Ever found yourself wandering around your favourite boutique, uncertain which rail was menswear and which was aimed at the fairer sex? That shouldn’t be a problem come next Spring as, if Saint Laurent Paris’s New Year menswear range is anything to go by, androgyny is in.
The newly rebranded ready-to-wear arm of the legendary Yves Saint Laurent fashion house has seen its creative director Hedi Silmane pick Dutch female model Saskia de Brauw as the face of its Spring/Summer 2013 collection.
The wiry 31 year-old model looks sharp in the line’s tailoring, with her cropped cut hair and defined bone structure giving her a Jagger style swagger that many male models would struggle to pull off. It’s not de Brauw’s first gender-bending modeling stint, having done previous work during the Givenchy Spring/Summer 2013 menswear show.
Silmane is well known for his gender-neutral styles too, championing slim-fit trousers and suits for Dior Homme that have been as popular with the ladies as the men they were first aimed at. As a result, the new campaign for his debut line for Saint Laurent Paris will stress that all items are available to both genders.
Looking for a new suit to see you through the winter months? Topman’s newly revealed AW12 Premium Suiting Collection doffs its cap to traditional styles, using coloured herringbones and houndstooth, multi flecked birdseye, tweed and fine Italian fabrics for a classic, nostalgic look without breaking the bank.
Consisting of the Harris Tweed line, the Made in England range and the inaugural Super Premium collection, Topman’s AW12 winter collection leans heavily on slim-fit styles, but use tonal colour schemes to soften the look on men perhaps not usually as comfortable in close-fitting suits.
Gordon Richardson, Creative Director at Topman, said: “Our new elegant Premium Suit collection uses the finest cloths woven in Italy to produce a sophisticated and elegant range with refined bespoke details and a longer silhouette.”
Scroll down to see more shots of the new suit lines, and visit www.topman.com for more info.
The nights are pulling in, our tops are getting thicker; Autumn is now in full swing. Reiss are the latest brand to reveal their Autumn/Winter collection, showing off their late-season suits under the heading “The Great Tailoring Movement”.
Taking its cues from the continued retro-renaissance, Reiss are getting in early on The Great Gatsby style-shift that’s sure to follow Baz Luhrmann’s big-screen adaptation of the flapper-filled flick.
As a result, expect to see plenty of tie pins, cufflinks, silk scarves and pocket squares, as well as modern roll necks and bold print shirts. Colours invade the jacket too, with prune shades and mohair blends alongside your regular charcoal greys.
“No longer will suits be stuffed in a garment bag at the back of the wardrobe waiting for ‘good reasons’ to be worn,” say Reiss.
“Instead, they can be worn on a daily basis in the smartest of all guises (three-piece, double-breasted, and with distinct styling), without the batting of an eyelid.
“There are various reasons for this. Firstly, there’s a shift in attitude towards the suit. Men are more at ease viewing it as an everyday piece, or at least they are more willing to wear it than before. It has broken its ‘stuffed suit’ reputation; basically dressing up is cool again. Furthermore, they look better. No longer is a simple style, cut and colour acceptable. This season the suit has moved on, and it offers so much more.”
For more on Reiss’s latest collection, click here.
We’ve just experienced our allotted two days of British summer (barely enough time to shake the cobwebs off our deck shoes and shorts!), and so it’s now time to turn our attention to the Autumn Winter trends for 2012.
Frencheye, a London-based tailoring brand who take their inspiration from continental brands like Zegna and Canali, are touting their latest range of evening wear.
“From desk to dinner” is the Frencheye tagline, and the range certainly has the flexibility to impress both in the boardroom and on a classy night out. We’re particularly keen on the use of velvets and moleskins, though it takes a brave bloke to “tip the velvet”, so to speak.
A few weeks ago we were invited to one of our favourite Savile Row tailors, Spencer Hart, to learn about their recent collaboration with Samsung.
The collaboration involves integrating mobile technology into the traditional craft of Savile Row design and lifestyle tailoring. To be perfectly honest I was a bit skeptical at first, but as soon as I saw how the tailors were able to use the Samsung Galaxy Note, all doubts disappeared.
The Samsung Galaxy Note features the S Pen – and advanced pen-input technology combined with a full touch 5.3” HD Super AMOLED screen for sketching, editing documents or annotating images. Spencer Hart founder Nick Hart is using this technology to complement the traditional tools of tailoring for measuring up clients and showcasing different fabrics, fits and designs.
We had a chance to speak to Nick Hart about the collaboration. He explained how it is changing the way they work stating: “In our world we spend time with our clients to make sure everything is perfect and there’s a huge amount of detail we need to record to create clothing that’s tailor-made to them. When you work with high profile people things need to be done quickly and you’ve got to be flexible – using this new technology will make us more efficient as a business and allow more time for creativity.
“And of course it’s not just for work. I travel a lot and I’m always looking for new ideas. The Galaxy Note means I can capture inspiration while on the move, through images, memos and sketches, and share them instantly with colleagues, suppliers and even clients!”
The Samsung Galaxy Note devices is now being used in store at the Spencer Hart flagship at 62/64 Brook Street, London.
One of our favourite independent magazines, Disorder, just sent us an exclusive sneak peak at the October/November Dapper Issue…. and damn it is good. Some how they have managed to get urban musician, Example, out of his trademark bomber jackets, t-shirts, into tailored suiting!!! If you have ever need proof that a little tailoring can do wonders, here it is.
