Simple Fashion Tips to Live By.
18/09/2014 12:41
Want to look hot, in the latest gear, just like the celebs? You do, but the price a little out of your reach? Read on to discover how men can get the hottest looks without breaking the bank.
Fashion is an evolution not a revolution, so keep your wardrobe fresh and modern by adding updated items – add a few investment pieces, and throw a few old ones out. Going from season to season can’t be easier!
Neo-neutrals: Functional, beige, khaki; relaxed suits and business-like pleated pants are hot right now.
The Classic T-Shirt: Wear them under sports coasts for a fresh look in a casual workplace. Also fresh are ribbed (wide or variegated) t-shirts.
Minimal Accessories: Less is more, especially at work! A basic chain, and if appropriate, a small classic earring is all that’s needed to make a statement.
Casual Wear: Jeans are still the mainstay of the casual wardrobe – but perhaps some new jeans to reflect the new slimmer, slightly tapered look. Slimmer styles can be seen in the drawing rooms of Levis, Diesel, Nudie and True Religions. Darker washes lend an upscale look to jeans this season.
Shoes & Accessories: are not only important for women! It doesn’t matter how you look, the right shoes and accessories can make any outfit look fantastic.
Scarves, hats and gloves are always functional, but definitely designed to make a statement this year. Oranges, greens, reds and blues will all be bolder. Traditional overcoats can be given a whole new look, with fun and youthful flairs.
Conservative earthy tones and soft suedes are the ‘in’ look for shoes this season – must-haves include low profile leather loafers (looking slightly distressed and soft), high-gloss capped oxfords, and the suede sneaker hybrid (suitable for weekends and casual Fridays). Shoes will be sporting pointier toes, trimmed down soles and elongated profiles.
Crocs.
Not the reptile, the shoe. Made using hi-tech PCCR (patented close cell resin) technology, they are guaranteed to mould to your foot as they warm and soften, ensuring comfort and great looks. They are light weight, inexpensive and best of all, can be worn almost anywhere. Now, men don’t have to worry about being boring in their choice of shoe – a Croc will suit an occasion, and are becoming more and more popular. Plus and their anti-microbial construction is resistant to bacteria and fungi, and will prevent your Crocs smelling like off cheese.
Fancy a shoe that you can wear boating, or while playing beach volleyball? Water resistant and ideal for protecting feet from the hot sand (without frying your feet in the hot sun), Crocs are the best all-round choice. What about wearing them to work the next day? No problems – hose them off or dunk them in a sink of warm water. Need them extra clean? One cup of chlorine in ten cups of water will keep them germ-free for hospital-grade sanitising.
Want a pair of shoes, with all the features of your favourite Crocs, but perfect for work or play? The Crocs Highland is your ideal choice – a closed shoe with no ventilation ports, a black pair goes great with office and business attire, while still being something you can wear to the beach.
No matter what you want to wear, there is a design or colour Croc to keep any man looking good.
Fashions.
As with last year, a fitted silhouette is the latest thing. A bit more casual, but still tailored than the last few years. Softer looks abound, with sweaters instead of jackets, and traditional fabrics, smart cuts and textures hold an element reminiscent of an English gentleman. One way to look as though you are keeping up, is to purchase a high turtle neck or low cut v-neck or crew neck – necklines are differing dramatically this year!
Go classic and conservative this spring with warm weather pieces such as polo shirts, v-neck sweaters, and sharply cut blazers. And for the perfect pairing, try a pair of white cotton flat-front Prada trousers – team them with a polo and expensive Italian leather sandals, for the ultimate “I own a yacht” look (but don’t forget the sweater tied casually across the shoulders). If that feels too country-club, swap the sweater for a blazer and add a brightly coloured accessory (like a skinny belt) to give your dripping-money Ivy league look a twist of “I throw wild parties in St Tropez”. However you decide to dress up these trousers, don’t forget – no white after Labour Day, and simply add a cashmere sweater and a trench coat to carry them into fall.
At the 2007 spring/summer unveiling, fashion met function when designers paired shorts with everything – making sure you’ll look great but stay cool. Try the knee length Grigio Sport Bermuda shorts for comfort, breathability and looks. They’ll stay sleek while still offering maximum movement with the jersey stretch fabric, and can be worn with a thin knit sweater for a look that boasts chic lounging, or with a bright untucked dress shirt (with rolled up sleeves) for a more sportier look.
Aim for the retro jet-set look, with top quality to guarantee the glamour without the tastelessness. A close fitting polo shirt like the Paul Smith polo shirt will give you that look.
Further the retro jet-set look by donning a pair of Ray-Ban aviator sunglasses – lightweight and durable, they have scratch resistant lenses and offer 100% UV protection. With a pair of slim-cut trousers, this is the ultimate in 70’s looks.
Wear a pair of Puma Drift Cat sneakers for the fastest way to get in on the sporty-chic trend of the season. They’ll still be functional long after the fashion has passed.
Grey carries over from last winter’s trends, and continues to be a staple in any stylish male wardrobe – although spring sees a variety of hues, mixing palettes and combining subtle and rich shades in the same outfit. Try a lightweight wool-cashmere Theory Rhett Essex coat for a sophisticated way to keep dry.
For the definitive in serious relaxation, try an Emporio Armani suit – a viscose lined blend with a more relaxed cut, placing more of an emphasis on comfort. The beauty is they allow your body to breathe and move, while still being appropriate for a meeting at the office. As the blazer and trousers can be worn separately, the suit should be considered an investment for the season.
