With cacti, robots, and unicorns splashed across clothing, menswear is entering a permanent—and socially acceptable—adolescence. Add to that a pervading Bowie influence and we are in for a colourful autumn. Chloe Street sheds light on the menswear trends of the season.
STAND AT EASE 
Burberry
The first collection since the brand's streamlining saw Prorsum, London, and Brit labels combined to create a high-low mix that was instantly wearable. A Bowie-infused '70s nostalgia pervaded, with track jackets zippered under trench coats, duffels and a variety of military coats. Tartan bombers, ankle swinging pale jeans, and trainers paired with everything were evidence that Christopher Bailey's taking a more relaxed approach.
CLASSICS REVISITED
Dunhill
The collection was broken down into five segments—country weekend, blazers, formal attire, eveningwear, and motorities (essentially outerwear)—and the focus was on tweaking and improving classics rather than any attempted revolution. Countrywear remained traditional and yet was rendered in the plushest of alpacas and cashmeres, suits came in a subdued yet sophisticated range of fabrics and hues, while tuxedoes ranged from classic black tie to salmon velvet. These were sophisticated pieces for the man looking for minute revisions of his most loved wardrobe staples.
JACKET ALL IN
Brunello Cucinelli
Cucinelli is a master at blurring the lines between formal and informal wear. This season, his focus was on the jacket, and a good jacket's ability to transform a look and even a mood. Developed in a palette of earth tones, greys, and blues, and paired with elegantly ripped denims, cashmere almost-joggers, or softly tailored trousers, these jackets were versatile, practical, and modern. The fit was relaxed and fabrics lightweight, creating an elegant and effortless look.
FOIL FOR YOU
Calvin Klein Collection
A neutral palette of black, white, and camel provided a spartan backdrop for a collection inspired by alchemy. White skinnies came brushed with gold and slick suits had arresting metallic linings of foiled nylon in gold, platinum, and rose gold. The metals also gave an Instagrammable energy to MA1 jackets and utilitarian parkas. Logoed long johns worn under suit jackets may not have had everyday appeal but were quintessentially Calvin Klein.
SICILIAN GOLD RUSH
Dolce & Gabbana
The iconography of spaghetti westerns—horseshoes, cacti, wagon wheels, and intricately carved pistols—were embroidered on shirts, wool jackets, and furry shearling tops. Cowboystyle double denim was offset with the brand's more familiar emblems—the bee and crown, roses and the sacred heart—creeping up legs and lapels. The silk pyjama-clad stampede of the finale was part Sicilian mafia, part Wild West—John Wayne in The Godfather, if you will.
DEVILS FOR DETAILS
Ermenegildo Zegna
Embellishment was everything at Zegna this season, with beading, embroidery, jacquard, and fil coupé on semi-fitted coats, sweeping capes, and lavishly beaded eveningwear. A colour palette of camel, grey-blue, violetgrey, and more grey offset the potential frivolity, while amazing three-dimensionally beaded knitwear was zipped at the neck and worn open—evidence that this was an entirely wearable new vision for men's couture.
HOT FUZZY
Fendi
There were fuzzy chequered dressing gown coats, canary yellow fur-fronted jumpers, suits in shaggy mohair, and even furry pom-poms and oversize furry totes in this super-tactile collection. Silky patterned pyjama sets walked alongside soft velvet flares, creating an overriding sense of cosiness, while a peppering of Fendi's monster emblems—sly little eyes peeking from furry slippers or from the interior of a leather bag—served it all up with a side of the brand's signature playfulness.
IN THE NAVY 
Giorgio Armani
Texture was king in a collection that, bar flashes of black and brown, was a study in glorious navy. Shearling-lined wool coats, leather gloves, mirrored sunglasses and walking boots felt mountain trekready and contrasted nicely with the velvet jackets, leather-lapelled suede blazers, and high-waisted, wide-legged pants that were distinctly Ripley-esque. More street friendly items came in criss-crossed and Jackson Pollock-splattered down jackets.
SAILOR WAY
Prada
All aboard the good ship Prada for Miuccia's collection inspired by the clothing of sailors—overt in some looks with white sailor hats and plimsolls, and subtler in double-breasted naval coats, cropped trousers, and battered denim. A playfulness came through in shirts printed with Christophe Chemin's mythical images—unicorns, couples kissing—while a suite of well-cut coats, jackets, and zipup knits created a very buyable collection.
KOOKY PARTY
Roberto Cavalli
In his first men's collection since returning to the brand where he began his career, Peter Dundas showed clothes fit for a 1970s house party. There were richly embroidered soft suiting and day pyjamas, sheer pussy bow blouses, and skinny silk scarves. But the real win was the outerwear. Panelled snakeskin jackets, an outrageous striped fur cape, mauve satin suits, and velvet jackets embroidered with dandelions and dragonflies gave plenty of reasons to party with your coat on.
PATTERN CUT
Salvatore Ferragamo
A stylish cacophony of pattern dominated at Massimiliano Giornetti's Ferragamo. Multicoloured chevron stripes, stars, crowns, and Matisse-like figures were splashed on intarsia jumpers and foppish silky shirts and worn under layers of sheepskin, anorak, and chunky knits. Pops of tomato red, dijon yellow, and fuchsia gave liveliness to a collection in which Giornetti deftly blurred the line between the brand's classic Italian roots and a more modern bohemian aesthetic.
