THE JOURNAL

Three bold and brilliant tops to bring joy to even the most depressing of days.
We live in turbulent times. It seems like a day cannot pass without something disastrous occurring somewhere in the world. The news headlines are awash with death, destruction and political farce: an endless ticker tape of evidence showing how the human race has failed. Depressing, indeed.
In the face of all this, it might be tempting to put your head in your hands and slowly rock back and forth in a foetal position. But there is another way. There is a better, more liberating method of handling all of this. There is little we can do amid all this surreal chaos, so why not shrug it off and embrace the absurd, hilarious, meaningless side of life? Let us tackle full-blown catastrophe with joy and mirth! How, exactly, you may ask? Well, by wearing bold, whimsical clothes, of course. And these colourful prints going live on site, today, might just be the perfect place to start. Frivolous? Us? Never.
Creature comforts
We’ve done some scientific experiments, and we have discovered that there is officially nothing more life-affirming than wearing a sweater with a huge depiction of Snoopy on it. No one can be in a bad mood wearing a sweater with Snoopy on the front of it – that’s a fact. No one can feel negative about life after seeing someone else walking around with a loveable beagle on their torso. Trust us. This guy has been filling people with joy ever since 1950 – when he first appeared in comic strip form – which proves that his charm offensive has staying power. Throw this Gucci marvel on with a reliable pair of Levi’s and smile. Nothing can go wrong with Snoopy.
Go your own way
Mr Hussein Chalayan often looks to pop culture and technology to inspire the designs on his clothes. Here, he has used a collage of signs from Germany’s Autobahn to create a wonderfully nihilistic printed shirt. Feel a little rudderless? Feel like you have little direction in the world? This is the pattern for you. Much like the Autobahn itself, this shirt is nothing if not, well, extremely busy. So make sure you soften it a little. Wearing it open on top of a neutral T-shirt, like the above example from Paul Smith, should do the trick.
Out of this world
If we’re talking about escapism – and that seems to be the order of the day – then there can be few more appropriate ideas or images than the great, yawning infinite abyss that is space. Now, we may never actually get there (we’re assuming that most of you, like us, are not astronauts; we’re not moon landing conspiracy theorists or anything). But that does not stop us thinking about it. And this shirt from Japanese brand Undercover – emblazoned as it is with an intergalactic mix of planets, spaceships and spacemen – is the perfect tool for doing that. Whatever the world throws your way – relax with the calming concept of weightlessness. Add some sturdy Tod’s Derby shoes, should you feel the need to come back down to earth.