Menswear — Page 16

Concept Korea: Ordinary People Spring 2016

July 15, 2015 by admin Leave a Comment

Images courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

For his men’s spring 2016 inspiration Ordinary People creative director Jang hyeong cheol looked to sporty classics reimagined through the lens of contemporary fashion. This “Active Maestro” sporty reflection on classic men’s suits seeks to combine the two themes of classicism and the sporty lifestyle that the contemporary male consumer now leads.

Jang heyong cheol has taken the typical classic suit and given this silhouette more volume, encompassing more ease of movement and comfort. This new roomier, restrained volume silhouette is often paired with loose tee shirts and cuffed short pants.

Images courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

Interestingly, many menswear designers this season incorporated lounge wear into their more sportier or active wear themed collections which was expressed in roomier long overcoats and blousy pants made of diaphanous fabrics or long oversized tee shirts in sheer fabrics—seen in the collections of Fingers Crossed and Duckie Brown. This loungewear as active wear trend sometimes was also supported by playful prints and colors—as seen in Ricardo Seco’s collection.

Images courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

To date Ordinary People is the only menswear collection this season that has gotten the loungewear as active wear correct. Jang hyeong cheol take on this new trend is consumer friendly and looks like an appropriate wearable daywear look. By marrying his loungewear as active wear with sneakers and sport sandals combined with his restrained volume classic suits, Jang hyeong has created a collection that is fresh, fashion forward and is a new projection on where contemporary menswear is heading.

Images courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

The color palette in this spring 2016 collection ranges from midnight blue, navy blue, smoke blue to white, cold, sage green, red and carmine. Fabrications include summer wool, silk faille, cotton, silk cady, denim, modal, and light tweed.

Standout looks in the collection include Jang heyong cheol’s oversized striped tee shirts in navy blue and white with sequined embellished stripes, smoke blue striped bomber jacket with red shorts, and smoke blue pinstriped lounge coat with matching shorts.

—William S. Gooch

Ricardo Seco Spring 2016

July 15, 2015 by admin Leave a Comment

Images courtesy of Ricardo Seco/fashionreverie.com

Images courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

The “Luck” collection is inspired by “ a man that knows how to play the game of life, who trusts in who he is and where he is going without forgetting where he comes from. He enjoys all and knows his luck and essence. He knows how to share and take advantage of his opportunities,” confides Ricardo Seco.

That said; Seco’s spring 2016 collection was certainly playful with hints of adolescent whimsy, bordering on frivolity. Seco infused Mexican pop culture references and the Spanish card game “La Loteria,” a leftover influence from Spanish colonization days. Seco chose four cards that represent the summer spirit. That representation of the summer spirit pops up in the prints in this collection.

Image courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

In this presentation, Seco sought to combine his Mexican cultural heritage with cutting edge design fused with whimsy and a lightness of being. Though many of the garments in the collection seemed like a modern take on male pajamas, there were some clothes in this collection with retail value.

Where Seco was most successful in this collection is when he mixed in more somber neutral colors with the playful pastels. Some of his black bomber jackets were a hit, as well as some of the more solid colored men’s shorts. Still, Seco’s emphasis on playtime overshadowed some of his more serious looks.

Image courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

Not every menswear collection has to speak to a mass market, and Seco’s spring 2016 collection is for that male consumer who is not afraid to take risks and wants to have fun when dressing up, letting the inner child shine through. May the child in all of us be indulged!!

—William S. Gooch

Eponymous Spring 2016

July 14, 2015 by admin Leave a Comment

Images courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

New York Fashion Week: Men’s Day sponsored by Cadillac continued what had started three seasons ago by appearing as a part of New York Fashion: Men’s (NYFWM) in its inaugural season. Although this 4-day week of men’s fashion put together by CFDA now incorporates the menswear collection seen at Superindustria Studio, the 12 menswear brands that show at Superindustria are set a part from the CFDA–sponsored shows at Skylight Modern.

