Hardcore traditionalists may disagree with me but Adrien Sauvage defines the modern dandy man and his suit pretty darn accurately.
Hardcore traditionalists may disagree with me but Adrien Sauvage defines the modern dandy man and his suit pretty darn accurately.
I am probably the only blogger who hates dressing up during summer. And because it's Singapore, yes, that's practically three quarters of the entire year. I have always grappled with the issue of looking my best in this weather. As much as I want to pull a sweater over my shirt, my sweat glands aren't exactly the most cooperative organs in my body. I have immense respect for my country folks who aren't afraid of the heat and go all out when it comes to layering in temperatures of 30 degrees celsius all year round. Call me a hypocrite but I always believe that comfort should preside over anything else (fashion folks would readily disagree with this). And I will hardly look good if I look like I have just come out of the pool when I obviously have not. And on those hot and sweaty days, I wish that no reader of mine would ever recognize me on the streets even if I have tried my best (I really have!) in putting together a t-shirt and shorts combination (I would rather be naked if it weren't for Adam and Eve). It certainly does not hold up well with my menswear blogger reputation.
However, I think I've found the answer to dressing up during summer. Mjolk is pretty much how I would envision my summer wardrobe to look like. Clean cuts with a beautiful color palette to work with-a mix of burgundy, camel, navy and an occasional liberty print for those wild days. The play of proportions here is devastatingly spot on, and I'm amazed by how effortless everything looks. My favourite look would have to be the red 3/4 sleeved mac paired with a liberty print shirt-my idea of a perfect rainy day. I'm also quite enamored of the combination of burgundy tasseled loafers and white socks. THE NERDS ARE BACK WITH VENGEANCE!
(So I guess this is my first official menswear post.)
I love Raf Simons-I'm gonna start my first post with utter designer infatuation. And while I have always appreciated clothes that have a concept behind them, there really isn't any intellectual depth to this collection. Yet Raf Simons makes up for this with an extremely well thought-out collection and a highly entertaining take on the modern dandy man.
Almost instinctively, I find myself asking, "How did he do that?" and I'm also afraid my next few sentences will be embedded with chummy love messages. This collection is funny in a way that it is somehow not the usual formula for success. Raf has employed the same use of neon colours in his previous menswear and womenswear collections and it is also a wide known fact that the fashion crowd is a very fickle bunch. In theory, this collection would never ever be lauded for its creativity. But it seems it is quite the complete opposite. There's something both familiar and distant here-the colours have gone up a few notches, the neon water-colour flowers have been stripped off, the same impeccable tailoring but with a whole different structure and ingenuity.
The best pieces are simple and at first glance, seem nothing at all- a boxy suit with a t-shirt underneath. Yet they have somehow worn into my consciousness and I keep coming back to look at them, and wondering why I keep coming back.
I am intrigued by the use of fabrics (would materials be a more appropriate term?) here. Suits are made out of what seems to resemble felt, giving it a loose, unstructured fit round the body. Knits and jackets are done up in some sort of foamy neoprene, and it will warrant my visit to the showroom. The material nerd in me wants to snuggle up to a pile of orange and salmon pink knits and because I'm a total creep in real life, there's a high chance I might start caressing them against my face and pee around the pile to mark my territory. The suits are cut up to spectacular proportions, with much emphasis placed on the shoulders. The vibrancy of colours only serves to further highlight the simplicity of Raf's clothes. While I'm pretty sure I wouldn't be able to afford any of these, I like the idea of layering knitwear in different shades, and might toy around with the idea of incorporating primary colours into my wardrobe. But other than that, I am going to continue my fantasies about having that orange foamy quilted knitwear (with that bubblegum pink shirt underneath because we all know how perfect they look together) and that salmon pink jacket (I don't get how it's so voluminously perfect.)
I guess at the end of this we are left asking ourselves how Raf never fails to create and invent, even if it's within a field that hardly ventures further than a pin-striped three piece suit. But the answer doesn't really matter-the mystery surrounding it only leaves us wanting more. Raf really is the new king.
