Cauliflower | IVO MILAN - Radical Fashion Blog

Dedicated to Issey Miyake, by Ivo Milan

By: Soili Milan

11-08-2022

How many times in the shop has an occasional and distracted adventurer started with this exclamation: “Oh, yes, Issey Miyake, the perfumes one!“.

An expression that, in all its naive purity, revealed the striking distance between our work as promoters and popularizers of the so-called Japanese school and the public actually reached in the city. Maybe it also happened simultaneously with one of the many windows focused on a futuristic garment by Issey Miyake. Each time, that sound confirms the long way still to go and the burning frustration of being misunderstood. Without triggering a competition between the world of perfumes and that of clothes, even those who are not in the trade know how much his story belonged to the latter, with perfume being a typical gadget of the most established designers.

Yet not in Padova.

Bringing Issey Miyake to the city 24 years ago, when the brand still did not have a generalized fame and his perfume did not yet exist, did not create status, but only circulated within evolved global niches. This meant an important acceleration towards complexity and an indisputable recognition to the shop. First of all, in order to present it, the space had to have the aesthetic ‘requisites’ compatible with the strict philosophy of the Maison, whose concern for the future, rather than sales and the diffusion of the brand, was aimed at the defense of its cultural prestige. The staff of the Parisian showroom came personally to make sure everything was set and then gave us the green light that the collaboration between Ivo Milan and the company could begin in 1998.

And it was immediatly a great love what would become a long adventure; a challenge on the edge of the most heated creative tension, interrupted only by the closure of the store in 2020 (at the time we could not imagine being able to reopen) and by the inevitable advance of other local competitors…

It is useless to dwell on the unmpteenth narrative around the work of Issey Miyake because there are more expert pens than us that have written and are writing about it. In our own small way, we have had more opportunities to present the brand in its different lines (Pleats Please, BaoBao, Issey Miyake-Fête, A-Poc, 132. 5, Cauliflower) and the satellite ones of the group (Haat, A-net with Final Home, Plantation and Zucca). Since we have worked with all of them for a long time, we wanted to put a particular focus on the one that bears his name, offering it in its most daring, free and joyful expressions. We believe that bringing witness to this propulsive collaboration is the least we can do to the many people who, spontaneously, in these days, have contacted us to thank us for allowing them the opportunity to be so close to the best of Issey Miyake.

An overview of photos, articles, videos (many on our youtube channel) about this long journey together, with all the gratitude to the poetry that it has brought to our work… Thank you!

Summer time, holiday time, time for yourself…

By: Francesca

19-07-2014

Abbigliamento, Art, Arte, Clothing, Design, Fashion, Moda, Various, Viaggi

Summer time, holiday time, time for yourself. Departures time and packing time. For this new tour through our summer suggestions we took inspiration from that pre-departure trepidation, recurrent on this season, typical of those days preceding the long-awaited holiday. We imagined our clothes going on vacation, putting them into different hypothetical luggage. It doesn’t matter which will be your destination. A relaxed evening at the sunset on the seashore or a more reckless backpacking day in the mountains, a walk through the ancient splendour of a city of art or a crowded afternoon in the streets of a modern metropolis, we tried to adapt our choices to different holiday scenarios in order to make the clothes good traveling companions in every journey you will decide to embark on. As well a chance to mix up for you the items on sale, putting them under a new light and revealing the possible and various combinations. Enjoy it and above all enjoy your holidays!

Y’s Yohji Yamamoto calf length fitted at the waist dress in tencel jersey with “Mark Rothko” colours print, slip like shoulder straps, neck opening with net insert, central zip on the back, a small side pocket on the waist.

Yohji Yamamoto shoulder bag in smooth cow leather with wool gabardine sides, drawstring expanded, one small pocket at front and one at back, exposed zip closure, detachable buckle adjustable thin strap, cotton canvas lining, inside pocket.

Trippen simple flat sandal with one upper strap across the feet and a narrow one at the ankle with velcro fastening.

LGR woman’s sun-glasses with shaded grey photochromatic lenses; frame in flexible acetate by Mazzucchelli and lenses by Barberini.

Vivienne Westwood Gold Label dress/skirt in viscose with a big orchid print on a black background, elastic at the belt, two side welt pockets, wide and straight line, wearable as a long skirt or a calf length dress.

Vivienne Westwood Gold Label short cardigan in knitted cotton and silk, boat neck, sewn as two drawn near knitted fabrics with profiles in relief, open holes on the shoulders and on the sides, a small pocket diagonally sewn on the front, small band hem, tight fit.

Trippen high clog with cowhide leather bands and wood sole.covered with non-slip rubber, leather band with velcro closure, heel height 7,5 cm.

Blue Yesey hat, 100% straw.

Cauliflower Issey Miyake creased t-shirt in polyester jersey, wide round neck, short sleeves.

Zucca wide and long cardigan with cotton Norwegian jacquard, three quarter sleeve, V neck, sewn beads with Aztecan pattern on the shoulders, two side small pockets at the hem.

