Report by Isaac Lock

Let’s hope you’re not running off to Milan tonight – it’s the second ever London menswear day tomorrow, and it’s going to be dead good. After the success of Fashion East MAN, it became apparent that London was turning out too much menswear talent to contain in a single show, so an entire day was born…

Here are five things not to miss:
The first men’s shows to receive support from the BFC’s NEWGEN initiative, sponsored by Topshop, in it’s 16-year history. Carolyn Massey and an excited James Long will be showing back to back, first thing.
The Fashion East menswear installations featuring a baffling amount of new stuff, including a cool-dad-fun-son tailoring display from Casely-Hayford, an offering from hotly hyped Harrow boys Jaiden rVa James, shoes from Mr Hare (if you haven’t heard the buzz already, resign), and an odd but endearing collaboration with the Smiley face brand (the guys who own the trademark to acid smileys) from knitwear trio Sibling. PLUS a first-ever foray into menswear from Louise Gray. She says, “I’m just doing one look, inspired by the coal shed down my basement. It’s a kind of bin-man/coalman look. It involves bin bags. As you can imagine, it’s really chic.”
Lou Dalton at the Portico Rooms. Her knitwear brand has come into its own, offering contemporary, well-made, wearable menswear, with properly done tailoring, thanks to the million years she spent toiling away for a traditional country brand, and a real forward-focused aesthetic, thanks to her being pretty clever and all. “It’s quite dramatic this time,” she claims. “Looks that are classic at the front, but with Napoleonic bustles and trains from the back. Not that you’ll be wearing them on the streets of London. We’ve done nice cottons, classic knits and chambray for that.”
The MAN showcase’s phenomenal line-up. As well as Topman Design, there’s Katie Eary, whose recent work has been shot by Steven Klein and Mario Testino (the latter for the cover of British Vogue), Christopher Shannon, who has cornered the market for progressive sportswear collaborations, and JW Anderson, who has turned what started out as a little jewellery line into a fully fledged menswear brand. He’s pulled in all the favours he can (namely from Repetto and Winsor & Newton) to come up with something that is well made, young luxury, with not a glue gun in sight!
Super-tailor Patrick Grant’s animated presentation for his E Tautz brand. It’s on Savile Row. It’s posh but not guffy.
Photography by Marcus Dawes

Tweet This Post