Margaret Howell’s no frills English sensibility is a staple on the London
Collections: Men calendar. Each season Howell transforms her London
Wigmore Street
boutique into a catwalk and for Autumn/Winter 2015 her take on heritage
blended with signature pared-down utilitarian aesthetic. Rollnecks and
knitwear were featured under soft tailoring and outerwear, as highlighted
by pinstripe suiting and cable-detailed knitwear. Howell favours a
relaxed silhouette,
with mannish trousers and slouchy jackets that also extend to her
womenswear.
James Long’s catwalk presentation proved a challenge when the designer
admitted several looks and outerwear didn’t arrive in time and were stuck
in customs. His dilemma echoed the toughness of the men’s fashion calendar
with factories and suppliers closed over the Christmas period and the
pressure fashion houses are under to deliver collections by early January.
But Long pulled it together showing decorative streetwear, including puffa
jackets, bombers, denim, jersey, juxtaposed with lace. With a soundtrack of
Gypsy Woman by Crystal Waters, the show had to go on, and did so remarkably
well.
J.W. Anderson’s challenge of mens versus womenswear is by now his
resounding trademark and for Autumn/Winter 15 the masculine/feminine divide
saw slits down the sides of trousers, exaggerated belt buckles and zip
closures and oversized furry coats which could have been passed down by a
fashionable grandmother. Perhaps more commercial were the two-tone
turtlenecks, degrade effect coats and 60s leather jackets. The show took
place on a catwalk filled with purple chips made of rubber, which were
Anderson’s reference to George Orwell’s 1984.
Dunhill showed one of London’s strongest collections with creative director
John Ray at the helm. Dunhill is a heritage brand usually associated with
stuffy suiting and accessories, but this season a new casual look emerged
with clothes that were as desirable as they were beautifully-made. Trousers
came loose and often rolled up, while knitwear and corduroy were dominant
fabric choices. Key looks included salmon-hued pajamas and an alpaca coat.
Gieves & Hawkes focused on contemporary luxury and tailoring featuring
monochrome looks with shearlings, a pony-skin topcoat, double-breasted
suiting and pretty much everything in black. A chambray shirt added a hint
of colour, but there was no white to be seen, rather this was a collection
of black and grey tones with injections of berry colours and crocodile in
the accessories. Leather sneakers and lug-soled shoes were teamed with
sharply cut tailoring with leather gloves and slicked back hair making the
look more futurist than heritage. Seeing as Gieves & Hawkes is based at No
1 Savile Row with holding several Royal Warrents, lets hope its customers
are futurists also.
Images: Margaret Howell, Gieves & Hawkes, Dunhill
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