Preppy comes back in fashion. Colours and patterns of preppy style are a foundation of menswear, that sometimes comes back in collections, with marked references to sportswear and – obviously – to colleges and british style. It’s so timeless that we find it in a movie of 1965, Break Up by Marco Ferreri, in a period – the Sixties – dominated by plain colours and Beatles-Suit mania. The movie was cut (due to a controversial commercial procedure) by the producer Carlo Ponti and included as a 30 min. episode in the movie Oggi, domani e dopodomani, with two other episodes directed by Luciano Salce and Eduardo De Filippo. To make a preppy look convincing, it has to be worn by the right man: don’t be cheated by the mediterranean and refined look of Mastroianni (that reminds to Marriage Italian Style and Il bell’Antonio): it works only worn by very anglo guys.

Italy-France 1-1. France/Italy: the eternal conflict between two very similar cultures, between two countries that, after all, respect each other but often understand each other. In spite of the intellectual inclinations that we have in common, the love for art, gardening, food, design and fashion, just to mention a part of them, we think that french people are too snobbish and they think that we are too rowdy. There’s a little bit of truth in both cases, indeed…But their “snobbery” comes from the awareness of a sense of national union and cohesion that we – unfortunately – don’t feel so much. In this column we usually talk about fashion; let’s stay on the topic. Feminine fashion comes from them. The pret-à-porter from us. Fabrics are italian, but the skill and the genius of Yves Saint Laurent and Christian Dior are a milestone and, to this day, a model. The haute couture in french, while mensfashion comes from Italy. Nobody wins, nobody loses. But the natural elegance of our cousins has no equals in the world. They have a natural, almost unaware, style. They don’t show off like us, but you can notice them at a long distance. Maybe it means something. Ph. by William Klein from the book Paris+Klein (Contrasto Due).

Epochal choices. Today we talk about the importance and added value of accessories, that dignify (or mortify) the look. Shirts, ties, and then shoes, socks, watches, bags, briefcases, hats. Everything can, if matched in the proper way with the outerwear, make us look a little more special. Today is very easy, due to the extraordinary supply of products. But at the same time it’s easier to make mistakes, exactly because the supply is really wide. The “decades of elegance”, like the 30s or the 40s, had rules about shapes and lenghts, fabrics and collars, and everything else: so it was hard to fail. Today, while enhancing the individual personality, there could be the possibility of provoking confusion (and making a mess of bad matchings). The secret stays in coherence. Dandy, eccentric, conformist, traditionalist, pop, unconventional: everything is permitted, as long as you are focused on the style you decide to adopt. Right, a 1935 adv of Arrow shirts.

Summer remix. Summer, ready, go: last call for elegance. Be careful about fast shopping, the compulsive desire of something new and trendy is often a bad counselor. Be more thrifty! Reflect well, before buying the same old bermuda shorts, shirts, cotton trousers: you already have three or four of them, and maybe you’ve worn them twice. Look at our magazines and at the online fashion reviews without being fussy: “That’s a fashionistas’ stuff”. You’ll realize that many of those suggestions, that look too trendy at first sight, draw inspiration from a timeless style. That same charme that make you claim: “Men were so elegant in the past!”. And then, personalize your choices, don’t trust exclusively on total looks, take the shirt proposed by Tom and the trousers by Harry. Do the same thing for accessories. Choose what is more suitable for you, put the pieces together and the result won’t disappoint you. William Holden in 1939, ph. William Walling.

Vintage Generation. Some people call it “Vintage Generation”, others brush off the most fashionable style at the moment defining it “gender”, ignoring the meaning of this word. In the second case, this is a label given with negative meaning: ignorance produces confusion. For the may issue of Style Magazine we met and photographed Thomas Cohen, “songwriter, dandy, bohemian from London”; a rising talent that look like he’s just left a cover of a Bowie’s or Jagger’s disc. But let’s talk about this trend that, instead of emphasizing muscles and wide shoulders, focus the feminine side of men (in both men and women, hetero or homosexual, coexist a feminine and a masculine parts). Michele (Gucci), Maier (Bottega Veneta), Venturini Fendi and Prada (Miuccia has been a forerunner), has created collections inspired by the 70s, bringing back to fashion a combinable/decomposable styling. A mosaic that reminds us the most refined looks of the stars of the day. Avoiding denim. Thomas Cohen, in a picture by Simon for Style Magazine Italia, wears Bottega Veneta.