Fabric Trend – Men’s Velvet Clothing

Last year around this time we saw a switch in the usual fabrics men’s clothing designers were using in order to create their Autumn/Winter pieces. There was a lot more velvet, suede, moleskin and the like present within everything from shoes to blazers and the collections seemed to be getting more and more extravagant. Unfortunately, last year it never seemed to become a full blown trend, and a lot of these items went unnoticed by a lot of the true fashion crowd. Even in London I did not see it taken up quite as much as I thought it would be.

This year, we are seeing more and more variation within the clothing industry and one fabric that has made a real impact lately is velvet. Velvet is a really extravagant fabric which oozes class and wealth. I immediately associate it with the upper class, but with this comes the stigma of it being “stuffy” or old. This is not the case however as we can bring it bang up to date with the right surrounding pieces. The look we should be going for is “The Modern Dandy” and thinking more towards underground gentleman’s groups and secret society member’s clubs which were present in early dandy and aristocrat literature and more recently brought up to date with show’s like Gossip girl (see below):

See above how Ed Westwick matches a beautiful deep red velvet blazer with a simple shirt and dark denim. Mix in the brogues or true Dandy Chelsea boots and you have a relaxed formal look which has eccentric styling to set you apart from the crowd.

Velvet is present in a lot of the new collections this year, but you will find the best examples in formal wear such as: Lined shoes, ties & bow ties, blazers and waistcoats. Slim fit blazers in bold colours look amazing if you have the confidence to wear one, and like we said above you can bring this look up to date with skinny jeans, hi-tops and the like – it is just a case of contrasting the colours well. In the major fashion cities you will get away with this look easily and people will not bat an eyelid… however I must stress if you come from one of the smaller or narrow minded cities (in terms of fashion) then you will get looks and a LOT of attention wearing velvet so you need to have rock solid confidence to pull it off effectively… do it right though and you will come across as a very sophisticated and attractive male. I would imagine this look to be great for a night out, your office party or a drink in a high class bar/restaurant – it really will set you apart from the crowd.

If going all out with a velvet blazer is a little too much for your taste, you can add some class to your outfits using velvet accessories. Ties and subtle velvet lining on clothing or footwear will add texture to your outfit and that little bit extra within your layering. So below are some examples of the latest velvet items you can get your hands on this season. This week I will also be doing a report on the new textured fabric pieces available as well as how to layer some of them up in outfits.

Men’s Velvet Clothing