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Metallic
The metallic fabrics deployed by designers as unalike as Ennio Capasa at Costume National, Donatella Versace, Dean and Dan Caten of Dsquared2, and Italo Zucchelli at Calvin Klein likely had their origins at the huge annual fabric fair Première Vision.
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Checks
Ditto the checkered wools that marched down runways from London (Burberry) to Paris (Valentino) and onto New York (CWST’s “hobo chic” collection). “Checks were all we were seeing at Première Vision,” said Joe Sadler of CWST.
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Militaria
But who saw the militaria thing coming? Beginning with Sarah Burton’s Alexander McQueen show in London, designers like Dries Van Noten, Olivier Rousteing (at Balmain) and Andrea Pompilio seemed drunk on braid and ornament and epaulets and honors and stripes and bars. Cue the Praetorian Guard, or else Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.
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Big Volume
Miuccia Prada showed outsize sailor denims; Kris Van Assche at Dior Homme exhibited suits that called to mind David Bowie’s spinnaker-scale outfits circa 1975; and Virgil Abloh showed off an overcoat so outsize it looked like a Snugli auditioning for the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
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Bombers
Bomber jackets, a less costume-y adaptation of military gear, were abundant on both sides of the Atlantic. With origins in the First World War, and the Aviation Clothing Board’s creation of heavy-duty fur-lined leather jackets for pilots flying open-cockpit aircraft, the bomber was the designer go-to. Hardly a men’s wear designer over the past month didn’t riff on an idea that originated almost a century ago.
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‘Mad Max’
Countering last year’s gender-blur trend were Greg Lauren, Boris Bidjan Saberi and Moncler. Mr. Lauren’s “Mad Max”-style presentation posed models like Tyson Beckford on plinths like heroes and had pugilists skipping rope or in a boxing ring. The Saberi and Moncler shows seemed to exist in an environment halfway between the war-torn 21st century and some postapocalyptic future.
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Cuddly
As if to offset such machismo, Michael Kors produced cardigans as warm and fuzzy as a hug from granddad and showed a shearling garment he referred to as a teddy bear coat. And there was a Snoopy T-shirt worn under girly sweaters on the Gucci runway that would look just dandy on a double date with the knitted granny afghan jacket designed by Ms. Prada.