Explorations

The Most Wonderf… Wasteful Time of The Year

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Low impact Christmas #formodernhumans


Christmas is the most celebrated holiday, a time to spend with family and loved ones. Yet, in modern times, it has become just another occasion to overconsume. More than the atmosphere, the tradition revolves around buying and, even more troubling, tossing out the day after.

Indeed, the waste we produce grows exponentially during the festivities. Wrappings, gifts, food – people consume and throw away everything. To demonstrate it, see the average fast-fashion Christmas sweater worn just for the occasion and then discarded right away. Those garments go directly to replenish the horrendous clothing island in the Atacama Desert in Chile.

(In case you do not remember about it, please read here)

In fact, the most wonderful time of the year corresponds to the most wasteful time of the year.

However, sooner or later, any excess becomes exhausting. And for those who choose a conscious lifestyle, the need to clean up the festivities routine is deeply felt. But, paying attention to our lifestyle and consumption habits doesn’t mean giving up the celebrations. On the contrary, a low impact Christmas is possible, pleasant and more meaningful.
And yes, we can definitely enjoy it!

What we can do for a low impact festive season


So, what can we do for a low-impact Christmas and festive season? Here’s our advice:

• As a general rule: avoid single-use items.

• Christmas decorations: we never throw them away. We just mix them differently, and the atmosphere is created around us. Those who interact with us will surely remember our lovely polar bears! In case you missed them, have a peek at our Instagram.

• Wrappings: avoid too much paper for packaging and use non-plasticised wraps. Also, recycle them.

• Food: throwing away food is an insult to humanity. There are so many recipes for food leftovers.

• If you cannot afford gifts, make something by hand. But please, don’t buy fast fashion. We don’t need more garbage.
For the same cost of a fast-fashion item, consider gifting a book.

Finally, whatever we buy for Christmas, make it last. And most importantly, let’s donate what we can.

A conscious lifestyle means intentional choices. It is not about deprivation but quality, values and meaning.
May your days be merry!

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Shop Small & Independent

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Anmi jewellery: a shared vision of fashion


Shop small and independent represents thoughtful choices to reclaim a sense of value. For you, but for us too. Indeed, supporting similar activities means being aligned. And sharing a vision of the world we want to live in. We contribute to defining the world by voting with our pockets. How we spend our money or don’t spend it at all – which in many cases would be great – shapes the world. And we do it all together.

For instance, we could argue against overconsumption and then offer you the same brands that thrive on that production model. Instead, we prefer to do our own research and find value outside the beaten path. In fact, consistency is a core value for us, which is why we seek out uniqueness.

Anmi: a brand with a fascinating background

shop small and independent
Anmi collections


Thinking about jewellery, the idea of supporting Anmi totally resonated with us, with the new path we have undertaken. An Italian brand located near the magical Pompeii, the ancient Roman city in Campania, close to Naples and Vesuvius. A designer with a long history in the fashion field, between Italy and France.

Exploring the Anmi archive to assemble unique pieces of jewellery was fascinating and modern at the same time. It felt like going through a process and realising that the time was ready. Sometimes, we would even puse, because it made sense in the moment – yet always with the intention of taking a different direction.

shop small and independent
Anmi collections


The archive is vast, and what once was considered a fashion leftover regained its value fulfilling the desire for uniqueness. In this line, the concept of asymmetry stands out. Moreover, the packaging is minimal on purpose.

Being mindful of your consumption doesn’t mean “buy nothing” at all. It’s about making intentional, conscious choices.
Shop small and independent!

Please, request your Anmi jewellery unique piece via email or DM.

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Change: Between Reality and Dream

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Post-pandemic fashion: illusions of change – A talk with Antonio Miranda


The alleged change brought in by the pandemic, and widely discussed in the fashion field, is mostly imanginary. We explored this topic in a conversation with Antonio Miranda, the designer behind the Anmi jewellery brand. With a lifetime of experience in fashion, Antonio offered unique insights into the industry.

Antonio invited us to the Piccolo Teatro to watch “Doppio Sogno” (Dream Story), by Arthur Schnitzler. Firstly, the show was absolutely stunning – far surpassing Kubrick’s film Eyes Wide Shut. Each character embodied multiple versions of oneself simultaneously, highlighting a dense psychoanalytical landscape. The interplay of mixed emotions and a profound flow of consciousness made the experience intensely captivating.
A special thank you to Ugo Fiore (assistant director and Antonio’s nephew) – we truly appreciated the opportunity!

However, before the show started, we exchanged some thoughts about fashion.

change
ANMI Collections – Made in Italy

Fashion and change


We quote Antonio Miranda:

“Those who changed because of the pandemic were already on that path before Covid19 hit. This is evident in the fact that most people either regressed or remained unchanged. And, look, in the fashion field, we talked endlessly about change. It seemed everything had to be different the following season. Well, now the fluff is even more pronounced.”

