Jacket Optional, Shoes Required

Think for a second about the behaviors after periods of lacking; those times where people have had to go without something for any amount of time. What's usually exhibited is lofty overcompensation. Try to get a man dying of thirst to only drink a sip of the lake he finally reaches! Making up for lost times could be why many lottery winners for example, go 'ham' and go from impoverished to impeccable seemingly overnight. I know that if I haven't eaten for an entire day then the waitress better do a few muscle stretches before she hauls my tray over. The thing is that periods of longing and periods of intense wanting and having to do without causes an almost hysterical state to seemingly erase the doldrums of the past woes.

This applied to history brings some sense to the fashions over the years. Take punk for example when periods of tradition, pomp, circumstance, ritual and keeping up appearances reached their culmination which led to that honored tartan and Donegal tweed being thrown over by slashes, cuts and repurposed safety pins. Antiestablishment was the intended truth to what many considered the silliness of the established. Then take 80's excess into mind. The periods of modesty, recession and poverty that created a stain in the 70's were rallied against by the aggressive infuse of stark shapes, manic color, money and fresh ideas. What was dragged from the 60's and made into a strange behavior in the 70's was put outside for trash pick up as 80's excess was born. The lacking was good living.

Well taking the aggressive and the excessive ideas that ran fashion back then was what Guess decided to revisit now for Fall 2013. Why now? Not so much that aggressive or excessive ideas are lacking in culture now, but mainly due to the fact that they are celebrated more than ever may have been Guess' drive. Take the subtle excesses one would find in the 80's 'downtown' nightclub scene together with the aggressive visuals that may have been donned by those who didn't get in and refine it to modern fit and styling sensibilities is what Guess did for Fall 2013. The result is womenswear peppered with embellishments like studs, crystals, leather and animal prints on jersey knits, lace and denims complete with over-dyed color, rips & slashes and a streamlined shrunken & cropped sexy fit that says a good bit of uptown to the overall downtown grit. It was all provocative and oddly familiar but with a new verve.

The menswear was more pared down than its feminine counterparts. Inspiration was pulled more from what is selling well amongst men right now. Somber colors like dusty berries, mossy olives, flanneled greys and low-key browns in best selling Guess sportswear separates like the trim button-downs, tees and jeans were all anchored with high top premium leather sneakers, slimmed shrunken puffer jackets and 'dress up & down' leather jackets. Layering played a big story but the intent was not to shock but perhaps rather to get more men to invest in the Guess aesthetic and build their wardrobes. A different approach for the men as to what they're lacking but still one that will sell come Fall 2013.

Dave White

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Some military organizations equip their members with camouflage, weapons & artillery and tactics to complete their intended mission. It leaves me to wonder of the fascination repeat customers have with those designers who've garnered a cult-like following. Surrounding the armed forces are expectations on quality and output that those familiar and those new to the organization come to rely on, feel comfortable with and feel safe by. The same can be true of a great label that continually offers not only wearable but also stylishly and visually provocative clothing with an aesthetic that translates across genres of menswear with clarity and common sense.

Season after season, Nicholas K delivers menswear that walks on an interesting line between tailored formality and casual sensibility. Tailored formality is maintained through the attention to trim streamlined fits on sleeves and jackets, the seamless melding of collars into lapels and the various topper silhouettes that have transformed menswear over the years. The casual sensibilities take shape in the knits that appear as wovens, the polished refinement of the often downplayed sweat pant and the ability to transform tailored symmetry to swaddling cozy coolness with the unzipping or unbuttoning of a placket.

All this applied to Nicholas K Menswear for Fall 2013. Updating the Nicholas K aesthetic for fall was the influence from early 20th century Arctic explorations by expeditions of such notables like Peter Freuchen and the inky murky palette. Their color palette for fall is like starting off with black icy water and slowly adding natural elements that lighten it like mud or clays. The effect is a smooth gradation of great somber colors of clothing in highly wearable shapes that stand strong alone as well as look great being integrated into a man's already existing wardrobe. Some new interesting notables this season were the cocoon-like knit half shrugs, great aviator style flight jackets and an air of spongy easy coziness that you almost will want to pair with high tailoring as well as jeans, tees and well-worn khakis. The coup that the Kunz' have started continues to enlist and enthrall.