Production

With Sifr in full swing, we thought we'd make the production process a bit more transparent in this very space. Not many others out there care to share with the end user about what goes into creating a product line. This is where we come in.



To quickly provide some brief background info:

The relationship between Sifr and KIN is an interesting one. Not many labels have the opportunity to showcase their produce hot off the press in a setting that already hosts a stable of other fine brands. We are lucky to be able to go through the production process, receive the goods, sell them to KIN and have them display at the store right away. The time lag is greatly reduced so as to ensure continuous progress.

With the consolidation of the retail space, it has now given us the ability to pay a lot more attention to Sifr's production process. A lot has been learned simply through communication with suppliers and associates. One specific associate is a garment manufacturing company run by my family members in Indonesia. They have a facility further out of Jakarta that focuses on production of knitted sleepwear and pajamas/pyjamas. This facility hosts an array of machines that take care of buttons to picot stitches.

They also have their very own Gerber Scientific pattern marker machine. It is very slick piece of equipment and is manned by an equally slick individual. He's been nothing but great help to us. Another great help has been the factory super(woman)visor.



When we design a certain garment, it is usually accompanied by a flat sketch and spec sheet that is sent out to the manufacturer. They then sample the garment and ask us to make comments and provide us with a measurement specification sheet. Filling out the measurement specification sheet or grading is probably the most sensitive part. This is where we gradually expand or contract from the sample size to create an entire size run. As easy as this sounds, it rarely is when in practice as you're trying to accommodate the general population. This is where the Jakarta outfit comes in.

With a combination of experience and technical knowledge, Umesh (Gerber operator) then measures our sample and completes the entire grading process from XS - XL. What would take us a whole day to complete took him a quick 20 minutes. If we were producing at that specific factory, he would then use those measurements to create a whole size run of patterns with help from the Gerber Machine.



This time however, we were there to create size specs as well as work with the factory supervisor to perfect certain prototypes to ready for our manufacturer in China. All this to reduce any margin for error.

Snatch Thieves: Slipmats

He holds down the graphics at the shop, if you like, spread the love and give our man a hand by voting.

Iamakey, itsakey, passkey

Have to love the play with names for LaCie's new thumbdrives they released a little over a month ago(late pass). The ingenious design of using a key mold will hopefully alleviate the problem of misplaced thumbdrives; at least for me it will, otherwise I'm locked out of several spots.

Thanks for the heads up Rich.

Cat Shit One

Don't be decieved by the cute bunnies wielding M4-A1s and the somewhat cute camels touting AK-47s. You'll soon find that in the first few seconds of the trailer this seemingly innocent furry CGI anime is as real as it gets as one of the camels squeezes off a few rounds into a hostage bunny, blood spraying everywhere.

The anime, Cat Shit One, is based on a manga released in the 90s (also known as Apocalypse Meow in the US). The manga is done by Japanese military artist, Motofumi Kobayashi, whose artwork ranges from WWII inspired to alternate history themes.

Can't wait till this comes out, here's an english subbed trailer, enjoy.

Yamaha Tenori-on

This is a video of Little Boots using a Tenori-on. Here is a link to something similar, except its a web version. A snippet from lab.andre-michelle.com's description of the e-instrument, the Tone Matrix.

"Simple sinewave synthesizer triggered by an ordinary 16step sequencer. Each triggered step causes a force on the underlaying wave-map, which makes it more cute.
Based on the AudioTool engine thus no sources, I am sorry.

Press SPACE key to clear."

It's a load of fun, so for those of you that are musically keen, I hope you enjoy this. Thanks for the heads up Kurt.

Timeless Photography

I came across this photography collection the other night. Here is an excerpt from the home page.

Charles Weever Cushman, amateur photographer and Indiana University alumnus, bequeathed approximately 14,500 Kodachrome color slides to his alma mater. The photographs in this collection bridge a thirty-two year span from 1938 to 1969, during which time he extensively documented the United States as well as other countries.