Images courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

That said; several of the menswear designers that showed at Superindustria tried to stay with traditional menswear sportswear looks that are very accessible and appealing to the male consumer. In this lay the problem with some of the collections. In a market where there is an oversaturation of milquetoast brands that can be cheaply purchased at megastores, attempting to complete on that level may be a futile attempt for menswear brands that are not household names.

Thankfully, Eponymous was one of Superindustria’s cadres of menswear brands that went in the other direction. For observation of Eponymous’ spring 2016 collection it is obvious that designer Hvrminn has a tailoring background.

Images courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

Though Hvrminn used mostly traditional menswear fabrics and was influenced by a 1930s/40s Chicago gangster reference there was something fresh and modern about this collection. Hvrminn’s incorporation of army camouflage print into a great parka and double-breasted suit was brilliant. These kinds of unique touches gave this collection vitality and freshness that though grounded in traditional male silhouettes was outside of the box of milquetoast American sportswear exhibited by some others spring 2016 menswear collections.

—William S. Gooch

Kenneth Ning Spring 2016

July 14, 2015 by admin Leave a Comment

Images courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

Of all the collections shown at Industria Superstudio on the first day of New York Fashion Week: Men’s, Kenneth Ning’s spring 2016, perhaps, had the most impact. Particularly, for editors, stylists, and industry professionals that are looking for that fashion-forward next that has some retail appeal.

Inspired by the bustling medina of faraway desert lands that evokes colorful spices and patterned tapestries, Ning sought to find the balance between the frenetic chaos that is a part of exotic outdoors bazaars and the tranquility of the arabesque architecture of Arabian Nights. These influences were infused with vibrant, youthful projections reminiscent of 80s British youth culture paired with the clean, streamlined tailoring of modern sportswear.

Ning brilliantly incorporated floral jacquards and lace that referenced ornate mandalas and other North African motifs. All these different influences helped to forward Ning’s unique combination of graphic elements extracted from traditional Arab motifs mixed and matched with innovative techniques and an expansion of male silhouettes.

Images courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

While his mélange of influences was a welcome change from some of the pedestrian looks seen from other menswear designers, Ning might want to rethink his lacy looks which were overwrought and bordered on costume fare. Still, this spring 2016 collection was a welcome change and infused a much needed injection of fashion-forward next into this inaugural season of New York Fashion Week: Men’s.

Standout looks were Ning’s black and white long jacquard jackets with slender slacks and his green and floral floral print shirts with wide-legged pants.

—William S. Gooch

Matiere Spring 2016

July 14, 2015 by admin Leave a Comment

Images courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

Matiere, meaning material or subject matter in French is the focal point for the contemporary menswear line, Matiere, Known for their seamless integration of form, function, and comfort fused into a modern aesthetic, founder Scot Shandalove and creative director Jake Zeitlin embraced duality as seen through the use of unexpected materials on modern silhouettes for their spring 2016 collection.

The design pair employed hues of bleached and true indigo buttressed by off-white, dusted grey and city black. Fabrications ranged from dense cotton slub, brushed cashmere, and 3-D striped French terrycloth. “This collection features some heavy textures that maintain an effortless and clean finish. The color palette, which starts off with a creamy off-white and builds to a true indigo is reminiscent of the ocean’s raw beauty,” explained Shandalove.

Images courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

One of the main focuses of this spring 2016 collection was outerwear that was expressed in reworked bomber jackets and anoraks providing seasonal layering options. Additional garment choices were baseball shirts, gusseted pants and Henley tank tops. “Finding a balance is key,” exclaims Zeitlin. “We’re creating a collection that is fashion forward, yet always approachable and wearable.”

Images courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

Though this collection is approachable and certainly wearable, it does lack those unique, stand-up-and-notice garments that guarantees to attract consumers. In a market that is oversaturated with menswear staple items, collections need to go beyond approachability and wearable clothes. Remember, JC Penny’s, Kohls, and Old Navy is just down the street!!

—William S. Gooch

PLAC Spring 2016

July 14, 2015 by admin Leave a Comment

Image courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

Sometimes, it is all in the styling. Good styling can give a rather pedestrian collection the right amount of sass and vibration, elevating it out of the doldrums of basic staple items into a collection that has freshness, energy and style.

