"Weekend Reading" is a weekly rundown of our favorite stories from around the web.

The Uncomfortable History of Hoodies
"In September, Whoopi Goldberg appeared on The View wearing a $1,050 hooded sweatshirt designed by obsessively followed French fashion collective Vetements. It was printed with the words 'MAY THE BRIDGES I BURN LIGHT THE WAY' (which, interestingly enough, is not an ancient proverb as I'd assumed, but a line delivered by 90s teen nihilist Dylan McKay of Beverly Hills 90210). Goldberg told New York magazine, 'If I could have worn a shirt that said, 'Don't fuck with me,' I would have.' She had recently premiered her transgender modeling show, Strut, on Oxygen and would soon announce her likely departure from The View. Whoopi out."

via: i-D

How this independent boutique thrives in an era of fast fashion
"A thin, dark-haired woman in ivory-colored chinos and black boots walked into Relish, the high-end clothing boutique in Georgetown’s Cady’s Alley. She was on the prowl for something: a dress, an extra helping of confidence, an amusement. Rarely do shoppers who wander into stores such as this know precisely what they’re looking for until they see it."

via: The Washington Post

Rick Owens on What Makes a Man
"I’m a Los Angeles cliché. I had a conservative, controlled childhood, then became as uncontrolled as I could, then realised that I liked control after all. This is the story of my generation: kids that were too controlled and then became drug addicts and alcoholics before finding spirituality and Zen. It’s so common. I’m totally common."

via: The Business of Fashion

Finding the Next Big British Skate Brand
"The world loves skate wear right now – we’ve recently seen the adidas Originals collaboration with Palace, which is as witty and artfully done as you’d expect from a Palace release. The company’s success is something to celebrate as they’ve been pushing a uniquely British sense of humor to the forefront and exporting it around the world. There’s very few companies who’d go from working with D Double E to working with Jonah Hill, but it works because it’s clear there’s a level of thinking behind the brand while keeping it lighthearted. But now that Palace is an established brand, what’s the next label to gain that level of notoriety? We looked into companies that could cross over into the mainstream, focusing on what people often call skate wear. We say ‘often call’ because even though the aforementioned term is commonly used, it’s still something that many people involved in skating have a problem with. 'I understand the gripe,' says David Atkinson, head of buying at Slam City Skates. 'In London a lot of skateboarders don’t buy clothes to look like a skateboarder, they just buy clothes they like, whether it’s a skate brand or not. A huge proportion of people buying skate brands such as Palace or Supreme don’t skate so, really, there are just brands owned by guys who skateboard and guys who don’t. There’s no need to label who is supposed to buy them.'"

via: Hypebeast

Meet the 25-Year-Old Designer Behind Georgia's Next Buzzy Brand
"Irakli Rusadze was born within just a few months of the Soviet Union collapse in 1991. The now-25-year-old Georgian designer started working in fashion around 10 years ago, before Demna Gvasalia (it's impossible to talk about Georgian designers without mentioning him) even landed at Maison Martin Margiela. But while the head of Vetements and Balenciaga plays with Eastern European aesthetics in a rather general sense, there's something deeply Georgian about Rusadze's burgeoning brand Situationist and its riffs on staples of the post-Soviet uniform: including thigh-high stilettos, kitschy floral dresses, and ill-fitting suit jackets. One of the standout looks from the spring/summer 17 collection he showed at Tbilisi Fashion Week evoked the flag t-shirts selling for 10 Lari (less if you haggle) at any souvenir store in the Georgian capital. There were no slogans in the collection, but if there were they probably wouldn't be in Cyrillic."

via: i-D

When It Became Cool to Be Cool
"Seating was limited at the most anticipated fashion show of 2016, as you would expect. The invitations, printed primly with each attendee’s name and affiliation, no larger than a pack of gum and eminently lose-able in the dark hole of a handbag, were in short supply. If there was a no-show or an empty seat in the padded television studio where Demna Gvasalia was showing his first collection for Balenciaga, I didn’t see it."

via: The New York Times

What to Wear to the Office This Fall
"Wearing one neutral from head to toe is a surprisingly versatile strategy, especially if you've got a complicated schedule. Stick to navy, charcoal, or black, then mix up the textures to keep from looking like a human paint swatch. Wake up, choose your color, and go."

via: Bloomberg

The Sudden Rise of Lil Yachty
"On a recent Saturday, following a dayslong spate of promotional appearances and photo shoots, the 19-year-old internet supernova, who found fame online and beyond this year with a series of catchy mixtapes and goofy viral moments, hoped to do a little shopping in the heart of Brooklyn."

via: The New York Times

The Politics of Dress
"Études is a collective of six Frenchmen who grew up as neighbours in Grenoble. A true boys club—raised in the nineties and connected through their love of graffiti. Aurélien Arbet, Jérémie Egry, Nicolas Poillot, José Lamali, Antoine Belekian, and Marc Bothorel identify Études as a brand for 'contemporary men.' They coalesce between multiple creative disciplines, from accessible clothing to a recently established publishing house. Collaborating with German artist Andrzej Steinbach, Études is debuting a political image-series: a special edition hoodie, t-shirt, and long-sleeve tee, each branded with the Flag of Europe, exclusively created for SSENSE. Although Études’ creative director, Jérémie Egry, says that the founding idea of using the European Flag was not planned as a political act, the collaboration with Steinbach addresses one of the most relevant topics of our time: social racism. Études decided to embrace the topicality."

via: SSENSE

Lounging Around Milan
"You're in what appears to be a luxury apartment in the centre of Milan's bustling quadrilatero della moda (fashion quarter). A small group of Asian travelers are sitting down, relaxed, talking quietly, and sipping sparkling water and espressos. Large bags bearing Gucci and other logos surround them. Only one thing strikes you as odd, for a private home: the reception desk just opposite the entrance. Welcome to the Montenapoleone VIP Lounge."

via: Kering

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