A look ahead: What will trendy men wear this spring?

From low-key neutrals to psychedelic prints, diversity is key for men’s clothing.

ISLAMABAD:

While London and Paris weather their glacial January temperatures, the pale and frostbitten residents dream of the summer sun. London has already taken the sartorial lead by displaying menswear collection for Spring/Summer 2012, with Paris and Milan riding on its coat-tails. Here are some trends that will feature in every metrosexual man’s closet in 2012.

London collections

E Tautz (House of Tautz)

From its 19^th century moorings in London’s West End, the House of Tautz released a formidable spring/summer line. This is craftsmanship fit for a king which is precisely why Edward VII quickly became a fan. Moving past the beige tones and bright pants of its winter collection, the 2012 line returns to a more understated palette, which is heavy on blue and grey hues. Lightweight navy jackets, white collars and grey shorts in a respectable length define the collection.

Topman

Topman went on an entirely different tangent and let its creative prints go wild this year. The signature look is exotic, foreign almost; with hints of oriental splattered on light sweaters, silk trousers. And let’s not forget the Turkish patterns — the kind you’d envision in a bathhouse. The same patterns also appear on their incredibly revealing shorts, which might be a little too brazen for most men. Evening wear is typified by black double-breasted blazers and gold pant ensembles.

Christopher Shannon

It seems that Christopher Shannon has tried to create something for everyone. His inspirations come from Viviane Sassen, John Stezaker, Paul Graham, Erik Steinbrecher and The Wild Bunch Crew. Yet the look is more confusing than accessible, with little cohesion to the collection — ranging from tasseled shirts (that would look at home on either a rabbi or a fashion-forward member of the Amish community) to a poor and overpowering use of orange.

Paris

Christian Lacroix

Lacroix takes the cake with his latest line with clothes that were the most accessible and wearable out of all the entries. Lacroix has done wonders with the yellow trend that is set to brighten up the season, with sleeveless tops and plaid trousers and continuing the golfing theme which was also seen at Prada shows.

Milan

Philipp Plein

While the Dsquard2 show may have attracted glitterati like Elisabetta Canalis and Stephen Dorph, Plein’s collection didn’t need any celebrity backing to boost its line on the ramp. Plein dominated Milan with his laid-back tailoring and easy, rockstar confidence, oozing nothing but edgy cuts and bad boy charm.

Pakistan

Republic by Omar

Our very own designer Omar Farooq has international fashion trolls in a frenzy over his latest Spring/Summer 2012 line. His Black Chrome line, which features a series of arresting yellow, beige and grey trenches with geometric patterns and bold colours, is similar to the latest collections dominating Europian fashion.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 15^th, 2012.