Manly

A little while ago we received a comment that clothing we had mentioned was 'not suitable for anyone with a y chromosome'. This sort of comment (it's not the first of its kind and I doubt it will be the last) always gets me thinking. What is it that makes clothing 'appropriate' for you as a man? How important is it for you that your clothes make you look 'manly'?

Patrick Petitjean in a shoot for GQ style from last year

I come at this issue as a woman who loves having short hair (and I mean short) and feels equally comfortable in trousers or dresses. Women, in western culture, are generally allowed to play around with the idea of what is appropriate for their gender... and yet if a man is to put on a pink shirt or a top with a low neckline it is considered strange, gay (with an intonation that this is somehow wrong or less masculine) or just plain wrong. God forbid if they want to go really 'out there' wearing, say, a skirt or leggings.

You may remember me obsessing over this shoot here

I'll openly admit that I prefer a more traditional look for guys (whatever that means- for me I think that it means suits, trousers, simplicity of tailoring and print), but I think that it's a shame that men are dissuaded from pursuing a different aspect of style for the sake of this sort of propriety. I'm going to keep this post brief- it's a subject I can talk about for hours (just ask my boyfriend, I've been talking about it for about a week solidly now), but if I tried I'd never finish writing this. I'm more curious to know how our readers feel. Does looking manly matter to you? Is there anything that you wouldn't wear because it's too feminine, or are you more put off by the way that others might percieve you? Please let us know in the comments (or if you really want to go on about it, you can drop us an email).

Picture Postcard: The look of the season

Despite the warm sunshine forcing me to squint slightly as I type this and question what my calendar is showing me, we have indeed entered the month of October. It is one of my favourite months of the year. I like nothing more than wrapping up in warm knits to explore Hampstead Heath, kicking a few leaves as I go and chasing a few squirrels if the kid in me escapes and when it all gets too cold for me, escape to the nearest pub for a pint or two by the fire. During October, we are treated to a feast of colours. The recent look from the new look Fantastic Man website demonstrates that, although numerous they can all be worn at once, creating a marvellous harvest festival of an outfit. I can't decide what it makes me want to do more, sing kumbayah or just to throw myself in a big pile of crispy fallen leaves...at the moment I think it is the latter...

The more I look at this outfit the more I see, it really is a feast for the senses. Mr. Oliver Evans (can anyone tell me who he is, google is failing me) is wearing a mustard jumper by Dries Van Noten, an olive shirt by Lanvin and a grey cardigan by Comme des Garcons. Around his neck are a patchwork jumper by Comme des Garcons and a green scarf by Lanvin which combine wonderfully. His plum trousers are by Dries Van Noten and around his waist is an olive jacket by Lanvin. The look is finished off with plum socks from Falke and breathtaking oxblood brogues from Hermes. During October, the rich colours of autumn really come into play and should be celebrated. I thought I did until I came across this ensemble, I will certainly try and create my own harvest festival of a look for the weekend.

Hans Madsen in New York

As mentioned earlier in the week, one of the real highlights of LFW was the launch of NEWGEN MEN. The exciting initiative rightfully places menswear right at the fore front of fashion and provides a platform for the very best menswear talent. James Long and Carolyn Massey were of course the inaugral recipients of the the award but what of the designers who graduated from the MAN platform before this new initiative came in to place. Fashion156 posted a nice little 'Where are they now' feature back in March where they rightly praised the Topman/Fashion East MAN showcase and updated their readers on the progress of their graduates. At that time, there had been a total of fourteen designers who had taken part in the MAN showcase. Names like Aitor Throup and Kim Jones were still familiar and prominent but there were a number of talented designers who had fallen off my radar somewhat. The best example is Hans Madsen.

Danish native Hans Madsen graduated with an MA in Knitwear from the Royal College of Art in 2007, recognized for his well-crafted, conceptual and approachable pieces. Since graduating Hans went on to show his debut AW08 collection as part of MAN and returned the following season with his SS09 collection. Since moving on from showing as part of the MAN lineup, he has continued to hone in on his raw edged and ever so slightly romantic take on street-influenced menswear. Despite his designs being available here in London at b Store, I have to confess that he had fallen off my fashion radar. So I was extremely pleased when I heard the news (thanks to Dazed Digital) that FAE (First Among Equals) an independent purveyor of obscure labels will give Madsen his first American debut with his AW09 collection. This piece of news reminded me how much I love his nordic influenced designs. Here's hoping that he returns to London Fashion Week as part of an even larger Menswear lineup next season.