ASOS Trend Alert – Home Guard

Keeping Our Country Stylish

Now it may be a good 60 plus years after the end of the war, but fashion is yet again taking inspiration from a period that we don’t remember in fashion terms. This season alone we have seen the revival of the aviator jacket, as well as shearling and in recent years the return of military attire. These days, you can’t walk down Regent Street without seeing someone wearing a shearling aviator jacket or a double breasted military-inspired jacket.

Even though it’s not the best topic for a conversation, soldier attire is inspiring the majority of our outfits and looks today. The attire seems to have taken over the male fashion market for the past three Autumn/Winter seasons, and it doesn’t look set to stop now. Who would have thought that we would be inspired by the courageous RAF pilots sixty years down the line?

Home Guard

ASOS have just released a new trend called Home Guard which is their own take on military this year. It is not your conventional military trend, as it infuses old and new, whilst mixing in the major trends of the moment (read: British Heritage and Tweed). This is the evolution of military with a modern spin which is what has been missing in recent years. Here is how they describe it:

‘A new look inspired by the authentic, honest and restrained appearance of wartime Britain brought into the modern era with sharp but subtle styling touches’

As the quote above points out, we are looking at Authentic British military wear, and I take this to mean the use of our traditional British military items such as RAF aviator jackets and shearling lined coats, but also using our heritage fabrics and patterns in order to keep a sense of national pride. With tweed, Queen’s country and earth tones being major trends this season, it seems as though they have all been combined in order to create military looks which are bang up to date.

This trend also focuses on one of the key principles in men’s fashion for this season; creating trends that are going to last, rather than the usual throw-away trends we see every season for a couple of months. This trend encourages the use of authentic pieces, and this means that you don’t need to go and buy a whole new wardrobe for this look. You can mix and match old (worn in military boots from last year or a crisp white shirt) and new pieces (a sharp tweed double breasted military blazer), giving an infusion of modernity into a tired wardrobe with the addition of a few key pieces. It not only looks good but it is economically viable as well.

Look Book

So today instead of just showing you key items from the collection, I have decided to bring together the key pieces in order to create four looks from this trend. Hopefully you can gain some inspiration from this and see how you can incorporate your existing wardrobe into a brand new look for A/W.

Look one

Mixes a traditional English tweed military styled blazer with some new modern edgy pieces like the currently in trend coloured carrot jeans. This is a great look for day-to-day wear which has military styling but also a new 21st century edge. Add the shawl collar jumper to increase warmth in the cold winters.

Key pieces:

• Grey military blazer
• Shawl collar jumper
• V-neck t-shirt
• Coloured carrot jeans
• Leather military boots
• Accessory

This is a perfect example of being able to use your existing wardrobe and pairing new on trend pieces with it. Everyone should own a v-neck t-shirt, some chunky knitwear and even military boots after the past 2 years, and these can be used with new items such as a grey military blazer and earth tone carrot jeans/chinos.

Look Two

Look two doesn’t have as much colour involved, but the use of a dark colour palette with tan coloured boots gives a quirky look to the normal black and grey outfit. The military styling comes from the statement double breasted jacket and sharp line trousers but then this is again brought bang up to date by pairing them with key trends of the moment; checks/plaid, town meets country and even Fair Isle pattern.

Key pieces:

• Pea coat
• Check shirt
• Black/Navy trousers
• Leather boots
• Rucksack
• Knitted gloves

Look Three

My favourite look from the trend. Mixing tweed jackets and high-tops, really taps into the whole ethos of mixing old with new. The refined jacket again brings this look a military edge, whilst the pendant accessory really gives another subtle nod to military and war. Give the whole look an injection of modernity with the use of high tops, cuffed joggers and a striped t-shirt you have lying around, and you really have that “honest and restrained appearance” that ASOS described.

Key pieces:

• Tweed jacket
• Striped t-shirt
• Acid-wash joggers
• Hi-tops
• Beanie hat
• Accessory

Look Four

The final look takes inspiration from the military pilots by combining a traditional aviator jacket with a check shirt and a pair of dark wash jeans. Finish off the look with a pair of dark brown leather boots to push the military edge. To give the outfit another modern twist try leaving the buttons undone on the shirt to reveal a graphic t-shirt underneath (in the same colour palette as the shirt).

Key pieces:

• Aviator jacket
• Check shirt
• Dark wash jeans
• Dark brown leather boots
• Graphic tee
• Accessory

I hope you like enjoyed this trend, and remember it’s all about mixing old with new in order to create your OWN take on the ever so popular military trend.

Matthew