Goodbye Valentino, Welcome Valentino

Of the mighty Italian designers, Valentino must rank as one of the mightiest. The perma-tanned, perma-elegant Lombardian has been on the scene for nearly a half century and in that time he has become one of the most successful couturiers in history, and undoubtedly, one of the most popular and well known figures in fashion.

Though his women’s collections receive just attention, he is not a one trick pony. There are tens of designers who can’t match the quality of one gender’s collection with another. Ralph Lauren is a rarity in that his men’s collections are actually more dynamic and intriguing than his women’s collections – a mark of his personal taste more than his undoubted ability. Galliano, try though he might, just can’t cut it with the boys. While there is something interesting about his approach and his imagination, his magnificent couture skill actually affects his ready to wear negatively; his conjuring is restricted to the fantastical and despite his creativity in the field of female couture, there is an embarrassing lack of it in his spring 2008 men’s collection.

Valentino, on the other hand captures ‘need’ and ‘want’ without sacrificing invention; he has been measured and realistic about his artistry. And importantly, he didn’t allow his couture fantasy anywhere near his men’s ready-to-wear cutting table. The comparison with Galliano might seem unfair; indeed it is central to the Gilbraltarian’s strategy to introduce the couture rudiments of exploration and experimentation to the generally staid arena of functional menswear. However, his acknowledgment of timelessness is relatively weak in comparison to Valentino. It’s not that the Italian doesn’t want things to change, it’s just that when something is not broken, there’s nothing to fix.
Valentino’s menswear collections focus on tradition. Although, as one commentator on this site pointed out, the Spring 2008 collection was certainly one of the best in recent times, there has been a reassuring reliability to Senor Valentino. Plenty of designers have been hit and miss in the style stakes. ‘Fashionistas’ may laud anything and everything, but it actually takes more to impress arbiters of style. This is not because said arbiters have any special sensibility of ‘good’ fashion or ‘bad’ fashion, but that, generally speaking, they are more difficult to coax from their shells. When it comes to the future, arbiters of style are generally more willing purchasers of pessimism. However, one shouldn’t run away with the idea that this is a particularly bad thing; fashionistas can be inappropriately gushing and quite frightening in their blind optimism and utter devotion to trend.

In a menswear department Valentino had the ability to delight both. His snappy tailoring of men’s classic fashions updated reliable and well-loved looks to the applause of the fashion world and they never seem to approach absurdity or over-theatrics, thus entitling him to the long lasting approval of generations of style men. Though inevitable, his retirement is a great shame as it seems to have ended this happy co-existence of couture and male and female ready to wear.

And with Pozzoni as creative director, an ambitious couturier himself, what future holds for the men’s collections from the house of Valentino? It seems that despite his guarded, derivative Fall 2008 collections that nursed Valentino’s legacy, there might be some changes to come, and if couture is Pozzoni’s future then what embracement of continuity will there be?

After Slimane’s fall from Dior, it was suspected that the first collection from Kris Van Assche would be ‘Hedi-reverential’ and indeed, largely, it was. However, the difficulty in following a great name seems to have affected him as the unimpressive Fall 2008 collection illustrates. Slimane’s Dior collections were certainly fashion forward, but he recognised timeless urbanity and translated it competently.

Pozzoni is fortunate in that his responsibility at Valentino is so small, but despite this, he is stepping into some very large and very well respected shoes. Valentino had a gift for recognising, quite simply, what looks good with what. From his elaborate couture to his sturdy menswear that defined eighties chic, Val showed a talent extremely difficult to replace.

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Artisan Chic

For those not inclined to polished looks, preferring the appeal of imperfections rather than divine precision, artisan chic is a classic style reference. Unlike a lot of other rather scruffy clothing, there is a legacy of purpose behind the multitude of pockets in an artisan’s jacket and a story behind the crumpled lapels. The artisan always desired a quiet smartness but the main quality of artisan clothing is a focus on the practicalities for the craft.

I once walked through Positano, looking in the little shoe-making shops, admiring their dedication to their work whilst gazing on rows of half finished shoes in a trancelike state. In one particular establishment, the little cobbler sat on a stool in a three-button linen jacket; underneath was a thick weave waistcoat and a check shirt with a cream tie. I wish I had taken a picture as it would not only have been lovely to display with this article, but it would have shown how much use he was actually getting from his clothing. Wooden handled tools popped out from his breast pocket, little nails were piled inside a small waistcoat pocket. He was an image so lacking in pomp, and yet so stylish in delivery. His personal fashion was likely decades old but so ingenuous. Like the tap-tapping of his honest craft, his clothing was self-explanatory and lacking in pretence and even though I am no skilled craftsman, employing a clothing style dedicated to practicality is something I admire.

The corduroy or linen jacket

The start of every artisan look should be the jacket. It should fit well, but it should avoid folly and fashion; short jackets may be the vogue, but keep the artisan jacket a classic length. Secondly, in terms of colour, browns and greens may be the very ‘usual’ colours for corduroy but the most interesting versions I have seen are in navy and black. These colours are also more appropriate for the coming season as I tend to consider certain browns and greens too autumnal. Linen jackets are more appropriate for warmer times of year and their unstructured shape relaxes all combinations. I like linen jackets in sacking colours and they look excellent with a favourite white shirt.

