100Hands is a sterling brand that has cemented its reputation abroad, but flies below the radar of most sartorially inclined men in India. Style gurus have described their handmade shirts, which are made in Amritsar, as some of the finest in the world. They also make shirts for a bunch of tailors on Savile Row as well as for the likes of Paris-based Camps de Luca, which sells them along with their suits. Each 100Hands shirt takes 16-34 hours to make and features, among others, hand-rolled bottoms and a high stitch per inch count of 25; every part of the shirt is hand-attached and handmade.
If you are not acquainted with the brand, which was launched by husband-wife duo Akshat Jain and Varvara Maslova in 2014, now is as good a time as any to check out their wares. 100Hands has recently released its 2023 linen collection. The hand-cut shirts are made from the finest French linen and feature a medium cut-away collar, and hand-sewn and attached sleeves. “These are shirts designed to be worn with either a blazer as well as on their own, in a luxury, casual way,” says Maslova. The made-to-measure shirt takes about three weeks to be despatched once you’ve placed your order. Prices start at Rs 31,000. Visit 100hands.nl for more details.
Emma Watson and Brad Pitt are the latest to join the cavalcade of celebrities launching their own spirits. Watson’s Chablis-inspired gin, co-created with her brother Alex, is called Renais. The base spirit is made from “upcycled French pressed wine grape skins and lees”, which is then steeped in Kimmeridgian rock which is found in Chablis, Champagne, and Sancerre before the addition of botanicals such as linden flowers, cubeb berries and acacia honey. Renais retails for about GBP 60 in the UK.
Pitt’s offering, Gardener French Riviera Gin, made in collaboration with former Tanqueray master distiller Tom Nichol and distilled in France, is a more conventional London Dry gin that is made from wheat and uses botanicals such as juniper, pink grapefruit and sweet and bitter oranges from southern France.
Gardener will be launched at Cannes next week.
You thought you had broken the shackles of your bag fetish and then you see Loewe’s Goya Puffer messenger bag. Loewe (it’s Lo-ee-veh) is a Madrid-based, 177-year-old Spanish brand, which is owned by LVMH, and favoured by the likes of Lewis Hamilton and Zendaya. The puffer bag is made from “durable shell and padded with feathers”. The orange logo-jacquard webbing strap, which matches the leather lined interior, is a class act. $2,500.
Over the years the best-selling author David Grann has written on murder and obsession (The Devil and Sherlock Holmes); on the Osage Indian murders of the 1920s that led to the creation of the FBI; and about one man’s quest obsession with Antarctica (The White Darkness). His latest, The Wager, cements his reputation as one of the world’s best narrative nonfiction writers. The book tells the story of a shipwreck — of the eponymous 18th century British vessel that sailed from England during its imperial war with Spain — off the coast of South America, and of the competing versions of truth offered by two groups of survivors and a court martial that discovered a startling truth. Rs 1,912, on amazon.in
If the force is strong with you, you’d want to take a close look at Fossil’s new Star Wars collection that was released, obviously, on May 4. The Star Wars line, which has been launched to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Return of the Jedi, features Rebel Alliance-themed watches, and so you have six special editions inspired by iconic characters such as Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, Chewbacca, C-3PO, and R2-D2.
The Threepio- and R2-D2-inspired watches feature automatic movements, while a green lume Lightsaber is the second hand on the Luke Skywalker watch. Each individually numbered watch ships in a collector’s box that showcases cinematic sound effects, comic-book-style illustrations and a replica movie ticket pin. Prices start at Rs 21,495.
