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 Fashion trends change
every season, including in menswear. While it is untrue that clothes make the
man, a person's attire does make significant difference to him. The men fashion
trends depend not only on the kind of social circle a man belongs to, but also
on the environment he lives in. However, being fashionable does not mean buying
all the designers' hottest items.
In spring-summer 2010 fashion
season, things are really looking up for fashion-conscious men, as new hot
trends - such as addition of sport style elements and suits, reminiscent of the
golden era of Hollywood glamour - will create a truly stylish and versatile wardrobe.
Suit is Back
While suiting and
formal-wear trends for men play out over several years, 2010 shall mark a
distinct change in the direction of men's suiting. It comes down to a
combination of factors but the likes of the economic downturn, and women's
1920's and 1930's revivals will all play a big part. But make no mistake: it's
the first and last that will be the biggest influence, as well-groomed men look
for investment fashion pieces and turn to the classics for inspiration.
Being the essential feature
of the modern gentleman's look, the classic men's suit has undergone numerous
transformations (see Gucci, Armani, Bottega Veneta and Burberry) to become the most
stylish addition to the men's wardrobe.
For example, Gucci
men's fashion collection for spring-summer 2010 was based around the suits which
revived the dazzling era of jazz age and Hollywood glamour, with stunning white
clean cut two-piece suit in combination with a contrasting dark dress shirt. White
is a particularly difficult fashion choice for many men, but Frida Giannini and
her spring collection make all white outfits approachable, friendly and even
fun to wear for the typical guy. Giannini had two approaches to the proposition
of an all white outfit. One one hand, she used a bold shirt and contrasting tie
think strong reds and blues, or a black necktie even. On the other, she turned
up the hardware, as was the case with field jackets and coats and their
noticeably dark metals. Either way, the result was young, fresh and far from
the boring, avant garde kind of look one typically expects from the all-white
outfit.
However, the Italian
fashion brand was the only one that opted for black and white look as other
fashion houses preferred much more vivid colors for their spring collections.
Jean-Paul Gaultier in his collection for Hermes combined several bold colors in
one suit: dark brown (trousers), olive green (jacket) and white (shirt). This carefully
selected combination of colors looks surprisingly balanced, classy and
impeccably stylish.
Bottega Veneta offers
an even more daring look: its suits are constellations of vivid colors - brick
red, orange, bright blue, and purple. They proved that color-on-color does
work, and it does wonders at creating some very forward-looking outfits. In
addition, Bottega Veneta designers managed to successfully combine jeans and a classic
suit jacket.
Gray pieces also look
like they'll be the next big thing in men's fashion, they're already quite in
vogue for neckties and suiting. Belts, shoes and bags will most probably be the
next areas of your closet to be affected, so you may want to start stocking up
as early as now. Gray is always good as a classic color, somewhere in between
black and white, but it can also act as a contrasting style piece for either
all black or all white outfits.
Even Alexander
McQueen, the infant terrible of British fashion, revisited suits in his
collection for spring-summer 2010, though, being true to himself, added an
original touch, combining classic jackets with shorter pants.
Sporty Look
Although the suit,
without a doubt, is the key element in most menswear collections for spring-summer
2010, many designers did not forget about the elements of sporty look. For
example, Bottega Veneta collection included several vivid-colored polos - in crimson,
orange and pale lilac hues - which designers want us to wear with suit pants
and a shirt.
In Milan, Giorgio
Armani showed an even more stylish interpretation of sports theme - elegant suits
in quite an affordable fashion, in combination with hoodies. This look emanates
relaxed, casual and sporty chic. Classic sports style attributes in clothing -
shirts, polo shirts, sweatpants and hoodies - can be found in Lacoste, Lanvin,
Hermes, DSquared2, and Bottega Veneta collections.
Bold Colors
You've probably got at
least one friend or co-worker who likes wearing bright and eye-catching clothes
when going out; it's hardly a new fashion statement. But the way things are
shaping up, it looks like it'll cross the boundary between personal statement
and public trend in the next couple of seasons.
Fortunately, there are
several ways for you to adopt this trend, depending on how much you're willing
to commit and how confident you are in your personal style. After all, not
every man can wear bright colors well, or at least do so right away. Some will
need more practice than others, while others prefer to limit themselves to a
particular degree.
Starting with the
smallest items means starting with details like a patterned pocket square, or a
bold colored plastic watch (yes, they're for adults now should be paired with
casual wear rather than the suit & tie look). The next level involves more
visible items like your necktie, while the next up involves your shirt or even
the sports coat jacket. At its most daring, the trend requires something that's
visually big like a sweater or a parka that tops off your whole outfit.
Whichever way you
decide to do it, there's one thing you have to keep in mind. Only one bright
color should be present in your outfit, and even then be limited to three
pieces at most. Too many bright shades can be overwhelming.
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