Still thinking about... Prada FW13

The FW13 Prada advertising campaign, which was released earlier this week, reminded me of how much I liked the collection. Even though it is meant for the next cold season I find it to be very much adaptable to SS13 – if you take out the coats and wool jumpers you're left with punchy tailoring, classic shirts and a lot of character. My favourite touch form the collection was the slight stylish detail with half of the collar shirts popping out of the jumper as if they were school boys.

Check out the video above, which I made last January in Milan at the show.

Courtesy of Prada

The Cavalli Man through a New Lens

I was truly curious to see, as I got on a lift taking me to a 9th-floor penthouse in the centre of Milan, what the FW13 collection of Roberto Cavalli would look like. It was clear as you stepped out of the lift that you were walking into Cavalli territory – tons of velvet, pony skin, gold and glass in dark rich colours introduced Daniele Cavalli's story of 70's rock and roll from a contemporary perspective.
In the two years he's been in charge of menswear the super talented son of Roberto Cavalli has found a way to marry an Italian aesthetic with strong musical influences, especially those of British rock and roll. This season he decided to wave the runway show and create a gentlemen's club atmosphere to make a statement about style instead of fashion.

One of the key elements of the collection was the teleidoscopic prints – not to be confused with kaleidoscopic, a teleidoscope is used to create patterns from objects outside the instrument and not from items inside it. We were all given our own one to see the world from a Cavalli perspective. The printed shirts and ties truly striking as they played with the brand's signature motifs – snakeskin, florals, feathers – in a different way. The tailoring, in contrast, was more sober and beautifully finished. I especially loved some of the details such as the jewelled buttons that substituted ties.
My absolute favourites were the jackets. Whether they leaned towards outer or eveningwear, I want them all. Special mention deserve the three pieces below, which combine urban elements – denim, the varsity jacket, the biker jacket – with luxury materials like python or crocodile. In the evening department, I especially loved the mandarin collar jacket with the beaded trim and the also beaded wrap velvet jacket.

It was hard to go back to the real world after been inside Cavalli's for so long. The Cavalli gentlemen's club should become a permanent feature in Milan.

Courtesy of Roberto Cavalli

Burberry Porsum F/W13: We ♥ Burberry Classics

The FW13 Burberry Prorsum collection was one of my favourites, together with SS09 and FW10. A viral email from Christopher Bailey sent before the show with subject 'I ♥ Classics' announced the new collection would be a celebration of Burberry classics and heritage outerwear.
Some critics have labelled the collection as predictable. The way I see it, Burberry has had such purpose and direction over the last few years that the last thing I expected was a turn to its most essential, and successful, roots. My favourite were, in fact, these allegedly more commercial pieces. The trench coats, overcoats and duffle coats were impeccable and strong – pieces to keep forever.
Bailey's twist for FW13 was the (unexpected) introduction of animal prints as full leopard printed pony skin overcoats but also quieter collar details I found elegant and humorous.
Having opened their first menswear-only store late last year Burberry put great strength in the tailoring. The silhouettes, slim and easy to wear and much after my own heart, were very in touch with the times and with the type of guy the Burberry customer should be.
The heart prints that closed the show were my personal favourite. There was something so modern and masculine about the suit shirts and v-neck jumpers. They will be, I'm sure, an instant hit.

Just as they have been doing lately, Burberry streamed their FW13 show online and on iPhones and iPads and held a special screening at their new Regent Street flagship store. Users around the world were also given the chance to purchase online pieces right off the runway for a week after the show.
Back in Milan, Greg James, Harry and Luke Treadaway were amongst the famous faces to grace the front row. They were joined by the dapper Tinie Tempah, who had his big London 2012 moment at the Olympics wearing Burberry.

Stay tuned for a closer look at the Burberry FW13 collection from the brand's Milan showroom.
You can watch my video of the finale below and see the entire show here.

Courtesy of Burberry

Devoted to Dolce & Gabbana F/W13

Dolce & Gabbana was my first show this season in Milan. I knew because of the vibrant colours of the Baroque flowers on the invite that I could expect a collection full of energy, which I very much needed after my 5am wakeup call.
The FW13 collection is very aptly entitled 'Devotion'. It was a love letter to Sicily, its traditions and its people. Just like the season before the 82 men and boys who walked the runway had been cast from Sicilian towns – Taormina, Palermo, Siracusa...
This season Domenico and Stefano played with different graphic motifs such as religious buildings or different images of the Madonna but, mostly, their intention was to make a signature of their florals so that just like leopard in their womenswear they can become the unequivocal symbol of the Dolce & Gabbana man. The flowers carefully painted over silk blazers of the first part of the collection soon gave way to needlepoint flowers, which gave life and texture to velvet jackets, wool coats and suede shoes.

The new collection was also surprisingly strong in terms of the more 'traditional' tailoring. The statement jackets covered in flowers were accompanied by the most stunning white crisp shirts in a number of different collar shapes and all finished off by hand-sewn lace, which can usually be found gracing the dining tables of Sicilian homes.
The more classic pieces had this beautiful flavour of the past brought to our time by slim silhouettes and luxurious details like satin-covered buttons and printed jacket linings. For the evening, the main focus is still velvet in blacks, greys, deep greens and rich burgundies all with satin-finished wide lapels and accompanied by the coolest velvet lace-ups a man could ever own.

Dolce & Gabbana lifted my mood and filled me with energy. Milan Fashion Week had officially started.

Courtesy of Dolce & Gabbana, Fashion Frankly

Oliver Spencer FW13

Getty

Even though I haven't been able to attend many shows during the latest London Collections: Men this week there are certain ones I would never dare to miss. Oliver Spencer is one of them.
The designer addressed the three key elements to dressing a man – fit, colour, texture – in different ways that harmoniously came together in the form of a current, masculine collection with a flavour of the past.
The fit of his tailoring was very much modern. Slim trousers and fitted jackets, always comfortable and enhancing the right parts of the male body: broad shoulders, long legs.
The colour palette was rich but subtle full of autumnal hues but didn't lack injections of mustard, French blue and burgundy, which are always a staple in a winter wardrobe.
My favourite element was the texture, which reminded me of the post WW II tailoring and referenced Spencer's inspiration – the work of art theorist Joseph Beuys, particularly of his use of felt. It was the great combination of felt, tweed and wools that, for me, made the collection so full of character.
The outer and footwear deserve a special mention. The first, because it's such a strong element in all the designer's collections – I am the proud owner of one – and the second, because Oliver Spencer shoes get better and better every season and compete at the level of names like Grenson or Church's.

Click on read more below to see my video of the finale after the jump.

Fashion, Frankly Instagram