Capes for Men.

The mens’ cape is undoubtedly one of the coolest pieces of clothing ever invented. It’s been around since the middle ages in Europe, when knights would wear them into the battlefield. The utility of the heavy cloak (a very long cape) was rediscovered in the 19th century, when they were worn to keep out rain and snow. “gas capes” were used in the World Wars – enormous bulky pieces that could cover the gas masks and other apparel of soldiers in the trenches. Tons of anime characters wear them. Dante, my idol from Devil May Cry, wears a cape (and has that platinum-white hair!!! But that’s getting off-topic.) If this isn’t an article of clothing that reeks of valour, machismo, and awesome style, I don’t know what is.

The versatility of cape material is great. It’s not a stretch to use materials as diverse as fur, vinyl, leather, pleather, canvas, plastic, or velvet… All to great and differing effect. My question to the world is WHY DON’T YOU SEE PEOPLE WEARING CAPES?!? Except for really strange people. They seem to have no problem wearing them. In an era overly concerned with ‘fitting in’ and looking like other people, I think it’s time we collectively grow some balls and start wearing capes. Come on, Superman wore one!

Retro Menswear Ad

A good friend of mine recently asked me why I draw only ladies fashion. Good question..? The end result of the conversation was that I should start drawing fashion for men, because it would be cool (and give some ideas for men on how to dress.) Aside from the generic ‘how to dress’ sketches I do from time to time, I haven’t really done anything conceptual for men. So now, here’s one of my first tries in recent memory. Influenced by those sexy black-and-white Armani ads, crossed with 80s retro glam, here’s to… MY MENSWEAR PINUP!!!

..yeah. cool hm? There’s a lot more where that came from… I’m now collaborating with my buddy to get some more ideas. Keep posted!

-FH

PS. Sorry about the cropping and black edge issues. I’ll get them *shakes fist*

Vintage Fashion Sketch – Girl with Shawl

The bad news: I didn’t update for quite awhile. The good news: My scanner works again! I resurrected the software. Sort of. That means tons of sketches will be uploaded to my blog from now on. I did this sketch in class and coloured it at home.. Not much to say. I love the era-gone-by look of this girl, though! Especially how her shawl wraps all around her heard and neck. Cool stuff. Also, I’m a big fan of those oversized vintage-looking clutches you see everyone carrying lately. Who cares if it’s a fad — looks cool to me! Ladies, pick yourselves up a nice big clutch. Just make sure to carry it with some sort of flowy dress that draws on the mid-century for inspiration.

Trench coats for Men!!! (and yes, how to look cool in them)

Over the past season or so, I’ve been watching male trenchcoats creep from the runway back into mainstream fashion. Burberry, Hugo, Klein, and Armani have all released some sort of trench. It makes life in rainy places so much more bearable when you have something wicked to throw on to keep out the rain. I myself have been wearing a trenchcoat on and off since September .. definitely worth it, folks, it’s great for those in-transition days when it’s too cool for cotton, but too warm for wool.

When wearing your trench, you can go one of two ways. First way: go the slim-fit route. This is a no-brainer in today’s ultra-tailored mens’ fashion climate. These long numbers will make you look even slimmer, so if you’re already skinny it might be hazardous to wear a trench coat that’s too fitted. Second way: go for a bulkier silhouette. I like this approach – just be careful not to get it too big or else you’ll feel awkward. My trench fits so large, I may get the sides taken in a little bit just to make it more wearable. Also, I have no desire to look like a front-line messenger from World War 2… well, not this season at least.

If your trench comes with a belt, TIE IT. This should be obvious. I’ve found that while mine has a buckle, I prefer to do it up in a single knot – this looks more masculine, and makes the look casual enough to wear without some sort of suit underneath. If you’re going for an ultra-casual look, feel free to leave the damn thing untied – just don’t come crying to me when it starts getting caught in things such as bus doors! Jeeze.

Some further tips for man trench coats: Even if you don’t like tan-coloured stuff, try a tan one on. I never wear tan, but my trench is tan-coloured and I love it. If you’re going to wear a trench, don’t carry a messenger bag unless it’s a very fitted coat – do you *want* to look like you’re in the Russian military, circa 1945? Unless you can effectively pull it off, carry a bag by hand, or make your messenger bag of choice a bulky one. Revel in the length of the male trench coat. You can get the modern-looking cropped ones, but I am also a fan of the ultra-long retro coats. Mine drops to my knees.

All I can say is… Guys, why wouldn’t you get yourself a trench coat? If you don’t, be prepared to miss out on not only a big trend but a very cool piece of clothing. Over and out!

-FH.

1920s Flapper Fashion

The 1920s were years of change across the world – particularly for women. Women began to embrace all things modern and stylish, without regard to the stricter conventions of bygone eras, with this trend peaking around 1926-1928, the years of the Flappers. These daring women wore short limb-revealing dresses, lots of makeup and jewelry, and embraced a long cylindrical form of figure. They would accentuate this shape on their own bodies by wearing dresses lacking in waistline or with a dropped waistline, that were loose enough to make their chests appear flatter.

