New podcast episode!
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Today my guest is London-based American designer Conner Ives, whose unique take on modern Americana has seen him become one of the industry’s most exciting names.
Conner began his brand whilst studying at Central Saint Martins in London. Since then, his clothes have been featured in exhibitions at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and worn by the likes of Rhianna, Dua Lipa, Naomi and Taylor Russell.
But his most recognizable piece is arguably the slogan t-shirt he released this year, bearing the words ‘Protect The Dolls’, raising funds and awareness for the trans community. Sales of the t–shirt have since raised over $600,000 for the Trans Lifeline organization.
In this episode, Conner chooses eight items of clothing that chart his life and career in the fashion industry so far. See pictures of his pieces below, or in the video episode.
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The piece that reminds Conner of his childhood… his copy of the ‘In America: A Lexicon of Fashion’ exhibition catalogue, with a look from his AW21 show on the cover.
“The cover features Look 1 from my graduate collection, ‘The American Dream’. And this piece was a felt suit that was made out of military blankets. And then my friend actually hand-felted all of this into the piece. It was modeled after the sunset spot, which was where I spent a lot of my childhood with my friends.”
And the one that reminds him of his career… a photo that was taken during the prep for his AW24 show
“The photo was taken in the fittings that you have leading up to the show. This is always what I describe as my favorite time of year because it just feels like two weeks of extended play dates with all of my favorite people in the world.”
The piece that reminds him of a high… the final look from his graduate collection, ‘The American Dream’. Featured in the Met Museum’s ‘Sleeping Beauties: Awakening Fashion’ exhibition.
“On my birthday, I got an email from an address from the Costume Institute of the Met Museum, basically being like, ‘Hey, we’re interested in potentially like loaning one of these pieces from your graduate collection.’ I think I sent it to my PR at the time almost being like, ‘this is a joke, right?’ I didn’t believe it.”
The piece that reminds him of a low… a piano shawl dress from his AW17 collection
“The dress in this image was one of my highlights from that time. I found an antique butterfly sequin top, took it apart, draped it into this gown. I remember bringing in this work and being so excited to show my tutors and them just being like, “This is really lame.” I just felt so shattered.
The piece that makes him feel part of something… the ‘Protect The Dolls’ t-shirt he wore for the finale of his AW24 show
“I just remember feeling really trapped and really like frustrated and wondering, as a fashion designer, what am I able to do here? It kind of gave me a whole new take on the power of this job because it really made so much possible in such a short amount of time. The t-shirt was literally dreamed up at 1 a.m the the night before the show.”
The piece that reminds him of a great party… Tish Weinstock’s wedding dress, made by Conner
“Tish got married in 2022 to my other really good friend, Tom Guinness. They got married in a castle. It was absolute insanity. I did not fare as well as Tish did to make it through that weekend - I don’t know how she does it.”
The piece that makes him feel sexy… the tuxedo he wore to the 2024 Met Gala
“I love to be more dressed up than the other people in the room. I felt really sexy in the moment, but I think also like success is really sexy. Just the feeling of owning it and being in the moment and also being able to kind of stand up for what you’ve done.”
The one that got away… the Spring 24 Cardiac Rehab dress
“There’s nothing worse than losing a press sample, especially when the press samples are all made from vintage. When you make them from vintage t-shirts that are one of one, and have the best graphic or logo on it that you’ve ever seen. This is one of the ones we lost.”
Threads of the week
Technically not a look from this week but I aired all my good outfits here already so this is from the week before. Secondhand everything - Marithé + François Girbaud jacket, Ader Error skirt, COS boots.
Start your own Thread
What’s your ‘one that got away?’ And who do you want to hear from next?
