Men’s Fashion Heritage This Fall
Fashion is a cyclical industry. Big style trends in 1995 could be outdated by 1998, only to come swinging back in 2003. There are also certain styles that were thought to be gone forever, but have returned on the scene in a big way – as ‘throwbacks’ or ‘nods to classic fashion’ instead of merely being retro. This fall features several trends, has-beens of men’s fashion that have been given a new lease on life.
Three-Piece Suits
Although this style of suiting was common up to the 1960’s on both sides of the Atlantic, it fell from favor during the anti-establishment and experimental decades that followed. Now that men’s fashion is once again placing a premium on the well-dressed gentleman, three-piece suits have returned to the top rung of business formal attire.
In addition to the suit jacket and trousers, the vest or waistcoat adds an extra balancing dimension to the outfit. A three-piece suit, for example, is visually stronger than a two-piece equivalent, and can thus work better with a bolder shirt-necktie combination. It’s also a good investment – along with the bolder neck ties and shirts – because it gives you more suit separates to work with on less formal days.
Three-piece suits have outgrown their stuffy and fusty reputations. In men’s fashion today, even the youngest of the fashion-savvy – red carpet celebrities and style bloggers alike – have taken to donning vest, jacket and pants.
Brass Buttons
A jacket’s buttons are small things, to be sure, but their impact is far from insignificant. Switching out and mixing up the little details on your clothes – the color of the buttons, the stitching on a pocket – is a quick but subtle way to give the garment personality. You’re still wearing the same item, meaning you’re still sticking to the dress code, but you also add a stamp of personal style to an otherwise generic piece.
Changing the buttons on a navy jacket to brass – or any copper color metal hardware, for that matter – brings a slightly preppy and majorly nautical tone to your outfit. It’s great for pairing with a pique polo and khakis for a true sailor vibe, or with shorts and a tie for a quirkily affected East Coast feel.
Many men’s fashion retailers now carry brass button jackets, but you’re free to change them up on your own. The necessary items should all be available at the nearest fabric store or haberdasher.
Brogued Shoes
Another fashion relic from a different era and across the Atlantic, brogues used to be the footwear of choice for country gentlemen. They then became popular with the white-collar crowd, but disappeared from popular view about the same time as three-piece suits and bowler hats (which are still relatively off-the-scene today).
Nowadays, brogues have found favor with the fashion set as a shoe style that’s dressy yet has a distinct personality and character. They’re found paired with neckties and suits as often as with jeans and plain oxford shirts. In brown leather (and with matching brown leather accessories), they’re the style of choice for the adventurously fashionable man.
These wardrobe details are by no means essential in every man’s wardrobe, and have only occasionally solidified as trends. Their reappearance in popular men’s fashion, however, shows that they’re ready to be inducted as ‘classic’ style pieces – the kinds of things that look good on every man, regardless of location or decade.
Other Suggested Readings:
Guide to Mens Fall Fashion
Burgundy Ties for Fall 2011
Your Bows-n-Ties.com Team