The blue trench

McQueen Rethinks Runway

McQueensbury Rules was the perfect balance of theatre on the one side and desirable yet wearable clothes on the other. The show of the season for me by far.

WWD broke the news today that after wow-ing us all with his theatrical yet highly wearable AW09 collection, Alexander McQueen will be moving on from the standard runway format. He certainly has provided us with some of the best, most memorable shows over the years, but this summer, the designer will present his collection in some other format. The designer and his team were one of the few designers who were able to create something special on the catwalk but McQueen is a true showman so I am sure that he will blow us away. His publicists say they are working on “something very special,” which will definitely not be a sit-down runway show and although Milan will certainly miss him, he will still give us something awesome. McQueen constantly surprises me. In a recent interview with Numéro Homme magazine, he extolled the virtues of choosing soaps over fashion and made me laugh to myself (whilst getting the odd strange look from other folk in Borders...oh the shame!).

"You know it’s hard enough doing this job, I don’t have to live it as well. I’d rather sit at home watching ‘Coronation Street.’“

As long as McQueen manages to peel himself off the sofa from season to season, he will continue to push fashion forward in whatever way he chooses. How would you like to see McQueen show his next collection? I have visions of McQueen directing an episode of the nation's favourite soaps..just imagine Jack Duckworth in McQueen tailoring...or maybe not!

Paper Cut Tailoring

Our recent trip to Antwerp saw us take in some culture as well as just the over eating and stock sale hunting. One of the highlights for me, was the trip to the MOMU to marvel at the Paper Fashion exhibition. The exhibition brings together the most remarkable collection of paper fashion creations. In addition to the historic objects from Ancient China and Japan, the exhibition includes designs by Hussein Chalayan, A.F. Vandevorst, John Galliano, Walter Van Beirendonck, Dirk Van Saene, Issey Miyake to name just a few. Although there has been no real question of paper fashion as such since 1968 (previously anything was possible with paper fashion from pop art to political campaign slogans), countless important fashion houses and designers have experimented with paper or with materials that resemble paper.

Of course the exhibition had a heavy womenswear slant but their were still the odd nugget of menswear to savour. Namely James Rosenquist's famous paper suit for Hugo Boss that he wore to Pop art openings and parties in the 1960s. Rosenquist in his paper suit transcended mere fashion and became the perfect embodiment of the era.

Recently remade of Tyvek(r) (a nonwoven fabric made from spun-bonded olefin) brings Rosenquist's paper suit into the new millenium. This extraordinary garment represents the increasingly explicit link between art and fashion and marries the most enduring form of menswear with the "throwaway" nature of paper.

The fragility of paper stimulated the textiles industry to seek out alternative materials that looked like paper, but which offered more possibilities. Ultimately, Tyvek proved to be the only one of these materials that would continue to be used in the textiles industry to the present day. When I posted about Saskia Diez's use of the fabric I was most intrigued by it and meant to explore its use further (Miuccia used it expertly to provide monochromatic colour blocks for MiuMiu SS07 collection - it became the outerwear of choice from the bomber jackets to the boxy plebian coats with micro collars) and was even pointed in the direction of Cloth House where the fabric is available. Following a great deal of papier inspiration at the exhibition I will make that trip to Berwick Street this weekend for a closer look.

The stripey skirt

Finding Bruno in Antwerp

As you all know I was fortunate enough to spend a long weekend in the quiet city of Antwerp and whilst admiring the architecture, exploring the home of Rubens, and eating far too much food we had more than enough time to hunt and gather some stock sale bargains. After the initial sale and resulting disappointment of the offerings at Ann Demeulemeester (the prices were somewhat off putting but the quality and stock in my size was also surprisingly lacklustre) and Dries Van Noten (which was huge and impressive but alas only large sizes were available for all of the good stuff...torture) we swung by Bruno Pieter's sale and my mood became a whole lot cheerier. The post therefore title does not refer to me watching an advanced screening of the latest guise of Sascha Baron Cohen causing laughter and embarrassment with his flamboyant Austrian fashionista's antics but rather nabbing a couple of gems from Bruno Pieter's menswear line.

The art of layering and clashing pattern. A favourite look from Pieter's AW08 collection...I was very tempted by the jacket but alas my size wasn't available!

