Ralph Lauren.. Then and Now

Ralph Lauren is a household name and any fashion enthusiast will know it is a Brand with some serious history. We see the Ralph Lauren Polo logo daily in COW and today we have chosen to look back at Ralph Lauren, who he is and what he has created.

For us here at Cow we are very used to seeing the Ralph Lauren emblem on men's and women's shirts which are often played around with by our Rework team. We are always receiving these styles and they are usually transformed from the regular shirt into mini dresses with elasticated waists or the more recent cropped elasticated version.

Grey Ralph Lauren Rework Shirt Dress - £27

Blue Striped Ralph Lauren Rework Shirt Dress - £28

Tie Dye Ralph Lauren Rework Shirt Dress - £30

Tie Dye Ralph Lauren Rework Shirt Dress - £30

Looking back at how the brand started and the way it has grown into such an incredible designer label we are lucky to have this brand in our stores and online.
It all began with the man, they call, Ralph Lauren. Born in 1939 from the Bronx, he didn't enjoy studying much and dropped out of college where he had been studying Business. Ironic, eh? He joked in his year book statement that he was going to be a millionaire and then went on to establish and grow a multi-billion dollar corporation starting with selling ties to his fellow students.

It wasn't until 1970 when we were first introduced to the classic Polo emblem which was sewn onto the sleeve of jackets from his first ladies suit collection tailor made in the same way as a man's suit would be made.  He hit a rough patch in 1987 when he was diagnosed with a brain tumour. He underwent serious surgery and came out the the other side with full health and made a full recovery.

Ralph Lauren then went on to open stores internationally, design Ready To Wear Collections season after season and gain well deserved respect in the Fashion Industry. He is still going strong today and we must say not looking too bad for an older gent with a lot of years of experience behind him.

 Young Ralph, looking pretty darn handsome and cool!

Older Ralph, looking very dapper and pleased!

Check out our versions of the Ralph Lauren classic pieces on our website here.

Bow for Bowie

So.. the new David Bowie video came out today and what can we say. Well it's David Bowie.. obvs then there is Tilda Swinton.. amazing but wait, who's that? Our two favourite androgynous models Andrej Pejic and Saskia De Brauw playing a young Bowie! It might not get any better than this. A movie type, stylised 5 minute music video without a perfect moment missing.

What a fashionable bunch, Saskia De Brauw, Tilda Swinton, David Bowie, Andrej Pejic

We spoke about the David Bowie Is: Exhibition recently which opens at the V&A on March 23rd and this video has just reminded us all at COW why we must go to see.

David Bowie has always been ahead of the times when it comes to music and fashion and at the age of 66 he is still shockingly influential. We bow to Bowie!

New ebay items!

Well yesterday the sun was shining for the first time in yonks and we had a delivery! Here's some of the best bits hand picked out that you can find on our eBay store here

Floral denim dress £22

80's summer dress £18

Silk shell suit bomber jacket £28

Navajo jumper £20

Navajo jacket £26

Metallic blouse £16

Reversible Chain print bomber jacket £38

Tie Dye Ralph Lauren shirt £26

Be Our Valentine!

It's that time of year again when lovers panic about how to impress their dear loved ones and those who may not be in a pair might choose to treat themselves to something to shake off the pressure put on them at this time. Not us though.. we are just here to let you know we have some mega one off vintage pieces to perk yourself up, if you have someone to show it off to or not!

So here's are our favourite red hot pieces available online here.

FOR HIM

In order from Left to Right:

Pepsi-Cola T-shirt, Falcon Satin Jacket, Animal Tie, ZZ Top Vest

Red Leather Belt, Wool Checked Coat, Striped Polo T-Shirt, Knitted Cardigan

Adidas Jacket, Zig-Zag Tie, Varsity Jacket, 'B' Baseball Cap

Fannel Shirt, 'C' Baseball Cap, Polo Neck Jumper, Liberty Print Tie

FOR HER

In order from Left to Right:

Silk Jumpsuit, Suede Ankle Boots, Pepper T-Shirt, Elasticated Heart Belt

Sequined Dress, Fine Knit Jumper, Suede Trousers, Studded Blouse

Snakeskin Handbag, Belted Skirt, Detailed Stilettos, Gold Stud Belt

Varsity Jacket, Skinny Leather Belt, Checked Re-Work Dress, Leather Handbag

If you wanted to nip into our store to grab a little something-something you can find us here.

Free Delivery Online for Orders Over £75!

