When men go soft

Women have long been raiding men’s closets and their haberdashers’ textiles to give their wardrobe that sexy, masculine edge. “The boyfriend’s jacket,” men’s brogues and oxfords have all seamlessly crossed the man/woman divide with very little fanfare all the way to high-street fast fashion. But how about the other way around?  Except when appropriated for the eccentric dandy and perhaps the rock star, lace and glitter have always been met with some reservation for the majority of the male population.  All that seems to be changing, however, if the recent men’s spring-summer 2014 shows are any indication. 

Just take a look at how flowers have bloomed all over the runways, and not just in shirts where they have traditionally appeared but in pants, jackets, man-totes, hats and even beaded (yes, as in sequins as seen at Richard James) on espadrilles, next summer’s hot shoe style. Gucci had floral prints with a touch of the gothic in sleek glossy textures for suits, sometimes paired with sportswear like track pants in techno fabrics. There was even a mesh sweater with flower appliqués, prompting Suzy Menkes to comment that the models “looked more like an opera chorus than hunky Gucci males.”  

Miuccia Prada gave flowers the signature noir treatment, thriving in her “menacing paradise” of tropical blooms where wily seductresses make playthings out of beautiful young men, calling to mind Montgomery Clift in the 1953 film, “From Here to Eternity.” Dries van Noten, who is opening a retrospective exhibit at the Museé des Arts Decoratifs next year, scoured the museum’s archives of flower prints from the Rococo onwards and got him thinking about all the men known for wearing flowers:  Louis XVI, Oscar Wilde, Jean Cocteau, Jimi Hendrix.  Melding them with today’s “surf rats,” he came up with his own florals based on archival materials as well as scans of freshly cut blooms and a whiff of Hawaiian gothic.  They came in various fabrics and textures, in unusual silhouettes and combinations like a devoré shirt paired with moiré trousers or a damask coat over surf shorts, accented with a belt with bullion embroidery.  The designer admits this is not the usual florals men are used to and that he was defiantly pushing the limits:  “seeing how far you can go with transparent shirts and devoré and still be able to say, ‘Hey man, these are men’s clothes’.” 

Even Giorgio Armani, the king of greige, softened his look with the appearance of blush pink and peach among the navy blues.  There were also jackets that had a softer look compared to the strict styles he has been known for, not to mention shoes in hazy batik-prints.  Etro, known for its heritage prints, had a Zorro theme which was applied with florid embroidery and opulent passementerie on shirts, jackets and trousers.  Topman, on the other hand, did their Western theme with luxe cowboy shirts in silk embellished with intricate embroidery.  

In London, lace seemed to be a favorite fabric borrowed from the femmes. With “Rites of Passage” as an inspiration, the material was a key element in the Alexander McQueen collection designed by Sarah Burton. The christening gown’s scalloped lace underwent wondrous transmutations as suits which opened her show. There were also frayed jacquards and brocades, tarnished buttons and roses embroidered on ticking jackets which had that “castaway aristocrat on a desert island” look.   White lace later turned to black skulls and red roses and butterflies became black flowers as clerics appeared to administer the last rites in the finale.

Lace was given a robust incarnation by Astrid Andersen who used the delicate material on pieces derived from training-gear uniforms, channeling a raw aggression and athleticism: “I love men in this way, looking super-sexy. I think fashion needs that.”  As if lace weren’t fem enough to counter the testosterone, she also used green velvet for track suits and lined her hoodies with Danish mink. 

Sibling’s training gear was even more eye-popping in shades of bubble-gum pink, mint and lilac, done in loosely woven crochet worn by chunky rugby players. They camped it up further with knits made from the woven plastic strings that are used for Scooby friendship bracelets. 

Shaun Samson showed his Southern California roots with surf boys but instead of nylon, he used the most delicate organza and silk georgette for shirts and board shorts which came in blush pink. He also wrapped the models waists in what looked like beach towels: “It’s not a fashion statement, “ he said.  “It’s a way for a man to wear a skirt.” 

But the most talked about in London had to be the collection of JW Anderson which London’s Daily Mail labeled as “atrocious” because of “the sheer halter neck tops covered in ditsy daisies paired with giant black palazzo pants and poodle fringes” (hair styled with shellack-slick top and frizzed bangs).  The designer explained that his backless halter tops were not created just to shock. “That top started as a long raglan mac, then we cut the sleeves and made it short. When you’re in the studio, that kind of experimentation feels normal. In fact, it’s the point. You’re playing with a piece of fabric, trying to create a new line, a new proportion. But then, you present that to the world, on a runway, and it becomes this ‘thing’.”

In Paris, Thom Browne was just as controversial with silhouettes and styling that made you wonder was this his men’s or his ladies’? Inspired by the Ecole Militaire in Paris, he came up with a military collection in his characteristically twisted, gender-bending way, complete with models with rouged cheeks and scarlet lipstick.  Trench coats and jackets were cut on the bias, flaring away from the waist and heavily padded on the shoulders like 40s femme fatales who were going to military school.  In another vein, they were like cross-dressing fascist officers in a Visconti or Fellini movie.  

To label these looks “feminine, “ however, seems unfair or arbitrary, according to Maya Singer in an article in bbc.com: “Who decided that men couldn’t wear lace?  Or skirts, for that matter? Back in ancient Greece, guys were wearing togas, right? So when did all this vigilance about masculinity happen, exactly?”  

“In the ’70s, footballers used to wear these tiny shorts,” said designer Martin Rose in an interview with Singer. “No one was questioning their manliness; other guys wanted to look like them, in fact.  And they were sexy . . . they had the confidence to show their bodies and to be playful.” Which is what dressing and fashion is all about, really. But does the man of today have this confidence? And does he have the time to break away from all his gadgets and digital world to be playful with the way he looks? Does he even have the imagination to be playful with the way he lives?