Hey Gentlemen,
1. scarves
2. skinny jeans
3. skinny ties
I think it’s safe to continue to purchase those items for the most part, but I would minimize the purchase of “arab scarves” if you live in a stylishly advanced city. And as far as skinny jeans go well I know some of you would love for me to predict that they’re out, but that just simply isn’t true. There are way too many celebrities that sort of just caught on to the whole skinny jeans thing and they’re just now feeling comfortable with even wearing them, so you should see more of those in 2009. I personally don’t think all guys should rock skinny jeans, you should wear what makes you comfortable and what fits well (without a belt)… but skinny jeans do look great on some guys.
There were a few “trends” in 2008 that I feel are no longer trends: The “nerd” and “50′s worker” look have really transcended “trend status”- there are pieces in both looks that are actually very very classic and should be in the wardrobe of any well-dressed gentleman… so you should continue with this “look” if you already rock it.
- oxfords
- boat shoes
- cardigans
those are a few of the items that aren’t “trends”, they are classic staples. Meaning you can always wear them from now til your 75, no matter how much the trends change.
2009 Trends:
Varsity
Varsity jackets go in and out all the time, but they’re technically always sort of “in” to extents because all high school athletes have one- atleast you should… I’m gonna dig out my old varsity jacket at some point this month. But guys like Chris Brown and Kanye West rocked these hard at the end of 2008 and I’ve seen a few others already rocking them in 09, so if you have one I think it would be cool to wear it until it gets warm. And once it gets warm start searching for Varsity cardigans, alot of designers will have them for Spring: Ralph Lauren, Benjamin Bixby, and Lacoste just to name a few.
Monochromatic
Stay tuned for more “Trend Reports”….
Okay, so this is nothing new– we’ve been seeing men walking around the mean streets of NYC, London, and Paris rocking sunglasses that undoubtedly remind of us LeVar Burton in Star Trek (and then I think about Reading Rainbow, lol). When I initially saw guys in these glasses I thought to myself “this is too much”, but the more I see it the more I understand it and I can surely respect it. There are two or three black guys that wear these shades all the time and they can semi-regularly be seen on street blogs such as The Satorialist. When I was shopping in SoHo last weekend I saw one of the guys, but he seemed like he was in a rush to go get somewhere so I didn’t stop to talk to him. These shades were “brought back”, buy Maison Martin Margiela in his S/S 2008 collection. Margiela is all about being incognito and letting the clothes speak for themselves. About 2 months ago Pharrell Williams was seen wearing the red and black Martin Margiela jacket at a Diesel concert- and they jacket surely spoke for itself.
Over these past few months I've noticed an increase in men wearing slippers- on the streets. Usually velvet slippers are worn by rich men lounging around in their cigar rooms, and they often wear matching velvet robes and paisley ascots. But these days velvet slippers are being worn sockless with light colored denim jeans and button-ups. It's the winter so many of you won't be going sockless, but you can wear your velvet slippers with socks that compliment your overall look.
(click to enlarge)
the urban gentleman
Where to buy: most high-end retailers- Bloomingdales, Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom
Online: Stubbs & Wooten, Shipton & Heneage
From John Legend to Scott Whitman to Jay-Z. It seems like velvet or velour bow-ties are the way to go. There’s only so much you can do with a tux, so it’s nice when gentleman find ways to make their tuxedo special. If you have any black tie events coming up, you should try wearing a velvet bow-tie.
John Legend at the unveiling of Tyler Perry’snew multimillion-dollar TV and film studio.
(Atlanta, October 2008)
Sarah Jessica Parker, Scott Whitman, and Valentino Garavani.Scott is in the velour bow-tie.
(New York City Ballet Opening Night- November 08)
Rihanna and Jay-Z2008 Spirit of Life Awards Dinner
No more leaving one or two buttons undone. It is officially cool to wear your button-ups buttoned up.
For the past few months Kanye West has been seen only with his shirts buttoned to the top, so have a few other entertainers and style icons.
Now-a-days
(not just when you’re wearing a tie)
As of Wednesday November 26, 2008:
1. Boots are to be worn over your pants. I know it used to be a common sight only among the woman-folk, but now men do it with so much swagger and like I love to say “it goes so hard”.
2. Gold shoes are what’s haute. And not just gold-ish shoes, but outright GOLD shoes are slowly making there way from the underground fashion circuits to runways- oh, and they should preferably be lace-ups. Every once in awhile when I head to Parson’s or as I’m walking through the East Village I’ll see a twinkle on the ground and I’ll spot a pair of gold shoes. Or when I’m headed back to the work in the fashion district I’ll see a very beat guy or gal rockin’ a pair.
3. Yes wayfarer shades are still in and they’ll be around for awhile. You’ll see them in a variety of colors, sheens, and designs…. but no matter how much designers dress them up they will still essentially be wayfarers.
4. If you thought thick framed glasses was as nerdy as it was going to get- you were wrong. Thanks to designers like Thom Brown- high watered pants are so acceptable. You can love it or hate it, but if you live in a hauteTrot place like New York, Paris, or London then you will be seeing this in full effect.
5. The arab scarf has been unofficially replaced by plaid scarves.
(well not so much replaced, but plaid scarves are the shyt these days)
