"From a flawless Cary Grand to a kilted Kanye West, menswear is changing. Currently a sort of renaissance is taking place which is seeing spend a bit more time and money on creating their wardrobe" (Peterson 2014).
Bomber jackets have seen a revival with both luxury and high street stores having a numerous selection, with the more colourful the better. Continuing with the flower theme Zara has a bomber jacket which is straight off the luxury cat walk with bright colourful flowers dotted around the jacket.
Zara floral bomber jacket
Although this moda style fashion is now popular with men, classic tailoring still is very important the mens fashion with mixed tailoring becoming ever so popular especially coming into the summer months. This involves mixing blazers with different coloured trousers and shirt to give a more Italian mediterranean inspired look (esquire). This is an example pf mixed tailoring where key pieces from other suits has been mixed together to form a mixed tailored look suit.
According to fashion beans, another key trend linked to this mixed tailoring is wearing trainers with a suit. It goes it to discuss what suit is suitable for this look. Fashion beans suggests that the suit should not be a bold or daring colour but plain black, blue or grey and well tailored. This look should not be worn in the office simply because it is just no suitable.On shoes, it advises to keep the colour;s simple and not too over the top. Below shows the contrast between wearing a suit with shoes and with trainers .Trainers are matched well with linen suits something which is a key trend for 2014. Acording to the Swiss import promotion programme linen is a vital fabric and key material for both spring/summer 2014 and Autumn/ Winter 2014/ 2015.
Celebrities have a huge influence on fashion and in particular menswear. It is said "evidence on celebrity influence shows that it is most powerful when the celebrity has credibility, is attractive, is trustworthy and is likeable" (Easey 2009 p.86). Celebrities such as David Beckham famous for being a footballer, David Gandy famous due to being a male model, rappers Tinie Tempah and ASAP Rocky have a huge influence on menswear fashion and are seen as instigators for new trends and styles.
Denis Campbell of the guardian looked at at a study done by Dr Andrew Parker of Warwick University and it found that David Beckham is a hugely important figure in popular culture and is now the most influential male figure for anyone in the UK between the ages of 5 and 60. Beckham was awarded for his classic style when he was named the most stylish man of the year 2013 by GQ. His style varies from classic suits, to leather jackets and boots to sportwear. He is now a celebrity endorser for both Adidas and Belstaff.
According to mens style fashion David Gandy can be viewed as the James Bond of fashion. Gandy is on the committee which launced the London collection mens this year. His style shows his British heritage as he goes for a classic, vintage heritage look and always is dressed to impress using mixed tailoring as the vocal point for his differing style. He is often seen in thr front row of Fashion weeks especially London fashion week where Gandy and Tinie Tempah have become regular faces of UK fashion.
Tinie Tempah goes beyond the usual stereotype of a rapper and is now seen as one of the most influential figures in UK mens fashion. He blends street style with smart and casual elegant looks. Tempah was GQ's 2012 most stylish man of the year. According to fashion beans Tempah who often reclines in the personal shopping suite of London's selfridges, has a dress style as sharp as his lyrics.
American rapper has become a style icon in his own right. According to GQ ASAP Rocky real name Rakim Mayers has become a fashion icon. His style inspired by Givenchy often uses leather, black shorts and oversized bomber jackets can be seen in the high street and in the cat walk by luxury designers.
Feminism is said to be a set of beliefs and ideas that belong to the broad social and political movement to achieve greater equality for women. As its governing ideology, feminism gives shape and direction to the women's movement and, of course is shaped by it (Fiss 2004). More and more, women are seen in suits and a more tailored look to have a more powerful boss like look. At this years BAFTA's Angelina Jolie impressed all by wearing a Yves Saint Laurent suit. It is said that Jolie wore her tux with the right balance of femininity and nonchalance. With an open neckline, draped 'dickie bow' sported like a diamond necklace and a sexy pair of patent Saint Laurent escarpins this was never going to be tomboy but smouldering maverick. (Bergin of fashion telegraph)
It is now common practice for retailers to sell unisex clothing with menswear and womenswear side by side with brands like American Eagle, Abercrombie and Fitch ans superdry selling loungewear suitable for both men and women.
Harpers bazaar even gives tips in how to wear menswear fashion yet still look like a lady. Tips include how to match a tailored blazer with a skirt, wearing basic white oversized t shirts and wearing high neck knitwear.
Complex says that men are from Mars, women are from venus but style is universal. It goes on to say women just wear things better. Anything. Everything. Women have the genuine intuition for how pieces should fit and what fits them best. It then goes on to explore women who wear menswear inspired fashion and wear it better than men do. Mentioned are Lanie Alabanza and Cara Delevingne who have very different fashion trends but use menswear fashion as a base for their styling. Lanie who is a designer in her own right mixes street style with influences from menswear and womens wear and blends it perfectly into her own unique style.
