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Lanvin’s New Bad Boys Rule

If any collection best captured the current state of play in men’s fashion it was Lanvin, whose exhilarating show Sunday morning, June 28, in Paris was a real double whammy: The coolest collection of clothes in the most assuredly staged show.

Where previously Lanvin was all about the sensitive man, poetic figures whose clothes all looked designed for dinner parties where only Bordeaux vintages are served, for Spring 2010 Lanvin’s man's first destination will be a nightclub.

That much was clear from the pre-show ambience in the Salle Wagram - a Berlin techno track and bordello red lighting, where the start of the show was heralded by the volume brusquely turned way up.

Lanvin, the house that spawned the current obsession with wearing bowties - everyone from Lower East Side hipsters to Milanese dandies wear dickie bows these days – has suddenly walked away from the phenomena. They were absent from this show.

“It’s our anti-uniform collection and all about why not? Why not a nightclub? Why not iced coffee for breakfast," said Lanvin’s creative director Alber Elbaz with a laugh, who took his bow, as is customary, with menswear designer Lucas Ossendrijver.

Though not many men can afford Lanvin’s pricey menswear, its influence has been huge – just take a look this spring in the windows of Zara, the giant Spanish fashion retailer, crammed, as they are, with the muted hues, frayed hems and sensitive fabrics the Paris house made its signature.

They should get ready to re-do the shop front for Lanvin’s after midnight collection emphasis on faille rocker dandy redingotes and a great new trouser cut – in taupe, ivy and battered burgundy – cut forgivingly down the thigh and tapered at the ankle. But the best idea was a series of pants and suits in cool tartan or club tie stripe fabrics which will be de rigueur for all hipsters next Easter.

Added to the mix were some great footwear, either Hobbit-like chunky brogues or fabric strap sandals, worn at the strong ecru colored finale where calf leather bomber jackets, worn inside pants, Querelle style singlets and off-the-shoulder trenches starred.

The only thing missing was a backstage pass around their necks or an after-party invite in their hands for Europe’s two mega tours of the summer – Depeche Mode and U2.

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