New print publication Document No.1 celebrates British menswear

What: Launch party for brand new menswear publication Document No.1. Just don’t call it a magazine.

When: Thursday 29th November 2012

Where: The spacious IPR showroom in East London, a venue filled with the wares of clients like Katie Eary and Christopher Shannon, plus a bunch of wooden palm trees.

Who: Photographer Morgan O’Donovan and fashion editor David Hellqvist, creators of the publication.

“Britain’s menswear has had to live in the shadow of our womenswear designers for far too long” states Hellqvist’s boldface, page one Editor’s letter declaration, laying bare Document No.1′s desire to shine a light firmly on men’s fashion.

And what better time to start. 2012 was a banner year for menswear in the UK. Previously allocated a day tacked on to the end of the womenswear summer and winter fashion weeks, in June menswear got a home of its own.  The awkwardly-titled yet long overdue London Collections: Men devoted three days to Spring 2013 just for the boys, bringing Britain in line with the Milanese and Parisian men’s shows.

With scores of seasons of reportage from the international fashion weeks under their belts, and excited by the changes afoot in the fashion calendar, O’Donovan and Hellqvist decided to join forces to document it all. Mixing designer interviews with backstage photography and commentary from their pals – who also happen to be industry experts - Document No.1 focuses on seven noteworthy London Collections: Men shows. So you’ll get the Guardian’s Simon Chilvers talking up the ‘boyish sportiness’ of Christopher Shannon‘s designs; fashion’s so-called fairy godmother Lulu Kennedy writing about Meadham Kirchhoff‘s zany ‘drug den’ presentation; or Style.com’s Tim Blanks discussing Aitor Throup‘s macabre signature skull bags. The result is a sleek, matte-white, mercifully advertising-free tome that straddles the line between magazine and coffee table book. Just 500 numbered copies were printed, available for free at the launch, but it’s a slight mystery as to where you can get one now. Which is a shame, because it’s a great read, and, much like British menswear, deserves a wider audience. But you can scroll through the whole issue, slideshow style, on the website.

If you don’t get your hands on one this time, however, fear not, because Hellqvist and O’Donovan are already working on the next iteration, which will cover the Autumn/Winter 2013 collections, shown in January. Spring 2013 was “the season that paved the way for the rest,” Hellqvist says. “Let’s cherish that.”

To view Document No.1 visit www.hellqvistandodonovan.com.

Photos: Alistair Allan

(L-R) Katie Mogridge and Morgan O’Donovan

David Hellqvist

Here are some photos of some very well dressed men. You are welcome.

You would expect that at the launch party for a new menswear tailoring range there would be some sartorially superb men about wouldn’t you? Well at the River Island life of a tailor event there certainly were. Oh and one lady too. Read Helen’s excellent report from the event here then marvel at the awesomely attired menfolk below.

First up, Terence Sambo aka blogger One Nigerian Boy. I think I liked his suit so much because it reminded me of my most favourite blazer.

This is Tokyo James from Rough Magazine. Yes he is wearing a bobble hat and sunglasses indoors. What a dude.

This is Cuba Charles aka @ChaseBondStyle, also from Rough Magazine. Don’t you wish you could rock a statement necklace like that?

Andrew or @IamjustDre is a store manager at Dr Martens. Doesn’t he look at home amongst all the models?

The token female in our line up is Arieta Who. I love this double breasted blazer with a cheeky peak of contrast lining on show.

Plus she was had what the Man Repeller would describe as an ‘arm party’ of accessories going on.

This is Dan who works for Quintessentially. It was for a slightly vain reason that I so admired his outfit…

Mainly because he was twinnies with me. It’s hard to even tell us apart isn’t it?

Oh and there was one other guy that night whose style we admired. I say admired, Helen went a bit Lars and the Real Girl on him…

First the Man-gro, now mantyhose – do men really want this stuff?

Have you heard about mantyhose, the pantyhose for men? Also known going by the ridiculous names ‘brosiery’ or ‘guylons,’ I first discovered them at a launch party a couple of months ago held by hosiery brand Emilio Cavallini, where model Tyson Beckford was sporting a fetching pair of black and white skull print tights under three-quarter length jeans.

Apparently the range is simply responding to demand – vice president Francesco Cavallini told WWD that he noticed an increase in online purchases of larger sized tights by men, and that 2 to 3 per cent of the retailers annual sales are now purchased by (and for) men. ‘Wearing them makes a man feel young, fashionable, and hip,’ claims Cavallini.

