With a new season, comes new styles, new colors and of course, new inspiration and execution. The runways offer all the possible cues about what to flaunt this season, but the best judge – you, should sport your own fashion with confidence and style. Picking up the best from what graced the catwalk for this spring/summer, get out your mirror and get your strut on. While some designs may offer to take you back in time and sweep you off your feet with the detailing, observe fresher colors and luxurious fabrics to truly celebrate the coming of the season.
Colors
Men, you have all the reason to rejoice as this season is all about experimenting. Pastels make a mark and open new avenues for men looking to break free from the clutter. Peaches, pinks and nudes – who’s the summeriest of them all? If not, stay with the minimalist white, from Jil Sander, Berluti and Dolce & Gabbana to sportswear-inspired white-on-white ensembles at Emporio Armani. Some brands take a different route and instead of the stark white-on-white aesthetic, creamier shades are used to soften and accentuate. Corneliani and Canali featured white and cream tailoring dressed-down with white sandals (Corneliani) and cream bucket hats (Canali).
White is the color for women too. It is definitely the coolest color of the season that perfectly fits every trend seen on the catwalk. Whether it is the embroidered guipure-like tops by Chloe, the pure white pieces from Celine, the gorgeous looks from Zuhair Murad, the curious, slightly oversized outerwear pieces by Kenzo, the minimalistic combinations of Jean Paul Gaultier, and the creative and curious looks from Vivienne Westwood, understated power seems to be the name of the game.
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A cool color to rock this season, denim blue is making heads turn. Aquamarine too, a delicate but pretty shade, offers soothing and pleasant tones and merges well with other shades. Gucci, inspired by the nautical seascape, created a wardrobe for men consisting of mostly warm tones, including navy blue, blue-black and white.
A bit hard for a total look but quite beautiful if used as a pop-up color, yellow gets full points as it can be selected as a basic color for combinations with other colors. And this shade gets its meed through the collections of Nicole Miller, Ralph Lauren, Michael Kors and Carolina Herrera.
The classic red shade also gets a nod of approval this season. Browse through collections by RED Valentino, where red tone is accompanied with shades of blue and white; Jean Paul Gaultier who showed some bold design solutions and takes on red; Diesel Black Gold, where red was a part of a totally new array of looks; Zuhair Murad, where red is reflected through chic and feminine gowns; Dolce & Gabbana that was painted all in red; and Louis Vuitton.
Green is destined to be another hit this season. Take note of the washed out green hippy-protester uniforms by Chanel, Ralph Lauren’s bush jackets, and the aquamarine green in Tod’s runway presentation. Popping up everywhere, khaki is adding freshness to spring. From military, to modern safari takes, expect khaki to take on many characters.
Fringes and Luxurious suede
Shaggy, fringed and even unfinished elements mark an important theme in this season’s look book. A little shimmy, a little shake, this spring is all about movement. Taking inspiration from the underwater world, Armani creates multiple dresses that riffed on jellyfish proportions, shapes and movement. Pronounced short skirts are splayed over sheer trousers (still an idea that might need some time to catch on). Fringes trail from long skirts to reincarnate fish tails and scales and trousers came with pleats that looked like sand ripples – just as though the tide had come in.
Suede makes its return to the runway, reimagined to take on a luxurious character and an even richer range of silhouettes. Through daytime dresses, hippie-chic coats and jumpsuits, suede has been given a new edge on the runway. Gucci and Trussardi personify this material quite creatively.
Denim
With a hint of luxury thrown in for good measure, designers have played up denim in different forms to please. Embellished, washed out, molded into ladylike silhouettes, or playing out its comfortable core, there’s no doubt that denim goes high-fashion for spring. Luxe denim is visible at Giamba, Sonia Rykiel and Bottega Veneta. Women, up your style quotients and take notes as even Gucci‘s collection revolves around blue denim,worked into swingy cropped culottes with exaggerated turn-ups and natty shirt dresses with maxi white shoelaces criss-crossing up the sleeves and across plunging necklines.
From Tom Ford to Gucci, every designer seems to be celebrating this versatile, hard wearing fabric for spring/summer 2015 for men too. Simply team your favourite pair of jeans with a well-fitted T-shirt and some low-key trainers – à la James Dean – for coffee with friends, or pair your trusty denim trucker jacket with a knitted tie, Oxford shirt, crew neck jumper, trousers and loafers for a more relaxed take on tailoring. If that sounds a little too safe for your liking, try doubling or tripling up on denim. Tom Ford’s spring 2015 collection combines a denim shirt and jeans with a simple navy blazer and black leather boots. Or pair a washed denim jacket with your favourite indigo jeans, broken up with a plain tee and pair of suede boots.
Statement Stripes
A mainstay of both the casual and formal sides of any man’s wardrobe, stripes are (as usual) expected to be big news for SS15. The stripe was given pride of place in collections from Gucci and Jonathan Saunders to Casely-Hayford and Emporio Armani, where they were applied to a wide variety of garments including both tailored staples like smart trousers and shirts, as well as more relaxed jumpers and accessories. Opt for thicker block-stripes or bold coloured motifs in order to bring a modern twist to this timeless pattern.
Florals
Did anyone say flower power? Having seen a slow but sure increase in visibility over the past couple of years, floral is once again integral to his wardrobe for 2015. Look towards Givenchy for inspiration and you may be pleased. Put simply, whether you prefer to stand out or blend in, finding a floral motif that fits your personal style is now easier than ever. Whether sportswear classics, including bomber jackets, tees, shorts and basketball trainers, the 70s is here to impact with daisy-covered bell bottoms and lightweight knitwear.
With so many tips and tricks on how to steal the light, this season is waiting to be explored!
