Living Dolls Show 2010

On the 28th August the Bedford in Christchurch came alive with gorgeous guys and girls wearing equally amazing underwear, parading down the 15 metre long catwalk accompanied by great live music and breakdancers pulling some sic moves amongst it all.

Living Dolls is the brain child of Sophia Lee Levy-Kennedy who runs Living Dolls - Elite Models, Talent and Events and also makes all the garments they model! I'm pretty sure CJ and Sophie Nolan also help her out, but man for the number of hands involved in creating all their haute couture they certainly work some serious hours to pump it out. Incredible. And the night itself was a huge success, about 30 girls modeled Sophia's pieces in two parts - the first was a pink, barbie doll influenced fairy land kind of a look called Candy Dolls then the 2nd was more almost goth themed with lots of black and tattoos showing, this one was called Ink Dolls. Some very sexy pieces in there.

nüdel was allowed to make an appearance at the show! We got our little piece of runway time which was SO cool, all the guys did an amazing job. I found most of the models by sticking a poster up in the changing rooms at Les Mills in town, which is where I go (not often enough) and got such a great response. They all had fantastic bodies and cool attitudes too, and with a bit of last minute coaching from Ricky at Bar 5, where we got ready for the show, they impressed the crowd hard and got a brilliant response!

I had to print a few of the old designs so the models had enough to wear, and I even printed a few designs on some singlets which turned out well, to bring the numbers up. I have a total of 8 different options for the undies at the moment and had 11 models so yeah I think the singlets worked well, as I wanted to use all the models that replied to my ad.

The show went smoothly and my pre-show jitters didn't take long to dissolve, they were compounded because I was MCing the gig too, but it turned out fine I think. All the models seemed to handle it like pros, I know they must've been a little nervous but if they were, they did a damn good job of hiding it! So a big thanks to Sophia for having us, it truly was a great night and awesome to see something like this happen in Christchurch. Now I want to do my own show! Will have to get a few more styles going first, but a good goal to work towards. Thank you also to my fantastic models!! You guys stole the show.

Bonita's Birthday Bash

This weekend just gone, there was a seriously cool party which happened down at the Concrete Club on Manchester Street, in Christchurch. My friend Bonita Muntz of Bonita Monique had her birthday shindig which had a theme of leather and lace, unfortunately I wasn't dressed in either as I had prior engagements that didn't really lend themselves to that kind of attire.

Anyhoo, there was a flash ass camera floating around which took some mean photos, like this one. Look, it's someone wearing nüdel! Happy birthday Bonita!

An underwear Lynching

Wow, if David Lynch ever made an underwear commercial, I imagine it would probably look something like this. Except maybe a little darker and probably filmed with a red filter.

Maybe I'm missing something, I was never very good at sitting all the way through Eraserhead without asking a billion questions, so the chances are quite high. As someone said in the comments below this video on youtube - they were waiting for Lady Gaga to appear, same here commenting person! I'm not sure about setting an undie ad in a prison, you could read into it somewhat, like your package feels like it's imprisoned in this garment, or you've always got watch your back when you're wearing them.

We're still looking for male models for the upcoming Living Dolls Show 2010 so if you know of a fella in the Christchurch area who'd be keen, send him our way! morgan@nudel.co.nz for more info, or click through on the Living Dolls link to see what the show's all about. I'll be there too, and I'd love to meet some supporters of nudel. And of course you get to keep the pair you model!

The Living Dolls Show 2010

Here at nudel, not only are we seeking the next amazing designer for a print on the next run, but we're also on the hunt for male models for an awesome upcoming show! The Living Dolls Show 2010 is happening at The Bedford in Christchurch on the 28th August and nudel is right amoungst the thick of it.

The uber talented Sophia Lee and her team put the Living Dolls show on last year for the first time I think and it totally sold out, infact I think they had to turn people away. So this year they're hoping for a two nighter so everyone gets a piece of the action. And it's not just a lingerie show, there's oh so much more - burlesque acts, circus acts, Roller Derby girls hooning around looking awesome, dancers, a live band and yours truly will be taking care of the MC duties.

So if you know of a fella who's comfy enough in his undies to strut his stuff infront a room of excitable people then we'd love to hear from him! Simply email morgan@nudel.co.nz with a pic (preferably in your gruds) and we'll take it from there. You don't have to be an Adonis - I want real-world-bodied men, a little spare tyre ain't going to hurt none, don't you worry. I'll be right there with you and I'm a skinny ninny so we'll all be in this together! Oh yes, don't forget there will be numerous scantily ladies everywhere too, but I'm sure you'll get used to that very quickly indeed.

If you're a girl reading this, then let's get your man involved! Dare him, tempt him, make deal, he'll be amazing.

