Workwear style for men
Charlie Porter is associate editor of GQ, the magazine for naughty but intelligent men. Writing in The Guardian, he says ‘Men are supposed to want things simple. Yet with clothing we put ourselves through the most complicated rituals. While women can zip themselves into a frock in seconds, men waste precious minutes clumsily knotting ties, or fiddling with the folly that is the cufflink. Most men can complete these dreary ceremonies with their eyes shut; indeed, it often looks as if they have. But the autumn/winter 08 menswear shows are offering a thrilling new solution to the male work-wear conundrum: the jumpsuit.’
According to Charlie, he fell in love with a jumpsuit designed by Miuccia Prada at this year’s catwalk menswear extravaganza and wears his stark blue Prada with pride, but it’s not the first time he’s succumbed to the desire to look like Elvis. He also has what he calls ‘a roomy, workwear one by Dickies’ that he wears ‘… on days when I want to feel amused by my clothes and don’t care what anyone else thinks’.
Hmmm, he’s a brave man, but I wish he’d call a jumpsuit by its proper British name – the boilersuit. If you think the ‘workwear as smartwear’ revolution is for you, then jumpsuits (or boilersuits) are on sale from Prada, Calvin Klein and Mulberry this autumn. Or just pull on the one hanging behind the shed door and tell people that it’s GQ’s latest tip.
On a totally different note, Totally Workwear in Southport, Australia have a defiant new item on sale – steel toe-capped flip-flops. They call them thongs over there, which leads to much hilarity on the beaches when you’re invited to ‘kick off your thongs’ – but the rugged Australian workman apparently wants to wear his flip-flops to work, hence the tongue in cheek (or strap between toe?) design.
Jumpsuits courtesy of badlogik
Add comment February 14th, 2008
