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 Nigel Cabourn for Eddie Bauer. Click through the slideshow to see more photos from the shoot and to read our thoughts about the brand.
Most of you probably know Eddie Bauer from your friend's mom's Ford Explorer, which, in the '90s, were often retrofitted with side panels bearing the Bauer insignia if you paid a bit extra to have them upgraded to have fancy leather seats and bigger cup holders. But the company has a much broader heritage than that, having made proper, perfect outdoor gear since 1920. That's gold for Nigel Cabourn, the archive-obsessed British designer who was asked to do a small capsule collection for the brand.
Cabourn has been collecting vintage British army gear for the past forty years, so it must have felt natural to ply through Bauer's incredible archive and re-work some classic styles. Cabourn's inherent understanding of old clothes also means he's great at function, since so many key pieces in vintage men's fashion, like coveralls and parkas, are valued for their strength. Cabourn's update of the classic Eddie Bauer parka is wonderfully designed, reminding us of the puffer's you'd rock with Timberlands and tight jeans in your high school days. These coats will also keep you insanely toasty in winter, and there are great details, like pockets on the back of the coats and even a detachable chin strap to keep your lower lip warm.
(Styling by Deidre Dyer, model Orlando at Q Models)