The grounds of the Fortezza da Basso in Florence are a vastly different picture to what they were in June: the cool green grass where people lay fanning themselves has been overlaid with stiff white wooden decking; the scarecrows that threatened to combust in the blazing heat have been replaced with an installation of book pages; and the sea of chinos and bare ankles that…
Nikita changes hair colour a lot. She’s like a rainbow, like the girl the Rolling Stones sang about – she combs her hair, she comes in colors everywhere. When I shot her at Pitti Uomo earlier this year it was raven and blue. On one of the days she was decked out in galaxy leggings and black lace and on another an unfussy black sleeveless…
Some people adhere to the philosophy that you should take one thing off before you leave the house; others in the opposing camp say you should add one thing. It really comes down to the type of person you are, whether you have a tendency to go overboard, or whether you’re more inclined to be too timid in your accessorising. Working out which you are…
If I described an outfit as consisting of a t-shirt, denim shorts, and sneakers, you’d probably be asleep before I’d even finished the sentence. It doesn’t exactly sound riveting. But don’t give up on the concept just yet: make the tee a slouchy one that shows a peep of midriff, put the shorts on the right pair of legs, and you have yourself an outfit…
Tucked away at the back of Pitti Uomo – away from the buzzing hive of menswear activity – was a hidden womenswear gem. If the antidote to testosterone overdose happens to be pink and hemmed with frills, then the brand’s installation was it. Models posed around a room that could have been a set from Mad Men: retro furnishings complimenting the sixties inspired fashion that…
When is a designer not a designer? The answer to this seeming riddle comes not in the form of words, but in the form of a person. A person whose uncommon approach to design earned him the moniker of le chirurgien du jean (‘the denim surgeon‘).
Nikita isn’t aware of Jem and the Holograms; that magical ’80s cartoon in which our protagonist, Jerrica, transforms from normalcy to superhero secret identity with a touch of her star earrings. Jerrica’s alter-ego is a rockstar called Jem: pink-haired, ultra-cool, crystal-voiced and as partial to face paint as Gene Simmons (if KISS’s thunderbolts came in pink). She may not have been the regular kind of…
With side-slicked hair, round sunglasses, and the carefree puff of a cigarette, you could be forgiven for mistaking this gent for someone of another era. But no, this photo was snapped at the recent Pitti Uomo in Florence.
I probably need not preach the value of accessories in raising up an outfit. A simple tee and pair of jeans isn’t really an outfit until you accessorise, so the question is more what to add. A detachable collar is one of the year’s most versatile accessories, the kind of thing you can add to almost any top or dress to give it an instant…
There was a time when a long skirt, cut with high slits that reveal the legs with every step, would have been reserved purely for after nightfall. But that’s no longer the case. No better an example than in the heat of Florence at Pitti Uomo, where a slit skirt and casual loafers or lace-ups were regularly seen together, a partnership of both comfort and…
When last we caught up with Nick Schaerf he was tweeded up for the Melbourne Tweed Ride. Last week we bumped into him on the other side of the world, in an appropriately contrasting look. Decked out in a red double breasted suit, and all the accessory trimmings, Nick held his own against both the Florentine summer and the mass of stylishly colourful Pitti men.
The slow emerging trend of incorporating street wear into a suit outfit is gaining traction, evidenced by Pitti-goers fondness for pairing items like running shoes and bandanas with linen blazers and tailored pants. The baseball cap is a natural evolution of that, and this might be the one we start with.
Phone in one hand, cigarette in the other… Perched on a rock outside Pitti Uomo in the heat, this gent could be a modern, sartorial men’s version of Copenhagen’s Little Mermaid statue.
This is when two brands come together in perfect harmony to create a beautiful product. Collaborations are easy to come by at Pitti Uomo, but we thought this was something special.
All the clothes are gone. The elaborate stands are now being deconstructed. Buyers are now making their way down to Milan. Pitti Uomo is over. But before I say adieu, here are some final observations from the week.
So this is it. We’ve reached the end of Pitti Uomo. I knew this day would come but I didn’t expect for it to come so quickly. And I had only just found the press buffet. I guess everything good has to come to an end, but we can all relive the memories through these street style photos. Those were the good old days.
You know that one shirt that seems to go with everything and works in most situations in life? Yeah, this is one of them. And we found it at Pitti Uomo.
Like a (street style) god overlooking his kingdom, Nick Wooster finds some relief from the Florence sun under a tree and soaks in the views of Pitti going past.
A pair of shorts, t-shirt and a blazer may not be the most stand-out of outfits on a normal day. But with the addition of an on-trend pair of sunglasses and a scarf wrapped around as a turban, there’s a new level of interest to be reached. Not to mention a great way of keeping the hot Florentine sun from burning one’s head.
The menswear love of print and pattern continued its momentum into consciousness at Pitti this year. It’s good to know that the men are letting go and having a bit of fun with their outfits, especially when it comes to colour. Here’s a glimpse of what we saw during the week.
