It’s
no surprise that when spring/summer comes around, the penchant for
colour and print in menswear becomes much more popular and acceptable –
2013 is no exception.
Although last year brighter tones became
widespread, due to coloured chinos being worn by many men, this year the
industry seems to be going a step further, with high fashion designers
advocating colourful and patterned suits. Whilst this is a look which
could appeal to all fearless men, it’s a trend that could be of
particular interest to those who don’t have to wear suits day-to-day in
their working life.
If you are not required to wear a suit on a daily basis,
why not opt for something bolder and more daring on the occasions where tailoring is a must? It can help you make a more memorable impression and stand out from the crowd,
for all the right reasons.
There
are two main options when considering more colourful, eye-catching
tailoring this season: block-colour and patterns/prints. Both were
featured prominently by fashion designers at the various SS13 fashion
weeks…
Two of the biggest designer proponents of block-colour tailoring were Gucci and Paul Smith.
The
collection by Gucci featured block-coloured suits in hues reminiscent
of a Mediterranean summer: mint green, mustard yellow, burnt orange,
bright fuchsia and aquamarine blue. The suiting was generally paired
with white shirts, an accompanying tie (in a tone reflective of the
shade of the suit) and white loafers for a slick yet sophisticated
summer feel. They were also featured in both single- and double-breasted
options, providing even more variation.
The collection by Paul
Smith was entitled ‘Optimism’ and this underlying message really shone
through in terms of the tones and colours applied to the tailoring. In
fact, the collection was described as “rainbow-as-rock-band” due to the
barrage of vivid colour and 1960s-inspired cut of the suits.
Both
double- and single-breasted variants were again showcased, with
double-breasted suits coming in a vivid orangey-red and a slightly more
subtle powdery orange, whilst single-breasted suits appeared in rich
red, pastel lilac, deep green, striking mustard and hot pink.
Paul
Smith also featured a double-breasted canary yellow jacket, which was
worn as a separate with contrast black trousers – demonstrating that
colourful suiting can be toned down when paired with more restrained
neutrals:
One
other collection worth mentioning here is Roberto Cavalli. The Cavalli
showcase featured both block-coloured and patterned tailoring and
another popular SS13 trend:
metallics.
Cavalli’s
navy and purple metallic suits created an interesting shiny effect,
whilst the designer also included a bright turquoise suit in a pastel
shade paired with a shirt in the same hue:
Several
high fashion designers supported the trend for patterned and/or printed
tailoring, with one of the biggest and most successful being Viktor and
Rolf.
Viktor and Rolf’s signature piece came in the form of a
two-piece grey, black and silver zig-zag patterned suit, which worked
well because of the sober palette that
helped keep the overall aesthetic understated and refined. The suit was paired with trainers, giving the whole look a more casual, street style feel.
A
similar approach was utilised for their silver, grey and blue vertical
striped suit, which also featured a metallic sheen – again demonstrating
that when subtle tones are used with an ambitious pattern, the look can
work without becoming garish:
The
collection by Alexander McQueen was particularly ambitious. It featured
an art deco dragonfly patterned blazer (in gold and silver) paired with
bronze, metallic-effect trousers, and a gold, silver and bronze blazer
with square, block patterning:
Hardy
Amies made use of separates by pairing bold, diagonal stripe patterned
blazers with black trousers, whilst Fendi featured a two-tone polka dot
pattern suit (complete with matching trousers) in blue and white.
In
addition to his block-colour tailoring, Roberto Cavalli went dotty for
polka dots, showcasing a sophisticated deep green micro-print suit – the
overall effect giving the suit an effervescent sheen and an interesting
textural feel:
Top: Hardy Amies SS13 | Bottom: Fendi SS13 & Roberto Cavalli SS13
One final pattern worthy of mention is the classic check, which was prominently applied to the suiting at Vivienne Westwood.
Westwood
opted for an interesting 1970s vibe within most of her looks, embodied
by the three-piece checked suit in muted beige, brown and grey, and the
micro-check patterned suit in beige and grey, which was paired with a
wide, open-neck shi
The fashion press have jumped onto the statement tailoring bandwagon – especially
Esquire magazine. Jeremy Langmead, editor-in-chief of Mr. Porter, has a regular column in
Esquire and recently waxed lyrical about the fact that there is
no need for us men to wait until the height of summer before we bust out our brighter hues and patterned pieces.
Langmead
highlights the example of stylish man of the moment Ryan Gosling and
the fact that he was pictured wearing suiting in tones as varied as sage
green, claret and electric blue to high-profile awards ceremonies, with
great feedback.
A few issues ago
Esquire also featured a
photo shoot with Olympic gymnast Louis Smith that featured a Prince of
Wales check blazer paired with plain chinos, along with a bold,
block-colour suit described as “sober enough to look smart and unusual
enough to grab attention”.
In addition, the most recent issue of
Esquire
features an editorial spread with British actor James McAvoy, where the
actor is pictured in a wide range of patterned suits and blazers – from
a brown, black and white horizontal striped cotton blazer by Dolce
& Gabbana to an art deco medallion print Alexander McQueen blazer to
a Paul Smith jacket featuring a tasteful red, rose-print pattern.
Similarly,
GQ
online recently published an article that featured their favourite SS13
tailoring highlights. They included a lightweight Gucci suit in a
powder blue, a Prada suit in black with a thick, bold white military
stripe on the inner leg, and a Paul Smith suit in a wide windowpane
check pattern.
Finally,
Shortlist magazine recently
featured an article on the trend of unstructured, lightweight suits for
SS13 and included a mixture of designer and high street options, such as
a micro-check Kris Van Assche two-piece suit, a dusky pink suit by Cos
and a bright yellow linen suit by Nicole Farhi.
Everyone
from Cerruti 1881 and Massimo Dutti to H&M and Topman are featuring
bold statement tailoring within their current lookbooks and campaigns.
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