Colours
Purple (from eggplant to lavender) is hot this season. But if you don’t like purple, don’t despair! Dark rich blues and bold earth tones are also being seen. Sweaters and lightweight knits in rich deep shades, with subtle argyle patterns and stripes, are a great way to work some of the new colours into your existing wardrobe without looking too trendy. Love the fashion of the eighties? Well, good news! The bright, bold colours are back in, so drag out those old bright pink items and live it up as bold colours make a comeback.
The best up-to-date look is one that mixed trendy pieces with classic lines – colours and relaxed chic looks are both in season, as are well-kept shoes.
Take a look in any of the men’s stores (Polo Ralph Lauren, Bergdorf Goodman Men, Barneys New York) and you’ll find there are more colours than you can poke a stick at. And men, it seems, are catching on – purchasing sharply tailored suits and brightly patterned dress shirts. This spring, however, the look has been taken to a new extreme: tangerine, lemon, viridian, magenta, royal blue are the hottest looks in pants, sweaters and blazers. Traditional two-button sport coats and pinwale corduroys have gone troppo with colour. And, unusually, designers like Paul Stuart are sharing ideas with edgy fashion labels such as Burberry Prorsum and Duckier Brown.
"The first thing that blew out of Barneys was all the colour," said Daniel Silver, a partner in Duckier Brown. "When we were designing it we were thinking: 'It's so bright. Are guys really going to buy this?' But they have. It's like someone knocked down the wall between his and hers closets."
If you want an easy new way to express a bold streak, this is the way to go. But it has an august precedent as well – in the late Johnny Carson, the peacock of NBC. In 1973, when country clubs swarmed with pants and blazers of every hue, Carson's own fashion line was the best-selling men's tailored clothing line in the country (according to Homi Patel, the chief executive of Hartmarx, which owns the line). In 1973 alone, 80,000 electric blue sport coats (with five-inch lapels!) were sold.
Editor of men’s wear mag Vitals, Joe Zee: "The roots are in that country club thing. The edge is in its conservative aspect." Striped shirts and plaid jackets can play into a conservative look, but solid colours, Mr. Zee suggested, are bolder. "Men are more used to pattern," he said. "So a pink striped shirt is easier for a lot of guys than an all-pink shirt. That's a more specific fashion statement."
"You have urban rappers from Nelly to Puffy saying, 'I can wear this without being a sissy,' " Mr. Zee said, as hip hop artists like Usher, Farnsworth Bentley and Andre 3000 of OutKast (hard at work on a fashion line called Benjamin) don the apparel.
Chris Chambers (vice president for publicity at BMG Music) feels the pull. "There's definitely a mixture of an urban thing with classic country club. I'll wear the pink Ralph Lauren blazer but maybe not with the white slacks they show. I'll wear it with some Evisu jeans and a cool sneaker."
Still, it takes guts. "I think a solid bold colour looks fresh, but you have to have a level of confidence for it," Chambers continues. What makes the look less brash and more appealing, he said, is its history as the onetime uniform of 19th-hole golfers everywhere.
Manhattan fund-raiser Ross Geisel has taken a shine to colour, because of its associations with a life of gentlemanly ease. "I can get away with wearing it to work, and then if you go out afterward, you don't look like you came from the office," he said.
Another reason Geisel likes extreme colour is that there are so few rules about wearing it. That, he maintains, makes it easier, not harder to dress. "It doesn't matter what you do. I have a loud pink shirt on today with a corduroy chocolate brown blazer. I can wear it spring, summer or fall, with any shoe I want."
Even with his outlaw attitude, he said the style reminds him of his father's country-club clothes. But the concept of Johnny Carson as a symbol of style is lost on him. "All I remember is Carnac," he said.
Urban America has always been the birthplace of cutting-edge fashion. The fashions that trendsetters are wearing today are on the runways of tomorrow. For young professionals, urban fashion is more about developing their own personal sense of style, and less about copying a designer's look. In many instances, they have the freedom to express themselves in the work environment.
Regardless of age or occupation, making urban style work in the workplace can be a challenge. Unless you're employed in entertainment or another creative industry, "head-to-toe hip-hop gear is a hard look to pull off," says fashion stylist Ira Staples. Employees in a more traditional workplace, he says, need to flaunt their fashion sense without going overboard.
For men, urban style takes on a smooth, relaxed vibe. Jonathan Allen, a 26-year-old regional account manager, wears "casual, stylish gear" – including an earring – on an almost daily basis. "Occasionally when I have to impress a more formal client, I'll wear a business suit with suspenders or a sports coat and tie," he says. For spring, he swaps long-sleeved shirts for shorter styles, and no jacket. Allen's wardrobe consists primarily of neutral colors, such as beige and black, that mix-and-match effortlessly to maximize his clothing options.
According to Staples, sticking with neutrals is a smart move for young professional Black men. "Bright colors look dated this season, especially at the workplace," says Staples. "Women can get away with a lot of color, but that doesn't work for men. It's much more modern and edgy for men to go monochromatic or work within a neutral palette." The "preppie" look, long a staple of many urban designers, is also out. "Spring is all about a relaxed look," says Staples, pointing to the "casual cool" of many of today's hip-hop artists. "Men's pants are looser without the excessive bagginess we've seen in the past. Women's tops are form-fitting, but in comfortable knits. Young professionals want to look urban and of the moment, but they don't want to look like they're trying too hard. Urban style is more about taking the trends and making them your own instead of copying someone else's look."
The answer, then, is simple – simple accessories, simple block colours and simple neutrals for the office. All you need to stay at the top of the fashion game this season. Simple.
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