This is why I love the internet so much, you are able to find a gem of a site like the, Charles W. Cusman Photograph Collection, and visually explore a different time dimension.

I have only scratched the surface of this collection. Here are some snippets.

Will post some more links to more photo archives, next time around.

Enjoy.

Pingpong

Here's a little snippet if you haven't already stumbled into our new office upstairs. We do work up there despite what this picture suggests.



Here's a track of something we've been listening to as of late. Phoenix just dropped a new album, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, this is Liztomania.

Illustrations by A.L.

Here's a preview of some work done by artist and friend, A.L., refreshing and provocative.

Keep your eyes peeled.

Lego: Beautiful Imagination

Found these lego abstractions the other day.
The captions and lego creations speak for themselves.
The imagination is beautiful.

Work is done by artist, Christopher Niemann. You can find his bio after the jump below on his blog.

MORE LEGOS

Wash Bags

How useful do you guys think this washbag is?

Would you use one if you got one?

The washbag is used protect the garment from the ridges in a washing machine and to ensure the item's longevity. A garment washbag would help avoid tears and abrasion on fabric.

I should probably be using one, but maybe I do like my clothes getting roughed up, grabbing some character through the spin cycle and everyday wear.

Current Programme

We've decided to deviate from our music selection and start playing Monocle's weekly radio show. An audio version of one of our favorite, if not our favorite monthly periodical. Here's an excerpt from the site,

"The Monocle Weekly is a mix of smart discussion, previews, field reports and feature interviews. From our studio in London and our bureaux in Tokyo and New York, Monocle's editors focus on the horizon and explore the looming stories within the five areas that define our editorial agenda: global affairs, business, culture, design and consumer culture."

A magazine that encapsulates the modern renaissance man or lady.

We hope you enjoy the change in audio experience at our store and we do urge you to glance and read through their magazine at your nearest good bookstore/news stand.


Playtimes: Monday, Thursday, Saturday ( 2pm - 6pm )
Looping through present and past shows.

The Monocle Weekly

So feel free to come in, sit down and listen with us.

Singapore Cuts

Wednesday night, 2nd floor. 7-9pm.

Note: This display will run through to Sunday the 29th.

See you then.

Work in progress

Our store has long been very focused on bringing in some of the better international labels out there without compromise.

It was only a matter of time before we'd work on bringing in and fully supporting/nurturing brands with lesser exposure in the global market. This of course still in line with our strategic direction.

One of our own members has now embarked on their own course of study in the form of a clothing label that will be featured in store in the coming months. Please visit http://www.sifrsite.com for a splash page introduction.

Sifr will not need much introduction in this log. All the information is available in words from the same people that hold down our fort on a daily basis. They plan to put as much care and consideration into looking after this label.

As a result, the upstairs portion of our space has now been transformed into a legitimate studio/workspace where we're able to work freely. This isn't as glamorous as it sounds. Please don't let the Ping-Pong table fool you!

We look forward to seeing you soon.

Vans Eras

The Black Era 45 and the Black/Mineral Era are both going for $59

Engineered Garments SS '09

Work Shirt Blue Chambray - $299


Work Shirt Olive Madras - $299


19C BD Shirt Wine Madras - $389


Rounded Collar Shirt Pima Blue Stripe - $369



Spinnaker Shirt Indigo French Terry - $249



Shawl Collar Cardigan Grey Stripe - $259


Shawl Collar Field Shirt Jacket Blue Chambray - $369


Cinch Pants Dark Navy Madras - $349


Quick Release Leather Belt Brown / Black - $299


One Piece Canoe Bag Khaki Canvas / Navy Canvas - $389

Nakkna SS'09

Hidden Button Shirt - $389


Granite Tee - $299


Pattern Cardigan - $369


Basic Shell Tee - $129

MHI AW '08

Nakkna SS09 - In the Flesh

Check it out.

Nakkna's SS09 Video Presentation



Drops next month.

Post CNY / End of Season Sale