Whether you think that Chivalry is dead or alive, whether you like it or not, one thing is for sure: women love Chivalry. Chivalry is the bravery to treat them right, it is the sex-appeal in us men, and the self-dedication to our love, passion and excitement for them!

A few months ago, we were very factual about a set of Living with Chivalry values, inspired by a brand we truly love on that matter: Chivas. It is time this Valentine’s Day to put it into action, as you can all benefit from it. Make all women happy, make the women you like happier and the woman you love happiest and they will all give it back to you in ways you could never imagine.

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It has been a busy, productive and inspiring year at SQUA.RE, from the release of our community’s directory, to the constant live features on our blog; from the expansion of our content topics to the ongoing growth of our network and audience. Luxury has been evolving more than ever throughout the end of the decade. And so have we! Below are our most recommended picks, your most favourite features, from a full year of SQUA.RE.

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Update from Jorn Werdelin of Linde Werdelin:

Morten and I are both keen skiers, as I mentioned a few weeks ago. We have been skiing in the Alps since the age of six without missing a season. Our passion for skiing was one of the inspirations behind the founding of Linde Werdelin in 2002. Over the years, we have come to know many fantastic ski routes, hotels, restaurants, and people in various resorts first-hand. We often get the question, “Where do you recommend…?” Naturally we are delighted to offer our suggestions. But when you are known to have a lot to say on a subject, you get asked all the time…

So we thought, why not put it all in a guidebook!

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“In a world where everyone is out for themselves, some choose to live differently: with honor, gallantry, courage. They choose to go another way. These are their stories. Live with Chivalry.” Introduction to Chivas.com

People say that chivalry is dead. In a world popularly legitimized by a self-centered consumer ideology, it is easy to see this. Values can become dominated by desire rather than virtue. Morality turns into just another phrase, another pop-culture symbol of what we should be. But if pop-culture symbols are merely to be admired, then morality turns into a self-serving construct – a mental abstracts of amusement reflecting unconscious innate desires. To act upon morality requires a chosen effort and a striving for a higher standard of dignity, something that separates some from others which is measurable only by the actions of their daily lives. It’s an integrity, it’s an effort – it is chivalry.

Chivalry is alive and well today, whether we phrase it in traditional terms or not. While the roots of Chivalry stem from history, it is more than a lost idea. Living up to the best within us still requires respecting others, lending a helping hand, and determination framed in a network of self analysis. It requires a fierce determination focused by love; a love of humankind, self, and spirit.

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Courage is the price that life exacts for granting peace. The soul that knows it not, knows no release from little things; knows not the livid loneliness of fear. — Amelia Earhart

Develop Self Directedness

One of the most compelling aspects of life is the notion that we are in control.  When we truly comprehend that what happens in our life is derived from the decisions we make, that we control the seconds, it is then we are able to grasp the incredible self agency inherent inside of us. Our spirit is empowered, and our self directedness will outline our experiences, challenges, defeats, and our victories. Read the rest of this entry »

This Fall, designers bring us some exciting reworks of their iconic handbags, simpler modern approaches to existing concepts, and variations on “investment pieces”, which serves right in these dire economic times. These selections of Fall/Winter 2009-2010 luxury handbags are destined to be eternally in your collection; for their style is eternal, their design is eternal, their versatility is eternal, and their use is for always.

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This Fall/Winter, designers convey brilliant sartorialism, exquisite designs and fantastic fabric combinations, all the while staying true to masculinity, “modern traditions” and luxury. From the sharp blazers and coats of Dior Homme, to the soft silhouettes of Lanvin and the interesting prints of Etro and Jil Sander, from Prada’s laser-cuts leather tops to the eminent monochromatic trend of the season.

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The Fall collection generally this year supported a somber tone, but with a clear message of hope and “classics”, paying tribute to their roots or mirroring a different time. In most cases it was the subtle sexiness and sobriety of the 40s, and in some other cases it was the amusement of the 80s. Coats, coat-dresses, boots and suits, black, camel, red, or bright-yet-subtle tones, all made a welcomed come back.

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Below are some pictures of friends of SQUA.RE attending the SQUA.RE Sound evening at Baroque in Mayfair, London on Wednesday 3 June 2009.SQUA.RE Sound is a new form of dj set bringing the hippest sounds of the East End of London to the most exclusive clubs of the West End.”Pop Minimal” takes its inspirations from pop art by mixing iconic hits of all times with the trendiest minimal and deep house sounds of our time.Photography by Christian von Schroder Read the rest of this entry »

Since the boom of the world’s most celebrated e-commerce websites such as Ebay, Net-a-Porter, Amazon etc, the net generation of shoppers have flocked to online portals, touting tempting buys. In the same way, social and video websites such as Facebook and You Tube have given way to a new trend in online viewing and personal interactivity, encouraging huge growth within online browsing as a means of both information and entertainment.

It is the same generation of shoppers who have recently diversified towards new luxury online offerings where desires are shared beyond pure commerce; but as a form of window shopping for the inspirational high-life. The power of the web enables audiences, particularly those interested in luxury to access inspirational footage from all over the world that was previously inaccessible.

In today’s financial environment, it has become increasingly relevant to share viewpoints and creativity with like minded individuals easily and simply over the internet. It is the varying perceptions of ‘life in luxury’, however, which have gained the quickest appeal among the affluent and influential online. More time is being spent viewing and sharing ideas on luxury which are not just the most expensive, but instead the most rare, exclusive and exceptional.

