Even for men, catwalks are not all about the clothes. Styling plays a crucial role during fashion weeks, with designers putting plenty of thought into the shoes, bags, belts, headgear, eyewear and jewellery they put on their models.
Complementing 2018’s “it-garment” for men – the Hawaiian shirt – is another item reminiscent of geeky, awkward middle-aged men: the bucket hat. At Louis Vuitton, these were made from strips of denim and paired with layered ensembles and puca-shell-beaded necklaces – yet another surprising blast from the past.
At Lanvin, ordinary bucket hats were designed in solid grey and red-and-black prints, evoking images of boys embarking on camping or fishing trips.
Also present on the runways were simple D-ring belts, seen at Paul Smith in wide black or tropical-patterned designs, and at Cerruti in blue, grey, white and mustard tones, matching the suits they were worn with.
Weekender bags came in duffel styles – defined cylinder shapes at Balmain, and a smaller version at Dior Homme – as well as in rectangular, cooler-bag shapes at Lanvin.
Most popular, however, was the cross-body – a style on men that is typically made fun of – and again, brings to mind images of anxious travellers using pouches to carry their passports and visa documents.
Defining the word “man bag” in every sense, these “purses”, for lack of a better word, were slung across men’s torsos at Louis Vuitton and Valentino, in both in logo- emblazoned and plain, utilitarian varieties. Where women’s cross-body bags tend to sit at the hip, these men’s versions featured much shorter straps, causing them to rest somewhere between the chest and waist.
The accessories on the Dior Homme runway were easily the most favourable. While the brand’s women’s division has succeeded with its recent logo-heavy accessories – such as chokers, clutches and sling-back shoes featuring “J’adior” text – branding proved equally important for the men’s spring/summer 2018 collection. Super-skinny scarves were formed from wide ribbons, featuring the atelier’s Paris address in the text. The same ribbon formed piping on some of the clothing, was used to create badges and lapel pins, and was even tied around the wrists of some of the models.
hlodi@thenational.ae
