Happy New Year and New Beginnings

Hello everyone! We are back and ready to go here at Fashionbeans. I hope you all had a great Christmas and Santa brought you those new Paul Smith shoes you wanted. Also Happy New Year to all of you, I hope you had a good one! This is going to be an amazing year, I can feel it. Today I thought we would ease our way back into the swing of things with a little round-up article and an update about what is to come. First Monday back is always the hardest huh…

Sales

As you are probably very well aware, right now is SALE season around all the major retailers and by now I am assuming that they have nothing left in any popular size that regular sized guys wear. Here is a tip for you, only buy items you ACTUALLY like. Seems simple right? But you wouldn’t imagine how much crap friends of mine came back with in the sales over Christmas. “Yeah I got £70 off this jumper!”…. But you still spent £30 on something that I know you will never ever wear so in the end you have just wasted £30 not saved £70.

Do you know how many items I bought in the SALES? 1 jacket that I wanted anyway and found it had 50% OFF on the first day from Coggles. I was over the moon because an item I was willing to spend £500 on when I had the cash was now half that amount. The key is to stick to the traditional items like sharp suits, shirts, ties, footwear if you are a professional 9-5′er and then pick up great knitwear, jackets, trainers or jeans (if you already have a pair in the same style that fit well). If you don’t find anything you like, don’t spend money just because you have spent hours looking around – I know it’s frustrating and believe me I have spent more time browsing online than most, but you will be better off saving that money and spending on the new collections that launch. Remember we are looking to build a wardrobe that is full of quality pieces that will stand the test of time.

Trend items are great for picking up in the SALE. If you fancied trying the worker wear check shirt, braces/tie combination geek chic, or even a military style shirt, then you can normally find these as the shops know that they might not be so hot next season. There is also so much stock left over from winter that there will be a great selection of trend items left. Do not go overboard, but you can really pick up some bargains in this area if you are looking to expand and develop your personal style.

Here is a list of some of the SALES going on right now online. More items are added each week as they try and get rid of stock for the new season so do take the time to browse through regularly. There are some absolute bargains, but please take a little bit more time and thought than usual, don’t panic buy, don’t buy a size that is not your normal one (happens regularly) and only get items you know will stand the test of time and be an addition to your wardrobe:

Fashion in 2010

Obviously all this year we are going to be keeping you bang up-to-date with the latest developments, trends and collections in men’s fashion. I have some predictions for where it might be heading but I will cover these all in detail later on in the month. Personally I think we can look forward to:

  • The greatest year men’s fashion has ever seen. Designers pushing themselves and competing in a growing market should see some amazing items being produced and new and exciting cuts taking off like last year… Think carrot jeans, shawl neck cardigans, slouchy knitwear and the like. We should also see even more catwalk showcases, increased exposure to men’s fashion in the tabloids, as well as more trends, looks and outfits for us to get our hands on. We will guide you all through it though so don’t worry.
  • Last year’s trends will continue to dominate within the fashion elite circles. Workerwear, boots, geek chic and military are not going anywhere for the foreseeable future. Especially this first quarter whilst the weather is going to be COLD. Those key pieces you invested in last year will still be right on trend during this period which means you can plan your Spring/Summer wardrobe in advance this year.
  • Spring/Summer will bring the return to popularity of more casual trousers; chino’s, cords and the like will be matched with great deck shoes/loafers. I think we are going to see a massive spike in the amount of males wearing casual shoes this year within their outfits. It started last year with the nautical trend and will only get stronger as it is such a sophisticated and stylish look for any male.
  • There will be the continued revival of “old school” items brought back with a twist. Last year we already saw rumblings with brogues, cable knits, velvet, tweed and bow ties becoming massively popular and reaching the stage of a “must have” addition to the wardrobe. What will the items be this year to have a remake? We will soon see.
Fashionbeans.com

I have BIG plans for the site this year, and even more time to dedicate to it. Overall I think it is just going to take it to the next level, and hopefully somewhere you will all want to visit regularly. I am in the process of waking up my writing team for a new year covering the hottest topics, and there are some amazing new features planned for the rest of the year.

I am going to warn you now that January on the whole is a poor month for fashion. Old stock is being sold at a discount and so the shops hold a lot of the new collections back until they get rid of it. It means it can be slower than normal and there might not be too much inspiration as far as articles go. So this is where I would like your help….

If you would like an article writing on a specific topic or a look book doing then let me know in the comments below. I will try my best to answer most requests and get one on either by myself or one of the team before the end of January.

2009 in Posts…

So here is a wrap up of some of my favourite posts from 2009 which should be read as inspiration for the new year, and also just to catch up on the information you need for early 2010:

Collections

Trends

Look Books

Would also be a good idea to look at this is you are a beginner: Men’s Fashion Basics

Thanks and welcome back loyal readers, I love you all and get ready for a great New Year!