Critical mass, Sheffield

Started in San Francisco, but now happening in over 300 cities around the globe, Critical Mass is a bicycle event held on the last friday of every month. Founded in 1992, the ride was originally to demonstrate how unfriendly the city was to cyclists, but the leaderless structure of Critical Mass makes it impossible to assign it to any one specific goal. To be honest, I don't think the purpose of it is any more formalized than the meeting in a set location and time and travelling through the city streets to celebrate the bike and its relationship with the urban context and the bicycle as the most efficient, peaceful and perfect mode of transport.

Join us (at 6PM outside the Town Hall on the last Friday of every month) for a monthly cycle ride in the city. Bring someone you know who's got a bike; bring EVERYONE you know who's got a bike; make some flyers and go around Sheffield sticking them on bikes or giving them to cyclists; speak to the person next to you at the traffic lights and tell them about it; do whatever you think will make more people come; come YOURSELF.

This isn't a protest, its a celebration.

Look Book: I

With Autumn fully in swing now, and Winter starting to show everybody what its made of, I thought I'd start putting together some looks that would go down a treat in the coming season.

YMC Hooded Mac - £145

Filippa K Oxford Shirt - £88

Acne Pop V Knit - £85

APC New Standard red selvage - £110

APC Work Boot - £315

Surface to Air Weekend Bag - £395

APC Knit Scarf - £115

The perfect look for a chilly Sunday morning stroll in the city to your favourite coffee shop and independent record store with a copy of Monocle and the Sunday papers. Thats what we call perfect!

Article Magazine, Sheffield

Article is a printed magazine, with 1000 copies a month circulated in Sheffield.

Sheffield is a city with a difference. Sheffield is edgy, creative, friendly and ugly. Its a city that has soul. Article Magazine is a monthly publication with a print circulation of 1000 that offers people a guide to the space they're in. Its a magazine that talks about the city and places they love, and what makes them special: the building, the people, the streets. A brochure for the constantly evolving fabric of Sheffield, like an exhibition brochure, the magazine offers a wide variety of features from bikes to Obama to gay geography. Thinking, writing, publishing and doing, these guys present stories of the city around us, from architectural analysis to personal tales of strange subscultures to interviews with people who make things. The thing that I love about the magazine is its celebration of the real world, a celebration of our city's ugliness and a celebration of the normal everyday.

2009 Prix Pictet first prize: Nadav Kander

It is not fresh news that the demand we [humans] are putting on our Earth is out of its depth. The ecosystems we depend on already suffer resource demands beyond their capability. Reports are showing us the results are devastating: international foot riots, desertification and loss of forest cover. With an ever growing population, the governments are trying to stimulate growth, but can our living systems really sustain the future consumption patterns of a further three billion people with 40 years?

Or are we making the transition, as the Nobel laureate Paul Crutzen has suggested, to a point where the face of the earth – its soil, its waters, its groves, its hollows – is no longer natural, but bears the terminal scars of man’s intervention.

The Prix Pictet claims to be the world's first art prize dedicated to artists that use to photography to convey crucial messages regarding sustainability. It has a simple goal, and that is to portray crucial messages about social and environmental threats of the forseeable future, using art as its medium to target a wider global audience. Impurity, excess, contamination, absence, control: these werethe aspects of sustainability on the theme of Water covered by photographers nominated for last year’s Prix Pictet. This year the theme was Earth.

This year's first prize went to London based artist Nadav Kander. His work appears regularly in publications such as The Sunday Time Magazine, Another Man and Dazed & Confused. Here are a couple more images from his entry:

III Generation - Nom De Guerre

Since their emergence in 2003, Nom de Guerre have been renowned for harvesting strict military references in their clothing and converting them into modern reinterpretations of clean cut workwear classics. Fresh out of NYC, NdG are all about heavy, hardwearing knitwear and rugged workshirts produced from the best, most refined materials available in Japan.

With the idea of Utopia as a key theme, The Third Generation AW09 collection explores clothing necessary for survival in the the Arctic wilderness, arguably the last remaining utopia. Shawl collar knits, wax hunting jackets and heavy gauge wool pullovers; primitive and essential survival wear.

I couldn't put the bicycle as a 'design classic', but these are too beautiful to not mention...

