Summertrend Men 2012: The Blues

Oh boy oh boy, we’re having the blues this summer. Well, not literally of course. But for this season blue, the stereotypical boy’s color, is the absolute it-color for men when it comes to their summer wardrobe. Acne, Bottega Veneta, D&G, Viktor&Rolf, Versace, Hermès, Yves Saint Laurent, they all showed us blue on the catwalk. And the good thing is: you have a lot to choose from.

In Milan and Paris we’ve seen the whole spectrum of blue coming by, from very soft and light to ultra dark en mysterious: azure, indigo, ultra marine. Highly popular is the monochromatic look, with a key-role for the suit. The navy suit has became a real wardrobe essential. But designers seem to want to reinvent the classic suit and are experimenting with all the different possibilities and playing with new elements and details, which results in mixing all shades of blue, prints (checks!) and fabrics.

Not really into this monochromatic look? Too much blue for you? No problem, because also two-toned looks are doing well, like blues with a touch of orange, white or with a nice print, like we’ve seen at Dries van Noten and Paul Smith. Because not only is blue a very powerful and beautiful color, but multifunctional too. You can mix it with almost any color, from brights to naturals.

It has never been more fun having the blues, don’t you think?

Eva Dusch

Summertrend 2012: Sugarsweet

Say goodbye to all the color blocking and screaming colors this summer, because it’s time to soften it up a little. It’s absolutely clear that for this summer the great designers were a little nostalgic. They went back in time and got inspired by the late forties and fifties, which results in loads of swirling skirts and dresses, high waists and cat-eye sunglasses. But the title role on the stage definitely goes to the pastel shades.

Pale blue, soft pink, light yellow, white, lilac, mint green: sweet and girly it is.  And you can even wear them all together. For sure, it was Miuccia Prada who had set the tone (and not for the first time) with her Prada ‘sweetness’ collection. But also Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Chloe, Jill Stuart, Christopher Kane, Marni and Yves Saint Laurent showed us their softer side.

With the biggest retailers who picked up this trend right away, it won’t be difficult to create this look yourself. You can take this look to the highest level like Prada does, mixing the ice cream-shades with some stunning embellishments, flower prints and fifties shades. For a more sophisticated and modern look it’s better to choose a streamlined silhouette without any finery or use pastels as an eye catching detail in a white and crispy design.

Eva Dusch

Summertrend Men 2012: Urban Safari

This is one of those trends that we have been seeing for a few seasons now – for both men and women – but knows some small changes every time. And also for this summer many designers seemed to be inspired by the nations of Africa. They are taking us on a trip through the Savanna, North Africa or the wilderness, but they won’t let us go down there without some fine pieces of clothing. After all, you always go in style. And this style defines itself as safari mixed with a touch of urban and western luxury.

The color palette consists of shades like khaki, olive green, white, deep orange and sand colors. And while going into the wilderness you need some comfy and airy clothes, like linen blouses, slouchy cargo’s, multi-pocket shorts, rolled-up pants, long dip-dyed scarves (or those beautiful one with the blue-red plaids at Louis Vuitton), ropy sweaters, raffia bags or hats and some leather sandals. The luxurious touch comes more in terms of animal prints and leather.

And if you’re daring enough and not afraid to show your feminine side as a man, you can even wrap some cloths around your waist. Look who’s the king of the jungle now…

Eva Dusch

Summertrend 2012 (men): Let your feet breathe

Lots of men will never get used to it and some women can’t stand the sight of it but the fact remains that sandals for men are a definite summer trend. And now that the temperature is rising those sunny sandals are popping up everywhere. And don’t think there’s no room for creativity with the men’s sandal; on the catwalk as well as on the streets we spotted lots of different designs. Like the red and beige ones, worn with socks at Louis Vuitton. Or the zigzag printed ones at Missoni. And let’s not forget the purple pair at Dsquared. The only two basic parts of a men’s sandal are: leather and straps, the rest is up to the designer’s imagination. Wear them with shorts, trousers or a wrap dress (like the guy in our streetstyle pics) and just (let your feet) breathe!

Summertrend (men) 2012: Prints Charming

There are still men who are afraid to wear something in pink as they don’t want to look ‘too feminine’. Those men should stop reading, since this is not the trend for them. This trend, which focuses on printed pants, is for the fashion minded guys who dare to experiment with their style. Men who dare to mix ethnic prints with a checks (Etro), men who would wear a tank top with pastel shaded trousers (Givenchy) and men who, without a doubt, tie a printed scarf around their necks to match their pants (Prada, Kenzo).

