Located outside Truckee, a logging town turned pleasant mountain retreat just north of Lake Tahoe in California, Lookout House offers, as its name implies, panoramic views of the surrounding natural scenery due to the steeply sloping terrain, with the greatest benefit being that you can ski straight into it. The morphology and geological history of the site persuaded California-based practice Faulkner Architects to design a contemporary family house in dialog with the natural beauty of its surroundings. Putting together California modernism with the alpine vernacular, the house is a four-season retreat that pays homage both through its thoughtful architecture and sustainability emphasis to its glorious mountainside location. 

Discreetly perched on the steep hillside between volcanic basalt rocks and tall White Fir and Jeffrey Pine trees whose trunks have been stripped bare from years of heavy snowfall, the 650 square meter family house evolves as a cubist arrangement of low-slung volumes that evokes "the feeling of a smaller ski lodge," as architect Greg Faulkner puts it. 

Comprising three separate zones - common areas, the family's private quarters and a guest area - the house is built around a central axis that parallels the ski run on the east side of the property while allowing the family to ski directly into the living room through a narrow slot cutting through the structure.

Following the cue of the exterior, the interiors are swathed in reclaimed walnut panels, with exposed concrete walls and flamed basalt floors, the latter representing the volcanic geology of the region, as is the column of red-orange glass at the center of the building, referring to the color of the cooling magma. 

With some of Tahoe's best ski resorts nearby – the nearest ski lift is only a few hundred meters away – and with plenty of outdoor sports to choose from, such as rafting, surfing, rock climbing and mountain biking, the house is a true all-year escape.

In other news, Helmut Lang has finally launched its first eyewear partnership with Berlin-based brand MYKITA after debuting the sunglasses at its SS20 runway show back in September 2019. The set consists of two styles that deconstruct the concept of a wraparound sunshield into four individual elements, the HL001 and HL002. Contrasting lens colors like neon pink and orange, are the reference key colors from Helmut Lang's SS20 runway show.

When the weather is warmer, the motorized sliding doors retract to draw the family out onto an expansive courtyard with a hidden plunge pool and a separate terrace with an outdoor lounge.

FOUR-SEASON MOUNTAIN RETREAT WHERE CALIFORNIA MODERNISM MEETS ALPINE VERNACULAR

One of the last time actress Carice van Houten graced our screens for many of us when her character Melisandre, aka the Red Woman, fell into a cloud of dust in the final Game of Thrones season. 

And when we got to see her again in full costume it was a real treat, although this time in the role of a fashion muse. Coinciding with the launch of the first-ever digital Haute Couture Week in Paris, Dutch designer Iris van Herpen has taped her into a new short film entitled Transmotion. 

Rather than making a whole collection, Herpen simply crafted one look and made it the centerpiece of the film. Like her GoT part, Houten portrays a powerful, ethereal character as she shows off the couture confection: a diaphanous bloom of white silk organza with undulated plissed layers, filament strands with black crystal seeds and black satin branches rising from the middle. 

The video and the dress of the same name are influenced by Dutch graphic artist Maurits Cornelis Escher's illusionary theme. "Birth, development and creation," Herpen told The New York Times. "I wanted to express, without being literal, the feeling of these last months and symbolize the new beginning of things." 

Though both women are living in Amsterdam, the two had never met before. In fact, Herpen had never even seen Game of Thrones, but only knew about the actress from the Black Book movie. "I once wore one of Iris' dresses on a Dutch Harper's Bazaar fashion shoot, and I recall thinking, oh man, that's something entirely different," Houten told the NYT. 

"I still feel like I am wearing clothes that have nothing to do with me when I do photoshoots for magazines," she said. "I love fashion but the design world is a bit frightening." 

She noted that her fellow GoT co-star Gwendoline Christie (who made many best-dressed lists from past red carpets in Iris van Herpen's designs) had already collaborated with the designer, making it "extra cool."

More fashion films will follow tonight apter 5 pm UTC, Rick Owens and Yohji Yamamoto's are among them. Stay tuned!

Thank God for Lady Melisandre in Iris van Herpen.

CARICE VAN HOUTEN STARS IN IRIS VAN HERPEN'S COUTURE FILM

Van Herpen is renowned for creating elaborate collections of sculptural fashion couture. To help her develop the unusual materials and techniques she uses in her designs, she often collaborates with architects. "In a sense, the expertise within architecture is very useful for material creation on a smaller scale," confirms the designer "This is how techniques are really converted on a larger scale into fine texture or fabrics." 

Van Herpen was among the first fashion designers to promote the use of 3D printing in her designs, a technique introduced to her by Benthem Crouwel Architects, Amsterdam studio. 

"For their model making they used 3D printing and I was really fascinated by the intricacy in detail," said Van Herpen. 

She has collaborated with Benthem Crouwel Architects along with architect Daniel Widrig to create a series of dramatic 3D-printed garments for her Crystallization collection in Spring 2011. 

As part of her Capriole collection in autumn 2011, which was created in collaboration with the architect Isaïe Bloch, she followed this up with a completely 3D-printed skeleton-like dress. 

Since then Van Herpen has been using 3D printing in her work, such as her 2013 Voltage collection and 2015 Magnetic Motion collection. She has also worked with Rem D Koolhaas to create a pair of high heels 3D-printed, reminiscent of the tree roots. 

However, Van Herpen said she has used the technology more recently to create softer materials that behave more like traditional fabrics. 

"When I started 3D-printing, I used it very much the way an architect would use it, but now the fabric-making knowledge is really being implemented in the way we work with a 3D printer," she explained. 

"The 3D printer is becoming more like a modern way of embroidery," said Van Herpen.

Not only does Van Herpen collaborate with the architects. She has worked with experts from a host of different disciplines, frequently working along with artists and designers on her runway shows.

"The 3D printer becomes more like a new form of embroidery," Iris Van Herpen.

IRIS VAN HERPEN: ARCHITECTURAL KNOWLEDGE IS VITAL IN THE FASHION INDUSTRY

Iris Van Herpen is a “chemist” and inventor of the fashion world. Her garments are made of nanomaterials glued together, printed on a 3D printer, cut out from cellulose as sculptures, and processed with a laser.

In her work, Iris van Herpen combines nature and the latest technologies. She uses innovative fabrics to make clothes similar to plants, beautiful flowers, or sea corals. “I want to make the fabric alive,” Iris once said before the screening, a reminiscent of an episode of a science fiction film about a girl who could turn into a rose to protect herself. In nature, everything is interconnected. Iris van Herpen wants her fashion to help audience feel this connection.

“I am engaged with high fashion, which is already a synonym for sustainability and durability. We create custom models; this does not require a one-time approach. At the same time, I work with scientists, architects, and artists to optimize my professional research. We come up with new technologies and materials, try to minimize the negative impact on the environment. “

“My brand does not aim to reinforce political views; there are too many of them, even for me personally. Moreover, they have a strict time reference. I try to create things that are timeless, I like the idea of working, looking at objects that are being born as if from afar. “

“I would really like to advise you to not forget about your skill, craftsmanship, and innovation – this is the foundation of fashion. Mastery is always in one way or another connected with the new. We live in an era when so much is concentrated on culture, but at the same time, designers are not given specific skills and abilities, such as working with patterns, for example, at school. They are not told about the traditions of the craft. So, my warning to the young would-be: Do not limit your horizons! You’ll miss a lot if you master only one way of production. “

Iris Van Herpen is a “chemist” and inventor of the fashion world. 

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