Season after season, London serves as a fashion platform for up-and-coming designers, as well as for established brands that want to preserve, and at the same time, push the boundaries of British tailoring heritage. In this context, the International Woolmark Prize, which took place during London Collections: Men, has a key role in promoting the creative re-interpretation of Merino wool, one of the most traditional fabrics, through innovative solutions. The winners of this year’s menswear edition were the New-York-based designer-duo Public School, who were awarded at a special ceremony held at the Somerset House on Friday, January 9th, which was attended by Style.com’s Editor at Large Tim Blanks, British GQ’s Editor-in-Chief Dylan Jones, fashion designer Sir Paul Smith, and menswear style-icon Nick Wooster. The American brand showcased a workwear-inspired collection featuring hoodies and balaclavas, that made a nod to street-wear.
Among the up-and-coming designers, Kookon to Zai (KTZ) made a bold statement. Inspired by British policemen uniforms and by Kubrick’s A Clockwork Orange’s costumes, Marjan Pejoski, the designer behind the brand, played with fur and leather in order to design well executed menswear outfits. The sharp cuts and precise proportions created an interesting effect of layering, next to tribal-inspired maxi prints and combat boots, which affirmed the brand’s underground aesthetics. CMMN SWDN, on its side, proposed an interesting style-mix, by fusing traditional shapes and classic garments with a contemporary sportswear.
Among the established menswear designers, Paul Smith, Pringle of Scotland and YMC embodied a successful mix of classicism and experimentation, which was able to enrich a man’s man’s wardrobe without turning it upside-down. In this sense, Paul Smith made a witty statement by creating a suit to travel: the British designer presented a suit that doesn’t wrinkle, with the help of several acrobats and dancers, who all performed in Paul Smith’s new creation and thereby proved that even extreme movements weren’t able to affect the garment.
Going beyond seasonal trends, the Savile Row tailors assumed being the ambassadors of the English Gentlemen’s society. Labels such as Chester Barrie, Ede & Ravenscroft, and Gives & Hawkes adapted centuries of tailoring tradition to present times, by offering fine bespoke and semi-bespoke suits with a contemporary, yet extremely neat style. Finally, Britain’s one-of-a-kind tailoring heritage has been celebrated with an exclusive event held at the Apsley House, where The Woolmark Company and Savile Row teamed up to present historical menswear styles that paid a tribute to the Duke of Wellington. In this context, the designers referred to the bicentenary of the battle of Waterloo and the Royal Horse Guards, using Merino wool in each of the tableaux that were presented at the venue.
Picture courtesy of Savile Row.
