Designer fashion has always kept one eye on the street,
whether through streetwear influenced runway shows or the ever growing emergence
of sports orientated designer items which continue to catch the eye as brands
roll out their new season collections. This is a trend that has been emerging
for some time; we recently put together our own look at the rise of luxury trainers and brands to look out for in womenswear while high end online retailer
Net-A-Porter even went so far as to launch a new site dedicated exclusively to
sportswear earlier this summer.
With the popularity of yoga and outdoor activities
particularly running increasing in popularity it’s no surprise that designer brands decided to get in on the act but to many the rise of designer
sportswear, specifically when it comes to men isn't merely a passing trend but
an overall shift in the way men are approaching the way they dress in general
which is what we will focus on here. If this is true that the emergence of designer sportswear points to a shift in not only how men dress for formal and office environments but also in all areas of their life they already have plenty of options when it comes to designers and looks for each aspect of their outfits.
Track Pants
Tracksuits and in particular track pants is an area designer
sportswear has excelled in recent seasons with high quality takes on high
street looks becoming a real winner in menswear circles. Designers including Tomas
Maier, Vivienne Westwood and Acne Studios have already crafted different takes
on the traditional joggers with gathered ankles and even cropped looks proving
popular.
Sweatshirts
Hardly an innovative piece of clothing that has been prevalent
at both designer and high street collections for a long time the sweatshirt should
be a wardrobe staple for any well-dressed man this summer and its versatility
means you can stick with it later in the year as well. Whereas track pants remain somewhat similar in
style throughout different designers, sweatshirts, as the stand out piece of an
outfit have been where more luxury brands have decided to branch out in terms of colours and style.
Marni and Valentino offer two beautiful alternatives with their floral and ‘symbols’
looks which can be easily paired with outfits for both informal and more dressy
occasions.
Similar to sweatshirts, bomber jackets are a piece of
sportswear that designer fashion has taken and very much made its own. Although historically not an iconic sportswear item, with its heritage coming from a
military background having later been adopted by sportswear teams particularly in the
US for the case we are putting together we will include them. A number of
luxury designers have not strayed too far from the traditional style this
season when it comes to the bomber jacket with the likes of Neil Barrett and
Kenzo offering smart and stylish knitted options while other designers have
taken the base bomber jacket design and ran with it, examples from Versace with
their lavish quilted look and Lanvin’s more formal straight edged design both
offer sometimes different.
