Can you believe it? Just a month and a bit ago we were battling the biggest ice storm ever, and now we are basking in sunlight and showing off our arms! Spring is always a favourite season for us, and allows for tons of serious sartorial diversity.
Before summer comes and reaches its peak of summer style we wanted to showcase some great looks in our {SHOP} which give that signature E.O.F. time traveler cool . . .
School is almost out, but your style studies should always be at its optimal peak! That’s why we have devised a simple A-Z of some our favourite pieces that will help your style star shine. Click the links to find out more details, and remember to use secret code XIXIXI for a special 25% OFF all purchases.
Let your rebel spirit roar, and don’t settle for any less than timeless cool.
Remember, these daze designer styles are nothing more than vintage rip offs! Stay alert, and be open to finding that “latest” look from the {PAST} and help change our {FUTURE}.
Remember XIXIXI gets you 25% OFF in the {SHOP}, so why not take a browse.
‘Concision in Style, Precision in Thought, Decision in Life”
You may have noticed those immortal words when browsing through our ABOUT US page, although the phrase is more like this:
+ CONCISIONEM STYLO, ACCURATIUS CORDE, IUDICARI VITA +
Since our inception, these words have helped build the foundations for creating The Eye of Faith, and we never forgot them along the way.
Wise words from an icon in his own right, Victor Hugo (and I’m not too sure if he would be one for musicals ) . . . but none the less, his “concision in style, precision in thought, and decision in life”, have made him and his work relevant to this very day!
It’s quite wild how the past comes and goes, and is brought back to life again. Inspiration finds it’s way through the cracks of your mind to infiltrate your thoughts and create something special. This comes into play every time you make your way into your own wardrobe, for example. You stare at your clothes and an idea might come to your mind, and thus a new look, and a new you is born!
While our motto CONCISIONEM STYLO, ACCURATIUS CORDE, IUDICARI VITA (it just sounds so F***ing good in Latin) has carried us far the past year, most mysterious 2014, we have a few new thoughts for the year ahead, and some new virtues we want to inherit and inspire for 2015.
+KNOWLEDGE+
+KNOWLEDGE+ has always been an important piece of the puzzle here at The Eye, and for our frequent followers and visitors, you have come to expect in our approach an appreciation for history and all it’s secrets and quirks. We love to expose the {PAST} and examine where it fits into the {PRESENT} and hopefully, using our age defying wisdom, we can summarize a likely {FUTURE}.
Much like the alchemists and sorcerers of the past, the gaining and collecting of knowledge, every little bit no matter how esoteric, is a vital aspect of one’s true power, for when the time comes and all you are left to is you and you alone, you can count on yourself to follow through! Whether we’re talking life or fashion, no one is ever going to blame you for knowing too much.
We hope to continue in this vein, and bring you more and more vintage memories and musings that can both inspire and inform.
+INTEGRITY+
Since we began creating The Eye of Faith, we have been told a million and one things we should be doing instead. Everyone and their mother has had an opinion on our vision, without even asking what that vision may be!
We came into this game knowing full well who we were, and what we intended to accomplish. You don’t see another site quite like The Eye of Faith online, and that is a good thing. We are not trying to fall into place behind other fashion blogs (most of which look the same) who recycle content from site to site, but we wanted to be true innovators on the scene. This dedication to our vision, and always standing by it without changing it to appease naysayers is why we have ruled +INTEGRITY+ as a continuing priority here at The Eye of Faith.
The Eye of Faith was conceived as a portal to the past with many seemingly disparate items, articles, and stories coming together to create a well-rounded vision of how little things have changed, and how cool the past really was! This will continue NOT to change.
We will also not be picking any random articles of vintage clothing to add to the collection. Nothing is arbitrary, and each piece speaks to a certain story or style we are aiming to incorporate into the vision of the collection as a whole. Believe us, it’s not as easy as it sounds! It’s called +INTEGRITY+
+COURAGE+
The Spirit of Contemplation (1901) by Albert Toft {1862 – 1949}
+COURAGE+ has always been our silent leader when it came to creating The Eye of Faith. In fact, the whole idea of the The Eye of Faith encapsulates this virtue entirely.
The Eye of Faith is an age old symbol of +COURAGE+, and by the pure belief in matters at hand, and some proper insight, one may be given sight to see the way to get to one’s destiny. It’s a silent pathway, but a strong one, and without proper reinforcement your trail could just wither into the wind before your eyes and you would be left to find your way without the guidance of the fates. . .
