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Category Archives: Men’s Fashion


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London Collections: Men

I don’t post enough about men’s fashion and I don’t really know why because I find it very interesting and would love to either (a) dress a beautiful man in beautiful clothes or (b) be a man for the day and get to wear some ultra dapper men’s clothes.

Last week saw the first week of fashion dedicated to men, London Collections: Men. The quality and creativity displayed begs the question why has it taken this long? London is the perfect location to kick this new week of men’s fashion off with its edgy street style and modern approach to sometimes dull tailoring that is the perception of the men’s catwalk.

Hopefully this will remain a week in its own right and step out on its own from just a closing day to London Fashion Week. Below are my highlights, very different to one another which only further shows the unique and interesting side to men’s fashion…

Richard Nicoll:

All clean lines, whites and creams with the odd dash of colour, predominantly blue. Hints of squares emblazoned subtly on shirts, in long pendants.

Topman Design:

Bright colours, patterns, boyish skater street style. Oversized basketball tops, beanie hats and a few slogan tees. This is very much a young, fun collection.

Jonathan Saunders:

Dark and edgy, very masculine with pops of primary colours and patterns. A much more mature collection in comparison to Topman Design.

Meadham Kirchhoff:

Strange, quirky and classic Meadham Kirchhoff. Just as we see throughout womenswear, Meadham Kirchhoff are not afraid of bucking the trend and following their very own creativity. Florals, bright feminine colours and high tops. The models had quotes printed on their foreheads such as “wallflower” and “feminine by proxy”.


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Harvey Nichols’ pants new campaign

Harvey Nichols‘ new advertising campaign certainly grabbed my attention and made me snigger, but perhaps not for the reasons the brains (term used loosely) behind it had intended.

I wrote a piece about their Christmas ad campaign back in December (Walk of shame) which was also fairly controversial but wasn’t crude or in bad taste, it was something we could all relate to around the party season and was just on the right side of acceptable. This new campaign for the Summer sale however is not. The adverts feature models with a damp crotch (eurgh sorry I hate that word but how else to describe it?!) and the strap line “Try to contain your excitement”… I can see the thinking behind it and perhaps could be seen as humorous in other, very different, circumstances but how on earth did it get through each meeting stage in it’s creation without anyone questioning whether it was right for the brand?

Harvey Nichols is a classic British department store and is upmarket in terms of brands and products lining the store and this campaign is far from what you think of when describing the high street staple. Quite frankly, it just brings about thoughts of soiled clothing and doesn’t particularly inspire me to hunt through the sale racks. It sounds a bit extreme but it leaves me feeling a bit grubby at the thought!

I also struggle to see who the creators were trying to target with this bizarre idea, I find it highly unlikely that the clientele that frequent Harvey Nichols in their designer clothes and best of the best make-up and jewellery would be rolling around – or even dampening their trousers – out of humour or excitement. This all being said, the campaign has probably received more press than any other and as they say all press is good press.


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Slice of pie

Pie Boy clothing is a pretty damn sweet student fashion brand set up by entrepreneur Andrew Jervis who is a student at the University of Manchester. It came about due to the lack of cool university merchandising. Obviously Manchester is where the heart is, but Pie Boy have recently won big contracts with universities throughout the UK, meaning all students can have some decent momentos from their uni days.

I know when I myself was at uni I wasn’t remotely interested in the university merchandise, instead opting to go for society clothing which was designed by a much more creative set! Pie Boy clothing has a much more creative flair as opposed to the boring plain fonts and colours you tend to see in uni clothing, it’s much more reminiscent of something you’d find on the high street and that ‘non-students’ would be happy to wear too.

The clothing is now available in an online shop and I can see the likes of the beanie being immensly popular, watch this space as I think Andrew Jervis and the Pie Boy team are planning big things. I hope they do a Nottingham range…

Manchester Icon Shirt, £15

Grey Originals Manchester Sweats, £25


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Raspberry Grape provides your five a day

Cute little independent Raspberry Grape has some fantistical bracelets to go towards your five a day! I love bracelets like these that can be stacked and mixed and matched. They are the perfect additional accessories to sit next to your festival wristbands this Summer. I like that they’re really simple but the bright colours makes them fun and quirky. Bang on trend, there is the aztec style skull and I love the fruity one… reminding me to eat well on this bikini body health kick!

Oh and I almost forgot… it’s free delivery!! Visit Raspberry Grape, I’m ordering at least one for sure!

Peace bracelet, £3.95

Liquorice allsort bracelet, £3.95

Letter bracelet, £3.95

Fruit bracelet, £3.95

Skull bracelet, £3.95

Cross bracelet, £3.95


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Menswear picks

It’s not very often I do posts on menswear (mainly because I get slightly jealous of men’s clothing!) so I thought it was about time I wrote one.

Burberry Prorsum at Milan (A/W 2012/13) to me epitomised the perfect look for any modern day man. The overall look was smart with a casual twist. It was undeniable that the men looked groomed, but look more closely and there are casual elements such as the use of corduroy fabrics and knitted ties.

I like the use of different shades rather than the usual blacks, greys and whites we tend to see when you think of the ‘smart’ man.

The plum red shade of the Alexander McQueen trousers helps achieve that casual well-turned out style, teamed with a navy corduroy jacket and a silk scarf and the man looks like perfection to me! I love to see layering on a dude and a smart shirt under a chunky knit is just about on the dot.

