Men's Spring Summer Fashions 2008

Safari looks, event dressing and bold colours - not to mention fabulous hats - are some of the emerging men's fashion trends for spring/summer 2008.

Upscale Canadian men's retailers Harry Rosen held a media preview at their Bloor Street headquarters in late January to preview men's fashion trends for spring and summer. In particular, they drew attention to ten top trends to watch for:

1. Rat Pack styling (think bow ties and porkpies)
2. Specialty jackets (inspired by technical sportswear and the safari trend)
3. Washed sportshirts
4. Shorts
5. Spectator wear (so you can look sporty without actually playing a sport, apparently)
6. Event dressing (as in lightweight, light-coloured jackets by the likes of Etro, pictured below, for summer weddings, art gallery receptions and theatre openings)
7. Neutral suits
8. Punches of colour
9. Summer denim (10-12 oz fabric is out; 6-8 oz weights are in)
10. Accessories (belts, wallets and especially bags: the omnipresent manpurse, or "murse", pictured below)

It's clear that men's fashion trends for 2008 closely mirror some of the key women's trends:

• Safari: For women, this is being interpreted in two ways: literally, with animal prints like leopard, zebra and giraffe; and more subtly, with garments like cargo shorts, safari jackets, colours like putty, clay and sand, and detailing like multiple button-flap pockets. Men almost seem to be channeling a new Indiana Jones chic (well, there is a new movie in the works!) with pieces like the Parajumpers black waxed cotton pilot jacket... not to mention those sexy leather messenger bags.
• Metallic: For summer 2008, women are showing off their curves in chrome bathing suits and glittering sequined numbers, and ornamenting more everyday looks with shiny, sparkly metallic jewellery. The more restrained variations on this look involve metallic-finish accessories and shimmery fabrics like shot silk. For men, it's not so much a shimmer as a sheen; even office shirts and suits have a reflective glow to them. And while the boys aren't wearing flashing silver-coin earrings and necklaces (yet!), high-gloss silver-coloured metal is everywhere; tie clips and cufflinks are resplendent, and there's even shiny hardware on the shoes to marry up with the gleam of a polished belt buckle by the likes of Prada or Dolce & Gabbana.
• New Look revival: Audrey Hepburn fans are going for classic pearls and the Little Black Dress. For the guys, the classic straw and fabric hats of the '50s are back with a vengeance and slight updating. Harry Rosen suggests going for a Goorin Brothers trilby or porkpie (pictured below), possibly in plaid, for the Brad Pitt look. There's also a return to the classic elegance of English-style dressing – possibly in an Italian reinterpretation – in items like the gorgeous matte brown jacket by Brunello Cucinelli that's just right for the executive on the California vineyard vacation.
• The psychedelic palette: Madras plaids and the vivid '60s spectrum aren't just for girls. For men, we have Lacoste shirts in canary, pale orange and baby blue, and sorbet stripes from Boss, Victorinox and Ermengildo Zegna. There are also fun-coloured ties (polka dots are back!) from Ted Baker and Robert Talbott, pictured below
• Boyfriend dressing: Looking at some of those cute hats (Like the Goorin trilby made of grosgrain ribbon, for heaven's sake!) and the yummy candy-coloured shirts, it's hard to imagine that the manufacturers don't know about this particular trend. Some of these pieces may be vanishing from closets before they've even been broken in... sorry, boys!