Kanye’s Pastelle line to officially launch in May

By

Obi Anyanwu

Published
May 1, 2016

Long before Kanye West designed two sneakers for Nike and partnered with Adidas to make Yeezy Season 1, he worked on a fashion line called Pastelle. The mysterious line was seen on West during many live performances and appearances in the late 2000s, which generated much buzz about the collection. Despite the increased demand for the brand, Pastelle never took off the ground, but now Kanye’s old fashion project is being revived with stylist Ian Connor at the helm.
 
According to Connor, Pastelle will make its return and officially launch on May. The stylist took to social media to post a photo of a Pastelle t-shirt with the caption, “May 14”.

 
The stylist, who is part of West’s creative team, first modeled in the Yeezy Season 1 show and modeled for the brands second and third collections. In March, Connor shared many photos and videos of the brand’s development on Instagram and also shared thoughts on the collection via Twitter saying that the project caused him stress and heartache.
 
Pastelle was seen and mentioned on several occasions by West in the last 2000s, including in his song ‘Stronger’ from the Graduation album. The rapper and fashion designer wore a Pastelle varsity jacket to the 2008 American Music Awards that caught the fans’ attention, and other notable pieces include a two tone grey hoodie with red, yellow and pink hood detail that Rihanna modeled in an issue of VMan Maagzine and a grey hoodie featuring a wild-eyed tiger that West wore on Saturday Night Live in the same year.

 
The original Pastelle channeled Japanese and American streetwear while Ian Connor’s version is reminiscent of vintage American sportswear. Still, fans will finally have a chance to get their hands on the brand after almost a decade.