In his role as Creative Director at Hugo by Hugo Boss (surely it should read by Bruno Pieters?) Pieters kicked off AW09 proceedings in Paris with a dizzying array of patterns and razor sharp tailoring which made me sit up and take notice. When I saw that the Belgium born and Royal Academy of Fine Arts graduate's name was included in the comprehensive list of stock sales in Antwerp I was eager to see what was on offer from his own, lesser known line. Where Hugo is in question he maintains a more geometric, German-style register whilst his own line is marked by romanticism and wonderful detailing. With only two shown collections I was worried that the amount of menswear on offer would be limited but I was more than pleasantly surprised by the rail after rail of pieces for me to try on. There was so much to tempt me but I carefully selected what I knew would fit in my wardrobe whilst adding something to it.

Here I am proudly modeling my favourite purchase. After a quick bit of research on men.style I am almost certain that this shirt comes from his AW07 collection. The detailing of the double collar is particularly interesting and at 90 Euros I jumped at the chance at owning my first piece of Bruno Pieter's.

After living with Susie this past year she has brain washed me and converted me in to a disciple of grey jersey and I could not resist this super soft long sleeve t shirt complete with subtle elbow pad detailing. This is officially my new favourite t shirt and I will no doubt wear it to death.

Elsewhere, there were a number of interesting pieces at the Tim van Steenbergen sale but I was pleased with my purchases and showed a surprising amount of self control. He is a designer I will be investigating further given he is quite established in Belgium. I will certainly plan in a return trip next time for the next round of stock sales, hopefully next year the pound will be a little stronger...

A fitting setting for your life story

Earlier this month I mentioned that your wardrobe really is much more than a piece of furniture. My chat with Patrick Grant over his E. Tautz label first made me see that a wardrobe is a story telling medium, with your life's style being playing the starring role. The contents should therefore deserve to be housed in something special. It is difficult to see your wardrobe as anything more than a cheap piece of furniture if like mine at home, it is tiny and poorly made. During my weekend trip to Antwerp I was fortunate enough to find, use and fall in love with my dream wardrobe. Ordinarily during a short city break I live out of my suitcase, hanging up the odd shirt which screams to be cared for a little more carefully and leaving the rest (somewhat erratically) folded up or tossed together in my bulging case. The B&B we stayed in this long weekend was wonderfully decorated and furnished (we spent the first hour or two taking all of the antiques and knick-knacks in) and our his&her double wardrobes were really something special. So special in fact that before exploring the city and nabbing the odd stock sale bargain we took great pleasure in hanging up and neatly folding each item. The Valet wardrobe was an impressive size complete with separate compartments which were beautifully labelled. My favourite features were the trouser rack (so much better than hanging four pairs of trousers on one hanger) and the compartments reserved for items less favoured today including collars and studs. Everything had its place and it all made sense. It really was a wardrobe fit to tell the life story of any man. Returning home, my packed wardrobe looked even more inadequate. For my next wardrobe I think I'll have to venture further a field than the Ikea on the outskirts of Wembley.

On lunch break

Hyères we go with menswear talent

Hyères for menswear. Bandit Couture by Thomas Trautwein.

Last year I was fortunate to visit the Hyères festival for the first time and was blown away by the location, atmosphere and talent on show. Unfortunately this year I'm unable to be a part of it but will follow the goings on via A Shaded View and festival's very own blog. In my place (haha) are Jefferson Hack, Kris Van Assche, Fantastic Man editor Gert Jonkers to name but a few, who will be hard at work in the sun-drenched South of France judging the competition. The history of winners that have made it big is certainly impressive; Henrik Vibskov, Ute Ploier and Romain Kremer. Despite this impressive list, no menswear designer has ever won the Grand Prize but this could change in this 24th edition of the competition as four of the ten final selections are menswear collections. Susie posted a selection of images from each of the finalists on DD and I just had to share my personal favourites...

Alice Knackfuss' Heimwärts

If anyone is going to break the menswear, my money is split between Germany’s Alice Knackfuss and Paris based Thomas Trautwein. Kanckfuss' romantic tailoring takes its poetic inspiration further than most to with Rilke quotes sewn into armbands. Trautwein's collection titled “Bandit Couture” is my particular favourite because I just love his dark, detailed tailoring (for more information on the designer and the collection visit ASVOF) but this is based upon first impressions and all could change as the competition unravels. I am green with envy at all those lucky folk fortunate enough to play their part in the South of France...especially as rain is forecast in London tomorrow but I am so pleased that there is so much menswear on offer!

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