The clothes that come down the runway at Fashion Week are usually no reflection of what most men actually want to wear. The front row might gush and fawn over ‘the artistic and thoughtful juxtaposition of the refugee crisis and nostalgic British confectionary’, but the rest of us raises a collective eyebrow. Headdresses made of Kit Kat wrappers? Really? Thankfully, it isn’t all quite so abstract. New York Fashion Week – said to be the most commercial window in the industry calendar – has debuted a slew of instantly wearable looks that don’t look like an art student’s wet dream. Here’s our best in show.
Ralph Lauren’s Roadman Tux
Leave overcoats to the company board – providing your colours match up, you’ve full license to channel your inner roadman with a puffer jacket this party season. The clash between formal and informal works thanks to the monochrome colour scheme and shiny finish. This is what James Bond would wear on a cold night of well-dressed espionage.
Coach’s Jackets & Shackets
We’re all for layering, but a shacket over a tee under a leather jacket could be considered a fabric too far. Not when it’s done as well as this look at Coach. The New York label made bountiful layering cool by contrasting textures but marrying tones: keep your palette all one shade and you can get wrapped up without looking like a five-year-old on snow day.
Raf’s Surprisingly Quiet Calvin Klein Cool
In a sea of multi-coloured leathers, boiler suits and paint-splattered sweater vests, Raf Simons’ first show for Calvin Klein was punctuated with this remarkably simple – and wearable – look. The long overcoat is a menswear fixture and the classic silhouette sings thanks to the monochromes palette. And while the western boots could be a little ‘Vote Trump’ for some tastes, the sentiment still stands tall (and cool).
Rag & Bone’s Peak Weekender
Since there’s so much peculiarity on the runway, strokes of normality are often the standouts – much like Rag & Bone’s much-loved SS18 release. Rather than hosting a runway show, the label presented its finest at a charity function, with several looks applying universal rules to your wardrobe. In this case, a simple knit for texture lifted with quietly attention-grabbing trousers below and minimal kicks. Simply does it.
Opening Ceremony’s Geography Trip On Speed
Opening Ceremony’s latest outing tapped all those crap school trips you remember, but injected prints and colours a plenty that’ll work if you tone down elsewhere. Our full marks go to the anorak. Made A* material thanks to a muted floral print, it’s a piece that works for both the commute and your downtime, even if that is a rainy weekend looking at fossils.
Kith Sport’s Tonal Hooligans
And finally, before you start spitting feathers at pink-on-pink-on-pink, know that it’s the idea here that matters, not the colour itself: tonal. Dressing like a hooligan at a West Ham match becomes fashion-crowd acceptable when a) you opt for a colour that isn’t grey, and b) show a reluctance to throw pint glasses at anyone supporting the other team. Tie several shades together – blues, neutrals and the like – for a tonal, modern take on sportswear.