At Ideology, not only are we great fans of cycling, but we appreciate things of sheer beauty and whether you're an advocator of the vogue city transport around the world at the moment or not you would struggle to deny the simplistic beauty of the bicycles at Bertelli Biciclette Assemblate NYC. These bikes are assembled, finished and tuned by the fine hands of Francesco from a combination of brand new parts, "new old stock" and vintage parts he picks up at flea markets, old bikeshops, collectors and from his trustworthy suppliers.

Our favourite ride of his right now is the Domenica: this is the bike for a sunny sunday morning ride, with the newspaper or some Murakami under your arm, on your way to your favourite suburban Italian deli... thats how it is in my head anyway.

How could I not start my description by mentioning the Adam Brackney special design wooden handlebar? The perfect icing on this beautiful cake. Viking frame, Brooks (keeping it British) B15 saddle, vintage white Michelin tires and a vintage Gipiemme crankset turning a gold finished chainring.

Its a thing of beauty and worth every penny of the $1600 it'll set you back, or get in touch with Francesco for information on custom builds.

Design Classic #1: APC New Standard

Jonathan Glancey, architecture critic for the Guardian, last year began writing a series of short articles called 'classics of every day design'. Writing around fifty articles, including products such as the moleskine notepads, the illycafe jars and Robin Day's polyprop chair amongst other products which surround us but don't 'swank around in style magazines' and which we unforgivably take for granted. We intend on publishing a few design classics of our own; timeless pieces from architecture, product design, the great outdoors, architecture and beyond.

Our first product is the APC New Standard. As a brand, APC needs little introduction. Adopting a very Miesian 'Less is more' approach to their clothing which seems to have been lost in time, althought certainly still appreciated, geared towards essential wardrobe needs. Much like the New Standard, the creator - Tunisian born Jean Touitou's thoughts about the clothing industry are direct and to the point. Practically unchanged in two decades of production, the New Standard is a unisex jean made from raw selvage denim that can't help fitting everybody with unrivaled precision. They epitomise utilitarian design - there is nothing superfluous, no external branding (excusing the neatly attached APC pin and the top fly button which is engraved engraved 'APC, Paris pres de Luxembourg') but most importantly no gimmicky washes, paint splatters or uniform holes. Yes, these jeans require commitment, they represent an everyday narrative that is unique to every pair. A new pair will hold you hostage; they're hard, unwashed and stiff. It is widely recommended amongst jean connoiseurs to buy 2-3 sizes down and then wear the denim in for 6-12 months without a wash.

I've only been wearing my jeans for 3 months now and they're still unwashed. They've definitely loosened up and are beginning to show some beautiful fading in all the places I wanted. As an avid cyclist, the crotch has a saddle shape fade and the backpockets shadowing the shape of my wallet, not to mention the countless number of handrails I have slid down over the past 90 days.

I often feel that a sign of great design is a product, system or idea that transcends and outlives fashion and the New Standard has done it for the past twenty years. A great pair of jeans will get better with age, with every action you make, and every time you fall. We haven't seen anybody look good in a pair of flared cords recently but a classic pair of jeans never go out of style.

A fresh start

Ideology is a menswear boutique set in Sheffield's Devonshire Quarter. With an open niche in the city's retail market, Max Wadsworth wanted to offer classic, functional menswear alongside more innovative, contemporary labels.

Ideology Boutique has introduced Sheffield, Yorkshire and Derbyshire to much sought after internationally acclaimed brands as well as some of the best up and coming labels. Season on season, we hope to deliver and evolve by seeking and introducing new exclusive brands, designers and collaborations.

With a focus on high quality materials and production, here are some of the brands we're stocking this season:

Acne - highly regarded Swedish denim,

A.P.C - 'less is more' champions of French style,

Fillipa K - simple, clean contemporary clothing,

Nom De Guerre - utilitarian classics straight out of NYC

Common Projects - staple understated luxury sneakers

n.d.c, made by hand - artisan hand made leather shoes

as well as YMC, Tretorn and Passarella Death Squad.

Check out the new Ideology Boutique store and our twitter to keep up to date with what music we're listening to, our thoughts on style, design and beyond as well as the current stock that drops in store.