Rugged Fashion Uniforms Replace Sleek Suits

Wednesday 06th of October 2010 07:51:31 PM

Here is an interesting twist of fate. The men’s fashion designers have been letting go of the Italian uniforms consisting of sleek tight fitting suits and turning to real he-men clothing. What is he-man clothing? It’s styles that “real” men who are sure of themselves wear. The clothes are rugged looking, practical and comfortable. We are talking about flannel shirts and jeans, sailor inspired pea coats and t-shirts, and jackets that would look good in the woods as well as during an evening out.

It is interesting to note that the rugged men’s clothing lines are the ones taking the lead. Names like L.L. Bean and Stetson are outshining fashion icon brands like Prada and Gucci. In fact, Levi’s are in and shiny fabric is out much to the relief of many men.

Rugged menswear reflective of the American outdoors is trendy right now. Jeans or corduroy pants with printed t-shirts look great with plaid jackets or hoodies. This new manly fashion may look a bit out of place in Paris or London, but fashion designers don’t seem to care as global brands like Britain’s J Barbour join forces with fashion designers to bring the only-men-can-wear clothing and accessories to store shelves.

The rugged clothing is being called the “heritage look.” The heritage look harkens back to American frontier days but the original reintroduction of rugged men’s wear is traced to post World War II Japan. Yes, you read right – Japan. America was king of the hill and everything American became popular including in Japan. As the “Made in America” label became more and more desirable, fashion designers incorporated the manly styles into their high end fashion lines. Now the trend has led to fashion designers collaborating with traditionally sleek men’s clothing stores like Brooks Brothers and Woolrich to bring the rugged look back.