Hairstyles were worn much shorter, and with the invention of cloche hats it was necessary for ladies to crop their hair short – it was impossible to get a tightly-fitting cloche hat on your head if your hair wasn’t cut completely short and flat! This coupled with the coveted skinny, curve-less figure led to girls idolizing the look of a typical fifteen-year-old boy. Ladies clothing was also becoming more mannish, with an eye more to comfort than to cinching the waist with a corset.

For more trendy silhouette outlines from the roaring 20s, click on the pic at the top of the post – the site is awesome. The one at right is my own sketch … not particularly great anatomy but interesting nonetheless. That’s all for now!

-FH.

Pierre Cardin and the Space Age

Suffice it to say that Pierre Cardin was the most prominent pioneer of Space Age fashion. He helped popularize a modern, minimalist look that rocked the world and is now making something of a comeback.

These cool boots are so retro that they’d actually be the leading edge of mod fashion on the streets today. Check out the flat heels and androgynous look. Even for a guy, it would not be unthinkable to wear the black ones in the middle – though I wouldn’t wear them unless they had some sort of buckle or other masculine detailing on them.

Check out this weird dress. I’m not a huge fan of it, but it does scream ’sixties’ – and the androgynous Twiggy-inspired look is all over this model. I like the low-heeled shoes – worked into an outfit properly, they can be very classy. I have to admit, I think the experimentation with pattern and see-through materials is very very cool. It would be cool to see a whole gown done in the mesh, with something beneath. Preferably with long gloves.

The Hottest Ladies Shoes – Nine West

I believe that shopping for fashion can be reasonably affordable – just because your high-roller friend gets her shoes from Lanvin doesn’t mean you have to, to look [nearly] as good as she does. Nine West carries a wide variety of trendy shoes that look great, an they cost about 1/4 of what you’d otherwise pay to look so stylin’.

Check out this red pump … grrrr … smokin. Bright red shoes always attract attention and can spice up an otherwise drab outfit. I am a big fan of patent leather shoes for ladies, because they look so classy and well-put-together .. even if you just threw on a random outfit because you were late for work or something.

Next up is a trendy block-heel pump. These have been big for the past season or so but they’re still going strong. These give a bit of extra power to your power suit -wear with slim straight-legged dress pants. I think these ones in particular would go well with a light grey suit. I love the detail at the bottom of the heel; it gives it a real retro feel without looking too campy.

This last shoe is a nice tan/ivory colour. At risk of being politically incorrect, I call it ‘nude’ – though you’d have to be damn pale to look this colour when nude.

I love ivory shoes! They’re classy but again, very retro. This blockier shoe will look good with a pair of straight, fitted jeans or trouser pants. You could also pair it with a matching ivory dress in a lighter material to contrast. Throw on a chocolate-brown coat and you’re set for the rest of winter.

I hope I have convinced you all of the utility and beauty of shoes that *don’t* cost more than $200 – think of the money you’ll save! You could buy whole new outfits! …That’s just me projecting a cheap-sales-shopper mentality on the masses. Over and out!

FH.

Bags for Men [and how to wear them]

Yeah, yeah … We’ve all heard man-bags take serious flak from ‘real men’. But if you can pull one of these off, then you have some serious mojo. Aside from being convenient (since when have you been able to carry all sorts of manly stuff around with you?!), these guy bags make you look important, useful, and stylish. If you feel that bad about carrying one, leave a mini toolkit in the bottom with a few condoms and your testosterone level will stabilize.

Anyway, I wanted to show off a few and give some recommendations. Check out this Qara Medico bag. It’s styled after a classic doctor’s bag – I love it.

[http://www.uncrate.com]

*whistles* damn. It’s worth the $500+ price tag. If one has that sort of money.

Now. HUGO BOSS. This man designs great bags. They’re practical and masculine, not to mention they have an unmistakable look to them.

[all http://www.hugoboss.com]

Another classic purveyor of man bags is Prada. [http://www.prada.com]

Their bags are always variations on a classic theme:

Now, how to wear a bag properly.

There are many ways of carrying your bag depending on the straps and its size – The idea is to make it work with your look.

For business style, I recommend finding a bag that’s sharp and not too trendy. It should make you look busy, but shouldn’t weight you down or stop you from being able to stride with prominence. Your bag should help your look say ‘HEY. I’m important. But too important to say so.’ (that’s why you have to look the part). Stick with black or brown; vinyl, leather, acrylic, and some canvas bags are all appropriate.

For a more casual style, you can play more. Use bags that are in vintage leather, canvas, sail cloth, whatever. My favourite for this year is the black leather doctor bag. 2 years ago I bought a black Puma bag that looks very slightly like a doctor bag, and I still use it to this day. However, I get a lot more use out of a messenger bag when I’m going out and need to bring something along with me.

Most guys just like a clasic messenger bag. I find those little square bags sort of ugly, to stick with one that’s rectangular and not too small [emasculating] and not too large [makes you look scrawny]. As you have seen, I tend toward bigger, plain bags. If you’re going to carry a bag, it might as well fit everything you’ll need to be carrying. I like bags with a strap but if need be, I’ll put up with handles. You just have to walk really manly while carrying it – strut, and you’ll look like a girl.

Anyway that’s all for tonight. Over and out!

FH.