This is what’s true of PLAC’s spring 2016 collection. There are no breakthrough silhouettes or innovative fabrications in this collection. What does ring true is that the separates are paired in a way that gives this rather minimalist approach to menswear some retail viability.

Active wear as day and eveningwear for both sexes is all the rage. Still, it is difficult to make sweatpants and oversized workout gear exciting. The design team at PLAC has accomplished a very difficult task, making basic jeans, moto jackets, tee shirts and menswear items appealing; perhaps, even to the fashionisto guy.

Though this collection is heavy on a London street wear 1980s vibe—think the pop groups Tears for Fears, Spandau Ballet, The Human League, and maybe even a little Duran Duran—this particular direction should not be alienating to current menswear shoppers. (Most of the male consumers who might be interested in this collection probably wouldn’t even know who those 80s pop groups are.)

Images courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

That said; there is something fresh and energetic about PLAC’s spring 2016 outing. And the standouts are definitely their outerwear. Great trench, very nice black leather jacket, but how about a little color next season!!

—William S. Gooch

GARCIAVELEZ Spring 2016

July 14, 2015 by admin Leave a Comment

Images courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

Carlos Garciavelez continues the journey of the cultural nomad who constantly searching for the synergy between architectural shape, form, structure and its many variations as it applies to the human body. While for fall 2015, Garciavelez found that relationship as it related to geometric shapes and global architectural design. However, for his spring 2016 collection, “Lucent Stasis,” Garciavelez detailed how the cultural nomad explored the relationship of light and its application, effects, configurations, and possible distortions as applied to the human body. Garciavelez’s evolved from four core ideas: reflecting, concealing, diffusing, and capturing the ephemeral qualities of light.

“I wanted to experiment with how to suspend the temporal quality of light within the garment,” explains Garciavelez. “ The challenge for me was to capture a finite quality of an incandescent source and how that relates to the human body.”

Images courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

Influenced by the art installations of Dan Flavin’s fluorescent installations (1996) and Donald Judd’s 100 untitled works in mill aluminum (1982–1986), Garciavelez sought to incorporate the current trend of athletic wear as day and evening wear and combine this menswear direction with his concept of tailored menswear expressed through prisms of light and its possibilities.

Though Garciavelez did capture light through its varied prism and reflect that translucence in his garments—this was particularly evident in his trench coat, vest and other outerwear—the overall collections lacked any real spark. Many of the pieces in this collection, outside of the very interesting translucent gloss, could be found at most menswear retailers that are looking to satisfy the male consumer who has very simple taste and is just looking for spring/summer staple clothing.

Images courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

The highlight of this spring 2016 collection was the interesting ombre effect of some of the translucent colors and fabrications. Still, interesting fabric choices and color palettes are not enough to carry a collection. Better luck next time!!

—William S. Gooch

Fingers Crossed Spring 2016

July 14, 2015 by admin Leave a Comment

Images courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

Fingers Crossed creative director Ryu Hayama looked to the photography of Nick Cooper as captured in sunsets and sunrises. “The clothes inspiration is sunset into the light. The colors are yellow, red, blue and black. Imagine when daytime is fading you get the yellows and the burgundy reds and as you come into the nighttime you have the darker colors of blue and black,” explains Hayama. “This season there is less structure because I felt there was too many details last season and this season I wanted to aim for more simplicity, so you see some belted pieces but less detailed looks married with diaphanous fabrics that expressed the polarity of masculine and feminine.”

Fingers Crossed always pushes the envelope when it comes to masculine silhouettes always looking for that fashion-forward next. This brand is not for that masculine consumer that wants the tried and the true. This is a brand, and particularly this season, that is for the outré male consumer.

Images courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

Where last season, Hayama had garments that did appeal mostly to a niche consumer with some separates and outerwear that could have appeal to a wider male demographic. However, in this outing Hayama pushes his collection into a more romantic realm with much more emphasis on softer, diaphanous fabrics and looser silhouettes. All these projections toward ease of movement and tranquility were expressed in fabrications of crushed velveteen, soft-brushed cotton nylons and slouchy linens.

