Just last week models from Quasimi Homme walked backstage to end off Paris Fashion Week. And for just a moment it's all about menswear. Milan Fashion Week is replete with beauty, glamour and the who's who of Style, proving as always that fashion can be adorned by any shape, age or sex. Neil Doveton, Fashion Editor for Mens Health is no stranger to this. We caught up with him after the whirlwind that was Milan Fashion Week to provide you with an exclusive and unique view into it:
"Being a fashion editor is not just hard work – it’s lots of fun too. Or to be more precise perhaps it’s the other way around. But once a year I get the amazing opportunity to make my pilgrimage to Milan – the heart of menswear and the home of the Milan Menswear Collections. It’s such an honor attending these collections and the best way to not only monitor trends, but to feel the zeitgeist. Let me talk you through an ordinary, well hardly ordinary, day at the shows.
It begins a month before when the Moda Uomo Collezioni Press Office send out their media accreditation applications. If you’re accepted, which Men’s Health, as the leading men’s magazine in South Africa is; the process begins. It’s then up to Men’s Health to apply personally to every designer showing at the collections from the likes of Armani, Dolce & Gabbana and Vivienne Westwood.
Needless to say with thousands of eager journalists applying I wait responses with bated breath, usually only finding out who has invited me to their shows when I arrive at my hotel in Milan. Naturally as soon as soon as I have checked into my hotel I head into the city and begin a crazy shopping spree looking for something new to wear to the shows. This can be a maddening experience – Milan is a smorgasbord of fashion. The choices endless. Avoiding the urge to blow my tight South African budget on the first day, I try to limit myself to a maximum of 3 new items. Planning to come back when my fashion starved appetite is slightly more sated.
And so the first day of the show begins…
09:00 leave hotel wearing, I would love to say Gucci, but not, a well cut classic white Zara shirt (which set me back 50 Euros), flat- front tailored Country Road trousers and can’t-go-wrong leather brogues. It’s ridiculously hot so anything more than this would be overdressed so I ditch my jacket in my hotel room. Once a day I treat myself to a cab ride to the first show, which again sets me back by about 20 Euros. After that I shuttle around on the press bus. But arriving cool, unflustered and still with good-hair is worth every cent.
09:20 arrive at Dolce & Gabbana show. Greeted by the lovely Paola Lacoti, PR agent for Dolce & Gabbana. Present her with 2 black Vuvuzelas she has asked me to bring to Italy. Ushered to the 3rd row. Yeah – there’s a serious pecking order here. But I have come a long way from the first time I went to Milan and stood in the back row six years ago! Seated next to the Fashion Director of a Slovakian publication and a fashion journalist for an Australian newspaper. Cards are swopped and unfortunately misplaced in the excitement that follows. Morgan Freeman is escorted in by a group of black suited ushers – keeping the press and fans back as he takes his seat in the front row. Peaches Geldof, looking stunning, enters and takes her seat near him.
09:30 International press and TV channel photographers start cheering and whistling, urging the show to begin. Everyone is on a tight schedule, the next show, Burberry Prorsum is due to start in less than an hour at a site 20 minutes across town. Lights dim, a whisper of hushed voices and the set curtains are drawn back to reveal Annie Lennox seated at a grand piano – the crowd erupts with delight. Lennox sings as models enter onto the runway. It’s a heart-stopping fusion of music and fashion. Dolce & Gabbana show a range that indicates a new move towards softer tailoring this season.
The designers, who are celebrating 20 years in menswear, show a collection that is calm and unforced and has the ease that comes with no longer needing to push boundaries of taste or striving to be part of a youthful club scene. It’s a breathtaking moment, one I will never forget. The audience applauds with admiration as Lennox reaches a crescendo, a vibrant and emotional accompaniment to a spectacular finale of 30 models dressed in Dolce & Gabbana suits. I am momentarily dazed.
9:55 The show is over. I gather my bag, camera and notebook and join the throng of bubbling, impressed fashionistas as we head out to the street. Excited, I head off eagerly to the next show - Burberry Prorsum .
10:30 It isn’t long before Christopher Bailey, head designer for Burberry has me riveted to the edge of my seat, craning my neck to get the best view of the runway from my middle row seat. I don’t care that I don’t have the best seat in the house. I am honored to be there. To be part of the first to see his new collection. A collection that has me stunned, gob smacked by Bailey’s expert ability to reinvent the archives. This season he seems to find fresh territory: motorbike riders, with their use of studs and leather. Leading the way for an obvious trend for next season – the biker jacket.
11:30 and I find myself halfway across town at the Emporio Armani show….and so goes my day till seven in the evening when the last show ends.
19:00 The sun still sits high in the sky, my emotions up there with it. I snack on a real margarita pizza, sip a double espresso slowly (they cost 4 Euros so you have to make them last!) and reflect over the days shows. Jotting notes in my diary. Scanning through the pictures I have taken. Indulging in the moment. 3 whole more days to go – it doesn’t get better than this."
And he's right. Bloggers and journalists from here to New York dream of attending one show let alone an array of them. So with that in mind I had a few question for Neil:
I never try too hard when I am in Milan. Less is more when attending the shows. I tend to keep my looks as simple as possible. Although many dress up for the occasion there are always the purists who are there not for the extravaganza but for the art that fashion is.
I am always inspired by the shows – to a point where it’s almost heartbreaking, not being able to afford what I see on the catwalks. But there are terrific mainstream stores like Zara and H&M that generally offer contemporary looks at more affordable prices. I always invest in some classic items that I know I am going to need for the next year or so, like a good jacket, white shirts, leather brogues and jeans. Then I splash out and buy a few more trendy items for a mood lift! And of course with the whole shift away from last season’s bright and garish colours to a more neutral and tonally monochromatic color spectrum I had to introduce a few more neutrals to my wardrobe.
I guess one of my highlights this years was being invited to the Dolce & Gabbana 20th Anniversary Exhibition of the duo’s best works at the Mayoral Hall next to the famous Le Scala Opera Theatre. It was a momentous occasion, red carpet, film crews and to top it off an opportunity to be welcomed and received personally by Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana. Yip – I got to shake hands with them! Admittedly this sounds horribly pretentious but it certainly isn’t something I ever expected to do!
I am a fan of the classics. I love tailoring, suits and the feel of Mediterranean elegance. I guess I am a bit of a romantic when it comes to fashion. Armani always moves me. It’s no wonder his success spans more than 6 decades - he has an innate ability to create the most beautiful suits and this season his collection showed a new relaxed approach to fit and tailoring – indicative of a new trend emerging. And then of course I am a devout fan of iconic Vivienne Westwood, who never ceases to amaze me – with her origins in early Punk , there is none better at fusing the practical with the fantastical. Dolce & Gabbana’s collections are always amazing and the D&G show this season, was fresh wonderfully fresh and pale blues greens and yellows added pleasant highlights to the general tonal beiges and pale grays of this seasons dominating color trends. I am also a big fan of Iceberg. It’s a brand I would love to see in South Africa. It’s very wearable and even though it has a high fashion edge there is always something in the collection for the average guy. Practical stuff like polo t-shirts, cardigans, trousers and cool jackets."
