London Collections AW13: Day Three

And so the end has come to London Collections, with the third day offering more evidence to emerging trends and greater clarity to the who's who of British menswear. Take a look below for some highlights from yesterday's shows.

If the cobbled squares of Pitti this week are anything to judge by, checks are a big trend to follow. And if anyone was left doubting, Patrick Grant confirmed suspicions with an E. Tautz collection heavy on contemporary tartans, playful in their scales of line and unusual colour combinations. The collection's emphasis on quality of fabric and genius of cut makes this voguish take on the traditional less scary and more wearable. I wasn't so trusting of the volumous trousers that made appearances throughout, styled sloppily with all garments oversized- something I found just a tad too nonchalant for the label's usual precision. 

This season the pressure was on Katie Eary to exceed expectations, having thrilled the fash-pack with her baroque fish prints for SS13. Another marine creature, a beautifully-blue lobster took centre stage for Autumn/Winter, inspired by 18th century paintings of banquets, which made sense alongside the rich fuschia florals and petal prints. Slicked hair, vampire fangs and metal chokers strengthened Eary's Dracula for Dinner vision, while laced skinny jeans, glittering shades, dazzling Air Jordans and an A$AP Rocky soundtrack brought it back down to earth. 

Another out-of-this-world inspiration was seen at Christopher Kane's third menswear show, this time borrowing from his womenswear's inspiration, Frankenstein. Dracula dropped in too, as did the Creature from the Black Lagoon, appearing on sweatshirts, tees and velvet slippers. Jeans were narrow and slightly cropped, revealing tacky white socks inside those neat slippers. Leopard print dominated in a suitably spooky palette of greys and purples, broken by one or two flickers of red and blue. Lacking in any 'tough' accessories, I couldn't help feeling Kane's boy for Fall wouldn't say boo to a goose, let alone big aul Frankenstein. 

Scary things also happened at the J.W.Anderson show, but this time it was the finished product, rather than the inspiration that beggared belief. Anderson is known for his interest in androgyny and gender-bending but the ruffled camel hair shorts, bandeau tops and frilled gloves in his A/W collection were leaps further than he had gone before. It was quite a clever collection really, using shocking pieces to gain attention, while also including wearable outerwear and graphic knits for the buyers, because everyone who's anyone is going to want something from that collection, right? London's fashion scene is applauded for its 'why not?' attitude, for creating for creativity's sake rather than purely for the sake of sales (not entirely true, London still charges bills, big bills). But before people start reasoning with 'Why not?', they should ask 'Why so?'

London Collections AW13: Day One

London's first mens fashion week in the form of London Collections in June of last year was a sign of the city's surge of creative talent, as well as menswear's unstoppable rise of late. Yesterday saw the beginning of the event's Autumn/Winter 2013 showings, with numerous shows and installations going on around the capital. Take a look below for a run through some of my favourite shows from day one.

I've been a big fan of Kit Neale since his quite recent beginnings, partly because of how he injects a sense of humour into his designs through clever prints, but also because of his attention to the bigger picture. I interviewed him a while back, and he told me that he sees no point in creating unwearable clothes that won't sell because as he put it, he's got to pay the bills. Putting what he preaches to practice, he presented his fried egg prints and Scooby Doo slippers the only way many could find them acceptable- in their local caff. With rhyme to reason, or reason to rhyme, those neon eggs look a little more tasty, and those tutti frutti puffer jackets deliciously tangy. Inspired by the Charles Atlas mockumentary 'Hail the New Puritan', yesterday saw Kit reinforcing exactly why we love him. 

Richard Nicoll's debut menswear collection in June was celebrated for its slick, urban minimalism- something the crowds wished for again for A/W. It was there in yesterday's show, albeit weakened by the inclusion of questionably oversized tailoring not carried well by the rather sickly-looking models. The strongest pieces were simple with interesting details like contrast lapels and panels (also seen at Lou Dalton).

 

Topman's journey through the cold months of Autumn and Winter started with an opening look much like that of a polar explorer, with white tailoring cleverly layered upon a textured cream knit underneath a cool cropped parka, toughened with a pair of luxe hiking boots. Layers of contrast textures and statement shades continued on the models' trip through the reds and siennas of Tibet and China before culminating in seafarer shades of navy. Strong, wearable pieces made this an exceptional show, something Topman's female counterpart might take note of.

Photos from Fashion 156 and Style.com.