Bow Ties Sydney, Australia - Le Noeud Papillon - Specialists In Self Tying Bow Ties


With over 2 million page views, Le Noeud Papillon's blog continues to provide lovers of bow ties with unique stories and content relating to menswear through interviews with industry icons and vignettes into topics relating to suits, shirts, shoes, ties, designers, weavers and much more.

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Saturday, December 31, 2011

Lost In A Supermarket Top 10



We came in on the top 10 of Lost In A Supermarket's Fashion Blog Entries for 2011. A snippet below:

4. Le Noeud Papillon: Jacquard Woven Silk Bow Ties for the Discriminating Gentleman

Discovering the work of Nicholas Atgemis was like a godsend. His label Le Noeud Papillon crafts handsome (and sometimes cheeky) limited edition bow ties and pocket squares from silk with woven, not printed, designs. He also elects to use exquisite jacquard silk processed in the centuries-old silk town of Como, Italy, as opposed to using cheaper and more ubiquitous Chinese silks. And when a tie model sells out, that’s it — better start scouring eBay for it, because Le Noeud Papillon does not repeat a design. Atgemis even gave us some ties to give away which were incredibly popular (thanks for that Nicholas!), and a couple months later he was asked by The Wall Street Journal to espouse on the comeback of the bow tie, with an accompanying lesson in selection. Since then his brand has grown steadily and like Vanishing Elephant (# 6), Le Noeud Papillon is another emerging brand putting Australia (Sydney, to be specific) on the legitimate fashion map.

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

An Interview With A Woman Who Loves Her Work - Rose Callahan Of The Dandy Portraits

Rose, where were you born and raised and what kind of things inspired you as a young woman?

I was born in San Francisco, and when I was 8yrs old my family moved to a small rural town in Northern California.  This was a “boring” place to be as young person, but looking back it was a wonderfully scenic place filled with Victorian houses, mossy forests, lots of places to explore.  From very early on I loved history, vintage clothing, and classic movies.   I craved the glamour and drama of another time (and the city), which was definitely not what daily life was like!


I returned to the SF Bay Area to study photography at the California College of the Arts in Oakland.  In 1999 I moved to Brooklyn on a whim.  New York is so much fun and filled with opportunity.  



What brought out your passion for photography?

I got a taste for photography very early, around 10yrs old, thanks to my mother who was starting to learn it herself.  From the beginning I made portraits, and that has always been what I have been most passionate about.  I was inspired by the work of Man Ray, Steichen, Avedon, Mary Ellen Mark, Diane Arbus, and especially the Hollywood glamour portraits.   I would spend hours looking at photo books trying to figure out how they did the lighting.  For me portraiture is the most fascinating and challenging type of photography - It is about character and emotion which are not easily defined.
What attracted you to Dandyism as a subject matter and what was the genesis for the The Dandy Portraits? Did you envisage the kind of success it would have?

I love it when men wear suits - it is inspiring to be around very well dressed people!  The first portrait in the project was Lord Whimsy, who my boyfriend Kelly told me about because he saw him on Lord Willy’s (NYC store) site when he was searching for a bespoke suit.  I thought, I have to meet his guy he is a wonderful character!  When I started to do more research and photograph more men I was surprised to find that dandyism had never been documented in this way – investigating “the lives of exquisite gentlemen today” through photographs of famous and infamous men of our day.   

Dandyism is a philosophy of dressing but each subscriber has their own unique style, in your opinion, are there any common threads amongst the men you have made portraits of?

Each man that I’ve photographed has certainly been very unique – defying classification by subculture, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation, geography, and even class.  Besides the obvious common thread of the suit in it’s infinite variety, there is a commitment to masculine elegance that is unexpected in our day and age.  And it is elegance not just in dressing, but in living – in being a gentleman.

Of all your portraits, which is your favourite?

I could not pick a favorite subject, but one of my favorite images so far is of Massimiliano Mocchia Di Coggiola in his white linen suit sitting by the window in his Parisian apartment. 





Who was the hardest person to convince to be a part of the Dandy Portraits?

I am very discreet, and would never tell :)  







How important is light in your photographs when you are trying to capture changes in texture and colour of cloth?

First and foremost my fascination is with bringing out the personality of each man, then their clothes and environment.  The lighting is so incredibly important to create a mood, but it does not have to be complex.  My lighting is very minimal and mobile, because I don’t want to miss the right moment.  I like deeper shadows – they help bring out details and textures (especially of the clothes), and add drama. 






Are you a gun for hire or is this a labour of love?

