Australia
Called Diamonds and Pearls and shown at The Sydney Theatre Co. in May, the summer 2009-10 collection of Luke Sales’ and Anna Plunkett’s Romance Was Born label so captivated the attention of STC co-creative director Cate Blanchett that she wore its one-shouldered, hand-crocheted cocktail dress, seen here, to an Australian launch—and made headlines around the country the next day. That dress was one of a kind, but the charming granny crochet look—knitted by Sales’ mother—lives on via the digitally printed silk quilted Clam bag with a wooden handle, seen here, about $550.
—Patty Huntington
Brazil
Brazilian hatmaker Daniela Cutait launched two-toned panama hats for women with large, blackbird appliqués in December, just in time for the start of South America’s summer. The hat sells at a handful of trendy São Paulo boutiques and retails for $346.
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—Michael Kepp
Canada
Unique costume jewelry from around the globe is a specialty at Nee Nah boutique, including silver-plated cuffs, velvet chokers and vintage-inspired bracelets, brooches and earrings. But the real attention grabbers are the spectacular sequins and beads on cotton bib necklaces from India, above, at $225.
—Brian Dunn
France
Go mad as a hatter for accessories inspired by the fantastical characters in Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland, reworked by Disney with help from Tim Burton and slated for release in March. Must-haves include a vintage timepiece pendant from La Tonkinoise à Paris and Cheshire Cat charms. N2 by Les Néréides has brooches adorned with cups and cakes that are tea-party perfect, while Tom Binns also designed two jewelry collections for Disney priced from $50 to $1,000.
—Eleanor Fullalove
Germany
Richie Hawtin and Ellen Allien are just two of Berlin’s top DJs to have launched fashion labels. When not on the decks, Hawtin pairs up with designer Isolde Richly to develop their Richly. Hawtin streetwear collection. T-shirts start at about $170. Allien’s female fans can bounce to her electronic beats in cool T-shirt dresses, cropped jackets and shorts from her spring collection, left, starting around $130.
—Jessica Saltz
Italy
To mark its 60th anniversary, Tuscany, Italy–based denim brand Roy Roger’s has designed a special edition RR60 convertible using a Pontiac Solstice frame. The hot rod, available in cherry red or matte white for 47,000 euros, orabout $67,400 at currentexchange, is embellished with the brand’s RR diamond-shaped motif and features a weather-resistant denim soft top and Pirelli PZero racing tires.
—Rachel Mascetta
U.S.
These Diesel stripes take a star turn this spring, strutting straight off the runways to the street or even the local gym, where their cozy sweatshirt material is as cool as their $90 price.
—Kim Friday