State of Men's Fashion: Fall/Winter 2022
Applied Male Fashion
The second half of 2022 has brought with it paradigm shifts not seen in the male fashion space for a minute.
It makes sense, seeing that the world is pretty much back from redacted virus in even the most ocean blue of areas, that a certain level of social momentum would swiftly flip the pillow of trends to the cool side, in this case a side not seen since the early-mid 2000s.
Let’s review what we have in store for the coming months, and what we will be covering in the more topical posts short term.
Abstract
BTG thesis: We are on the precipice of seeing a decoupling of perceived fashion do’s and don’ts depending on the individual’s body type. As having a fit body becomes more of an asset than it’s ever been, showing it off as one sees fit will never truly be considered “out of style” as nobody is going to say shit to someone more ripped than they are. The more in shape one is, the more they can get away with. Said fit people will have the privilege of practicing more discretion when it comes to classic and timeless looks that err on the side of being fitted/tighter.
Why are we suddenly qualifying fitted styles? As loosely expected, the cycle of fashion has swung [loosely] back to straight cuts and baggier fits being zeitgeist chic. Influences are being seen primarily from the eras of early 2000s and 70s. Things to consider for the short term foreseeable future; baggier fits, lighter washes, less saturation.
As usual you should be hard-fading most online fashion discussion boards, especially reddit’s MFA; due to them being largely comprised of out of shape semi outcasts who get their validation from people who are not generally known for making major moves on the reg or benching more than 135lbs.
Additionally we are seeing the rise of a new type of clothing class; workleisure. Spearheaded by brands like Cuts, Birddogs, Bonobos, and the OG athleisure purveyors themselves Lululemon, among others. The idea being that since working from home and hybrid office model has become a permanent part of many professional’s lives, the concept of what is acceptable in an office environments is changing, and we are fortunate the free market has sensed and subsequently adjusted to these changes. This will be covered more in depth in a separate post.
Fits
Setting aside legacy/timeless outfits discussed in previous posts, fits are currently tending toward straight lines and baggier (oversized) depending on the article in question. Shirts, especially when worn without an outer layer, will call for wider sleeves, more elongated shoulder seams, and straight hems that fall more on their own as opposed to hugging the waistline. These types of oversized fits tend to work well with both classic style sweatpants as well as non-skintight fitted joggers, which is consistent with the trend of “comfy chic”.
The unfortunate pivot in shirt style means that some pants styles need to adjust as well. You may be able to get away with a wide gradient of styles when rocking loungewear but strapping on a pair of fitted jeans with an oversized style T shirt yields an incongruent fit.
Which arrives at the largest pivot to date, denim color. We’re officially here to say that lighter wash jeans are back in the rotation. This means that if you still have a fitting pair from 2009 laying around, the pant legs need not be cut off to the tune of yielding 2” inseam cutoffs worn whilst ingesting a large quantity of Busch lattes on or near a body of water (though if you did this you have lost nothing on a net basis). Be prepared for the purchase of a pair of Levi’s 501 original fits in light stonewash if you couldn’t find any tucked in the basement next to your video camcorder and copy of The Matrix Reloaded.
Note that a baggy style is inherently less sharp than fitted, and that until the look becomes ubiquitous you run the risk of looking underdressed in social settings.
Colors
Among the biggest factors here is not necessarily the colors themselves, but the shading and pigmentation. In aiming for a relaxed look, a key factor that adds to the aesthetic is a lighter, less saturated coloring.
This concept is best quantified by taking a two of the same black cotton T shirts
- Leave one in a drawer for a year, unworn and untouched by the elements
- Wear the other frequently, ideally out in the sun. Wash as needed, dry as appropriate.
After a year, lay the two shirts down next to one another and observe the coloring. Shirt B (worn) will have a noticeable characteristic washed out, perhaps slightly sun-bleached look (depending on how the fabric was dyed). This type of worn, slight faded look is becoming increasingly desirable, while also being made available off the shelf by companies who have figured out more sophisticated pigment dying techniques.
Vibe
Since the market is currently doing its best impression of a cat that leaped from a 747 at cruising altitude, it would appear everyone just wants to be comfy and settle in for the economic downturn that everyone knows is coming (but is seemingly unable to adjust their spending habits to hedge against on a micro level).
It is well known that trends oscillate between binary concepts:
- Clean cut vs. Grungy
- Baggy vs Fitted
- Long vs. Short
- Horrifically tacky vs. Somewhat tasteful
There are several, but at a high level it can be assumed with relative ease that we are officially in a cycle of grungy, baggy, tacky outfits that will be occupying time on machine for fashion houses’ suppliers for the coming years. We hope our posts and twitter TL over the last several months have you stocked with the essentials, so that managing from this point forward becomes a matter of assembling smaller wardrobes of ancillary en vogue items that are pulled out only when needed.
Disclaimer: the further you are from age 18, the less flash in the pan zoomer fashion trends apply to you, and the better you will fare rocking your collection of timeless, comprehensively applicable pieces.