The spring 2018 menswear runway shows took to London, New York, Paris and Milan; all the usual victims, and in this case, actual victims considering a lot of what walked down the runway. They entertained their audiences with all things off the beaten path and in some cases made onlookers cringe with flash backs to their biggest high school fashion mistakes.
The theme for this season: pack all the fashion faux pas that ever have and ever will haunt us into one short period of time. So let’s review… and start with one of the worst offenders in our opinion. But not to worry, there are some diamonds in the rough in the mix as well.
1. Hawaiian Shirts
Gone are the days that these shirts lived only on the backs of dads vacationing in, oh I don’t know, Hawaii. DSquared2, SSS World Corp and Paul Smith are bringing the trend to the mainstream (unfortunately) with big prints and loud colours galore.
And speaking of things dads love to wear…
2. “Dadcore”
These looks are not for your average dad-bod. Brands like Balenciaga were not holding back with their love for father-fashions. Not only were the clothes representative of this affection, the show itself clearly took inspiration from “young dads in the park with their kids”, as designer Demna Gvasalia said, with the male models walking with and holding young children. Talk about hammering the point home. Despite the fact that we must now look to our fathers for fashion inspo this season, we can appreciate Gvasalia’s attempt to always celebrate real life in his collections. Very much a “black sheep” among the global fashion community, his collections season after season push the boundaries of what “fashion” means and how it should be present in our lives. This season, shop your dad’s closets instead.
3. Interesting Storage Solutions
According to this season’s shows, the term bag lady now needs to be opened up to bag person. Backpacks have been popular on the runways during men’s fashion weeks for years. This season is no different. What is different however is the addition of fanny packs to the roster. Prada, Siki Im and Rick Owens (who took it even further than most) brought this 80s fashion staple back from the dead (maybe where it should’ve stayed?).
And speaking of 80s fashion…
4. When in Doubt, Box it Out
Apparently we’ve returned to oversized shoulders on every piece of clothing one can add oversized shoulders too… hurray? Now don’t get me wrong, this look can work if the proportions are right but did these designers tread that line carefully or slip off of it into unsafe territory? Actually it’s more like they jumped off head first. Take a look…
And of course when you do 80s fashion, the 90s must follow. So here we go.
5. Backstreet’s back?
All we can say is the backstreet boys would be proud. Designers at Louis Vuitton, Martine Rose, Lanvin and Valentino pulled out all the stops with looks featuring bucket hats, front-and-centre branding (think Fila sweatshirts, Tommy Hilfiger tube tops or literally anything Supreme), zip-off cargo pants and full track suits. We are currently attempting to rid ourselves of the memories of our adolescent boyfriends’ outfits as these collections brought them flooding back.
6. The Widest Legged Trousers
Now this is a trend that has also been gaining popularity in womenswear in recent seasons. And we’re all for it, but where do we draw the line? When can we say that wide has gotten too wide? *cough* Now *cough*. We’re all for moving away from the skinny-jean-all-day-every-day idea that has dominated the market since The Hills was on tv, but in this case, we think these menswear designers have gone too far, and much too wide.
We wouldn’t call this next trend a fashion faux pas but rather something needing further exploration. We love how many of these looks featured elements that were both highly fashionable as well as wearable, like structured suiting featuring pops of pattern and colour, but the next trend is definitely a new realm in menswear.
7 . It Should Be Called Unisexwear
This season’s menswear looks took a turn for the androgynous with hemlines becoming shorter and inner seams becoming non-existent. Designer Thom Browne exhibited both trends in one collection… take a look.
Now let’s end on a positive note and talk 3 trends we’re loving:
8. Outwear Gets Technical
Designers have taken a turn for the technical designing outerwear and sportswear pieces using technical fabrics. The brand Matiere has done this trend in all the right ways, keeping the looks edgy and fashion forward while maintaining marketability. Women’s Wear Daily put it best when they wrote that Matiere were “true mavens when it comes to fabric selection… utilizing Italian reflective fabrics in outerwear, crinkled water-resistant elongated jackets and a Japanese high-shine, short-sleeved anorak with panelled technical mesh”. This is a look we can so get behind.
9. Mono-chromatics
Unusual mono-chromatic colour choices were all the rage this menswear season and we can understand why. From browns to dusty pinks, there’s something so interesting about a look that seems to lack interest (aka a single colour used throughout). Ermenegildo Zegna hit the nail on the head with this trend and we think you’ll be able to see why this brand is one of our top picks this season, and will be on our “to watch for” list in seasons to come.
10. Jumpsuits
And finally, prison-chic is apparently the new thing, with jumpsuits breaking out of their traditional use (pun intended). Prada managed to pull this look off and we’re into it. We’re thinking that this trend is not only fashionable but functional (it would certainly cut back dressing time in the am), although it’ll pose some new bathroom-related problems for men… which I suppose could give them a new found respect for the efforts that women go to for fashion (because who doesn’t own a bodysuit at this point?).
Let us know your favourite trends from the mens S’18 NYFW shows, we’d love to hear!