Cara Delevingne who is most famous for her high end, luxury modelling career but also has a become a style icon due to her laid back look off the catwalk. Here Cara can be seen an oversized menswear bomber varsity jacket and teams it with denim shorts and chunky heeled boots. She mixes both styles to achieve a comfortable yet stylish look.
Tv has a huge influence on the trends and the way in which men dress. Miami vice, mad men and the new wave of reality TV has altered fashion in the past 30 years. Miami Vice
Miami Vice is an 80's TV show and is renowned for changing and inspiring men's fashion. So much so it has a fashion page dedicated to its fashion of the time.
Characters of the show made pastel t shirts and linen suits popular fashion trends in the 1980's. The Armani blazer made Italian fashion popular in the United States once again. The blazer and pastel t shirt were accompanied by linen trousers and loafers to match. Below is a picture of Sonny Crockett played by Don Johnson and typical fashion trends at the time.
Mad men
Mad men is a 1960's inspired tv series which looks at advertisers working in madison avenue and were therefore given the nickname mad men. The tv show has inspired a second coming of tight fitted grey suits and crisp spread collars. Don Draper below is the main character and his fashion can be seen progressing through the series from varying suits, white shirts, overcoats, pocket squares, hats and shoes.
Below is examples of the types of suits worn by Don Draper. Although the suits are simple and plain, they maintain the classic gentleman look of the 1960's. According to paste magazine tailoring suits as seen in mad men make a suit look more sophisticated and therefore makes the man wearing it look like a stud.
Don Draper who is played by John Hamm is seen always wearing bleach white still collared shirts. The plain shirts has a point collar which spreads enough to just meet the lapel of the suit jacket. Real men style has a page which is dedicated to the style worn in the show. It mentions that he favors straight ties, this creates a very deliberate, upward- pointing arrow effect on the front of his body, guiding viewers guide directly to his face.
The X factor
Although not often linked with fashion, the reality tv shows and especially the x factor has aided the popularity for fast quick changing fashion. The x factor has turned into a weekly fashion show showing off the newest and latest fashion trends both by the high street stores and luxury fashion houses. Below are rough copy who competed in last years X factor. They were known for there street style edgy look which changed each week.
One direction were a band who were in the 2010 x- factor. They have now become the biggest boyband in the world and Harry Styles is a frequent member in the front row at London fashion week at shows including Burberry.
The 1930's saw a great change in mens fashion. This was due in place to the start great depression which began in 1929. The colours were dark and subdued. According to Derr Herr, a German menswear fashion magazine , American, British and German magazines did not differ in the styles and cut. According to Gentlemans gazette the lapels have a lower gorge but are not as slim as they were in the twenties; both wear high detachable wing collars, there is drape in the chest, the trousers are almost twice as wide, thought the chest pocket is still angled and the shoes still rather pointy. (see right)
By the 1940's Hollywood had exaggerated the drape or the cut of the suits. Heavy chests, padded shoulders and flared trousers came to the forefront in this era. Esquire said that war in the 1940s changed everything. The government restricted the use of wool, and single- breasted jackets and cuff and pleat- free pants became the norm. Once the boys come home, big style roars back with wide lapels, spread collars, and roomy suits.Mafia movies of this time inspired mens fashion.
1940's fashion
(www.esquire.com)
1940's style
Below is a video is the styles and trends which were set in the 1950's. According to Harpers Bazaar the 1950's was an era where many of the styles from the early 20th century returned including flared jackets, natural jackets and overall a more narrow cut suit. The 1950's was a time where the teddy boys first came on the scene. Teddy boys were inspired by the dandies in the Edwardian period. Teddy boys were known for tight suits with a loose collared white shirt. Teddy boys often wore oxford shoes, brogue or suede shoes. There hairstyle usually was with the wet look which was slicked using brylcreem and had a quiff at the front. Teddy boys styled themselves on famous music artists at the time such as Elvis Presley.
According to Jeremy Langmead, editor of Esquire, the 1960's was the period where the men became more body conscious, wearing suits that showed off your figure. There was a lot of money to be made in the 1960's,which in turn led to the fashion conscious men investing in new suits and casual wear. The style icon of this period is former president John F. Kennedy. The mod culture also came to light in the 1960's. This was a subculture in which a group of stylish London men mixed both fashion and music. The mods fashion usually included Fred Perry or Ben Sherman shirts, teamed with Doc Martens and Levis jeans.
John F. Kennedy
Example of the mods.
The 1970s brought forward new and innovative styles. Below is an example of ad advert for mens jeans and shirts.
The jeans at this time had a different look to them as they were tight around the thigh but were flared from below the knee down. According to mens fashion magazine many of the styles were inspired by non western cultures such as African and Indian. Bare feet and sandals were not unusual as men aspired to their inner self where peace signs and flower chains could often be seen. Disco music inspired the fashion of the 1970s in which stretchy materials such as spandex or lycra were used Satin shirts and flared trousers were very popular with inspiration the film of the decade Saturday night fever. (Mens fashion magazine)
The 1980's saw fashion become based on more of a street style especially with the publication of i-D magazine. This magazine looked at art, culture, fashion and music. It was set up by former Vogue art director Terry Jones. It combined street style and youth culture. This youth culture of the 1980's brought the punk fashion trend which can be linked back to the mods of the 1960's. Tartan became a trend with the punks where jeans were often worn dirty and had chains attached. Studded leather became a common item of clothing in the street style fashion of the punks. Below is an example of the street style punk photo shoot by i- D magazine.