New design time

Hey there undie fans. Well the time has finally come, the next run is nigh; nudel is now looking for the next amazing New Zealand artist for their design to feature on the next run! Graphic designers, painters, photographers, stencilers, anyone is welcome to submit a piece. We're not running a competition this time, you simply email your best design to morgan@nudel.co.nz and we'll pick our favourite one.

This time round we'll be swapping out the white fabric with grey but sticking with good 'ol black as well. Grey seemed slightly safer for guys who are maybe a little shy of white, so we'll see how that goes, hopefully really well! Mediums by far are the best seller so we'll producing even larger numbers in that size and less of XL most likely and even L. What else, what else...

Make sure you spread the word! We're excited to see some more examples from talented Kiwis nationwide. Until next time :)

Dolce & Gabbana

I have been trawling youtube for male underwear commercials and came across some doozies! Some are quite inspiring, some are just downright cheese, but do they make me want actually go out and buy their product?

Who you're targeting when it comes to producing a commercial, I would imagine, plays such an important role. I'm certain that women are the target market when it comes to guy's underwear, especially the higher end brands, the names you know you're going to look great in. Don't get me wrong, I still believe there are some men out there who don't have a partner, or do but still are independently aware of their underwear choice ie. give a damn about what they're wearing underneath.

I found this Dolce & Gabbana advertisement on youtube. It was quite epic as you can see and I watched the entire thing even though I didn't really understand what the whole point of it was. OK so there's a guy, he seems quite angry which maybe I've mistaken for passion? The model appears to be pretty much anatomically perfect and acts well but there is a point during the 2:25 when I just think

When's the custard pie going to smack him right in the face?

Perhaps it's just my take on things, maybe I like an otherwise cliche concept flipped on it's head, that would make it much more memorable for me. Is the idea of taking normal, every day guys with all their handles and hairy bits too much for your average viewer? Will they fail to see the appeal and only focus on the humour? Am I portraying my brand in what could be labelled as a negative light? Let's face it, no matter how amazing the underwear; the cut, the fabric, the celebrity endorsement, you're not going to totally rid a man of his beer gut. I think you should give him something that makes him feel great. He knows about his tummy, but when he's got the confidence, it doesn't matter about the size of his stomach, it's what's going on in his head that makes the difference. And that's what I want nüdel to do; give everyday men with REAL WORLD BODIES the confidence they deserve. Because it's not just the ladies who have to deal with image.

Take a look at the D&G video and try work out where the best spot for a pie in the face would be... I reckon at about 1:43.

nudel commercial

Ladies and Gentlemen it has been much too long since the last post (Feb some time? sheesh) so firstly, apologies for the slackness. Moving office has contributed to that, but relocating didn't take 4 months so there's really no excuse. Now that's out of the way, here's some exciting news - we shot the first ever nudel commercial last week!

Nudel Funeral from Morgan Williams on Vimeo.

Myself and the very talened Simon Waterhouse devised a shoot based around the simple idea of a funeral, this is mostly because I happened to have a real coffin I obtained from a music video shoot I was involved with for band Sleeping Dogs. But also because I wanted to show nudel in a tongue in cheek kind of way, where it took the spotlight, it became the most attractive feature of our poor hero post-mortem.

We shot the entire scene in my new house's main dining room, using only natural lighting with the help of Nick Palmer and his awesome Canon 7D. Thanks heaps Nick! And cheers to all our amazing actors who came looking great in their mourning garb, not really knowing what to expect. The shoot took about 2 hours in total then editing not long at all, with simple desaturation and minimal colour grading on Final Cut Pro. Kristen Spencer was on catering duties and rose to the occasion with a fantastic selection of muffins, pizzas and cheerios. Ha!

The plan is to film a series of videos like this one, where I want to explore the culture and ideology around men's underwear and make them more entertaining than anything else. The next ad will be based around what your Mother used to say, something like: "Make sure you're wearing clean underwear, incase you get hit by a bus." I'm not sure if my Mum ever said that to me, but I've heard of it. Can anyone give me the correct wording?? So anyway, you can imagine what the content of the vid will be. Really looking forward to getting stuck into it and will keep you posted on that one.

Make sure you check out Simon Waterhouse's site: www.pxl.co.nz

Make a sports bra out of men's briefs

As you know, we're all for ridding the world of ugly men's briefs/y-fronts, but we're also about sustainability, so if you're looking for a creative way of destroying your man's tighty whities but also recycling them, then check out this video I found posted on videojug.com. Not exactly sure how pleasant it would be wearing his old gruds so close to your face, but hey bleach is a powerful thing!

Style On A Budget:
Make A Sports Bra Out Of Men's Underwear

Interview on radio breakfast show

I put together this little slide show to accompany an interview I had with Spanky of RDU 98.5FM's Breakfast With Spanky, it features some up to date images and features the musical stylings of UK's very own Dirty Hairy. The interview basically details how nüdel started and some of my ideas behind the concept, focussing on the marketing angle in particular.

