MVP of the week — Featuring Louis Vuitton by Pharrell Williams

We might be experiencing the hottest temps we’ve had all year this week, but summer won’t last forever (sorry) and Louis Vuitton has given us the first glimpses of its Fall men’s collection. It’s another sublime effort from the brand’s creative director, Pharrell Williams, who has, once again, added a sprinkle of his personal dandy style to the fashion house. In true LV spirit, William has honoured the maison’s travel-wear history, imagining a wardrobe for a city dweller who loves a good weekend getaway. The collection itself, which ranges from woollen tracksuits to leather suits to suave accessories (including a lot of scarves), plays on the concept of macro versus micro detail — LV-embossed cufflinks compared with macro-monogrammed windbreakers, for example. Colour is also a key component of the collection, something that Williams riffs off the late artist Park Seo-Bo’s Écriture series. The abstract squares of pillar box red and denim blue of the South Korean painter’s canvas are translated into garments and accessories across the capsule collection, while apple green colourways reflect Seo-Bo’s work in a most timely fashion given the verdant craze that’s already occupied the summer. The collection will be available to shop from September.

Since it’s officially been a week since the Paris Olympics’ opening ceremony, it’s only right to give a nod to sportswear, too. For the games’ celebrations, Dior dressed five of the twelve celebrity acts as an ode to female power (within and outside of sports). In the same vein, the French fashion house’s creative director, Maria Grazia Chiuri — a strong advocate for merging fashion and sports — has included an especially sporty pair of trainers in the brand’s Fall 2024 collection. Enter the Dior Chrono sneakers, the lovechild of a chic couture shoe and a solid running trainer. While they’re totally Dior-coded with the ‘CD’ initials emblazoned on the side, their fishnet texture and light sole means you probably could actually go for a jog in them (if you didn’t mind them getting scuffed). As well as coming in four colourways, the details of the shoe include a lovely bit of Christian Dior lore: namely, the star that punctuates the sneakers’ tongue resembles the lucky star that Mr Dior spotted en route to work on rue du Faubourg-Saint-Honoré. You can shop the Chronos here.

On the note of practicality, our next MVP of the week embodies the needs of anybody who can’t afford to compromise on comfort or style. The AW24 collection from Danish brand Rains has a solution for our nation’s tendency to throw it down, offering a huge selection of waterproof coats in various colours and styles — including some especially tempting metallics (think urban street style meets minimalist Scandi). But it doesn’t stop there. The range also includes shell suit-style waterproof trousers, as well cosy fleeces that come in four different weights, pushing it far past the perimeters of customer service for the average jumper store. And if that isn’t enough, the brand also has a plethora of uber-practical bags, catering to the needs of commuters and long-haul travellers alike. And, yes, they’re waterproof. If that doesn’t say functionality, we don’t know what does. Rains’ AW24 collection is available to shop here.

Now, taking a turn away from fashion, our final addition belongs to the coolest candle brand of the moment. Designed to evoke the euphoria of ‘70s and ‘80s dance floors, Discothèque is the LA and London-based candlemaker inspired by iconic nightclubs. The brand’s latest instalment is Kinky G. It harks back to the cult Kinky Gerlinky London club night, which took place in various discotheques across the West End between 1989 and 1994, and was characterised by flamboyant fashion and drag. It is for this reason that the brand describe their Kinky G candle as “a dessert of debauchery and glamour”, offering sweet hints of Maraschino liqueur and cherry cream pie essence. The scent is also matched seamlessly by the candle’s pink and red ombré glass holder. And, while ‘80s club nights might have been more of an explosion than a slow burn, the Kinky G candle’s vegan wax can melt for 45 hours. Dreamy. Grab yours here.