How to Make a Statement in the Season’s Must Have Neutrals
This season at the spring men’s shows, designers favored a clean, neutral palette of stone, beige, putty, and a plethora of creamy off-white shades. Instead of the traditional bright colors, there were a number of monochromatic head-to-toe looks in neutral color schemes that dominated from Paris to New York. The many varying tones of beige styled together comes as no surprise. Pantone identified hazelnut – a quintessential neutral with warm undertones as a refreshing new color for spring that can be worn year round. Springs monochromatic looks in shades of beige, gray and ivory convey an ultra modern and polished look, whether in a suit, crisp shorts or airy, wide-legged trousers.
A number of designers in Paris embraced the nuetral trend, sending out color coordinated ensembles in various shades of beige and gray. At Balmain, Olivier Rousteing drew inspiration from ancient civilizations, styling sand colored suede wrap jackets with matching trousers for a monochromatic look. Kim Jones of Louis Vuitton featured illustrations of wild animals from the African Savannah in his collection rendered in a sandy palette of beige’s and taupe. Jones, who spent much of his childhood in Botswana, opened his show with a beige crocodile trench coat paired with a neutral colored ostrich bag.
In Milan, Giorgio Armani’s collection featured silk, cotton and linen wide-leg trousers in soft tones of sun-faded grey and beige. The Moncler Gamme Bleu collection by Thom Browne featured short-sleeved shirts, layered under vests, with shorts and cargo pants in sandy shades of military beige, khaki and hunter green. The collection referenced American boy scouts and Smokey the Bear, with a camping theme complete with white pup tents amid a pine forest. The models sported hooded sleeping bags as an accessory. At Diesel Black Gold, Andreas Melbostad favored low-waisted Bermuda cargo shorts and multi-pocket wrap shirts in dirty tan and light safari beige.
Across the Channel in London, J.W. Anderson’s beige wide leg trousers were paired with an elegant ivory trench coat. The influence of Antoine de-Saint Exupéry’s book “The Little Prince” was seen in the makeshift crowns worn by the models. Lou Dalton’s loose, double button jacket and above-the-knee shorts came in a pale shade of ivory. The trend also stretched as far as New York with designers incorporating neutral shades of beige, ivory and gray into their collections. Designer John Elliott went beyond his signature grayscale palette injecting a dose of pale, watery shades with metallic finishes that resulted in a steamy silver jacket over natural linen shorts. Joseph Abboud, a proponent of wearing nuetrals year round embraced a loose, body skimming cut with slightly flared trousers and breezy deconstructed jackets that gave off a distinct Cuban vibe. Staple pieces in Abboud’s collection include tailored jackets and knits in a palette of white, ivory, dusty wheat and “Havana” brown.
See our Top 7 Spring 2017 Men’s Trends here.