The useful waistcoat

Another signature garment of the artisan look is a waistcoat with working pockets. Unlike foppish fashion creations, the practical waistcoat is often made from a knitted material, perhaps lambs wool, and the chief characteristics apart from the informal pockets, are the simple lapels and high break. Effectively, it is a sleeveless cardigan with a large number of pockets.

The trousers

One of the things I noticed about the charming chap from Positano was that he, for no particular reason, rolled his trousers up boyishly, displaying his naked ankles. This is a particularly appealing touch and it works with practically any type of trouser, although it’s best to stick with straight and slim leg trousers or reasonably well worn and tired-looking denim.

The shoes

The shoes completing the style should be practical but not bulky; an old looking yet elegantly shaped pair will always trump a brand new pair of ugly blocks. A good colour for the shoes is rich burgundy, like that of a fine old wine and any wear and tear adds character, but the shoes must be well polished and cared for, otherwise the look can descend into tramp chic.

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City Boy Style Rocks

It’s happened again. Rogue trading has hit the headlines. Only this time, instead of sultry Singapore, patrician Paris is the financial crime scene and there is something curiously apropos about that. Just when people had started, once more, to write off city boys as boring, avaricious creeps, up pops one of the bad-boy ‘rock stars’ in one of the world’s most stylish capitals having bled his employing investment bank SocGen of a whopping $7 billion. Forget high-stakes poker, forget trashing hotel rooms and mind-bending narcotic experimentation. Taking thousands of millions, squandering them and then elegantly covering the trail is the way to rock and roll and it has put the city boys back in the spotlight.

With a nervy start to the financial year, people were already beginning to turn their lenses on the unassuming bean-counters in the towers of glass and steel but this news has really set the pulses going. No one romanticises or fantasises about the striped-shirt brigade who spend their days with screens and phones; they are the antithesis of romantic figures, merely slaves to King Midas who occasionally flash their inner vulgarity with ostentatious consumption and tasteless over-tipping. Their working lives are chronicled anonymously in the salmon-print of the Financial Times consistently referred to in herd-like terms, avoiding reference to any individuality, and we are led to believe they are merely miserable souls whose Damoclean mistake was to follow the road to riches rather than honest worth.

A lot of this is, of course, drivel. Yes, these chaps are driven by money, but find me one Hollywood egotist willing to accept the minimum wage for their work. They aren’t exactly long-haired poets or suffering artists of great talent, but they take huge risks and not merely to double-line their own pockets. They also work, for better or worse, pretty damn hard to make money and they are necessary in this zero-sum world. Lastly, their salaries, often criticised for being simply too large by point-scoring neo-liberal politicians, are in fact proportionate to their performances and are taxed like every other sum of legitimate money.

One other thing, which is likely to be scoffed at, is an observation of mine that in fact, a lot of city boys have the style nous that other professionals lack. The lawyer is smart, but lacking in chutzpah. The doctor is generally over-casual and unremarkable. The city boy is a Wall Street tiger: he has stripes and he will bally well show them.

However, the hard, mathematical types who hoard pictures of their families on their desk, next to their novelty chess-boards, resent this city boy tag, so I isolate them from my spoons of praise. They are the dry, tee totalling mail-order catalogue side of the city to whom style is about as important as moon exploration to a budgerigar. The true city boy sweeps in wearing pinstripes leaning towards the muted sartorial classicism of Jermyn Street in contrast to the advertising titan in Soho, clothed in Duchamp and Richard James. He wears shirts and ties with ease and pride, and even bothers to seek advice in Thomas Pink from the style consultants for counsel on combinations. At his side swings a magnificent Malacca umbrella from James Smith.

Though dressing down has been the recent form for vast swathes of city folk, the indication is that some of the British are standing firm. A stockbroking friend of mine is a strong believer in the city uniform and refers to the attire of the relaxed New Yorkers, quite abruptly as ‘that casual crap’. Whereas casual financial-scientists from Wall Street see themselves as belonging to the distinctly un-yuppy Pixar generation, the stalwarts of the Square Mile stand proud with the dignified and unapologetic air of George W. Banks. The markets can go where they like; sartorial stoicism is to be saluted.

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Favourite Ensembles: Burberry Prorsum Fall 2005

Christopher Bailey has done a fine job at Burberry. With a company legacy of gabardine rainwear and perhaps the most recognisable tartan check in the world, it was not a simple task to take Burberry from its fashion status as a ‘gilded pretender’ and to push it into the respected arena of financially successful ‘superbrands’ such as Dior Homme and Alexander McQueen. Having all the celebrity and historical credentials one could wish for, comparable, but not necessarily equal, to rival brand Louis Vuitton, designing for such a grand name couldn’t possibly pose any risks for such a talented designer. However, he has not shied away from risk-taking as far as his work is concerned and his men’s collections, though they frequently draw on Burberry’s heritage, have broken new ground and sometimes, delightfully, draw on a wider English heritage.