Frankly, I’m not convinced. Following on from the ‘Man-gro,’ the onesie for men, this is looks a lot like a PR stunt to me, an excuse to add man to the front of a word and grab some headlines. I can see why men would want to wear tights under trousers in winter for warmth, long john style, in fact I know some men who do that. And I’m all for gender equality when it comes to clothing. But patterned tights? Under shorts? Really, guys? I just don’t believe there’s genuinely a demand for that. Somehow I can’t see this trend taking off.

Of course, there are plenty of garments that obviously look good on both sexes, and I’m glad that the days are over when it wasn’t socially acceptable for girls to wear trousers or for men to wear pink. I’m all for a bit of metrosexuality, but I think mantyhose are a bit much. What are we going to see next – dainty ‘man-letto’ heels? The ‘bro-p top’ crop top for men? The ‘man-cil’ skirt? Can we not just accept that some clothes are better left to one sex?

French Connection Press Day | AW2012 Sneak Peek

Naomi Morello went to the FCUK press day for us to find out what’s in store for Autumn/Winter. 

French Connection confirmed its position on the high street podium with a versatile ensemble of pieces in a wide range of colours from smoked grey and baby pink to dark yellow and burgundy. Would you believe it, some of the items were even price-friendly!

Looks like sequins are back for the Winter season. This pine green and silver mini dress certainly brought back my Christmas spirit.

Also, keep an eye out for the purple sequin leopard print clutch, definitely something you don’t see everyday.

One of the key pieces was this stunning mustard blazer, a perfect match for the autumn season.

This printed mini dress also caught my eye. Abstract tree motifs in soft pastel colours and a twist of hot pink reminded me of Yayoi Kusama’s eccentric paintings.

Accessories were kept to a minimum. Black leather bags and pumps created a clean and simple contrast with the colourful outfits.

As for Menswear,the collection incorporated two different sides of Britain: traditional tweed suits à la Colin McDowell paired up with velvet bow ties and neutral shirts clashed with lilac striped tees, denim and bright purple knitwear, creating a Shoreditch High Street feel.

Topman General Store | High street giant launches second spin-off shop

Topman opened a second General Store this week with a launch party at the new shop in Covent Garden.

What’s the difference between a Topman General Store and a regular Topman? Not all that much by the looks of it. Essentially it’s smaller, so the stock is carefully chosen (‘curated’ they like to call it) by Topman Design Director Gordon Richardson and B Store’s Matthew Murphy. The Covent Garden store has a more grown-up feel to it – all white washed wooden floors and antique furniture – but the clothes are predominantly trend-led; more Navajo jackets and tailored shorts, less V-neck tshirts and chinos. It looks like they’re trying to appeal to the people who would otherwise be shopping at the independent boutiques and vintage stores nearby or who might think they’re a bit too cool for Topman. Either way, it’s a far more pleasant retail experience than fighting through hoards of girls to get to the Topman on the second floor of the Topshop flagship at Oxford Circus.

The General Store was heaving with hipsters on Wednesday night, drinking the Sipsmith gin and tonic bar dry and craning to get a glimpse of boy/girl duo Big Deal playing in the back room. I didn’t have my SLR on hand but I did grab a few snaps on my iPhone. Click on the gallery below to enlarge. Or you can glimpse me about 2 mins into this video, sipping my G&T.

The Topman General Store is now open 36-38 Earlham Street, London WC2H 9LA. Visit the Topman website.

Guest Post | Harvey Nichols autumn wonderland

Naomi Morello (of Dirty Ramen blog) has been attending press days on behalf of Style & Then Some. Here’s her second guest post from the leafy Harvey Nicholls press day.

There is a little story I must tell you before I start babbling on about the Harvey Nicholls autumn/winter 2012 press day.

It was in precisely this store a little over a  year ago that I attended the Vogue Experience, an event launched by Italian Vogue’s editor-in-chief Franca Sozzani to support and give advice to young aspiring writers/photographers/designers.

Aside from being a writer, I am also a photographer, and having the chance to show my work to one of my biggest inspirational figures was a dream come true. I, Naomi Morello, was about to get feedback on my pictures from one of the leading figures in today’s fashion industry. I felt a bit like Frida Kahlo when she showed her paintings to Diego Rivera.

