists. The bags will be available on the Net-a-Porter flagship store on Tmall, and at Art021 from early March.
   Tmall purchases will have a special, limited-edition packaging for Queens’ Day on March 8.
   Net-a-Porter says its support of the Extraordinary Female Artist Award is an example of its corporate social responsibility, providing female artists in China with a platform for dialogue, and celebrate their courage to embrace the unknown.

Alexander McQueen and Vestiaire Collective have announced they are collaborating on moving toward circular practices, and a new app makes pieces that have been bought back available through a new online store.
   Vestiaire Collective is using the high-profile collaboration to launch its Brand Approved programme.
   The companies explain, ‘A select group of clients will be contacted by a sales representative at Alexander McQueen. Any pieces the clients wish to sell will be assessed and if eligible assigned a buy-back price. Once the pieces are received and authenticated by Alexander McQueen, the client will be issued with a credit note with which they will immediately be able to purchase new items from specified Alexander McQueen stores. Once processed by Vestiaire Collective the pieces will carry an external NFC tag giving prospective new buyers access to information confirming the authenticity of the piece. The pieces will be available to purchase on a dedicated “Brand Approved” page on the Vestiaire Collective app and site.’
   The app reveals more on the collaboration, as does Vestiaire Collective’s website at vestiairecollective.com.
   Emmanuel Gintzburger, CEO of Alexander McQueen, said, ‘Alexander McQueen is committed to a move towards circular practice, both in the design studio and in the development of new business models. We are delighted to be the first house in the world to collaborate with Vestiaire Collective on its Brand Approved programme and to give beautifully crafted pieces a new story. We are confident that our customers will be equally excited to take part in an initiative that challenges a linear economy and sets a new and more sustainable standard for the future. We hope many houses will follow because to have impact at scale, we need to act collectively.’
   Fanny Moizant, Vestiaire Collective co-founder and president, added, ‘There is an urgent need to address the way we currently produce and consume fashion. Vestiaire Collective’s Brand Approved programme offers a sustainable solution, reinforcing the importance of durability, whilst empowering first-hand fashion players to disrupt their linear business models and embrace circularity. We are incredibly excited to launch the new service in collaboration with the prestigious house of Alexander McQueen, driving a shared mission to embed circularity at the heart of the fashion ecosystem.’

Top photograph: Alexander McQueen spring–summer 2020 show finalé, photographed by Chris Moore/Catwalking.com.