According to Anmi’s designer, those who changed were already sensitive to the topic. Somehow they were ready or at least open to it. In fact, they were on the route towards change. Therefore, the pandemic simply became the last drop or an invitation to take the next step.

But for the majority of people, nothing has changed – for the better, at least. And fashion remains stuck in the same cycle of emppty words – hot air, indeed.

In fact, the path towards change is individual. It is a matter of awareness and perspective. But, even though a shift in attitude depends on our journey, whatever our situation may be, we can get inspired by virtuous people and activities.

A play, a book, what we buy, define the universe we want. Let’s keep the door open, search for value, support and share it. That’s how we change!

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The Fashion Bullshit

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Exposing notorious fashion marketing empty claims


The fashion industry loves to discuss important matters that we would better describe as fashion bullshit.

How does the system work?
As soon as a new concept becomes popular in the fashion world, the proclamation is made. So the word spreads rapidly. As a result, marketing takes over the subject right away. And, once marketing steps in, you can feel the smell of it. What follows is an unmistakable sense of artificiality that permeates the entire communication strategy.

As voices outside the chorus, we’ve put together a list of some of the fashion bullshit: terms that, the more people in the field put at the centre of the discussion, the more they sound weird.

The fashion bullshit list

• New:
usually said about things done and redone. Again and again. Eye roll when you hear this word.

• Change:
a kind of mystical belief we like to talk about, but never happens.

• Luxury:
or the fake representation of it. What remains after the voluntary shift towards overproduction and mass distribution.

• Affordable luxury:
a total absurdity launched to compensate for the collapse of real luxury.

• Sustainability:
the biggest bullshit of our times. Most designers who wave this flag lack a distinctive design imprint, and as a result, have no real reason to exist.

• Diversity:
possible or allowed only in fashion shows or advertising.

• Inclusion:
possible or allowed only in fashion shows or advertising.

• Disability:
possible or allowed only in fashion advertising. But please, don’t show up during fashion event!

• Fluidity:
gender-fluidity is popular in fashion shootings. But when you go shopping, items are divided by categories. And so, the shop assistant kindly invites you to shop in the section assigned to your gender.

• Collaboration:
possible only as co-branding (sharing a profit). However, genuine exchanges are very rare among fashion professionals.

• Humbleness:
unreported, or simly missing.

Does anyone have anything to add to this list? We’d love to hear from you.

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Why Japanese Fashion

Reading Time: 3 minutes

The Point on style & Japanese aesthetic


Making the point on style by examining the international fashion panorama, helps answer the recurring question we often hear: why Japanese fashion?

Why is Japanese fashion design relevant in today’s global fashion landscape?

What is our prerequisite


On an international scale, we look for brands who have something to say, offer good design and a consistent expression of their vision. Also, we keep in mind the shift brought about by the pandemic: a return to the essence. So we curate a capsule selection of meaningful pieces.
“Less but better” means that there’s a reason for every garment we choose. So, every garment we choose serves a purpose.

A glimpse of the international fashion panorama


We are quite perplexed about the designers’ proposals we have seen lately. We noticed that many brands have lowered the bar offering poor quality and meaningless design, also labelled “sustainable,” which makes us laugh. Although some brands show beautiful dreamy lines, these have no context in our lifestyle, at least for now. So, we’ll keep an eye on them for the future.

The Italian situation, specifically, requires a deep analysis.
In short, after the demolition of Italian craftsmanship and after production was dislocated to other countries, Italian fashion is not at its best. Many brands have no soul or remain stagnant, offering no evolution. Many successful brands primarily sell the vision of a ‘sexy woman,’ which feels overly rooted in the status quo. We want to see something beyond the ‘sexy doll’ stereotype.

Why Japanese Fashion - an image of Japanese style by Plantation1982
Plantation1982


What leaves us perplexed is the direction that many international brands, considered the cool ones, are pursuing. If they aim to design a modern style, they repurpose a Japanese aesthetic. And so, the Instagram images are beautiful, but when you analyse the clothing design, the patterns, it’s clear where the inspiration comes from. In the end, there’s a common thread connecting brands from Italy, the U.K., North Europe or US. Despite their significant followings, they all reveal the same specific characteristics that strongly resonate with Japanese fashion design.

By the way, what we find somehow interesting is that those brands sell even to Japanese stores. In other words, the Japanese buy their own aesthetic made by someone else. If a Japanese buyer would illuminate us on this, we would be grateful.

Why Japanese fashion? Embracing original designs


In conclusion, why Japanese fashion?
Nippon offered a wealth of unconventional and advanced fashion design. What we notice as a commonality between Italian and Japanese cultures is the obsessive attention to detail and style. While drawing inspiration from Italian, European or international brands in general is acceptable, we do not expect them to replicate exaclty the same Japanese designs.

So, why Japanese fashion? Instead of opting for international brands with a Japanese aesthetic, we choose the original ones.

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