Day 1 at Milan Men's Fashion Week


Saturday January 17th was home to the first day of Milan Men's Fashion Week for Fall 2015. Milan as you may already know, hosts some of the icons of the fashion industry including; Armani, Dolce and Gabbana, Versace and many many more. Having said that, Milan doesn't appeal to me all that much in comparison to London and Paris. I mean don't get me wrong they offer great shows, it's just that some labels in Milan don't offer clothes I could imagine ever wanting to wear. But that could all change over the next few days, so we'll see whether or not Milan can change how I feel. Stay tuned.

Versace
For my last Versace blog post (SS15) if you read it, you'll hopefully remember me saying that I was absolutely fed up of seeing the same Medusa (logo) aztec print that featured so heavily on Versace collections of the past few years. Anyway I am glad that this time round, Donatella declared "Versace Stripped" before the show began. Which meant no decoration, no colour and most certainly no print, just the heart and soul of Versace: Silhouette and cut. This collection felt a lot more luxurious, even just by looking at photographs. The clothes were set in a very neutral palette soft if you will, as were the cut on each garment. It was a much needed update that Versace had required for so long. There was nothing relaxing about this collection, it was masculine, dominating and classic suits reworked along with sunglasses, briefcases and slicked-back hair suggested wealthy business attire, ready to party and jet off to somewhere exotic. A perfect combination for the Versace house. Mink fur, leather trousers, leggings and watches worn over sleeves suggested a sporty feeling or off duty, more so just working outside the office. Favourite looks below...



Versace

John Varvatos
John Varvatos is a fashion brand that is just rockstar to it's core. Past seasons have seen even Kiss walk out at the end with him to bow or his charity "Peace Rocks" collaboration with former The Beatles member, Ringo Star...it doesn't get much cooler than that. The inspiration for this season was John looking out of his window onto Central Park, and thought of a portrait of Bob Dylan shot by Richard Avedon back in 1965. It was about looking as though he was dressed for today, looking contemporary. The runway was covered in leaves which even though the show was in Milan, really reminded me of Central Park and I guess it was a really nice touch. So far, throughout both London and Milan, this was one of few shows that actually felt like a true Autumn and Winter collection. Also most designers have been influenced by the seventies lately and it was a nice break to go back a decade, skinny silhouettes and roll neck jumpers were amongst a few references. I loved the colour palette, that khaki/olive green of the first few looks, and gradually getting to the browns and greys, navy and blacks. My favourite pieces involved the coats that were amazing, the 3/4 length ones and that shearling coat that is so hard to find nowadays, the the Slash-esque top hats, the leather trousers are rockstar and I want a pair by April77 which I'll leave the link to if you want, and the boots, Oh my GOD the boots, they were fantastic. John Varvatos definitely gave off that 1960's vintage yet contemporary feel he was hoping for, superb collection. Favourite looks below.



John Varvatos

Costume National
Again with the rockstar vibes, only this time from Costume National. I get I may be slightly biased towards rock inspired collections, but it's just that they're are my favourite design philosophy and it's the way I like to dress, so sorry for that. If you want me to explore and talk about different shows, let me know in the comments section below. Back to this show, I loved it but have read some articles criticising it, anyway like I said, I loved it. In particular the leather trousers, which I just can't get enough of lately, ever since seeing people like Harry Styles, Jared Leto and his brother Shannon throughout 2014. Leather trousers are a bold statement, but when paired with right other clothes and most importantly you're confident wearing them, you'll be fine. I just hope myself or you don't suffer the same problem Ross from FRIENDS had. Skinny scarves is something I would like to get back into wearing again for this year, and the ones in this show show were styled great with the looks. Although, what look stood out best for me was the bottle green fur jacket, teamed with matching polo shirt and again leather trousers. Pinstriped suits are hard to make look cool without looking like your dad, but that felt effortless at Costume National. Many people also seem to think that woman shouldn't be allowed on the menswear runways, but I think that is pathetic, I think they add an important element in to how woman could dress in this style. They go with the show just fine so long as they sort of blend in with menswear looks and it's not a problem. Anyway I thought they looked great alongside the rest of the men in this collection. Finally, I have to just say that my favourite look was the white fur jacket right towards the end. 



Costume National

Dsquared²
The latest Dsquared² collection marked twenty years since the debut for Canadian twins Dean and Dan Caten. This would be the base of the collection. Said best by the two designers themselves: "The last twenty years we built the foundation" said Dan..."The next twenty years, we go kick some ass" added Dean. This collection featured essentially the best 'White Trash' fashion I have ever seen, the trucker caps, tank tops, mud covered denim and American-flag-everything. Although apart from that, the collection was also a "Greatest Hits" if you will. The best over-eccentric fur lined parkas, impeccable suiting, the coolest of cool leather jackets, and of course the denim which is always updated and innovative every season. Need I say it? there was more leather trousers on offer, so that settles it I'm getting a pair. I loved this collection, and the next years ahead are going to be exciting. The oversized beaver hats were quite something, but that's what Dsquared² is all about I guess, they're amazing at adding quirky accessories with light-hearted humour, and something people often forget in fashion, is that fashion should be fun and playful at times. Until you've felt the fur Dsquared² use on their garments, you'll never understand how simply amazing it actually feels, real or faux there's a little fact for you haha! And finally one thing I love about Dsquared² is their attention to detail, not necessarily the finer/luxury things, but more like I said earlier the playful extras like logo's and slogans linked to their names they add. So here's to the next twenty I'm sure they'll be great, season after season.




Dsquared²

Well that is it for the first day of Milan Men's Fashion Week. I apologise for it being uploaded so late, i'll try my best to make sure that doesn't happen in the future. If I'm being honest, I am being drawn towards Milan and one of my all time favourite designers will be on tomorrow's post, Vivienne Westwood and many more great shows to discuss. So I'll this post here and join me again tomorrow for day 2.

The link to the leather trousers I want, as promised...
The Wolf of High Street
xxx

Comments