We've been fiddling around with our website and have added even more items!
If you see something that takes your fancy don't worry about clocking up the price because we offer free delivery for orders over £75! So if you can't make it to any of our stores or you just don't want to leave the house just visit www.wearecow.com and enjoy!!

FREE DELIVERY FOR ORDERS OVER £75!!

"Ooh Thank you"

"You're Very Welcome"

COW x

Is It Summer Yet?

Walking around on these dull days is making us look forward to bright summer outfits. We've been looking at the new stock in COW and you can get prepared for Spring/Summer 2013 by pulling key trends such a neon brights, the black and white monochrome look and the classic 60's style.

We went through our inspirations and pulled some outfits from COW then dressed our lovely intern to model those for you! Here are a few of our favourites:

MONOCHROME

DOUBLE DENIM

POP COLOURS

(Nice snakeskin clutch!!)

THE SIXTIES

Images on moodboards from Style.com and Tumblr.com

All outfits worn by Abi are available from COW Manchester or find similar items on our website HERE!

COW's Weekend Recommendations

It's here again.. If you're stuck for ideas for things to do this weekend or maybe just can't get the motivation to leave your house as the cold drawers in closer, here are a few suggestions from us all here at COW!

NOTTINGHAM

Piero Gilardi Exhibition - Nottingham Contemporary
Starts Saturday 26th January - 7th April
Maybe you are looking for something a little more laid back and would like to be one of the first to view the politically and environmentally important 60's artist Piero Gilardi's work at the Nottingham Contemporary. The show exhibits his early, interactive and realistic sculptures showing slices of nature made of carved and painted foam. He would encourage people to interact with his pieces and have them lie on, sit in, picnic on and even wear them but now the pieces are too fragile for that kind of interaction but can be pleasantly enjoyed around the space.

"Gilardi was always the most politically engaged artist of the Arte Povera scene. In the late 60s, at a time of great political turmoil in Italy, he left the art world altogether, becoming a “creative facilitator” of street theatre and demonstrations for a range of radical causes – workers’ revolution, the antipsychiatry movement, radical youth groups, and the rights of indigenous people around the world. This work took the form of making sculptural props and choreographing actions, practices he continues to this day. Often based on satirical cartoons, Gilardi’s agit prop objects, like his sculptures, are executed in his favourite medium: carved and painted foam."


BIRMINGHAM

Django Unchained @ The Electric Cinema
Selected Times until 31st January
If you haven't already been to see the most talked about film release of the year so far, we suggest you go straight away to watch Django Unchained. Directed by Quentin Tarantino and starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Jamie Foxx and Christoph Waltz expect to see Trantino's own version of American history. The Electric Cinema is Birmingham's treasure being the oldest working Cinema in the UK and has been open since 1909. It has had a bit of a facelift since then and you will not be short of home comforts while enjoying your movie with luxury sofa seating, waiter service and a full bar to enjoy.

"Django Unchained does what all Tarantino films do best and pluck pieces from across cinema's long history and whirl it up into a violent, witty and hugely ejoyable piece of post modern entertainment. Tarantino delivers and Django Unchained is no exception.

MANCHESTER

The Soft Pack @ The Soup Kitchen
Friday 25th January - 7.30pm
An American four piece from San Diego perform post-punk revival and garage-rock style indie. If you like a bit of guitar based, lyrical dance around then we highly recommend you go and watch these.

SHEFFIELD

The Sheffield Vintage Fair
Saturday 26th January - Sheffield Town Hall - 12pm-5pm
Vintage, Vintage, Vintage... Just when you can't get enough the Sheffield Vintage Fair is on at the Town Hall with a grand selection of the finest UK's Vintage Mens and Womenswear to Home ware, accessories and jewellery. This is a Sale Special and we are hoping to go and pick up a few bargains with the last of our Christmas money!

LONDON

Jueregn Teller: Woo! Photography Exhibition @ ICA
Started Wednesday 23rd - 17th March
Anyone who follows or has an interest in Art, Music and Fashion will know the greatness of Juergen Teller and his raw photography style. He as shot some of the most influential icons of our generation and continues to capture a raw honesty of his subjects. He has shot for many publications and became mostly well known for his work with  i-D magazine and The Face in the 80's and 90's. His most famous images ranging from the wonderful Vivienne Westwood sat completely naked at 68 years old, the beautiful young Kate Moss with pink hair (before Bleach arrived) and the more recent stunning Celine and Marc Jacobs Campaigns.
The opening has been and gone with stars, friends and fans such as Vivienne Westwood and Stella McCartney there to show their respect for the photographer but it is open for a couple of months and I know a lot of our COW staff are making their way down to London for this one.

