Bridge & Burn

Portland, OR outerwear company designs classic hunting and camping styles for the big city

Clothing designer Erik Prowell originally named his outerwear company La Merde. “We wanted a name that was fancy, and yet…wasn’t. Then Nordstrom refused to carry the line because of the name,” he said when we recently visited his Portland, OR studio. After a moment, he reflected, “If there hadn’t been a recession, we probably would’ve kept it.” Now known as Bridge & Burn, Prowell’s sleek, …

Tabard

Enlighten outerwear with a coat rack-slash-lamp inspired by the Middle Ages

Tabard, an illuminated coat rack, makes retro-Middle Ages inspiration relevant with a completely new function and contemporary look. Conceived by veteran industrial designer Denis Santachiara for the experimental Italian lighting company Pallucco, Tabard (a short overcoat worn by knights) subtly recalls Europe’s days of monarchs and maidens with irony and light. The rigid shell covers a traditional coat rack, protecting the garments while emitting a …

Highland Fall/Winter 2010

Utah natives' debut collection introduces their own twist to classic outerwear

If you’ve ever wondered what fashion critics mean exactly when they say clothes have “energy,” the new menswear label Highland from a trio of Utah-raised family friends might give you some idea. Drawing on their shared outdoorsy past, designer Lizzie Owens explains they not only turned to Arcteryx, seventies Patagonia and their dads’ closets but that “it involved ransacking my garage. I looked at a …