The belt over the cardigan. Wearing a sweater inside the trousers could be a little eccentric, but is not a folly: in the early 1900s our great-grandfathers used to do it. A century has passed by from this shot by Lartigue, but look at how modern are the subjects. The final result of the look I suggest to you will give a old-fashioned effect and, so, why don’t  emphasize the vintage taste? The – single breasted – jacket if in plain colour has to be made of a rough fabric like the wool-crepe, otherwise of a printed fabric like Glencheck or vichy; the shirt has to have a little collar and light tone on tone stripes, the tie will be perfect if knitted. The cardigan, the protagonist, has to be thin, made of wool or cashmere. The belt? Matching the outfit and with a little buckle, not to attract too much attention on the waist. And, finally, the trousers: with pleats. Picture by James Henry Lartigue from the book Chic, le Sport! (Actes Sud/Hermès)

Original cuts. “Traditions have to be maintained so they can be passed on to future generations. In troubled times like ours, we must maintain these traditions which are our luxury and the flower of our civilisation”. It has been said, written indeed, by Monsieur Christian Dior; and Kris Van Assche, the current creative director of Dior Homme, used the original sentence and handwriting of Maitre Dior, as the leit-motif of menswear collection, as a pattern printed on outerwear. The idea of “maintaining these traditions in troubled times because they’re the flower of our civilisation”, injects a sense of pride. So that’s why we mustn’t forget that in any field  – from art to fashion and literature – nothing existing today would have been possible without an origin, a past. Christian Dior on the Times’ cover in 1957

Photograph an actor in order to help cinema. … Continua a leggere →

Natural, fantastic. An environmentalist outburst? Escapism wish? Feel of lightness and colour? Between this season’s trend there are lots of flowers, animals and colour, sketched and printed on knitwear, outerwear, accessories. Some of them remind us english tapestry and Hermès ceramics; others remind us the real and imaginary “bestiary” we can find in European art from the Middle Age to the beginning of the 20th Century (just to mention: the artist Fortunato Depero). A contemporary reinterpretation of menswear full of charm and references to figurative art: from the eighteenth-century centaurs by Giandomenico Tiepolo to now, in full second decade of the 21st Century. Many of the creations of that fashion designers inspired by animalier and/or flower power mood are and will remain little masterpieces, iconic objects of an inspired and prolific era of menswear. And they will last in time just like everything that – in its category – represents creativity and uniqueness.