The past 18 months have given us time to think about what we actually like to wear, with comfort increasingly transcending aesthetic concerns (hello Crocs). But as many of us return to offices, restaurants and bars, we are faced with a mystery. What do we want to project: sophistication or coolness? Carelessness or irony?
Now is the ideal time for a Schneider reset. And instead of being inspired by airbrush models, celebrities and professional influencers, it is worth turning to the people behind the clothes: the fashion designers themselves. Designers are known to wear black – but for those who do not adhere to this cliché , your personal style can be convincing.
Designers understand the power of clothing – the feelings they evoke, the signals they send – better than anyone. You dress on purpose. And compared to the cleverly styled campaigns with their creations, their own outfits are accessible. “Shows or collections are more like total looks – but I don’t wear total looks,” says Turkish designer Umit Benan. “I, it’s more real.”
Samuel Ross
Founder, A-Cold-Wall
Samuel Ross is a master at dressing on purpose. Every evening he takes off his clothes and thinks about “what suits the mood and the requirements of the next day”. He believes clothing can get you in the right mood to complete tasks, and whether he’s channeling the high-octane vibe of his own brand or being a little more laid back, he’s fully committed to every look.
The 30-year-old designer from London has three different styles. At home, he enjoys a meditative mix of linen shirts with grandad collars and pleated, wide-cut Issey Miyake pants in gray and cream. At work he wears A-Cold-Wall and Veilance jackets and pants made of technical nylons. Often these futuristic ensembles are all in black or all white, but on days when he is striving for a creative breakthrough, he wears high-vis orange to “encourage untypical thinking”. And when he works out, he wears Lycra tights and windproof Nike running shells.
A-Cold Wall founder Samuel Ross has three go-to looks
Since the beginning of 2020 he has been even more determined in terms of what he wears hugged pieces that “signal” something, such as tailored trousers (“efficacy”) and wide trousers (“relaxed and non-confrontational”).
It is interesting to see how a man can remain versatile and stylish in old age
He offers a master class in wearing vests – one of the trickier pieces of clothing in a man’s wardrobe. His oversized white tank tops, revealing his dyed biceps and tucking them into slim pants in a flattering game of proportions, are reminiscent of the “super working class town” in Northamptonshire where he grew up. His jewelry, like emerald and rainbow-colored diamond rings by Suzanne Kalan, point to his black British Caribbean roots (“Jewelry is so prominent in Caribbean culture,” he says).
Ross finds out how to keep some of the streetwear codes he grew up with as he dresses more mature. “It’s interesting to see how a man can remain versatile and stylish as he ages,” he says. He and Jerry Lorenzo, founders of LA-based brand Fear of God, often discuss “what the style looks like for a dad who’s out of streetwear but is now into it too.” [more traditional] Men’s fashion ”.
Gauthier Borsarello
Editor of L’Etiquette magazine, vintage retailer and creative director FOR De Fursac
Gauthier Borsarello is a committed student of fashion history and is bursting with personality. Most have vintage finds, be it a Barbour Spey jacket from the 1990s, a delicate Cartier Tank Louis watch from the 1970s, or champion shorts with a Mickey Mouse badge. “I love things that have a very long lifespan,” he says. It makes you want to wear things with a story behind them – not a bad thing at a time when the awareness of the need to appreciate clothing is growing.
He’s a versatile dresser so you’re never quite sure what style he’ll be channeling. “One day I want to be a banker, then a cowboy, then a mod,” says the affable 32-year-old Parisian. “I don’t think it’s easy to synthesize my style.” He avoids jeans, but wears checked blazers, cardigans, JM Weston tassel loafers and playful accents, and tucks ornate brooches on suede Birkenstock clogs.
Eclecticism is Gauthier Borsarello’s motto © Basile Khadiry
His personal style is significantly more eccentric than that of most of his Parisian colleagues. According to Borsarello, Parisians generally “choose a style that is good for us and wear it all the time”. The typical men’s uniform is dark jeans, a white shirt, a gray tweed blazer and black boots.
He believes these simple clothes can be traced back to the French Revolution – “when we cut off the king’s head, it got bad to spend money on inconvenient things” – and because the outfits are restrained, “you have to express yourself” in your posture and the way you talk and move ”. Well-made things are worn forever, a frayed hem or worn shoes are nothing to complain about and casualness (à la Serge Gainsbourg) is the best accessory.
When I go to concerts, nobody wears a tie, nobody gets dressed. It’s ‘cool’ to go like that, but I don’t think it is
Borsarello, a former classical musician, likes to wear black clothes and is saddened that we didn’t disguise ourselves before the pandemic. “When I go to concerts, nobody wears a tie, nobody gets dressed. It’s “cool” to go that way, but I don’t think it is. I think it’s cool to have a specific silhouette for every occasion. “
He will include smoking jackets and pointy boots in the upcoming De Fursac collections to encourage men to sharpen themselves. “It’s clothes that say, ‘I didn’t wear this today, I’m wearing this now because I’ll see you,’” he says. “I think it’s polite to get dressed for someone to see.”
Umit Benan
Founder, Umit Benan and B +
A fun, free-running energy crackles through the ensembles of Umit Benan. He also knows how to dress sexy, a rare feat for men.
In summer, when a mustache curls over your lip, it looks like old-school Havana: white linen suits and hair combed back. For the rest of the year he switches to “grunge” mode with a full beard – large scarves, black jeans, shirts on top of each other and arms full of gold and silver bangles.
Umit Benan prefers an old-school Havana look in the summer
The hairy 40-year-old thinks that clothing should complement your natural properties. “My beard is rough, so I never wear shiny, good-looking things (when I have them) because the clothes would stick out that way,” he says. “In winter, when you have fabrics like Shetland wool, they blend in with the texture of the beard. but [in summer] If you don’t have a beard and wear precise parts, everything looks sharp, ”he says.
He always wears ski socks (“I feel so weak when I wear thin socks”) and, apart from espadrilles in midsummer, heavy boots. He has “bigger legs”, so he needs shoes that maintain the “chunky” silhouette. “I love moccasins, but I don’t wear them because they have a soft shape, but I don’t have smooth legs,” he says. “Everyone has to know their body shape and what” [clothes] they can handle it physically. “
Benan grew up in Istanbul, worked in Manhattan for three years and now lives in Milan, and all of these influences can be seen in his ensembles. “I’m wearing something from New York, like a hoodie, an Italian piece of clothing like a cashmere coat, and Turkish pajamas or caftans.” He’ll throw a camel coat over a kaleidoscope of shirts, paired with tomato-red silk pajama bottoms. “It’s wrong, however. . . There is no rule, I just mix it up, ”he says.
I wear a bow tie and a sharp tuxedo to weddings, but the boots are completely destroyed
He says you should never know what brand someone is wearing, so he doesn’t like logos, and even though he has 2,000 items in his closet – all of his own designs except Calvin Klein underwear – he’ll be wearing a look for three weeks before leaving changes. That’s partly because he likes to “really use” his clothes. He doesn’t mind having an expensive coat dragging on the floor and he hates ironing, so his shirts are wrinkled.
“At weddings I wear a bow tie and a sharp tuxedo, but the boots are completely destroyed, you can see my socks showing through,” he says. “It’s 90 percent perfect and 10 percent imperfect, but really imperfect – that makes it more real.”
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