This season these lads have lots to choose from. Florals (Gaultier, Moschino, Prada), scarf prints (D&G) or just beautiful color combinations (Bottega Veneta, Emporio Armani). And even the good old checks and stripes belong to this printed pant trend. Combined with other printed items or styled off more simply with uni-colored items; decide just how wild you want to bring it and make sure to have fun with it!

Summertrend 2012: (no) eyebrows

They have an underestimated role when it comes to our facial expression, but if we think about it they are hugely important: eyebrows.  For decades this particular part of our face has known some strong trends: very thick, ultra thin, bleached or penciled. And also this summer the eyebrow is playing a star role when it comes to beauty.

It can go two directions. We’ve seen the bleached variant, spotted at Yves Saint Laurent, Gucci and Rick Owens.  A daring look spotted already last season. But mostly spotted is the exaggerated eyebrow, on the catwalk of Donna Karan, Proenza Schouler, Moschino and Max Mara.  They look well framed and brushy but natural, like Hollywood stars Audrey Hepburn and Elizabeth Taylor back in the days. You can make it even more obvious using a thick eyebrow pencil.

Maybe it’s time to stop plucking your brows and see how this heavy one suits you.

(Eva Dusch)

Summertrend 2012: the wet look

Alexander Wang, Donna Karan, Marc Jacobs, Proenza Schouler, Thierry Mugler, Giambattista Valli, Chanel,  Prabal Gurung, Yves Saint Laurent. All these designers had the same thing in mind when it came to the hair trend for this season: soaking-wet hair.  It’s one of the biggest hair trends  on the radar for this summer.

For a few seasons it was all about natural hair en easy looks, but for this summer the designers changed course and seemed to be inspired by this grungy-look. The wetter the hair, the better. Make it as shiny and greasy as you can and comb your hair in the front all backwards. You can wear it loose and a bit messy and casual (Proenza Schouler and Marc Jacobs) or really tight and in a chic sidepart (Chanel).

You have to have some guts to wear your hair like this. But if you do, you might do some shopping now, because this looks requires loads of hair gel.

(Eva Dusch)

Summertrend 2012: Get low!

Shoe heels have been increasing in length enormously for the past few years and ‘the higher the better’ might even have been your personal heel motto, but it’s time for a change. As comfort is becoming more important in fashion again shoe heels have dropped a few inches. We spotted lower (kitten) heels at several big shows this season. Louis Vuitton, Ninna Ricci, Tory Burch and Hermes all opted for a slightly subtler heel in their spring/summer collections. Now don’t think by losing height those shoes have become any less attractive. They’re still sexy, but just better wearable. In these shoes you might actually last throughout your night out and you can leave your back-up ballerina’s at home. So shopping for lower heels it is! And while you’re at it: try finding shoes with a pointy toe, cause pointy is the new rounded (again).

Summertrend 2012: embrace your femininity

Blossomed, pencil, pleated, patterned, maxi, mini… For this summer female elegance is all about the skirt. But there’s only one that’s the star of the show this season: the over-the-knee skirt.

The classic skirt with the below-knee hemline, who had his highest point in the fifties, is making a huge comeback this season and has a key-role in many collections. Donna Karan, Burberry, Erdem, Jonathan Saunders, Louis Vuitton, Lanvin, Celine, Dolce&Gabanna, Chloé, Hermès, they all showed their own version of this evergreen. And the message seems clear: embrace your femininity, which results in body- con, pencil skirts on one hand or wide swing skirts on the other hand. This last one is probably the most popular one: high waisted and blossoming, preferably pleated, pastel colored and made out of silk or cotton.

How to wear it? Combine it with a classic blouse, or some chunky knitwear to give it some more edge. Even a baseball jacket could work, to give it an unusual twist and make it less girly.

Just take a look at these catwalk pictures or at all these women we’ve spotted on the street wearing this classic piece. Enough inspiration, we would say.

(Eva Dusch)

Summertrend 2012: no fuss

Still going strong: minimalism. Although less than previous seasons, minimalistic designs are still doing well on the catwalk these days. While romanticism, femininity and retro glamor is gaining ground in the world of fashion -even designers known for their minimal approach are experimenting with romantic elements-, clean, simple and sculptural shapes are still one of our favorites. Why?  Because we love the strong lines and shapes, the less is more attitude, the daring and uncommon forms, the humbleness and timeless character of the clothing.  Because we adore the strong, boxy jackets at Balenciaga, the clean-cut silhouette at Celine, the pointy shoulders and perfectly fitting, body-hugging dresses at Lanvin and the ultra simple but feminine Jil Sander dresses.

This trend works for almost every woman, no matter size or shape. And all these designers proved once more that minimalistic can be sexy and feminine too. And honestly, they make a great exception between all the girly flowers, pastels and fifties dresses that are already hanging in our closet, don’t you think?

(Eva Dusch)

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