On the day of the event, I got dressed, packed my laptop (I couldn’t afford to print my pictures), threw up a little, and headed to Harvey Nicholls. Long story short, Franca happened to think my work wasn’t absolute crap, and asked me to upload one particular photograph on Italian Vogue’s website. Two days later, I won a competition that saw my picture being displayed at the opening exhibition of  the Vogue Fashion’s Night Out 2011.

So when S&TS asked me to attend the Harvey Nics press event, I accepted right away, glad to step once again into the place that gave me my first (and so far, only) fashion-related success of my life.

As soon as I stepped into the private room at the fifth floor restaurant, I couldn’t believe my eyes. Harvey Nichols had taken the autumn theme quite literally – the venue was packed full of crimson coloured trees and fallen leaves were scattered all over the wooden floor. At the back, a small bistro had been set up, with wrought-iron chairs and tables  and a stunning bar entirely decorated with fresh magenta flowers.

The visual impact was stunning, but the collections offered some competition: Meadham Kirchoff, one of my favourite brands, led the way with an absolutely breath-taking burgundy fitted suit decorated with golden laurel leaves and baby blue ‘paint-drops’, finished off with a multi-coloured fur coat.

I have always been lovingly drawn to designers who take inspiration from art when creating a collection. That’s why Erdem left me in absolute awe: looking at the abstract printed garments reminded me of Jackson Pollock’s action paintings: definitely my favourite collection.

Being an avid collector (and wearer) of mens shirts, I fell in love with these two pieces by Alexander McQueen: the delicate colours of the hummingbirds create a beautiful contrast against the dirty white fabric, making it the perfect statement autumn piece. At least for me.

And finally, also on my personal menswear podium, Dries Van Noten definitely had cold British winters in mind when he designed these oversized wool jumpers, with colours that would brighten up even the greyest November day.

Guest post | A million reasons you’ll like new menswear shop MyEdo

MyEdo.co.uk held it’s autumn/winter 2012 catwalk show alongside a pop up shop last Saturday at Café de Paris. Million Michael (yes I know, doesn’t she have the best name ever?) went along on behalf of Style & Then Some and wrote this guest post for us.

I thought I’d just be browsing the menswear (and, let’s face it, the men) at this show, but the blazers were some nice I found myself wanting one. MyEdo  (which stands for ‘my exclusive designs online’) is a new online shop specialising in emerging menswear designers such as Di Biasi and Alan Hayden. In an age where men really take pride in their looks, MyEdo wants to be the go-to site for debonair city men and preppy metrosexuals who want tailoring, shirts and accessories. The creators of the site think that ‘mainstream fashion has become so easily identifiable that you can practically guess the price tag!’ so they want to bring men clothes they won’t see on anyone else. To that end, limited edition blazers are perfect for the trendsetter, the man who doesn’t like to follow the crowd.

At the catwalk show, MyEdo presented a capsule collection of blazers, ranging from classic linen and tweed with leather elbow patches to luxurious silk and duchess satin. My personal favourite of the designers on show was Neil Katter, whose line includes a sleek black silk blazer with intricate embroidery and detailed gold buttons.

While women have a whole host of ways to find limited edition and one-off items, either bespoke or vintage, I think there’s definitely a gap in the market for menswear with real individuality, and MyEdo looks set to fill that gap.

To shop the collections visit www.myedo.co.uk.

Doing it for the Boys: Menswear Week to hit London

Menswear Day.  Yep, if you are a regular on the London Fashion Week scene you will be familiar with the one day that British fashion has deemed sufficient enough to collectively show all of its wares every season.

Trailing behind an intense week of non-stop womenswear, almost like an after-thought, Menswear day isn’t given much time to breathe.  Bish, bash, bosh, and it’s over.  And unlike the Womenswear shows, which follow on seamlessly (okay, we are still hoping that will be the case come September) from one city to the next, Menswear day in London sticks out like a sore thumb.

However, this week the British Fashion Council have unveiled plans to add much needed credibility for London’s menswear designers on the international calendar, and plan to align it with the established Menswear weeks of Paris and Milan.  With London poised to take the lead, 15-17^th June will see our first ever Menswear week, entitled London Collections: Men.   And with some big-boy names getting involved, such as Mr Porter and Topman, hopefully in time it may persuade some of the UK’s brightest menswear designers to return home.  Yes Paul Smith, I’m talking to you.

Check out all the manly details over on the LFW website.