Nowadays, we at SQUA.RE believe audiences can enjoy the benefits of web innovations and technologies, through high-specification videos and images of varying lifestyles surrounding high-living and luxury ideals. From the comfort of their own homes and cost-free, visitors can be virtual tourists in a luxury environment, able to be part of the action at the world’s most exclusive parties, visit the most remote hideaways, watch celebrity mobile phone footage or learn exactly how a premium handbag is made to justify its hefty price-tag.

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 Luxury and morality, two seemingly opposite terms: one refers to indulging in the extravagant whereas the other means doing what is considered right and wise. How can indulgence be morally correct? “Luxury Considered”, a recent global report launched by the De Beers Group last week highlights a shift from conspicuous consumption of luxury to buying with sensitivity and sophistication.

“In uncertain times, we see signs that luxury consumers typically gravitate toward quality, toward fewer but better things that represent genuine value, and deliver on a promise that endures over a lifetime,” said Stephen Lussier, Executive Director of De Beers Group. The report states that the new luxury shopper sparks significant implications to the way the market will do business in 2009 and beyond. The discerning consumer now wants greater commitment to brand craftsmanship, more high-end and high-experience products, a return to exclusivity, and increased commitment to social and environmental concerns. Overall, brands that will be successful will respond to the requests of the new luxury consumer. These brands will tell a story—they will be emotional.

The new sentiment is encouraging a re-examination of the moral significance of shopping for the label. Hollywood has also played its part in the new emotional side of luxury with films such as Sex in the City and The Devil Wears Prada, emphasizing how the world of luxury and the way we shop, is also an attitude and a personal expression of who we are.             

Carrie buys a Louis Vuitton handbag for her personal assistant Louise who helped her recover after Mr. Big pulled a “no-show” on their marriage ceremony. Louise teaches Carrie not to give up on love no matter how much the pain. As Pam Danziger from Unity Marketing notes, “Carrie finds that luxury purchases are only worthwhile when they have a deep personal meaning.” In The Devil Wears Prada finding the right style is similarly equated to discovering the right attitude when Miranda Priestly, the ruthless Cruella de Vil editor of top fashion magazine Runway shows aspiring journalist Andrea Sachs, that in the end cruelty does not equal luxury.

Companies are now following the lead to link their brands with luxury shopping’s new emotions. For example, Skyy Spirits, part of Gruppo Campari is among eight marketers including Coty fragrances, Glacéau Vitaminwater, the Mercedes-Bendz USA division of Daimler, and the jeweler H. Stern that agreed to become the promotional partners for the Sex and the City movie.

 The moral shopping lesson is the new marketing lesson: luxury is nothing without feeling. If luxury brand managers don’t see that, they’ll soon loose a valuable part of their market. The fashion conscious cosmopolite who watches Carrie’s latest performance, discovers Miranda Priestly’s secret world of pain, understands that the quest for the luxury item goes hand-in-hand with the heart.

Until recently, ethical luxury products had an image problem.  Products that were good for the environment, made from recycled and renewable sources, and adhered to fair trade principles were associated with the hippy trend–meaning baggy pants and Birkenstocks. Today the current has changed as celebrities and fashion designers strive to give the brand a deeper meaning.

The effort to reconcile luxury goods with growing ethical concerns has been far from easy. A report published last November 2008 by WWF, the conservation charity, found that “despite strong commercial drives for greater sustainability, luxury brands have been slow to recognize their responsibilities and opportunities.” WWF graded high-end luxury products according to their environmentalism. L’Oréal topped the list earning a C+ followed close behind by Hermès, LVMH, and Coach while Bulgari and Tod’s were given F marks.

What is now known as “ethical luxury,” has come to refer to the brands that define their owners as individuals with human and ecological concerns. Tom Ford summed up this new concept at the 2007 IHT conference on luxury:  ‘Luxury is not going out of style. It needs to change its style. We need to replace hollow with deep.”

Striving to give a deeper meaning to the brand couldn’t be more relevant. Designer Stella McCartney’s no-animal policy was frowned upon a few years ago while today her designs top the charts for their eco-friendly yet fashionable approach. Donna Karen is likewise at the forefront of the new green movement with her Urban Zen Initiative combining a philanthropic foundation with retail that distributes natural and organic creations.

Ethics is a modern concept. The luxury industry doesn’t need to become the next Greenpeace, but it does need to adhere to growing consumer concerns. Feeling morally good about a product now goes hand and hand with the purchase of something beautiful. It is when uncovering the deeper meaning behind image that the brand becomes inspirational.

I hope summer 08 is going well for you. August is supposed to be quiet and well, we have more people coming to SQUA.RE than ever. New members from New York and London particularly are now joining daily and continuously and we’re delighted to welcome you all. As I said last week, we feature the world’s largest collection of people generated Luxury content, and this would never happen without our unique, exclusive, entertaining community.
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All I can say right now is NYC has been simply incredible. I’ve had the best of times with the NYC SQUA.RE community, had meetings all day and shootings all night in the city that never sleeps, all of this in collaboration with many of the nightlife and luxury pioneers in this city … Pink Elephant, Hiro, Nikki Beach Midtown NYC, Mansion NYC, you name it !And while the grounds of SQUA.RE USA are now definitely getting set up, we have worked with top producer Reynolds to bring to you a new show showcasing exclusively on SQUA.RE the best of NYC… The link below will take you to the first trailer. Read the rest of this entry »

SQUA.RE’s latest HERO, Hayden Panettiere has been making the most of the Summer. Not only has she been busy travelling to the UK on her break from filming Heroes but she has been filming video content of her own. Proving that she’s got more sense-of-humour than superpowers, Hayden and friend enjoy a musical rendition in the back of a cab, click the picture to share the love.