Hard to imagine Spring 2016 is around the corner, but for menswear the time is now. Prints and textures typically designated for womenswear have crossed the divide with leopard and tiger print in abundance at Coach, as well as Burberry Prorsum’s lace highlights. Suits, as always, reigned supreme, but for some an updated slouchier fit and style tested the classic silhouette while others adopted a more streamlined and concise tailoring. Neon bright hues ran clubby or childish, depending on the print but comfort was first and foremost, a main staple this season. Either way, Menswear 2016 appears to either push boundaries and revamp old favorites or stick to a conservative and ever-familiar viewpoint.
1. Coach is Grr-8!
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For Coach’s first ever menswear runway show, creative director, Stuart Vevers, made his mark with animal print, bright fluorescent hues and a reincarnation of the fanny pack, dubbed the “hip pack.” While the jury is still out on the fanny pack renaissance, the punchy Tony the Tiger collars and handcrafted leather jackets all reflect quintessential Coach coolness. Even with the neon pink and green tangled lava lamp prints, Spring 2016 is all about youthful approachability and a slouchy ease for Coach’s men.
2. Frilled and Thrilled for Burberry Prorsum
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Streamlined suiting and lace accents ran throughout Burberry Prorsum’s collection. Each piece was precisely tucked and tailored so even the joggers took on a prim air. While concise and proper, the line retained an understated cool with the luxurious color palette and rich fabrics. Burberry’s Christopher Bailey utilized Chantilly with a careful eye on full trenches, tanks beneath blazers and even as detachable collars for his gabardine raincoats. This conscious editing brought a defined masculinity to a fabric closer aligned to dandies and doilies than heightened sophistication. When paired with thin ties and patent leather document bags, this dashing new man Bailey debuted at the Kensington Gardens had hearts a-twitter for the razor’s edge between fanciful and practical.
3. Tiger of Sweden’s One Good Suit
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Known for their retail-friendly skinny suits and youthful stance, Tiger of Sweden has subtly tried to remain current with fleeting menswear trends while holding true to their brand’s identity. This season was no different. Suits abound, many remained on the skinnier side, but with a few slouchy oversized options, the high necked full-buttoned businessman of yesterday felt a touch more casual this season. And with the jailbird stripes in classic black and white, as well as the more beach-friendly blue and white, Tiger of Sweden’s head designer Ronnie McDonald introduced a casual swagger to the collection. Through a consistent quality and style, Tiger of Sweden may not have broken any rules but, as always, continued to play by their own.
4. Lou Dalton’s Club Kid Vibes
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With an orange and baby blue palette, Lou Dalton infused a club kid ethos throughout her collection. The sheer plastic raincoats—macs to those in Britain—along with cargo shorts and Harrington jackets illuminated the convergence of utility and rave house fun. The stark Prince of Wales check pattern contrasted the boyish charms of this blue and orange motif, but it was Dalton’s graceful ability to incorporate basics into her collection while still feeling now and on-trend that brought an authenticity to her creations. Spring will be a riot, according to Dalton’s collection, and best to be as prepared as possible, even if there was a late night dance party the night before.
5. Washed Ashore with Alexander McQueen
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Sarah Burton, Alexander McQueen’s creative director, played with the familiar sailor boy trope for this most recent collection. Windswept hair and loose face-framing curls, dewy skin and iconic sailor tattoo-inspired prints ran rampant and while the long cut trenches, sea creature patterns and anchor outlines had a delicate whimsy, the line was understated to the point of zero statement at all. Closely resembling pajamas, the suits were loose and comfy but somehow lacked the usual McQueen drama. Clipped and quick, this collection by no means sunk to the bottom—the white suits with the word “legendary” scrawled in cursive were garish yet somehow familiar and a source of levity among the weighty, formless options otherwise—but we will be interested to see what rises to the top and washes ashore for Burton’s Alexander McQueen next season.
6. The Last Days of Innocence at Katie Eary
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Katie Eary is playful. Her hair is bright and one could make many a reference and similarity to Betsey Johnson, but let’s get one thing straight—Eary’s subversive, dark sense of humor is all her own. Her collection was steeped in ‘90s trends—the jacket wrapped around the hips and b-boy oversized shorts—while drenched in a fun and funky neon palette. But beneath the bright lights, Eary’s pièce de résistance took a My Little Pony figure and added a pronounced, hyper-sexualized appendage to the story. Phallic and overwrought, this print was an interesting statement on current culture’s adult-child youth obsession and Peter Pan complex, but while the story remained flirtatious in bold pink, a more sinister feeling grew—pun intended—with each My Little Pony adorned t-shirt, jacket and suit. While many a career has been built on controversy, it will be interesting to see what comes of these cheeky neon ombre pony prints.