Do men really buy this stuff? Introducing the Man-Gro, the onesie for men

I was under the impression that jumpsuits (and playsuits, and onesies, and whatever else you want to call them) were distinctly unpopular with men. I thought, despite being loved by females of all varieties – from hipster girls to WAGS in the making – that they fell under the heading of man-repelling, along with dungarees, turbans, biker boots and harem pants. But apparently that doesn’t mean men don’t want to jump on the jumpsuit bandwagon themselves: introducing the Man-Gro. That’s right, it’s like a babygro, but for a man. Made by American Essentials, the Man-Gro is an all-in-one pyjama suit, designed for men who don’t want to be ‘disturbed by rising tees shirts or falling shorts’ at night. Is that really an existing problem? I had no idea.

Does anyone else find the Man-Gro concept really quite weird, and a bit too close to the adult baby phenomenon (google at your own risk) for comfort? Or is snuggling up during the cold winter months in his and hers sleepsuits your idea of a great night in? Personally I’m not convinced, and I’m putting the Man-Gro firmly in the woman-repelling category.

The Man-Gro, £95, by American Essentials, will be available in Selfridges and at Selfridges.com from October 2011.

VIDEO: Asger Juel Larsen AW2011

Last week the sweltering fourth floor bar at Shoreditch House played host to ‘Uncle Sam,’ a new short film from Danish menswear designer Asger Juel Larsen.

I didn’t stay long at the event (heat, humidity and a lack of free booze meant the crowd petered out pretty quickly) but I did get a glimpse of the film, which showcases the London-based designer’s autumn/winter 2011 collection. Obviously focusing on the editorially extreme end of this twisted American Dream aesthetic, pale skinnyboy models strode about moodily in tasseled top hats and crop tops that resembled American football kit. And in light of the US of A’s disastrous week (if you don’t know that the Yanks lost their AAA credit rating on Friday then you ought to pick up the Financial Times instead of Vogue a bit more often) a giant blackened American flag looked eerily prophetic . Watch the full video below.

ASGER JUEL LARSEN presents UNCLE SAM from Theo Prodromidis on Vimeo. Via the Blow PR blog

Photo: Ellis Scott

Menswear trend: velvet jackets

Amongst the swathes of ivory gowns and cream cocktail dresses at the Selfridges white Christmas press preview last week, there was a mens suit that stood out like a straight man at a fashion show (sorry, but it’s basically all gays and girls. Always). This suit was brightest electric blue with black lapels and was made out of velvet. Or so I thought. An email from the Selfridges press officer revealed that the Moschino suit in question (available in store now, if you’re daring enough) was actually 100% cotton, but designed to have a velvet effect. Deceptive eh?

It got me thinking about a trend that started on the catwalk of Dolce and Gabanna during menswear week in January this year, when Stefano and Domenico sent half a dozen velvet tuxedo-clad models out for the final walk through. Mr Porter is clearly a fan, because there are a host of velvet tuxedos, jackets and blazers available on the site now, in a more expansive colour range as well as the black Dolce original. I’ve picked my top three below. Unless you’re going for vintage this is a solely high-end trend at the moment, but it’s sure to filter down to the high street as winter stock comes in. If your budget doesn’t stretch to designer just yet you’ll have to be patient, unless a £175 Lanvin velvet bowtie will sate your sartorial appetite for now?

Paul Smith London slim fit velvet jacket, £470, Mr Porter

Canali cream velvet two button blazer, £640, Mr Porter

Burberry Prorsum blue velvet blazer, £795, Mr Porter

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ManStyle in Melbourne

If you happen to find yourself in Melbourne between now and the end of October this year, well, first of all I’m extremely envious, but secondly you should definitely go to the ManStyle exhibition at the NGV International gallery.

ManStyle looks at menswear from the eighteenth century to the present day, and it’s a great introductory tour if, like me, you take a passing interest in men’s fashion, but don’t have real in-depth knowledge. As well as historical pieces like an English brocade coat and a French embroidered three piece silk suit there’s plenty on show by modern names you’ll know. A ridiculously flowery Sanderson suit stands next to a ludicrously bright velvet Commes des Garcons suit, demonstrating that menswear isn’t all about conformity. In fact, my favourite look from the exhibit is by a designer who is often credited for reviving androgyny for the Noughties, Hedi Slimane. I don’t know many men who could get away with wearing a long grey Dior Homme cape and purple silk pussybow blouse, in fact I think more women could, and I guess therein lies a large part of the appeal of this exhibition: deciding which pieces I’d like to steal for myself.

ManStyle is on at NGV International until 30 October 2011. Entry is free. All the details are right here.