The latter is a path many of choose in life, but since we are beings with a choice, we definitely chose to trust that The Eye of Faith will get us where we belong.
It took a lot of +COURAGE+ to stand up and tell those we know and love our belief in it, but it definitely seems to be paying off, with everyday us getting stronger and stronger.
+STRENGTH+
+STRENGTH+ comes in many forms. We need it constantly; in the physical sense, to keep up the hustle of getting our pieces from one place to another, and even more so in the emotional and spiritual sense, when it seems like you’ll never figure it all out.
Truth is, you’re never going to figure it all out, so best stop wasting your energy on that one . . .
Having +STRENGTH+ of mind is more powerful than any fist when it comes to life. Creeping deep down into oneself and building +STRENGTH+ from within is your best start. From there, everything else will seem like a cinch!
+IMAGINATION+
I once read somewhere that +IMAGINATION+ is more important than +KNOWLEDGE+
But I don’t think that is quite true, as much as learning to utilize both to one’s advantage can be the most powerful tool of all.
+IMAGINATION+ is quite literally the God-Sense in all of us. If you seek the divine in the everyday all you need do is open a pad of paper and sketch, or write for an hour about any old thing, even messing about your wardrobe will suffice. It is simply that beautiful magical moment where your brain has decided to create something new, and completely you.
You are a well of ideas and inspirations, and once you are able to tap into that spring, you might find your true self overflowing!
+ + +
So there you have it!
Our five newly anointed principles that can be used not just for your style sensibilities, but use them in life, as well. If you use them right, the transformations will happen almost immediately.
Feel free to adapt our Rules to fit your own life, or simply come up with a few of your own.
What means most to you? In the end, that’s all that matters. We know what we need to do to survive, and we’re going to definitely be making it happen! So hopefully some of our words of wisdom have rubbed off a bit, and we can all make things happen together!
Getting ready for school or work, you might have noticed that day by day you are submitting to any number of rituals. Whether it’s washing your face or prepping for your day at the mirror, all these little things add up to make the recipe for the spell that will hopefully get you through the day. . .
This is a tradition as old as time itself. It seems so simple at first, almost unnoticeable if you haven’t thought about it, but our daily routines and the simple act of getting ready for the day is as powerful as any incantation.
Focus is key, as you don’t want to invoke the wrong spirit for the day. But if you are able to summon from deep within that one spirit that can transform you, and in turn, how you are perceived by the world, then you have a real chance of winning. But, making that metamorphosis is something only a genuine and true individual can truly take on.
For centuries, hundreds, maybe thousands, of secret societies have existed looking to possess the power of these sacred secret spirits. From the mysteries of Egypt and Ancient Greece, to Yeats’ and Crowley’s “Golden Dawn”, to the secret dormitories of the Ivy League, members of certain sacred orders have endured through the ages and kept alive this powerful knowledge.
The most powerful spirit they hope to set free is that of the ‘Rebel‘. The most courageous and strong of any being. The ‘Rebel’ is fearless and has been able to survive with its’ strong will, determination, and unwillingness to submit to anyone, or anything.
“The mystery religions were instituted in order to protect the marvels of the commonplace from those who would devalue them.”
{Peter Redgrove, “The Black Goddess and the Unseen Real”.}
Long ago, high up in the sky a rebel band of Angels existed, unhappy with their destiny. Instead of sitting pretty playing harps and twirling their fingers through their hair, they followed their leader, the bold Lucifer, and leaped down from the sky and into the river Styx where they still reside to this day, invulnerable to the world, and ready to play as they please . . .
Invoking the rebel spirit is one of the things we do best here at The Eye, and possessing oneself with the invulnerability of the River Styx will without a doubt work in your favor, no matter the circumstance. Who wants to be vulnerable anyway? Instead, own your destiny, and write a place in history for yourself.
We have explored the history of these sacred orders and secret societies and have been entranced by this tradition of rebellion. The deeper you begin to look, the deeper you can understand that we are in fact living in a {Rebel Society}.
+THE SACRED ORDER OF THE GOLDEN DAWN+ is about the invocation of this ‘Rebel’ Spirit, and the traditions of spreading this magical word, and the power imparted onto the individual, once freed from a life of waiting. The answers are all around us, and only the chosen shall see them.
There is a warning, however, in summoning the ‘Rebel’ to pervade the soul: always remember that the ‘Rebel’ spirit doesn’t work for anyone, and once summoned, there is no guarantees how long they might want to stay, or the darkness they might uncover once you are shown the light.