Images courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

Though there was a lot of beauty in this collection, Hayama’s point of view for his spring 2016 collection may lay outside of the realm of what a lot of male consumers might want to wear. It is not enough to marry interesting concepts with beautiful construction; clothes have to have retail viability. Where last season, Hayama’s pushing of the envelope definitely made consumers and fashion industry professionals stand up and notice, this season Hayama’s fashion as art leaves you wanting more, but not in a good way.

—William S. Gooch

Cadet Spring 2016

July 14, 2015 by admin 1 Comment

Images courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

When a brand titles itself Cadet, immediately the mind shifts to a collection with an oversupply of military jackets and dress trousers with stripes down the side. That might work for a couple seasons, put after a few outings the design team might run out of ideas. Not in Cadet’s case.

With only a few seasons under their belt, the Cadet design team of Raul Arevalo and Brad Schmidt military-themed menswear looks seem to be gathering steam. This design duo appears to have a plethora of ideas based on the military and for this collection, The Filthy 13,” they reached back to World War II’s paratroopers in the United Stages Army demolition section’s invasion at Normandy.

Images courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

For a couple of seasons several menswear brands have dabbled in variations on camouflage print. From carnation, orange, and blue camo to traditional brown and olive, there has been a lot of mix and matching of a variety of camouflage color palettes. Cadet stayed with the traditional brown, olive, and a sprinkling of blue steel grey in this collection, and perhaps, of all the collections over the past few seasons, their take on camouflage print and marrying that to a very masculine silhouette was done better than almost any other menswear brand. They were also successful in employing black, brown, and steel grey utility belts and detachable manbags with paratrooper jackets, elevating this collection above just another homage to military uniforms, adding a utilitarian touch.

Though this collection harkened back to 1940s paratroopers uniforms and there was no breakout design aesthetics or silhouettes employed, Arevalo and Schmidt still managed to keep the collection fresh, current and ruggedly sexy. In essence for this outing, it was mostly about the styling, which was superb.

Images courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

A lot of male consumers from a wide range of demographics will find something in this collection that they can add to their spring/summer wardrobes. From the separates to the silver grey and olive jackets, this collection is a surefire hit!!

—William S. Gooch

David Hart Spring 2016

July 14, 2015 by admin Leave a Comment

Images courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

In this inaugural season of New York Fashion Week: Men’s (NYFWM), New York Fashion Week Mensday has continued it trajectory from the past three seasons of presenting a collage of 12 menswear designers in one space over the course of one day. Sponsored by Cadillac, this assemblage of menswear designers, many of which are gaining traction in the ever-expanding menswear market, may have be one of the highlights of the newly knighted NYFWM. (And not just because there are so many menswear designers showing at one time.)

What is so genius about this menswear collective is the fashion cornucopia of different design aesthetics, variations of male silhouettes, and projections on where menswear is heading. All this excitement and creativity housed under one roof, on one day. Who could ask for anything better?

Images courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

That said: David Hart’s spring 2016 collection was one of the highlights of the morning session. Inspired by the Bauhaus and such design artists of that era including Anni Albers and Gunta Stolzi, as well as the radical photography of Lazlo Maholy-Nagy, Hart ingeniously weaved a kaleidoscopic patchwork of primary colors, pastels, graphics, and geometric prints expressed in his penchants for casual American sportswear that reflects Art Deco and easy, lush life of Miami and Cuban club life of the 1940s and 50s.

Incorporating a marsupial pouch into the front pocket area of the men’s short was a fashion forward and utilitarian way of modernizing the standard American sportswear short trousers. And Hart’s paring of graphic and geometric printed tuxedo jackets with primary color slim slacks was divine, as well as editorial gold.

Images courtesy of Ernest Green/fashionreverie.com

This collection, though not necessarily breaking any no ground in menswear, elevates Hart’s oeuvre for American sportswear that pays homage to Miami club life of a bygone era to a level of retail relevance and accessibility. Hart is on the right track, and has fond a unique to combine exciting color combinations, graphic patterns married with American sportswear that can bring some much needed effervescence and vitality to American menswear terrain.

—William S. Gooch