Below are a selection of picks I (a) would wear if I was male and (b) think is the way all men should dress once in a while/ all the time if the World was my way…

Burberry London Flecked Knitted Silk Tie

Gucci Navy Slim Fit Corduroy Jacket

Loro Piana Storm System Jacket with Detachable Gilet

McQ Alexander McQueen Cotton-Twill Chinos

Mulberry Elkington Leather Briefcase

Mulberry Brown Plaited Leather Belt

Paul Smith Galaxy Spot Creased Silk Scarf

Mulberry Brown Ted Leather Satchel

Ralph Lauren Black Label Knitted Cardigan

Paul Smith Yves Fringed Mink Strap Brogues

Swaine Adeney Brigg Malacca Umbrella

Uniform Wares 250 Series Steel Watch


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The Kooples – Brit/ Parisian perfection

I first came across this brand whilst flicking through Elle magazine on Sunday afternoon and there was an advert featuring Pete Doherty. This intrigued me as I had heard nothing of The Kooples before and I wondered whether Mr Doherty had added model to his artistic talents. But no, he is flexing his design flare once again by teaming up with the French brand.

The Kooples brings together the timeless style of Paris with Victorian London and it’s no wonder Pete Doherty is involved as this style pretty much mimics his dishevelled elegance. Always not quite smart, but almost. Not surprisingly, taking the brand image they were aiming for, SavileRow has been the neighbourhood of choice.

After looking through the website I was most taken by the men’s clothing. It’s brands like this that make me envious I’m not a man, all that sharp, slick tailoring and dark, masculine colours. It’s timeless style that make any man look great. I love the layered tailoring with which they style the shoots, polo necks, shirts, waistcoats and suit jackets. The rabbit fur collar brings your thoughts back to the Gallic origins of the brand and the over-riding feel of the entire collecton.

Visit The Kooples


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Collaboration, collaboration and yes, another collaboration

With the news that H&M are planning another designer collaboration in the new year with Milan-based Marni, I began thinking about quite how many designer collaborations H&M have done over recent years, it’s a lot!

Firstly there was Karl Lagerfeld in November 2004. The “Karl Lagerfeld for H&M” range consisted of around 30 pieces and was stocked in most stores World wide.

Next up was Stella McCartney with “Stella McCartney for H&M” in November 2005 which sold out World wide in record time.

Following on as in previous years, November 2006 saw another designer collaboration, “Viktor & Rolf for H&M”. This collection was made up of 35 womenswear pieces and 25 menswear pieces, and as always proved very popular with shoppers wanting a piece of high end design at high street prices.

As with every November for H&M, another collaboration is born, “Roberto Cavalli for H&M” appeared in stores in 2007.

Amazing Japenese designers Comme des Garçons were next on H&M’s collaboration list in November 2008, to me this is the collaboration to get excited about as they are quirky and a very welcome addition to the high street even if just for a short time.

It seems H&M have well and truly established themselves as a store designers want to be involved in and the ideal platform for successful cut price ranges. With this is mind the collaborations were coming more often with Matthew Williamson for H&M in the Spring/ Summer of 2009.

Not wanting people to be disappointed in November without the traditional designer collection, “Jimmy Choo for H&M” hit stores in 2009.

Following the massive sell out of the Jimmy Choo collection, H&M cleverly got in another designer to give their customers what they wanted, step up “Sonia Rykiel for H&M” in December 2009.

In Autumn 2010 Lanvin was the guest designer H&M teamed up with. This is another collaboration that really stood out to me and shows how respected H&M are within the fashion world.

This brings us up to the present with the recent “Versace for H&M” collection, which like the others, sold out instantly.

Next up is Marni due to hit stores on 8th March 2012. Despite my feelings on high street/ designer collaborations, there is no arguing H&M have got it right. They bring high end, sought after designers to the high street and the high street love it quite clearly. I have the opinion that it can bring the brand down and make it mass market and to me the whole point in designer clothing is so that you have the quality associated with the cost and the confidence that you are not going to bump into 10 other women on the street wearing the exact same thing. However, on the other hand it means the average girl like myself can have a little bit of designer in her wardrobe and there is only limited stock so there’s not quite the volume we see of own brand garments.

Either way it looks like with H&M at least, collaborations will be an annual and sometimes bi-annual occurence.


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First the clutch, now heels?

It was only yesterday I blogged about man clutchs now I have the even more shocking man heels to talk about. Now I have no doubt about this one, it definitely tips the scales too far. There’s just something not right about a man in heels, that’s our territory boys so back off! It doesn’t help that I only just measure up to 5ft 3″ and already feel tiny beside most men, I don’t need to be made to feel even smaller!


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Man clutch, hmm..?

I have noticed a rise in the man clutch and I’m not sure what to make of it to be perfectly honest. I’m all for metrosexuality but is this tipping the scales too far?

I love a man to take care of his appearance and take pride in his clothes and style but I just find the image of a man clasping a clutch a little too much. That’s not to say I won’t change my mind, after all we are seeing more and more androgynous dressing. First came the skinny jeans, then the cardigan, next the clutch?

So far it seems to be exclusive to the designer shopper and fashion insiders but how long until we see the likes of Topman displaying their take on the man clutch?



Louis Vuitton Taiga Leather


Louis Vuitton Epi Leather


Marc by Marc Jacobs Mashed up Leather Pouch


Mulberry Bayswater Sleeve

DM feature


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DM First and Forever

Dr Martens have launched a new campaign ‘First and Forever’ featuring Agyness Deyn and Ash Stymest. The campaign encourages people to share their experiences of doing something new for the first time. This could be your first crush, first kiss and obviously your first pair of DMs.

Following <a href=”http://twitter.com/#!/search/%23firstandforever

“>#FIRSTANDFOREVER people can leave these experiences and then the lovely people at Dr Martens are documenting them on a ‘map of firsts’.

As well as this there are competitions to win gig tickets and pairs of Dr Martens. There is a film too, named ‘First Heartbreak’ which is pretty moving stuff!

Have a look at Dr Marten

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