Picking up where I left off, I realized that I haven't told you what inspired me. It wasn't one thing or another, it was an overall visual thing.
One of the things that inspired me was seeing many different types of men, dressed very practical but fashionable. All of them had worn something with color or print to it. Most New York men live in black, brown, or navy. The fashionable men will experiment with color, but will sometimes go overboard. German men will use the right amount of color to make the whole look work. They may not experiment as much, but when they do, they know that it works for them. What also inspired me is that the men here know their sizes and dress accordingly. The guys here wear things that are fitted to their body, not tight and not oversized. Their look is cleaner and leaner. I like that!!
It has got the picture in my mind of a more British styled kind of look. A very mod styled kind of look with nice clean lines that can be casual or dressy, but always in great taste and workable with practically everything. I will be trying to incorporate crazy prints and stripes into all of this, as most mod looks are very structured around black, brown or navy. I will also incorporate two of my many style influences, David Bowie and Bryan Ferry. The looks of both of these men are always sharp, but with a twist.
I wish I had pictures of both of them, so you can see what I mean, but alas, I couldn't find any at this time. I will try to describe how they dressed which will influence my first set of sketches for my menswear line.
Bryan Ferry and David Bowie really kicked things off for me when it came to fashion. Their look was always sharp, classy and cutting edge. They always managed to meld the classic with the contemporary styles. In the book "One Hundred Years Of Menswear" (page 251)there is a picture of David Bowie in a yellow suit and a yellow and white striped shirt. The pic was taken in 1974, but he looked amazing in the suit. He was wearing a color that most pimps would wear, but doing it in a classy way. He wasn't wearing a tie, but the suit still looked elegant. In the same book (page 253), Bryan Ferry was wearing a tailored suit by a London designer named Antony Price. Antony's signature was sharp, padded shoulders and a sharp, sleek cut. It was an ode to the way suits were done in the 1940's (wide in the shoulder, fitted to the body, sharp cuts and clean lines). These two pics are the inspirations for my first set of sketches for my menswear line.
Right now I'm looking through a few other books and seeing what jumps out at me. I'm also hitting the streets and looking at what everyone is wearing. Who knows? Something that you may be wearing, or buying may inspire one of my designs.