Such is the case with the above outfit, one of my all time favourite ensembles from the runways. Though there is an undeniable conservatism - the classic shape of jacket, the straight leg trousers and the Oxford shoes - this outfit has such vibrancy, such a kick, that it draws second and third looks. The leather two-button jacket, with a texture and colour of forest ivy, produces one of the ‘effects’ for which I have great admiration; this is the effect of taking an ordinary and commonplace item and, by altering one facet of it, completely extricating that ordinary and commonplace theme. Another example may be the adding of a thin, egg yolk patent leather belt to a pair of black trousers instantly removing the dullness and the humdrum; like throwing a wedge of lime into the G&T. A plain jacket, even an ordinary wool or cotton ivy green jacket, would not have such a special effect; it’s the leather ‘twist’ that really lifts the item.

Individually, the items are of high quality and of an interesting texture, but it’s the agreeable interplay that really makes the whole thing stand out. The tangerine jumper would not have such an appeal were it not for the sober colours at its borders; and such pairing applies, vice versa – it’s the strength of that central tone that prevents the dark grey trousers and shirt from looking too miserable. The blue suede gloves and the plum shoes are inspired touches; both muted colours, not attempting to compete with the powerful knitwear, but still adding to the palette. The bamboo handled Burberry check umbrella, as well as the corsage, adds that welcome touch of whimsy.

Bailey once said that he refrains from thinking about things in terms of taste; good or bad, but rather, he prefers to think of items as ‘sophisticated or ugly’. The joy is then in combining the two together. Although as a look, I would prefer complete sophistication, which Bailey rightly regards as ‘too easy’, the combination is inescapably modern; like a 1960s office block built next to a Victorian mansion. It’s a challenge but its theory is grounded in the realities of our topsy turvy world: that ugliness in individuality can be tempered, and even enhanced, by a union with irreproachable sophistication and beauty.

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Hiking and Style

If I could think of one leisurely pursuit associated with garments that are the antithesis of good style, hiking is the pursuit I would think of. Hiking, or hill walking, itself is a healthy and rather romantic activity; the beautiful scenery, the wonderful mountain air and the enjoyment of exercise. It’s a reengagement with nature and an invigorating experience, and it’s rather sad that the equipment and attire accompanying does not possess the same beauty or style. Having said that, it would of course be absurd to wear impractical and merely decorative clothing in the wide open spaces; one needs waterproof material, sensible footwear and decent warmth. You cannot be stranded on the peaks with only a silk scarf and a pocket square between you and the sweeping rains and the howling wind.

There is decent outdoor clothing that doesn’t look like it has been manufactured for traffic wardens; waterproof jackets that have style and aesthetic value and not merely Gore-Tex credentials, and boots that, blissfully, do not look like they have been constructed from an old car seat.

Hill walking doesn’t need to include a brief, forgettable departure from your personal style; by concocting the right outfit, you can feel a man of style even in the wilderness of the breathtaking rural glens. A visit to the local caravanserai, post exercise, in decent hiking clobber rather than the embarrassing nylon clobber that spends most of the time gathering dust at the back of your wardrobe, somehow makes a great difference. The way to stand out from the rest of the gaudily garbed walking crew is to tune in with nature; tonally, browns, greens, light greys and a dash of pagan orange. This is no camouflage, but rather a toast to Nature’s beauty.

Generally speaking, country walkers might choose the jacket on the left. Filled with natural down, it presents good value and warmth and is made by the highly esteemed North Face brand and it will be robust for a few coming years. It might also serve well as a jacket for winter sports. The down filling also means excessive layering is not required. However, despite these very practical and persuasive qualities, I would always plump for one of the other two jackets. Barbour jackets to me are a happy medium between hard-wearing practicality and timeless pastoral style; the greens and browns sing in harmony with nature, the waxed outer layering gathers character like that of a mossy rock and the construction always retains its shape even after years of use.
When it comes to boots, most of the footwear you will see when gadding about on the hilltops looks rather ‘technical’, (left) but is in fact merely comfortable; expensive hiking boots offer extra support, but I find that this market is largely a promotion of the value in Velcro straps, flashing lines and ‘technical’ looking materials. If you want to feel like you are wearing bedroom slippers on wooded mountains then hiking is not for you; nothing will ever feel as good as you hope, despite the appealing names. Timberland (centre and right) manufacture some of the finest practical footwear. The shoes are hard-wearing and comfortable and the support is perfectly adequate. Importantly, the designs themselves, while not exactly in the class of Berluti, are far more appealing and have a game-hunter rusticity in comparison to the rather appalling Hi-tecs pictured on the left.

Hats too are generally required; the Pens are not a place to be seen with an umbrella and felicities such as ‘feeling the rain on your face’ belong in a paragraph of Austen, not in the grim realities of the great outdoors. A lot of people choose rather cheap, shapeless hoods attached to their jacket. Whilst this is certainly practical, it is also rather dreadful. Barbour manufacture wonderful wax brimmed hats, utterly waterproof, that assist in cutting a fine mountain figure whilst keeping your head very warm and completely dry.

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