You may notice I miss out a few stockists, that's because the interview happened a wee while ago, but I have listed the correct stockists in the video, so in this case seeing is believing! If that makes any sense at all. Anyway, I hope you enjoy :)

nüdel's story

Why nüdel? Why should anyone read this blog? Currently there are no followers as far as I can tell, so why the hell would anyone in their right mind subscribe? I have just been reading '279 days to overnight success'; a fantastic report by Chris Guillebeau which covers his unconventional journey to full time writing. Now, while I don't personally want to become a full time writer, Chris focuses a lot on why you're writing a blog in the first place, who it's aimed at and what keeps them coming back. If you haven't read the report I seriously suggest you check it out!

So after reading the report, I thought; 'what is nudel's story?' Chris' was to visit every country in the world, he's been self employed his entire adult life and lived in West Africa for four years. Not only that but he speaks to creative people, folks who want to make a change and as his website's name makes very clear - master the Art of Non-Conformity. Who wouldn't want to be involved with that! It sounds exciting, with huge potential, it may not appeal to everyone but it appeals to me personally and especially the nudel brand. nudel is all about making noise - with locally created art, unique marketing tactics not yet seen by any other men's underwear brand and pushing the New Zealand made angle to the world (I'm thinking big here).

Right, the story. I guess it's more of a crusade, a mission and again, one aimed more at women than at guys. Don't get me wrong, I would love to try reach men about underwear but the fact of the matter is they just don't buy them as much as their partners, wives, sisters and really, at the end of the day (and this may seem like a gross generalisation, but you'd be surprised how true it is) guys just don't care. So until I see otherwise, I'm talking to who's listening: ladies. Women who want the man in their lives to look good under his clothes.

So the crusade? Simple, it's to expose bad underwear. For too long men have been subject to badly fitting briefs, tacky 'silk' boxers with no support and ride up at any chance they get, Y fronts that while serving their purpose 20 odd years ago, SERVED THEIR PURPOSE 20 ODD YEARS AGO. This journey will be about educating, encouraging women to take charge - this isn't like demanding he burn that sweater you hate, this is personal, it's intimate, between you and him and is a situation that he probably doesn't mind you taking complete charge! I don't know many guys that would mind a little fashion advice from their lady, and I whole heartedly believe if taking your advice in the undie department might help their chances elsewhere, namely the bedroom, then gentlemen, let yourself be lead, you only stand to gain.

Now nudel has a certifiable goal, next step is find men who need a hand, I need to document these examples for the world to see. To let the masses (or first few people who read this) know that it's not OK for guys to wear bad underwear. High rollers, teachers, gym bunnies, construction workers - all deserve to be well packaged, comfortable and feeling great.

Mail out - old school style

Some times you just can't beat hard copy in this digital day and age. nüdel Christmas postcards have been distributed around Christchurch's Tumara Park yesterday and today, reminding people that nüdel is a great stocking filler and detailing the stockists they can find them at.

But if you're reading this and wondering where your postcard is, don't fret just check out the nüdel website, it's basically all on there! Currently we're waiting on a new lot of stickers for the noodle boxes which will be ready Monday we're told. So once they're ready it's full steam ahead with phase two of nüdelness, more stock to shops nation wide just in time for the last few days of the Christmas rush and of course internet sales which are always welcome.

Hope your Christmas shopping is going well!

Why nüdel is the best Christmas gift

Buying a plant for someone as a gift is great because it's the gift that keeps on giving, and it's the same for nüdel! Underwear is something that we all wear everyday (don't believe those people who go commando - they all don some gruds at some point), that important article of clothing that largely goes unnoticed and often unappreciated. With men's underwear I have to admit, some of it really should go unnoticed, it doesn't do the guy any favours in comfort and stylistically it's an eyesore.

Enter nüdel. Get your man a pair of these sweet as gruds which will give him a boost each morning - that extra little squirt of confidence a lot of guys need but will never admit. He'll know he's easily the best dressed in the office, on the inside. And that's what counts right? What's on the inside? In the same token ladies, you're treating yourself because who else gets to see your man wearing only his underwear? Well hopefully just YOU! nüdel will make your man look good, the flattering form, none of this tighty whitey business or floppy, shapeless boxer carry on, he'll be snuggly packaged, but not too tightly, just enough for support with room to move. Flip him round and check out that ass you knew had potential, nudel caresses those manly curves and hugs his masculine lines to give you the ultimate Christmas present - your man, repackaged and just bursting to be unwrapped.

I used to hate assembly...

But now I love it! Finally the next run - It's Man Made - has made it to the assemblers (QA Design). The elastic will be picked up from Screen Concepts tomorrow morning then it's full steam ahead with sewing the gruds up with plenty of time to get them in stores for the lead up to Christmas. Woo hoo!!

