Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, March 18, 1990 TAG: 9003152351
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: E-10 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: CATHERINE COOK BALTIMORE SUN
DATELINE: LOS ANGELES LENGTH: Long
The flagrant flaunting of the male physique during the recent meeting of the Men's Fashion Association here was more than just an attention-grabbing gimmick, however. It also served to illustrate the increasing attention men are paying to their bodies and the adjustments designers have had to make.
They're cutting jackets with much broader shoulders and wider armholes. The more advanced suit makers all offer at least one line that pairs a fuller jacket with a smaller-waisted trouser and wider thigh to accommodate the greater numbers of the fit and trim.
And even those men not intent on bulking up are putting more value on an easier, more comfortable cut in clothes.
"I don't think we'll ever go back to uncomfortable clothing again," says Barry Bricken, who presented his spring menswear collection here. "I remember growing up in clothes with very tight armholes - very tight Pierre Cardin shirts - and in pants that were so tight in the legs you couldn't move in them. Men won't wear that anymore."
Designer Bill Robinson's bold presentation of shirts worn unbuttoned to the waist fits right into the new era of comfort being hailed by all present. It also gives a new direction to those bored with buttoning their shirts right up to their chin for the past decade.
The relaxed, less constructed and slightly longer silhouette introduced in the men's European collections earlier this year by Giorgio Armani appeared in variations in many of the collections here.
While shoulders are broad - ranging between 19 and 21 inches from shoulder to shoulder - they're not as heavily padded as in previous years, so they tend to slope slightly.
In keeping with the broad shoulder dimensions, lapels tend to range between 3 1/2 inches and 5 inches wide. Ties also remain wide, usually around 3\ inches.
Four- and six-button double-breasted suits still heavily dominated the runways, but three-button, single-breasted suits also have their advocates. The Ivy League sack suit, revived last fall and updated with more athletic tailoring, is gradually winning more converts.
The theme of comfort was reinforced by the great number of drawstring and elastic-waisted casual pants. "Cotton-picker pants" is the term used by some.
Pants remain wide and full, with the newest look a tubular shape that has pleats and fullness at the top of the thigh, but no crease down the front.
Jackets required
For those desiring something softer and easier than the traditional jacket, several designers are offering sophisticated versions of the shirt jacket. These are cut with the formality of a jacket, but in lighter, more fluid fabrics than found in conventional jackets and without the stiff inner construction.
For other casual moments, there are also nostalgic interpretations of the Ricky Ricardo jacket, a square-cut boxy jacket with the yoke and shoulders cut of contrasting fabric.
One of the newest twists in evening wear is a jacket cut without lapels, like a V-front cardigan.
It's all in the touch
Even when the cut and construction are conventional, designers often opt for softer fabrics this season. The rayons and washed silk so popular in the women's market for the past couple of years are now in much greater use in menswear, as are lighter-weight yarns that produce more fluid, flattering sweaters than the stiffer yarns of the past.
Par for the course
In casual and active wear, the golf influence continues unabated. Golf knickers and golf cardigans are the most obvious examples, but it's also turning up more subtly in jackets with a blouson golf-jacket style.
Almost as popular as the golf jacket are the "popovers," hooded windbreakers that look as if you pop them over your head.
But comfort is also considered here. As Theo Damen, designer of the Members Only line, points out: "It isn't comfortable for men to pull things over their head, so I hide a zipper at the front."
The color of spring:
Just as women's wear for spring has been flooded by beige, in the men's market, taupe is the shade of the moment for tailored suits.
In traditional casual menswear, the natty, nautical shades of red, white and navy continue to dominate, but for the adventuresome, warm autumn shades like paprika and saffron are going to be popular this spring. Gentle greens such as celery and celadon replace some of the acid lime shades of last year, and a pink-orange shade called persimmon is another favorite among some designers.
Trend-setting designers such as Cecilia Metheny are also waking up things a bit by showing shirts in those once unmentionable shades such as aqua and peach.
Likely to be popular for evenings are the new iridescent fabrics that are woven with different color threads so that the garment appears to change color as it moves.
Flower power
Flowers were the theme decorating the stationery of the Men's Fashion Association this season, but its influence in apparel is fairly subtle, turning up in casual print shirts and shorts and on ties, both as vague, blurred abstracts and as single blossoms.
The stylists who clothed the models gave a modern twist to the floral camp shirt by layering it over a white or black T-shirt.
Another popular motif decorating sweaters and T-shirts were photo prints, actual photographs printed onto fabrics.
Updated madras prints were also in greater use than in the past several seasons.
Getting pinned
No one ever refers to them as brooches, but decorative pins in abstract shapes or something manly like an arrowhead are gaining in popularity in menswear on lapels.
In addition to yet more variations on the wild and crazy printed socks that we've been seeing the past couple of years, the other news in accessories are bolo ties and charms hanging from leather thongs.
In the swim
While men in the '90s might start unbuttoning their shirts once again, it looks as if they'll be covering up a little more when they go swimming.
In the Jantzen swimsuit retrospective, the brightly colored itsy-bitsy teeny-weeny bikini was followed by the company's newest design for the decade - a very modest black swimsuit with a high-waisted retro cut and boxy legs.
Memo: Spring Fashion