Masculine Tailoring, Tweeds and Plaids Key Trends for A/W 2011

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By Becky Redpath –

Impeccable British men’s tailoring is world renowned, and the influence of Saville Row was seen across the catwalks in the women’s wear collections for autumn/winter 2011.

Exquisitely cut coats and beautifully tailored blazers were much in evidence, and Stephano Pilati designing for Yves Saint Laurent showed a stunning updated version of the beautiful white YSL tuxedo made famous in the 1970’s, when worn by Bianca Jagger.

The Tailored Blazer

A tailored blazer remains a wardrobe classic, a versatile item that can be worn during the day, with a classic white shirt and long cardigan for a relaxed casual look, or dressed up with tailored trousers, a silk camisole, heels and pearls for the evening. Below are three jackets that cater for every budget and illustrate why a blazer will always be a great investment piece.

The Blazer

Top –Paul Smith £599
Middle- Whistles Mia Jacket £195
Bottom – H&M £30

Relaxed Look
White Shirt – lagarconne.com Find similar at M&S from £19.99
Camel Cardigan – Aubin and Wills £79
Jeans – Peacocks £14
Satchel – Mulberry
Ballet Pumps – hottopic.com £15

Dressed Up
Tailored Trousers – Windsmoor £88
Silk Camisole – mytheresa.com £75
Clutch Bag – Coast £59
Shoe Boots –Zappos.com £250 Find similar at ASOS from £40

The Tailored Coat

A beautifully cut, fitted coat that finishes just above the knee looks equally good worn over jeans and a V neck sweater or a tailored dress and boots. Accessorise with a scarf that has the colour of your base outfit and the color of your tailored coat, plus at least one other color, which will pull the outfit together.

Tailored Jackets

Top – Paul Smith £560
Middle- Whistles Pia Overcoat £247
Bottom- Coast Bettie Coat £193

Smart Look/Work Wear
Black Contour Wool Dress – Debenhams £70
Long Stretch Boots – Valentino Find similar at M&S from £40
Scarf Wild Winter – Emilio Pucci £187

Casual Look
Black Jeans – Monsoon £44
Black Crew Neck – Oasis £20
Shoe Boots –nordstrom.com £88
Bracelets – Miss Selfridge from £3
Black Bag – Diane Von Furstenberg

Beautifully cut clothes will always be wardrobe staples and this season would be a great time to invest in a great tailored jacket or coat.

Tweeds and Plaids

From bold and colourful to classic and understated tweeds and plaids were seen across the autumn/winter 2011 catwalks.

The words tweed and plaid inevitably conjures up images of genteel elderly ladies sipping tea from delicate china tea cups, but worn with a bit of 2011 panache, tweeds and plaids can be extremely versatile, taking you from morning through to night, and from smart city dressing to cosy country weekends.

Classic Chanel style tweed jacket worn two ways

A Chanel style jacket is a wardrobe classic. The one below from www.placedestendances.com and costs approximately £144. Worn with brown trousers or jeans, it is the accessories that take the jacket from meetings to a weekend away.

If you would like some advice on putting together a stylish and practical capsule wardrobe for your profession contact Becky Redpath on the email form on the website: http://www.lookgreatfeelfabulous.com/.

Dressed Up
1. Suede heeled brogues – Jigsaw online £139
2. Smart leather Tote – House of Fraser £115
3. Orange silk  T – Oxygen Boutique £135

Dressed Down
1. Chunky flat boots – Dorothy Perkins £65
2. Bag – Urban Excess £105
3. Cream V neck cashmere jumper – Uniglo £80
4. Cream cable knit scarf – Aubin and Wills £80

Grey tweed Jaegar jacket worn two ways

The grey tweed jacket from Jaegar is a versatile item to have in your wardrobe. At £260 it’s an investment piece but the style is classic and will not date. It is seen here teamed with Gabardine Joseph trousers for £90, but M&S or Gap have similar styles for about half the price!

Dressed Up
1. Grey tweed court shoe – Dorothy Perkins £35
2. Black gloves with pearls – Monsoon £15
3. Pink Bag – Luxusbabe.de £165
4. White T shirt – Matches Fashion £78
5. Pink Alexander McQueen scarf – Selfridges

Dressed Down
1. Grey patterned cardigan – Hollister £52
2. Grey cable knit scarf – Heine.de £22
3. Long cable knit gloves – Monsoon £15
4. Black bag – Mischa Barton ASOS £32
5. Black wellingtons– Hunter £80

Pink and aubergine tweed skirt by Viyella worn two ways

The tweed skirt below by Viyella and can be bought at John Lewis for £128.The fabric has metallic gold thread woven through it which was a trend seen at many of the shows, in particular at Max Mara.
Dressed Up
1. Pink blouse – Phase Eight £65
2. Black clutch bag – Monsoon £20
3. Silver bracelet – Debenhams £15
4. Black stretch boots – Valentino, exorbitantly expensive! Similar stretch boots are available from M&S.
Ensuring the boots fit snugly round the ankle and then hugs the leg, is crucial to wearing boots for a dressed up look, successfully.
5. Black Mac – Peacocks £26

Dressed Down
1. Red jumper – Uniglo £24.90
2. Grey Scarf –week.com £15
3. Riding Boots – Butterfly.com £175 (Similar are available at M&S for £89)
4. Black bag – Diane Von Furstenberg £617 Black bags are never difficult to find at this time of year. Ensuring the bag is soft and slouchy opposed to structured and rigid, is key to pulling off a casual look.
5. Black Mac – Peacocks £26
I wrote about the versatility of Macs a few weeks ago, and like the Chanel style jacket, it is a wardrobe classic. The black Mac shown above from Peacocks, illustrates perfectly how well Macs can work dressed up or down.

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