I had the help of my lovely friend Kristen during the printing process this time which made a big difference, especially with the heat pressing to set the ink. But we got through them in record time and I have to say Cathryn Zhang's design came out looking brilliant, it really transfered well to the fabric. When your screen gets its flow, on you stick to that roll because once it's done washing every few transfers sucks ass.

Arty undies in Art Gallery!

...well, Art Gallery Gift shop. And it's the Christchurch Art Gallery to be precise, yes nüdel has infiltrated the very core of it's conception, the intellectual birthplace, ie. somewhere it should have been stocked a long time ago. Better late than never! And we at nüdel are stoked to have our fantastic undies amoungst the wonderful paintings, etchings, postcards and various canvases that the Art Gallery Store has on offer.

nudel at Seafest

Well that title maybe slightly misleading, nüdel were indeed at Seafest insomuch as I was definitely wearing them, but that's about as far as it goes. You can see them very briefly in the video below at 0:11 - blink and you'll miss it! If you missed it this time round, I seriously suggest you get to Kaikoura next year, it makes for a great weekend away.

totally unrelated but...

But I was wearing nüdel at the time! Infact if I had've though about it I should have given everyone I interviewed a pair to take away with them. Oh well next time! APRA, song writing, New Zealand music, celebrities - all things close to our hearts here at nüdel.

fabrica!

Wooo it's been a while since the last post, sorry about that. Things are chugging along, sales are going well in Wellington - they love the shorter leg style in the Capital for some reason. I think I'll make the next run short leg too, I haven't had an complaints with this style, whereas I received feedback about the longer leg saying they were a bit too much like bike shorts. That style is personally my favourite but this ain't about me! Don't forget, if you have any feedback be sure to leave a comment on this 'ere blog or email me - morgan@nudel.co.nz

I've put up a very rough gallery page on the nüdel site, I need to install a slider module to view them better, but for now I'm just listing them on the page - not ideal but better than nothing. A friend of my sister was showing her some photos of a party she had and as they were scrolling through up popped a picture of some guy wearing only nüdel! So it's great to know not only are guys out there wearing them, they're showing them off too!! If you know someone who drops their pants at any opportunity available why not do them a favour and buy them a pair of nüdel so they'll always be well presented.

Right, I'd better get measuring the fabric I've got left and order some more for the next run, featuring Cathryn Zhang's awesome It's Man Made design. Looking forward to that one!

And the winner is...

... Cathryn Zhang with her piece: It's Man Made! Congragtulations Cathryn and well done everyone who entered, the talent was amazing, which of course made it very difficult to choose a winner. Here's what Cathryn said about her work...

My design is an idea that comes from the process involved in constructing an urban environment. When you see the new trees and flowers being planted to style up a newly constructed round-about, road kerb, or some concrete wall, there is the feeling of nature being put into our urban life deliberately, and not existing..naturally. To me, that type of nature is urban nature.

So Cathryn will receive 5 pairs of nüdel with her design on them when they've been produced and of course the rest of the run will be distributed to stores throughout New Zealand (and now Shanghai!!) in time for the Christmas rush, so we're hoping they'll sell out!

Thank you again to everybody who entered, we'll be running a similar comp again in the near future so be sure to stay tuned. Don't forget tomorrow's Father's Day so there's still just enough time to get out and buy him a pair of nüdel, he'll love you for it. Remember all those times he lent you money, or picked you up at 3am from that party or watched you play all those Saturday morning sports games in the rain? Well now's your chance to show him how much you care, with the coolest undies in the world, made right here in New Zealand.

All entries are in

Well now it's down to deciding who's going to win the nüdel competition. I didn't think it would be this difficult to pick one! Apologies for taking so long, but it's really tough! I'll endeavour to have the winner announced by this weekend, so make sure you stay tuned.

Don't forget it's Father's Day so make sure you treat him to the most comfy undies he'll ever wear and buy him a pair of nudel! Remember if you can't make it to one of our fantastic stockists then you can buy online at the nudel website. Just click here.

Catch you real soon for the big announcement!

Is this the last entry?

So today is the very last day for your artist type people to submit your nüdel art competition entry! To be precise, you've got until midnight tonight (that's Monday night - 31st August) so if there are any last minuters out there, pull finger and email your work to comp@nudel.co.nz I'll upload the last of them over the weekend then chose a winner on Monday.

The winner will have their design printed on the next run of nüdel which will be ready in time for Christmas and they will receive 5 pairs of their own to dish out or keep all to themselves. Hey that's one pair for every working day! Sweet. I think that's a pretty cool prize, your art will be on undies being sold nationwide!

This entry below has just come in from Mercia Tawhiri-Kerr called Urbanite Bull, so thought I'd post it along with this 'ere blog. Catch you soon for the results :)