THE THINKERS
Canali
In a typically considered and careful collection, Canali offered a stable of suiting in chequered double-faced gaberdine in various combinations of green, blue, and aubergine. Coupled with excellent outerwear—a midnight-blue ponyskin greatcoat with a doublefaced black napa collar and trim sat alongside an oversize alpaca overcoat—the subdued hues were broken only by shirting and ties of ochre, mustard, and bottle green and the odd burnt-pumpkin jumper.
SPACE RACE 
Versace
Opening her show with models sprinting in fibre optic-threaded sports gear, Donatella took us on an intergalactic tour. Flight jackets were strapped and zippered like space suits, light-up leggings were worn with buckled scuba sneakers, and jackets festooned with NASAVersace badges. More wearable pieces were the lavender cashmere coat, the season’s favourite MA1 bombers, and a great set of mackintoshes.
SAND GANGS
Berluti
Inspired by Texas and the desert, the collection offered an edgier, more renegade take on Berluti's usually refined style. Hyper-saturated colours, the results of a complicated dyeing process, gave intense hues of rust, caramel, cerulean, and sand, evoking the parched heat of the desert plains. Tattoos snaked across the faces and necks of models wearing buttery soft leathers, a brilliant mix of grit and gorgeous. A coat that deftly wove knitwear and leather together and another panelled with raspberry and coral in suede were both standouts.
NEW ORDER 
Dior Homme
Looking to new wave music and '90s skater park aesthetics as a starting point, Van Assche brought streetwear to the classicism of Dior. An air of adolescent experimentalism came through in ubiquitous tartan and beanie hats, some peaked, some not, and most obviously in the skate ramps on the runway. Silhouettes were easy-going. Trousers came slim and cropped or high-waisted and wide, some with stitching details and loose threads. Fingerless gloves, black nail varnish, charm necklaces, and finger rings were striking if overly laboured efforts at denoting youthful rebellion.
SHAKE OR STIR?
Hermés
A super-sophisticated wardrobe of soft tailoring, outerwear in baby lamb, zip-up blousons and fine knits, and not a tie in sight. Thick cashmere came in turquoise and juicy raspberry pink, and knits had strips of different patterns—cheques, mini trophies, and racehorses. There were printed silks wrapped around slender necks, and black-on-black evening tuxes that felt very Bond. Bags were mostly classic, bar a new playful Bolide style with a giant shark face painted on the front.
SNAKE METAL
Givenchy
The collection took inspiration from photographer Frank Marshall’s images of Botswana and its heavy metal devotees. Tailored coats and MA1 flying jackets went to the knee; T-shirts and sweatshirts bore graffiti prints, spray-painted skulls, and cobras; and the brand’s name was rendered in lettering usually found on heavy metal album covers. The hand detailing on a snakecovered patchwork-quilted bomber felt very much like true couture for men.
MR SCRUFF
Lanvin
The overall feel of this collection was lived-in and pre-worn. Sweaters were balled into bags and tweed coats were tossed and crumpled onto hangers. Tailoring dotted with motifs of keys and hacksaws was fluid, with inside details crafted from lining material and transposed onto the exterior. Everything was crumpled with frayed edges—a perfect sense of imperfection.
BUYING POWER
Loewe
Themed on "consumerism and merchandising," this was a collection that sat less as a unified whole and more as composite, shoppable parts. There were macro-scale military knapsacks and khaki separates in quilted cotton—inspired by soldiers’ garb from the First World War—that had a hardy practicality. People will clamour for the high-top kicks, a frayed tweed coat and a Loewe Puzzle bag stamped with archive logos. Flogging the leopard shearling beanies and cardigans with long trains down the back, however, might take more convincing.
LIAISONS DANGEREUSES
Louis Vuitton
Kim Jones' ode to Paris was a slate and pewter-hued, 1930s militia-inspired collection with a distinct French polish. Lightweight trench coats with angular, tightly belted waists, and narrow grey wool suits worn with LV-branded berets were crisp and neat. The crystal LV pins and brooches—a collaboration with Jade Jagger—made the militia just a little camp. Silk pyjamas printed with “Volez Voguez Voyagez” referenced the brand's retrospective exhibition at the Grand Palais and highlighted its historical association with travel.
ROCK STEADY
Saint Laurent
Hedi Slimane's penchant for Bowie-influenced rock 'n' roll continued with a slew of spray-on jeans and leather skinnies with a military stripe down the side, and elaborately embellished Hussar jackets. Velvet, brocades, jabots, along with fedoras and jackets bespangled with Parisian embroidery, all came together with sequins and Joplin-esque furs to create a look that was archetypal Los Angelino rocker—the designer's perennial muse.
INDIE BUSINESS
Valentino
A collection of two halves. The first, an effort by Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaolo Piccioli to establish Valentino as the businessman's go-to brand, with a long, subdued stream of black polo necks and concrete-grey outerwear with subtly beaded shoulders. The statesmanship was broken in the second half by tribal influences— ponchos, shirts and denim jackets decorated with geometric patterns. A slew of indie rock chequered jackets and suits ended the show.
LUXE LIFE
Ralph Lauren
As a designer who relies very little on overarching themes, Ralph Lauren once again offered a luxurious and refined wardrobe for the louche aesthete. Tailoring varied from old world elegant in a houndstooth three-piece to urban in black technical fabric. Evening clothes were adventurous with large-scale floral jacquards and blue velvet abounding. Lauren also expanded onto the slopes with a range of performance gear, helmets and carbon-fibre skis. Together, the pieces formed the designer's vision for life—and it's a good life.
Photography by Jason Lloyd-Evans