Topman New Exclusive AAA Collection

Topman AAA Collection

No it doesn’t stand for Alcoholics Anonymous Addicts and neither is it type of battery. AAA is however, the new and recently released Rock ‘n’ Roll inspired collection from high street heroes Topman.

Topman Design Director, Gordon Richardson, explains the motivation behind the collection:

“AAA was born out of the seed of an idea whilst styling bands for our flagship New York store opening. It became apparent that whilst we appeared to have a fleeting rock and roll trend in store what we needed was a more permanent one with a music DNA that our customer could buy into regardless of seasonal influences. A range that made you feel and look like a rock star.”

So the AAA collection was born, offering a simple aesthetic that breaks the boundaries of any trend, disregarding the mainstream to create a look which is stylized yet visually strong. Comprising of 35 individual pieces including T-shirts, jackets and shirts, as well as accessories such a scarves and belts, the collection ranges in price from £14 for a basic vest top to £160 for an impressive lamb leather jacket.

But what does the collection actually contain and how can you work it into your wardrobe? Well firstly, the pieces are obviously all designed with the same inspiration in mind and so do complement each other extremely well. However, don’t feel that you have to create your entire look exclusively from one collection. If you don’t want to go all out then opt for a statement piece or a basic with a twist to incorporate some rock star flare into your look. Furthermore, the collection draws exclusively on a palette of black, white and grey and as a result of this, restrain from incorporating any bright colours to avoid looking mismatched. The rock and roll look is the epitome of relaxed, uncomplicated style and this should be considered and embraced when constructing a look from the collection. Simplicity is key.

Trousers:

AAA offers a range of trousers suited for both casual and more formal attire. The cut remains consistently slim, a trademark of the aesthetic. However, if there’s one thing the collection does well, it’s the details, and the trousers are no exception. With studded waistlines, side zip detailing and an interesting range of fabrics, you can really experiment with making your trousers the centrepiece of your look.

T-Shirts and Vests

With a very distressed look running through the whole collection, many of the tops feature a cowl or scoop neck, accentuating the neck line and collar bone. To go all out and further accentuate this feature, add a statement pendant necklace to draw even more attention to the area. With that in mind, the award for my favourite piece goes to the nude ink print cowl T-shirt. The eye catching print combined with what can only be described as my favourite neckline ever, really makes this garment stand out from the rest.

Jackets

From the leather jacket, synonymous with Rock ‘n’ Roll chic, to the more traditional tux jacket, Topman has reworked and reinvented them all. With a fresh and exciting new take on modern classics the AAA collection offers a quintessential rock star look but with a more modern and edgy demographic in mind. Wet look fabrics and glitter lapels, the detailing adds a new dimension to a well explored style.

Accessories

Although a bit disappointing, the lack of jewellery is definitely made up for by the high quality of the other accessories in the collection. In particular, two of my favourites are the silk feather scarf and chain braces. Adding a scarf is a perfect way of layering up your look and unless you can afford to splash out on a £140 Alexander McQueen skull print one, you can’t get much better than this. At £20 this feather print scarf is a real bargain for pure silk and is a great way of adding a finishing touch.

So there you have it, a strong and well designed collection which offers a unique and reworked take on a classic style. A taste of what, I hope, is more to come.