He Spoke Style

The boys are finally trending!

I have often wondered why menswear is not as celebrated as womenswear.

There’s a persistent view that “dressing up” isn’t for men. If you googled for style blogs, you’ll mostly likely find blogs for women. Fashion blogs, like the fashion industry, is dominated by women. Leaving the rest of the creative juices and fabrics in greys and browns for menswear.

Of course for men who embrace fashion confidently, there is an obvious negative energy targeted towards them. Especially if you are the flamboyant type. With men, the story stops at receiving compliments for a great suit or stylish hair. Anything over that, and there’s fear of being too vain or putting themselves ‘out there’. I get nicknamed or teased for my sartorial choices all the time. But I embrace them because it’s a part of who I am.

I don’t think stylish men are ashamed of who they are. To say that Pitti Uomo is the highlight of the fashion world’s street style calendar is an understatement. The Florence trade show has established itself as one of the industry’s biggest draws, not only for its huge span of tailoring and menswear labels on show, but for its hordes of flamboyantly dressed menswear dons, who season upon season seem determined to outdo each other in the art of sprezzatura — that’s Italian for nonchalant, effortless style.

Angelo Flaccavento — Italy’s foremost fashion journalist, the Sicilian veteran is a regular Pitti attendee, and is regularly snapped in his — by Pitti standards, at least — modest and unpretentious getups, centring around thin-rimmed spectacles, soft-shouldered tailoring, and the odd bow tie.

Wanny Di Filippo — Affectionately known as “Pitti Claus,” the man behind leather goods label Il Bisonte regularly flaunts his — even for Italian standards — outrageously flamboyant get-ups all over the Florentine festivities, showing that peacocking is a sport that the older gentleman can enjoy just as much as the young.

Luca Rubinacci — Clothier to some of the world’s wealthiest figures, the Napolitano tailor has taken bespoke clothing to the next level, offering customers a week long vacation in Naples while their creation is being made, and keeping quantities of his mainline down to a mere ten pieces each. Rubinacci has also opened his own store, which combines highly exclusive tailored pieces with an equally exclusive gentleman’s club atmosphere.

Nick Wooster — The undisputed god of street style, Nick Wooster’s resume reads like a who’s who of menswear, having worked with everyone from Neiman Marcus, Barneys New York and Bergdorf Goodman to Polo Ralph Lauren and Thom Browne, alongside his ongoing collaboration with Italian label Lardini. Wooster is regularly swarmed with photographers keen to capture his style that blends American prep with Italian sprezz.

Thanks to these men and a few others, there’s a growing supply of menswear, advice and inspiration. Yes, menswear is not as celebrated as womenswear; but we are slowly graduating from being at the bottom of the fashion chain.

Trying to change that was part of the reason I started my blog.

Some bloggers, I follow:

http://www.thesartorialist.com/
The main inspiration behind Sartorial Poetry (now you know!), founder, blogger and photographer Scott Schuman’s blog began with the idea of creating a two-way dialogue about the world of fashion and its relationship to daily life.

http://dapperlou.com/
Lougè Delcy is a Brooklyn native of Haitian heritage who experiences life through a creative lens. Lougè, who is commonly known as, Dapper Lou, is a well-traveled artist with a unique vision of style. As a self-taught photographer, Lougè communicates his creativity by capturing stills of timeless moments.

http://www.igeeokafor.com/
Igee Okafor, in his words, is “a personal style, photography and creativity lover.” His blog is his platform to look into all these things jointly and in significant detail and was created to cater to fashion and lifestyle enthusiasts.

http://www.meninthistown.com/
Street style photography is booming. Especially in the growing menswear world as shows and events become even more popular and sought after. But Guiseppe Santamaria leaves those shows to other photographers as he wants to capture the everyday man, walking about town.

http://putthison.com/
Put This On isn’t just a blog; it’s also a web series. With the help of people around the world, we’ve produced two seasons for you to watch. Our first season covers the basics — not just of how to dress well, but also some of the things that make men’s style exciting as a topic

http://www.garconalamode.com/
Intensely passionate about menswear, Perkens Bien-Aime, is a menswear blogger, stylist and accessories designer with a goal to contribute to this ever-evolving world of fashion. The blog is a visual delight!

http://dapperanddandy.tumblr.com/
One of my favourites, D&D is a fashion blog for cis male/female beings, genderqueer folks, trans-identified folks, androgynous beings, and anyone that appreciates men's traditional and street wear.

http://www.artofmanliness.com/
A blog dedicated to uncovering the lost art of being a man.