Zucca straight fit trousers in washed cotton poplin., two diagonal pockets on the front and a small pocket with button on the back, stitching in the inner thigh with a “jodhpurs” effect, sewn turn-up at the hem, belt loops.

Rosa Mosa cotton canvas pois print and leather sneakers with rubber sole.

Yesey hat, 100% paper.

Comme des Garçons ”sculpture” shirt with overlapping shapes in popeline cotton, medium length, short sleeves with geometric design, wide crew-neck.

Forme d’Expression curve shaped skinny pants in black washed wool serge, leg with front curve cut, concealed button fastening, sides slit pocket, centre leg cut and welt pockets at rear, slightly shorter and pointed hem at the back.

Yohji Yamamoto doctor style tote in black garment texture soft leather, hinged top, double handles, can be wear on shoulder, cotton canvas lining, , one zipped, one cell phone holder and one slit inside pockets.

Tracey Neuls stringless shoes in soft cowhide leather, mocassin like upper with small holes on the tongue and with inner elastic band, leather sole.

Scha limited edition hat in vintage quality, very fine weave sisal double layers, soft and ultralight, small brim, pliable wire in the edge.

Boboutic wide t-shirt in stockinette stitch makò cotton and silk, falling raw cut short sleeves, wide and reinforced crew-neck, sewn with slight horizontal difference in colour from one shoulder to the other along the back, hem band, shorter at the front.

Oyuna sahrouel knitted jersey/crêpe de Chine cotton trousers, side small pocket on the hip, asymmetric line, elastic at the waist, wearable also as a below the knee skirt lifting up the bottom.

PLEATS PLEASE Issey Miyake half moon bag in slanting polyester pleating and leather trimmings, an inside small pocket with zip, inside lined with nylon, zip closure, strengthened bottom on the sides, removable handles with hook, cross body, shoulder or hand bag.

Trippen flip-flop sandal with classic “Trippen” wide sole and metallic cowhide leather bands outlining a open V on the instep, band with Velcro fastening around the ankle, rubber arch support.

Up Close

By: Soili Milan

25-11-2011

Abbigliamento, Moda, Various

The appointment from the Padua store is back. Outfits on models and close ups of details, to give those who are not regulars at the store an opportunity to discover the fit, the possible combinations and those details not in the catalogues…

Padded coat featuring a loose fit, double breast, concealed press stud fastening, wide collar ‘button down’ with side stitch detail, front pockets, in wool and polyester blend, navy color, by Shu Moriyama

Same coat, with felt wool crown middle lenght felt wool crown, with elastic detail at the back, burgundy color, by Scha

Padded hooded coat, featuring a single breast, press stud fastening, two slanted pockets, hood with adjustable elastic drawstring, quilted with horizontal stitching, black and bugundy colors, by Pleats Please-Issey Miyake

Padded short coat, featuring flair line with origami style construction, wide collar, big buttons closure; the coat is made in two pieces, lining with long sleeve and v neck, and the origami part sleeveless, separatly wearable, in nylon satin, black color, by Issey Miyake

…with silk shawl featuring plain and embossed stripes pattern, green color, by Cauliflower-Issey Miyake

Padded short coat, featuring a hip length, a hight collar with imitation fur lining, concealed zip and button with loop fastening, two flap pockets, in knit design printed polyester, beige/khaik color, by Issey Miyake

…with sheepskin mittens featuring a separate index finger and thumb, a cleft mitten and a sheep fur detail, imitation fur lining, brown color, by Issey Miyake

Not sure if it matches? Don’t hesitate to contact us (shop@ivomilan.it), we’ll try it and take photos of it for you!

Luz y color: with Pleats Please-Issey Miyake, Luis Barragàn’s Mexico sees a revival

By: Soili Milan

09-11-2011

Abbigliamento, Accessori, Architettura, Arte, Design, Marchi, Moda, Various

The title chosen for the Pleats Please winter collection is a tribute to the work of the most prominent Mexican architect, Luis Barragàn.

Abstract shapes and lively multicoloured designs on bags, trousers, dresses and sweaters strongly recall that lush and surreal Mexico interpreted by the architecture of the master from Jalisco. The vast wall surfaces painted with bright colors, often crossed by unexpected cracks that offer glimpses of fountains of crystal clear water, are echoed by Issey Miyake’s most famous pleats.

The designer has always personally designed Pleats Please, a range which has always been the subject of his most joyous fantasies. Every season it is devolped by following a guiding theme. If, in the past, the most representative paintings of the Italian Renaissance embraced the entire silhouette in the form of dresses and t-shirts, now the inspiration is clearly Barragàn’s Mexico.

The deep pink of flourishing tropical bougainvillea, the yellow gold of the earth and the bright local houses, or the crisp blue of the cloudless sky and the sparkling blue of the clear waters, dissolve in the volumes of clothing and accessories in high-tech textiles.

In fact, each garment is initially cut and sewn on flat fabric, it is only later, thanks to the extremely advanced techniques that have been patented by the well-known Japanese Maison, that it undergoes the pleating process. In addition to allowing extreme volumetric plasticity, this unique pleating remains intact over time. It is so practical that it can be machine washed and transported anywhere, as it always keeps its shape.