Trend Report: Spring Menswear 2020

[eureka]

Another runway season has come and gone, this time Spring Menswear 2020. Now that the collections have all been presented, it’s the perfect time for trendspotting! The warmer months of 2020 are almost a year away, meaning we have plenty of time to prepare our closets and ensure that we’re on-trend. And while the season was called ‘menswear’, there were plenty of womenswear looks presented on the runways. Sharing closets with a significant other is nothing new, but as stars like Rihanna and Bella Hadid have shown, looking chic in menswear isn’t exclusive to those who identify as men. Read on for some of the trends we’ve spotted, as well as some shopping inspiration!

A SOFTER WORLD

Like florals, pastel colors for spring/summer seasons are pretty much a given. A lighter color pallet evokes warm-weather themes, like blooming flowers and spring holidays. However, while it’s a common sight on womenswear runways, it’s a rarer sight in the world of menswear, which made the softer color pallets of this season stand out in recent memory. At Louis Vuitton, Virgil Abloh sent models down the runway in all kinds of candy colors. Bags - the accessory the house is most known for - were overflowing with flowers and even Abloh’s famous ‘mid-layer garments’ seemed to be in bloom. Kim Jones partnered up with artist Daniel Arsham to imagine what current Dior Men would look like to future archeologists. The show, primarily rendered in light pinks and baby blues, also included custom-pleated gradients and an exciting print or two. Meanwhile, Miuccia Prada expanded on the themes of youth from her latest Miu Miu show, but this time as they apply to menswear staples.

SOMETHING TO REFLECT ON

With the start of a new decade right around the corner, some designers have been looking to the future. Nowhere was this theme more present than at Balmain, where Olivier Rousteing built on his vision of the house in 2050 that he began several seasons ago in his womenswear collections. (On a fun note, the show was also billed as the “Balmain music festival” and included several performances.) Almost every model wore a pair of single-lens glasses that wouldn’t seem out of place on an episode of “Star Trek”. Looks were crafted from all kinds of sparkling materials - from metallic pleather, to reflective sequins. A similar holographic fabric was also used in the most recent offerings of Rick Owens and Ovadia & Sons. In the latter, the materials made their way into the collection by way of several fun jackets. Rick Owens’ show was an exploration of his Mexican heritage through the lens of several artists and collaborations. He worked in sequins and holographic materials, creating jumpsuits, jackets and pants, though with a distinctly soft luster.

DOWN THE SHORE

For many, summer is synonymous with vacation. And what's better when it's hot out than a trip to the beach? Besides swimwear-inspired looks, plenty of designers this season showed collections with clear nautical themes. This is not uncharted territory for Simon Porte Jacquemus, who regularly paints visions of seaside trips through his collection. His show took place in a lavender field in Provençal, close to his hometown. Clothes were light, loose, and undeniably beachy. What else could you call a dress wrapped around the body like a sarong, or a series of shorts easily mistaken for swim trunks? And it wouldn’t be a Jacquemus show without a dozen or more wide-brimmed straw hats. At Anne Demeulemeester, there were berets, exaggerated collars, and bags with straps that were tied into sailors knots. Similar cords also hung from shirt sleeves and laced up necklines. Those wide collars, exaggerated to look like the collar of a sailor’s uniform, also showed up as a motif at Lanvin. There were also plenty of swimwear looks (bathing suits and cover ups alike), as well as maritime imagery in the form of wave details along a sleeve or a watercolor painting of a whale on a sleeveless tee.

RELAXED TAILORING

Suiting is having a moment on womenswear runways, but it’s almost strange to see a menswear collection without them. What set the suits in this season apart was their fit. Across the board, the tailoring was more relaxed; lapels dipped lower, waists weren’t so fitted, and even pants legs were cut wider. Suits can easily feel stuffy, but these suits felt much more weather-appropriate. This was also helped by the use of more lightweight materials and the pastel color pallets mentioned above. Sies Marjan included both design elements, as well as subtle nautical details for a very on-trend collection. The suits at Claire Waight-Keller’s first full Givenchy menswear show were loose-fitting and rendered in a variety of colors and prints. Many were cut long, and billowed behind the models as they walked. Several female models walked the runway in suits as well, showing their genderless appeal. This trend was even on display at Ermenegildo Zegna. Some of the suits were soft and silky enough to mimic sleepwear. For a house known for producing some of the sharpest suits around, this was quite a surprise.

SHARING CLOSETS

With the recent increase in “co-ed runways”, more and more designers have been using their collections to examine social constructs like gendered dressing. While womenswear seasons have seen an uptick in traditionally masculine garments, like suiting, menswear has similarly been drawing from traditionally feminine staples. Thom Browne has been showing suits worn with both pants and skirts for seasons now, no matter if it’s designated as a mens or womenswear show. His most recent collection was no different, taking inspiration from modern sports, ballet, and late 17th century French fashion. His signature blazers were combined with tutu-like skirts, codpieces, and several avant-garde pannier looks. Elsewhere, the influence was more subtle. At Raf Simmons and Jil Sander, along with several other collections, extra-long tunics made up a large part of the runway offerings. There has also been a crossing-over of sorts in trends from womenswear runways, like the tie-dye prints we saw all over the womenswear runways last season. This was on display at Alexander McQueen, along with several looks that seemed to mirror womenswear looks and elements from Sarah Burton’s recent womenswear collections. Examples include coats with asymmetrical draped hems or ones with similar embroidery to the finale looks from the brand’s Fall/Winter 2019 show.

[image source: Vogue Runway]

[DianneC]

Thanks for the info and pics...fantastic looks