Do you think you have what it takes to invoke the ‘Rebel’ spirit? If so, take a ride with The Eye of Faith and lets aim for Styx!
Based on a novel by Patricia Highsmith (‘Purple Noon‘/’The Talented Mr. Ripley’), and directed by the screenwriter of Nicolas Winding Refn’s ‘Drive‘, not to mention, starring Kirsten Dunst and Viggo Mortensen in a Hitchcockian thriller set against the backdrop of Greece in the early 1960s- ‘The Two Faces of January’ is hands down one of our most anticipated films of 2014.
The ingredients are all there for a great film, and the reviews have been generous in its favour, so I guess we will just wait until it makes its way to this end of the world to enjoy all the intrigue and vintage fashion splendor.
1962 does good on them both, as both Viggo and Kirsten have never looked so good.
“The time has come”, the style man said, “To talk of many things . . . “
We’ll stop with the strange allusions, but we did want to talk of many things today.
Of style, of class, of tradition, and function. Of beauty and elegance, of aesthetic, also.
But most importantly, we speak to that uncompromising soul quivering deep within that refuses to
accept anything foreign of divination. . . Meaning, you want to look good.
We all do, and that’s some strong power if you can harness it wisely.
Now that the worst of winter (fingers crossed) seems to have passed
we’ve taken to leaving our heavy winter coats behind these last few days, and instead vying for a
classic approach to beating the cold: a good ole’ Winter Sweater.
Great for all that “Sweater Weather” out there; whether it be acrylic, wool, cashmere, or angora.
Worn by fishermen, farmers, workmen, heroes, athletes, gods, teens, and idols.
They are aran, cable-knit, patterned, and geometric;
Textured, solid, V-neck, or button-up.
There are so many different ways to wear them. Don’t forget they are an important part of the repertoire for any well-dressed gentleman of distinct tastes.
We explored +Sweater Girls+ in the past, so now we shine an eye to the men of the past who have made the sweater great; showing how the perfect sweater can truly transform.
Integrate these thoughts and inspirations into your daily ritual, and become part of the legendary timeline.
If you play your cards right, you might just live forever.
Or at least, like you did once.
+
When I stated in fashion, I had already adopted the sailor-striped sweater as my uniform; that way, I wouldn’t have to drive myself crazy trying to figure out what to wear.
– Jean Paul Gaultier
We have plenty of our own vintage mens sweaters and knits in the {SHOP} to help get that classic appeal!
So, the weather report is in, and things look grim. Not only because the weather is near infuriatingly cold, but also because black is back. With a vengeance. Then again, when is black not a thing.
{Sage}
Stuff like that kind of bothers me, because season after season you have to hear the reiterations of what’s in and what’s not (boho, metallics, white, nautical, army)…it all comes around. It all ends up being the same. I don’t believe in these rules, and instead choose to pick an inspiration as it fancies me in the morning.
Lucky enough for me, my penchant for black lately matches up perfectly with what’s in vogue, and twenty years from now, it would still.
Now don’t go on thinking that Canada is always awash in snow and always cold. In fact, we had a very mild Fall, and just the other week it still felt like Spring. But it seems like the Gods of Winter have begun to swell, and are very quickly taking over the lands, so when it comes to getting dressed to impress, we must always remember taking care of numero uno.
{Rings and things make an outfit look right. Hats keep the ears warm.}
Goal is not to be cold. So I usually always make sure to wear a hat. Most often a toque (even though my hair has gotten lustrously long and I wish I could show it off more :-p).
I also always carry with me a pair of gloves; usually leather, and lined in fur if you can find them. Leather gives off a chic but tough vibe, and also doubles as protection from harm (as strangers will be more prone to think you could be a potential attacker). [here’s an idea]
Above all, the main piece that brings it all together is the coat. You need a coat that is warm, but you never have to compromise on style. I like to stick to leather, as I find it the perfect barrier to the cold winds and the wetness that usually results in winter. I have two main go-tos. One is a long leather hooded trench, and the other is a vintage 1980s number that is more of a bomber style with a detachable wool collar. Either/or give me the feeling of bad-assness that is essential to keeping up my spirit in this wild weather.
I never shy away from bright colours, and most recently have been obsessed with finding things metallic. My favourite being, a liquidy silver number that reminds me of Kurt Cobain’s Jean-Paul Gaultier look he sports in his “Heart-Shaped Box” video.
You can also work it out with accessories. I enjoy rings and things.
But, whatever the weather one must always feel at ease
