In Paris this menswear season Valentino was a little bit of this and a little bit of that. This was free-spirited and that was evocative of calmer days gone by. Well, as it goes, Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaolo Piccioli, the pair positioned at the top of the venerable label, did indicate that their inspiration came from “outsiders and freethinkers”, thus romanticising a gypsy spirit in some way or another.
Filtered through an earthy sepia lens overlay SS15 was a rich roster of hobnob opulence granted by silky slinky fabrics cut for the modern gentleman confident in a floral skin. On that note, we have to pick up on the prints, a cornucopia of crafty combos which had a wonderfully at one with nature vibe that devoured the pyjama suit-esque ensembles that became offset by neat little uniformed suede jackets.
If they weren’t rendered in sued, they were gussied up in glossy leather, by which point an over-bearing “butterflies are free” printed embellishment came along to rule the roost for a brief period. All the while a number of silk scarfs strengthened the outfits they accompanied. The hectic au-natural aspects at the basis of this season then died down a little and a number of clearly constructed classic menswear ensembles did their bit to hone in the collection.
All the eyefuls of attention-grabbing aesthetics were deliberate though, so seemingly the final few head-to-toe tartan suits were the last shout for the freethinking Valentino man. Let’s just hope he is able to cherry pick the ripest numbers and adapt it to suit his own fashion-conscious idiosyncrasies.
by Liam Feltham
Images courtesy of Style.com