Menswear has
been in fashion magazines for over 300 years. In 1825 Costume Parisien illustrates
a man’s cutaway tailcoat . It had a squared-off high waistline,
related to women’s styles. Men’s sleeves, like those for ladies, were cut full
and puffy at the shoulders, and shoulders sloped downward from the neck. The
delicacy of the man’s pinstriped trousers, bright buttons, lavishly curled
hair, shoes with little bows, and snowy high cravat matched the overall effect
of the female toilette.
Example of tailcoat taken from Costume Parisien 1825
By the 1840's menswear fashion became serious and
dull.Dandyism never widely popular, was a
doomed phenomenon. There was a dramatic change in men's fashion, as men in
France and England put on the black suit as their uniform. Fashion historians
have come to call this change "the great masculine renunciation."
Black, which began as the colour for ecclesiastical garments, extended to
clerks and financial men, and then spread throughout male society to become the
favoured colour for all urban gentlemen, respectable professionals, shop
clerks, and even artists and writers. Men wore dark shades day and night. According
to Les Modes Francaises 1886. Tailors offered fabrics in black or
dark tweeds for suits and overcoats and the lines of the clothing were simple
and stark. Pants could be checked or striped but fabric tones were subdued.
Hats with unadorned lines completed a picture of business-like sobriety and
no-nonsense severity.
Les Modes Françaises—Journal des Tailleurs 1886
In 1896 Evening dress was both the same for evening
and formal wear. Evening dress is the proper attire, winter or summer, on all
occasions after candlelight. There are two kinds of evening dress, formal or
“full” as it is sometimes vulgarly called and informal (the complete bachelor
1896).
At this period of time the dinner coat came very
much to the fore front. Manners for men 1896 tells asimilar story from an American
perspective. The describe the dinner coat as the badge of informality .
Formerly it was worn only at the club and small stag dinners on occasions when
ladies were not present. Now it is in vogue during the summer at hotels, restaurant
dinners and in fact any occasion not formal (Manners for men 1916).
The English conduct manual of manners to men views
wearing the dinner coat on different occasion but formal and play but not when accompanying
women. The dinner jacket has very largely superseded the dress- coat for home
wear and at dinners where one is a familiar guest. It is occasionally seen at
the , too but it would be incorrect to wear when accompanying ladies.
Etiquette is not now nearly so strict as it used to be (English conduct of manners).
A blog is said to be derived from the term 'web log' where information is displayed in date order, with the most recent information at the top of the page (Newson, Houghton & Patten 2009 p.3).
This blog will look at providing information on menswear fashion. The uasal man will give links and ideology of men's fashion closely linking with popular and unknown menswear fashion blogs. This week's blog gives and overview of blogging and further information on men's fashion blogging.
Blogging is a personal view on a particular subject and although mistakenly matched with journalists, a blogger is much more than that. Blogging stems from passion where lack of emotion is impossible. The need to sit for hours at ones computer, slouched over the keyboard, trying to communicate ideas, thoughts, fears and frustrations to the world (Loewenstein 2008 p.1).
Blogging must follow the the perceptions of what is considered as being of being 'popular' and 'real'. Real individual bloggers run the risk of being vulnerable and stepped on by bigger blogging networks who have close links to big fashion companies. When the band together or form groups, they become powerful both politically and economically (Barlow 2008 p.46).
Blogging and social media otherwise know is micro blogging are very closely linked and are very important for men's blogging. Micro blogging is said to be where millions of people publish short to each other and the world all day, every day. With mobile devices blogging is much easier and updates can are now extremely flexible and portable. Sites which have exploded since 2007 include Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest (Genelius 2012 p.651).
Menswear blogging has become very popular over the last 5 years with new, innovative blogs being updated daily. Celebrities such as David Beckham (above) and the male model (right) have encouraged men to become interested and more aware of new fashion trends and in turn started blogging in droves.
Men's fashion blogs which have a significant influence vary from street style blogs to formal gentleman's blogs. Blogs which are extremely successful are Fashion beans which looks at mens fashion and grooming while giving example lookbooks of how men are dressing from day to day. Highsnobiety looks at mens fashion through streetwear with a close link to music and footwear apparel. Scott Disick has a huge following from men all over the world and his instagram page letthelordbewithyou has over 3 million followers as his post look at a more gentleman sense of style with a mix of luxury. Irelands most popular men's fashion blog is Help my style which looks at ways of using what is currently in your wardrobe and the varying ways in which they can be worn.