To find your local stockist of Disorder check out their website here.
Hart Schaffner Marx have launched their Fall/Winter 2011 collection, with a great short video featuring Joseph Abboud as he takes the viewer behind the scenes of collection photo shoot. I have been a big fan of Abboud’s classic yet sophisticated design for some time now, so was quite excited to see what he has in store for this coming season.
Based on the video we can expect to see elegant colors and textures, key sportswear basics and effortless tailoring. Take mental notes now!
You can rely on Alber Elbaz and Lucas Ossendrijver to deliver a great collection and they did. This collection for Lanvin was typically elegant affair, with the très chic suits and kimono-style jackets. Irreverent touches like trousers and suits made from tie silk reinforce Elbaz’s gentle sense of humour and sandals worn with socks gave a geeky twist to the look.
Topman is great for its designer collaborations and its ‘Priceless’ range, designed by celebrated fashion designer and tailor Antony Price, delivers every season. The range has just gone up on Topman.com and with its wonderful waistcoats, brilliant blazers and perfectly pleated pants (in the American sense of the word,) I can’t wait to get a piece of the action! The look on the left is almost exactly what I outlined in my ‘Will’s Summer Wants’ piece only last month and the peach colour is perfect for summer.
Other standout pieces include the taffeta suits in purple and green as well as the ‘ice grey chintz’ suit. Most jackets are around £140 with trousers at £60. Why not enlighten us as to what you plan to invest in by chatting to us on Facebook?
The more I write about summer clothes, and slowly accept that summer isn’t actually coming, I look to next winter and start structuring my cold wardrobe. Coats are a notoriously hard thing to get right and a single inch too short or too long can ruin not only an entire look, but an entire wardrobe (well, almost.)
The Fashionisto has lifted the lid on the latest H&M collection for A/W 2009 and this faux-crushed velvet coat has a bit of an edge on other high-street pieces. With what looks like a simple collar and in solid black, the material of this coat allows it to be easily worn with any items while being a stand-out piece in itself.
I would keep to simple tones but contrast fabrics and textures to build up the layers of an elaborate get-up. Throw in a bit of tacky bling-age to mix up the expensive looking coat but keep it minimal; garish garb is best when less.
Since turning up at the Met’s Costume Institute Gala with a trinity of her Hollywood girlfriends, Stella McCartney has had a whirlwind week involving everyone from Simon Doonan (creative director of Barneys) to Michelle Obama.
While chatting to the gloriously over-the-top Doonan, Stella was asked about lending her ethical hand to a menswear collection. “Yes, I would love to!”- so what can we expect? I’m hoping for vegan-leather brogues and penny loafers, baggy suit jackets, chunky patterned knits for men, modern shapes and shirts in innovative fabrics.
McCartney, herself, spoke recently about her love of menswear: “I’ve always been a bit obsessed with men’s tailoring. When I was in St. Martins, I’d take time out at night and go work on Savile Row. I was always influenced by my mum and dad’s wardrobe and they always had really cool bespoke suits.”
Over coffee the other day, I was talking to a friend who suffers from SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder.) Listening to the misery of days spent not knowing what to wear each morning (friends will know of how immense the impact of fashion is upon my life!) I decided to go on the lookout for a designer who can deliver trans-seasonal clothes that will carry us males throughout the year.
b Store London is edging towards the avant-garde and I wasn’t at all expecting to find my SAD solution on its site. Its b Clothing range is full of really wearable, all-year pieces and I would be proud to don this shirt-come rain or shine.
When you see a photo of a teen wearing a prom tuxedo jacket fashioned entirely from Coke cans, you have to wonder what the teen in question does with their free time. This guy, a Napoleon Dynamite-lookalike with a penchant for commercialism, has decided to venture into eco-friendly fashion and after the jump you can witness the entire creation of the waistcoat and jacket (plus bowtie!) from metal to masterpiece. Sadly, this look is more Sideshow Bob than Stella McCartney.
Even if you can’t offer you handy, crafty, tipster services have a look at the video on Sunday Best, it features singing, montages and a nifty ye olde effect. For those who can, roll up your shirtsleeves and send in a contribution, it’s the perfect Christmas holiday project [The Sunday Best]
We go on about waistcoats so much I thought it was only fair to link to this comprehensive backstory on the silk and wool garment [Permanent Style]
I pity anyone going home for Christmas, shenanigans in a hometown pub AIN’T my idea of fun [NYLON FOR GUYS]
Time for a return trip back to New York, the Grand Central Oyster Bar (pictured) beckons [A Continuous Lean]
Ashton Kutcher is one of my low-key style icons. Firstly, he started out as a model and it was he who introduced the now infamous ‘trucker cap’ to the fashion scene. Rumours were rife of a fashion collaboration when he was spotted note-taking in the front rows of fashion weeks and now he has provided us with even more style inspiration.
At the premiere of Demi Moore’s new film, ‘Flawless,’ Ashton was a picture of muted luxury with his regal red tie, opulent tweed coat and not-too-flashy Louis Vuitton scarf. This is a look that anyone can copy this Winter!
Ever found yourself wandering around your favourite boutique, uncertain which rail was menswear and which was aimed at the fairer sex? That shouldn’t be a problem come next Spring as, if Saint Laurent Paris’s New Year menswear range is anything to go by, androgyny is in.
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