Kestin Hare is a great name isn’t it? You could be anything with a name like Kestin Hare. An international gentleman spy, the adventurous captain of an 18th century schooner, a studio auteur behind a series of critically-acclaimed folktronica albums or an artist specialising in ceramic representations of beetles; the possibilities are endless. This particular Kestin Hare is a well sound Scottish bloke who designs and makes lovely clothes.
Kestin has worked for Nigel Cabourn, Margaret Howell and was the founder of Common People. Nowadays he produces stuff under his own name (so would I if I was called Kestin Hare) and he’s dead good at it.
His collection for AW17, ‘The Trainspotters’, takes inspiration from the British fascination with trains and railways and the cult/weird pastime of trainspotting. Highlights include the Dundee smock shirt, the Derby smock jacket and the Lanark* jacket (*Lanark is another brilliant name eh? Had a football team called Third Lanark…ace that).
All of Kestin’s schmutter is made in small production runs (in the U.K. and Portugal) that Kestin has developed a personal relationship with over the years. Kestin is hands on, both throughout the design process and in the factories, and works closely with the pattern cutters and machinists to learn new skills and detailing possibilities.
Kestin’s head office and the design studio is Based in Leith in Edinburgh, attached to the rear of the Cruiser Store. This allows Kestin to see first-hand how customers react to the garments, and in turn customers can see the designer at work, which is all rather bloody marvellous tbh.
Shop the full collection here