We hope you all find something to do and have a great time. If there is anything going on in your area that you would like us to know about keep us posted!

COW x

Meet The Nottingham Team!

To keep you all in the loop we are talking to our team from all stores and letting you know what goes on in COW and how we manage to keep it up and make sure it continues to be your favourite Vintage Store! Today we spoke to Keighan Kelly who is our lovely Nottingham Store Manager, she tells us how it has been moving store, what's kept her at COW for so long and the details of her helpful and creative team.

KEIGHAN KELLY/ NOTTINGHAM STORE MANAGER

HOW LONG HAVE YOU WORKED FOR COW?

I have worked at COW for 2 years now.

HOW DOES IT FEEL MANAGING THE NEWEST & FANCIEST COW STORE?

I love my new shop, I always like the character of the old shop but this one is just amazing. There is so much more space and it looks like no other shop in Nottingham.

WHAT IS THE BEST THING ABOUT YOUR NEW STORE?

I like the general look of the shop in comparison to the old one but I'd have to say my favourite thing is all the window space we have. We have so much more room to be creative and we plan to keep making the most of this space with our fantastic window displays. We are more noticeable now to people who pass by and people do stop and take a minute to check out our window displays.

WHAT IS YOUR TYPICAL DAY?

My usual day consists of making sure the shop look diverse and full. My staff are all very creative and we do our fair share of Visual Merchandising. I spend a lot of time with our Rework staff going over what is selling best for us and any new ideas we may have. If we have had suggestions or requests on items to stock I will take the time to contact the owners and keep them informed of customers demands. I am always working from the shop floor and even when doing admin and paperwork I like to be available for customer service.

HOW DO YOU COME UP WITH IDEAS KEEP THE WINDOWS AND LAYOUT SO EXCITING?

Well I have to be honest.. my main window display has been left to a member of my team Allan Buxton (who is a creator of his own company Howl and brought you the WE ARE COW video). He did an amazing Christmas window display with a moving Christmas jumper, which had a lot of interest and he always has great new ideas coming up (Keep an eye out)
I also get a lot of help from a very creative little lady in my team called Riah Woodward. Me and Riah work closely together with displays and floor moves. We are always taking note of our bestsellers and researching what the next trend will be, then we apply this to our own stock and space. Our customers also show how they choose to wear the latest looks, this is important to us because we can keep up to date on fashion in our local area. And believe me we have some great fashion followers in Nottingham!

WHAT IS IT ABOUT COW THAT KEEPS YOU INTERESTED AND EXCITED ABOUT THE BRAND?

I love that all of our products are one off pieces, we get our products from all over the world making it easy to look individual rather than blending into the crowd. It's amazing to be part of a successful brand and being part of a group that is always moving forward. My team and I are always looking at ways to improve the COW experience.

WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO IN 2013?

In 2013 I am looking forward to COW being involved in more local and national events. We have already involved our store in the Nottingham Light Night on Friday 8th February where we are planning to have bands in store and also show a short film.. Let's just see what the rest of the year brings!

Here are some snaps of the brand new Nottingham Store, if you haven't been yet you should definitely go and see and say Hi to Keighan!

 COW lights window display

Cow from the street 3 Carlton Street, NG1 1NL

Menswear display on ground floor

 Epic neon lighting display on the grand staircase

 Upstairs to Sportswear, sale and accessories

 Upstairs accessories and lounge area

Last Christmas window display including the dancing mannequin.

Made by Allan Buxton!

Dooney & Bourke in Stores Now!

We love it when we receive something special in our deliveries. This week we had a nice amount of handbags and purses from the classic American brand Dooney and Bourke.
If you are not familiar with this brand where have you been since 1975?

The well known American accessories company was founded then by Peter Dooney and Frederic Bourke who had a great love for leather and other skins and used this to produce some signature products from handbags, belts to the more recent ipad case. In 1983 they created the 'AWL', this stands for the classic All Weather Leather, which is what you may be used to seeing today. This was also the introduction to the signature duck logo on all of their products made in this time. The brand is well respected and still going strong today introducing new styles, skins and fabrics and constantly demanding attention from customers of all ages and style.

If you fancy snapping up one of these timeless, classic handbags or purses we have a selection of sizes and colours in stores now with prices ranging from £20 to £50 and worth every penny. An accessory that you won't have to replace for years and will go with anything!

Images above from a selection in our Cow Nottingham store

Bag above available to buy from Dooney and Bourke

We also have a selection available online at WWW.WEARECOW.COM if you can't make it into a store fast enough!