To highlight the clothes currently inhabiting our fantasy wardrobe, we've teamed up with vitaminwater and asked The FADER's extended family of photographers, stylists and models to pool their talents and showcase some of the best threads around. Each Styled by FADER will feature a different brand's collection of the season that sits at the top of our most-wanted list. This week, we bring you D.S. Dundee. Click through the slideshow to see more photos from the shoot and to read our thoughts about the brand.
London-based D.S. Dundee is a proper Anglo name that sounds as old as the British Isles themselves, but the truth is, the company is not one of those lauded, tweedy English fashion brands that has been around since the 19th century. This is a good thing: it’s D.S. Dundee’s fresh color sense and youthful attitude that makes them so attractive to begin with. “We play on the idea of heritage, sure,” says designer Elizabeth Reeds. “But in a way that’s actually contemporary and relevant rather than fuddy-duddy.” That means classic fabrics that are used playfully and with a sense of humor: typically snooty vests are rendered in baby pink, traditional English parkas in creamsicle orange.
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Dundee's cheerfulness comes, in part, from their origins as a streetwear company. They've since matured with suits and brogues, but there's still a part of them that is nostalgic for the more casual clothes of youth. "I think, part of it is, that everyone at the company is in their 30s," says Reeds. "Street and skate culture was important at some part in our lives. Obviously, it might no longer be relevant for us, but it's seeped so much into how we think about clothing." An outfit might look upperclass from afar, but wearing them is nothing but comfortable, like suits you can kickflip or grind in. One of their signature pieces, a tri-color pant with an elastic waist is what they call their "Smart but Lazies," and is representative of what they do. Made up of three distinct color panels, Dundee constructs them from a hodgepodge of the fabrics they are using in any particular season. "We're a small company and it doesn't require buying new and expensive fabric. On a resource level, it's a very efficient use of what we’ve got," says Reeds. "That being said, its also just really awesome to have a pair of trousers that are exceptionally comfortable and easy. They're like linen sweatpants."
Photography Nicola Turner. Styling Elsa Lam. Model Jason Hoffmann. All clothes by D.S. Dundee, except last shirt by United Bamboo and belt by American Apparel.