As a professional photographer for the last seven years I have shot portraiture and fashion assignments for adverts, books, print & online magazines, etc.  The Dandy Portraits is a personal project that allows me to make images without too many restrictions, and get more in depth with one subject.   I started the blog to focus my interest and to share the work, but I am not in the business of blogging.  I have gotten assignment work from people seeing The Dandy Portraits, though, which is quite gratifying.  I am happy to do that!

How do you see your work progressing over time and do you try to steer the Dandy Portraits?
For The Dandy Portraits I still have names on my list that I have to photograph before the project is “done”. Miraculously, just when I think I have found or heard about every man, a new one is on the radar!  So I want to continue making the portraits until it comes to it’s natural completion.  From the beginning I envisioned the project as a photo book, and that is in the works currently.  I am collaborating with journalist Nathaniel Adams, who will write the profiles for the book.

How do people contact you if they are more interested in your work?



The main blog for the Dandy Portraits is: http://dandyportraits.blogspot.com/

They can also follow me on twitter @rcallahanphoto or reach me about work via email at rosecallahan at earthlink dot net. 


Additionally we have:


The Dandy Portraits on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Dandy-Portraits-The-Lives-of-Exquisite-Gentlemen-Today/114748495275491
or 
Tumblr:  http://dandyportraits.tumblr.com

Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Sunday, December 25, 2011

Magnus Omme - Beautiful Photographs


For any of you that have followed this blog, you will know that Magnus and I have done a lot of photography together over the last two years. He returned to Sweden this year, then moved to Denmark, and hasn't taken as many photographs as he'd liked to with all the moving. Luckily we got Magnus back to Sydney for our friend's wedding and look at the lovely photos he did on the day.



Walking down the aisle.... I wore a Le Noeud Papillon Churchill - black and white polka dot bow  with Matthew Cookson black velvet slippers with skull embroidery. 



For Oskar we did a 140 2 ply white cotton twill shirt with french fly front, french cuffs and a halfway collar. 






Little Archie had his own bow tie made especially for the big day by Le Noeud Papillon.

Merry Christmas From Le Noeud Papillon Sydney


Friday, December 23, 2011

Demure...


Every now and then I get a phone call such as the one I took this afternoon - 'if you are nearby, can you please come and tie my bow tie for me'. This is one of our limited editions from last year called 'Tassy'. He is wearing it with a pocket square called Parisian Nights which, although you cannot see it, has a feature colour of teal which matches the bow. 

"I Hope For Nothing. I Fear Nothing. I Am Free." Nikos Kazantzakis

I stumbled upon John Karandonis' factory in Marrickville by chance and upon entering I felt I had entered a time warp. He was closing up shop after 51 years of service to Australia in the shoe business (he arrived in 1960). John talked about shoes and I promised to buy a pair but he said 'it better be before Friday or else I won't be around any longer'. With the hectic nature of Christmas upon me I promised to get back there on Tuesday, but in the end it was not until he was close to closing on Friday that I got back there. He was sporting the t-shirt below, a quote so dear to me that I had considered it to be appropriate as my own epitaph. Any of you who have read Nikos Kazantzakis or his 'magnum opus' as they refer to it on Wikipedia, Zorba The Greek, will likely know that this quote is what is written on a small wooden cross on Kazantzakis' grave in Crete.

Personally, I have never done the journey to Heraklion to see where the great author came from but I have been to Crete and I thought of Zorba on the morning of my Samaria Gorge walk when I went down to meet the sea from the mountains. It was therefore the most fitting t-shirt that an old Greek cobbler could wear on his last day of trade and it is a great shame that he most likely will not be replaced.

As a small consolation, he has patented a shoe for toddlers that is a real gem. He hopes to work on that in his spare time now. John also had some fabulous black french calf Chelseas amongst an array of other shoes which he was still trying to sell. His email is karandonisjohn@yahoo.com and his mobile is 0400 411 624. So, if you want any of the last remaining shoes - feel free to call him and he will meet you out there at the factory. Otherwise, he's off to enjoy his retirement at age 78. You can meet John below by watching the You Tube video.










Thursday, December 22, 2011

An Old Friend Got Married

An old friend of mine got married. I had the privilege of walking her down the aisle and of providing the bow ties for the groom and groomsmen.








These photos were taken by photographer Magnus Omme

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

World Of Whisky, Double Bay, Sydney

I have rarely visited Double Bay in the past few years except to eat and drink, so this was a fantastic surprise. A shop full of whisky, just whisky, called 'World Of Whisky'. Fantastic shop. P +612 9363 4212 or www.worldofwhisky.com.au

Have a look at some of the stuff they stock.


This is Ivan, one of the owners of World Of Whisky