Bottega Veneta hits a trend, shows silken pajama inspired looks at Milan Fashion Week

Photo courtesy of Bottega Veneta on Facebook

MILAN — Silky comfort is emerging as a trend on the second day of menswear previews for next spring and summer during Milan Fashion Week.

Bottega Veneta designer Tomas Maier joined colleagues Versace and Dolce & Gabbana in offering silken pajama-inspired looks, down to the classic stripe, to handle the warm weather. The outfits surprisingly can sometimes take the form of suits, becoming office wear for the style-minded.

Here’s some highlights from the shows Sunday by Bottega Veneta, Salvatore Ferragamo, Calvin Klein, Missoni and Prada.

RETURNING TO NATURE
Maier’s spring/summer collection for Bottega Veneta took it outside — with looks and gear suitable for strolling in the Bavarian Alps or along the coast, if not all trail ready then at least lodge appropriate.

Maier said the collection “is about the fascination of a journey back to nature.”

Tapping his Teutonic origins, the German designer incorporated details from Lederhosen on lambskin suede trousers, from the drawstring waist closures to the button-down calves. He wisely eschewed the traditional checked button-down shirt, pairing the bottoms with, say, a cotton sweater and Gabardine jacket.

The looks were finished with sandals featuring rope details or hiking boots, both worn with two-tone ribbed wool socks.

And then Maier took his duffel or quilted backpack and headed for the seaside with cotton-pull-on pants that gathered on the calf, ready to wade right in, and crochet caps in bright purple and peacock blue.

The collection culminated with silken suits with a comfy pajama feel made out of cupro, a regenerated cotton fiber often used as a silk substitute, and paired with flip-flops.

The outdoor looks tended toward natural and washed-out colours, while the suit jackets and matching trousers were stronger shades of olive green, blue and maroon, often in stripes.

Menswear star model Lucky Blue Smith continued his Milan run, taking a turn for Bottega after Versace and Philipp Plein. While Plein singled him out with a ride on the back of a stunt motorcycle, the 17-year-old American model was just one of the blokes for Bottega, No. 40 in the lineup.

FERRAGAMO WHIMSY FOR THE YOUTHFUL DRESSER
Massimo Giornetti reached for a youthful audience with an idiosyncratic collection that included off-kilter graphic prints of cacti and monkeys, bold colour panels on suits and pinstripes dressing up bomber jackets.

Menswear is a big part of Ferragamo’s heritage and represents 40 per cent of its business, a rare event in the female-oriented fashion universe. Signalling the collection’s eclecticism, Ferragamo dressed up its showroom with art deco furniture, hot house plants and a life-size carved gorilla — the dwelling of an eccentric adventurer.

For the more traditional customer, there were double-breasted and single-button suit jackets, often paired with more adventurous colour-block tops. Giornetti tapped the brand’s leatherwear DNA with an ultra-luxurious graphic shirt that appeared to be panels of brightly colored crocodile.

Its more interesting, and updated, read of the classic suit included shorter jackets and contrasting stitching.

The most obsequious bag was a belted wallet, and shoes included sandals and sneakers with Velcro-closures covering the tongue. Baseball caps underlined the collection’s everyday nature.

The oft-overlooked belt is actually the brand’s big seller and came in rich black and brown combinations.

BACK TO BASICS
Is there anything more refreshing to the fashion palate than blue jeans, a white T-shirt and a pair of well-cut Khaki colored trousers that aren’t chinos?

It’s back to basics at Calvin Klein, where men’s creative director Italo Zucchelli presented a utilitarian collection for spring/summer 2016 that works for the man, and not the other way around.

The mainly monochrome looks featured T-shirts or sweaters with suit jackets and tailored trousers, or for more casual outings simply T-shirts with jeans or trousers, usually cuffed. Staple T-shirts were plain or with a faded graphic palm tree.

There were a series of sleeveless tops in black-red-and-grey waves for the more fantasy-minded.

For evening, simply add a little sheen to the fabric and you are off. In keeping with the uniformity theme, models’ hair was cut short and worn sleek.