Matalan AW15 menswear

For AW15, Matalan's menswear collection is reinventing work wear and adding a new layer of texture to simple neutrality.

They've woven flannel checks, khaki tonal pieces and contemporary corduroys with hints of poppy red and emerald green

Themes of toughened military styling persist through their use of biscuit hues, industrial washed denim and classic tailored look.

Inspired by the outdoors, they've included fabrics that radiate texture whilst staying true to neutral, featuring tinted stone greys, melange multi-tone knits and Nordic pale mink.

http://www.matalan.co.uk/mens

Julien Macdonald designs his first Menswear Collection with Matalan

Julien Macdonald, the designer renowned for creating gorgeous womenswear, has now decided to bring a bit of that glamour into men's lives with his first ever menswear collection.
Collaborating with Matalan, Julien has created an exclusive menswear collection called W10, named after the post code area of his London Atelier.

http://www.matalan.co.uk/mens/brands/w10-by-julien-macdonald?q=W10

Ready for the Christmas festivities the collection includes a navy Paisley jacquard jacket with satin shawl lapel £80, piped Tuxedo black trousers £40, bib front dress shirt £22, black bow tie with white piping £10 and black patent formal lace up shoes £35.

Sparkle in a lurex suit jacket (adorned with a boutonniere) £80 and trousers £40. Teamed above with contrast collar white shirt £22, shawl collar black waistcoat £40, metallic black tie £10 and red paisley pocket square £5.

Lighten up the atmosphere with a mid grey jacket plus black contrast lapel £80 and matching mid grey trousers £40. Styled above with black shirt £22, metallic red bow tie £10 and metallic red pocket square £5.

During the day smarten up with the check jacket £80 and matching suit trousers £40. Styled here with the shawl collar black waistcoat £40, white textured shirt £22, polka dot tie £10 and metallic black pocket square £5
The collection comprise 4 suits, 3 jackets, 1 waistcoat, 6 shirts and a number of accessories.

Matalan Spring/Summer 2012 Menswer Collection

Matalan's inspiration for their SS12 collection is block colour, festival, minimalistic and the English gentleman. Which one will you go for?

ENGLISH GENTLEMAN

Here Matalan blends traditional style with quirkiness.

Mixing contrasting tones and textures with cropped trousers.

Loose fitting outerwear, casual unlined jackets and two-toned brogues add a late 60s, 70s silhouette- slim, draped and with a touch of romaticism.


FESTIVAL

The laidback look of printed and graphic tees worn with......

.....woven trilbys, espadrilles.....

and cropped coloured chinos or knee length shorts evoke that summer feeling.

MINIMAL

Easy elegance with casual shirts buttoned up right to the neck teamed with structured fitting trousers.

The colour palette is classic tonal hues with a splash of soft red berry tones.

COLOUR BLOCK

This range is all about vibrant and strong colours. T-shirts are striped.

Cropped chinos are in acid yellow, emerald green and pillar box red.

Teamed with bright canvas pumps.

Available soon online www.matalan.co.uk

Matalan Autumn/Winter 2011 Menswear Collection - the Urban Dandy

The third theme in Matalan's AW11 collection is the city slicker Urban Dandy with a relaxed twist.

Here smart suit jackets are teamed with the more relaxed chinos.
Wool blend jacket £55, easy iron oxford shirt £9, skinny tie £3, camel chino £20, shoe £25

Shades of blue (the main colour palette) is paired with the on trend camel shades but also with a rich deep plum.
Wool blend jacket £59, easy care shirt £8, wool stripe tie £4, plum chino £22

 Crombie coat £60, pinstripe shirt £16, waistcoat (part of set) £30, tonal stripe trouser £18, formal shoe £22

Mac £40, pinstripe shirt £16, check trouser £24, formal shoe £22 

Even the Urban Dandies sometimes dress down. Duffle coat £60, long sleeve oxford shirt £9, camel chino £20
More info on www.matalan.co.uk
Images provided by Matalan.

Matalan Autumn Winter 2011 Menswear Collection - Varsity

It doesn't take too much studying to work out the Varsity range is all about preppy and sporty looks.

But you will be well on your way to achieving high fashion grades in this navy blazer £49, V neck jumper £10, fine stripe shirt £8, tie £3, chino £20, and brogues £28

And there's no sweat in looking good in this polo top £15, roll sleeve shirt £16, bow tie £3, plum chino £22 and brogues £28

The Varsity range would not be complete without the American preppy look of the baseball jacket £30, roll neck shirt £18, club stripe tie £3, chino £22, and leather chukka boot £25

And the more British style combining sports with country weekends. Herringbone blazer £40, hooded stripe rugby top £24, navy cord trouser £14, canvas weekend bag £16,and brogues £28

 Plus the more univeristy city look in navy jacket £49, shirt (part of 2 pack with tie) £16, pocket detail jean £20, belt £6, and boat boots £30
www.matalan.co.uk 

Matalan Autumn/Winter 2011 Menswear Collection -The Arctic Adventure

It may not be Arctic weather yet but there's no harm in getting ready with one of Matalan's AW11 ranges, Arctic Adventure:

Moving away from greys and blacks the main colour palette is blue
Cross over hooded jumper £25, Intarsia hooded gilet £28, and cuffed denim jeans £22

The joggers are back with a makeover!
Baggy beanie £4, double cowl neck jumper £20, hooded wax gilet £35, drop crotch jog bottom £15, pack of 3 socks £7, fur lined boots £35.,

Slimline quilted padding
Quilted shirt with hood £35, herringbone check shirt £16

Quilted jacket £30, herringbone shirt £18, drop crotch jean £25 

The Alpine jumper is still present but a bit more subdued.
Military hat £5, intarsia jumper £25, zip pocket denim £20, weekend bag £15, biker boot £35

Layers, layers and more layers are how to keep warm
Herringbone blazer £40, hooded flannel shirt £20, cowl neck top £10, drop crotch jog bottom £15, pack of 3 socks £7, hiker boot £38
www.matalan.co.uk

Linen long sleeved Shirts ideal for the Summer heat

A natural fabric which will keep you cool in the heat is linen.  For those really hot sticky days, linen is probably better than cotton as it quickly absorbs perspiration and doesn’t tend to cling to the skin in wet patches like cotton.  Any moisture dries quickly leaving the linen dry and cool to the touch.

Matalan Hampton linen shirt

 Matalan’s Hampton linen stripe shirt also has a cool price at just £18. www.matalan.co.uk

White Stuff Cook shirt

White Stuff’s Cook Shirt is 55% linen and 45% cotton with subtle stripes, contrasting lining and decorative stitching. £49.95 www.whitestuff.com

The Argyle Sweater

This cheerful sweater with its pattern of diamonds in a diagonal checkerboard arrangement is thought to originate from Argyll in Western Scotland. However we can say for certain that Pringle of Scotland popularised the design in the 1920’s.

And it became the golfer’s favourite when the trend setter Duke of Windsor wore this pattern on his jersey and long socks whilst partaking in the sport.

The finer knits have the edge here for the classic look. But to get away from the golfing persona , Matalan’s chunky jumper  gives a more youthful take on the pattern.

Matalan by PR shots

And Quality Knitwear’s Solitaire vintage jumper brings quirkiness to the pattern . Plus a diamond catch at £36 

www.qualityknitwear.co.uk

Black Tie Event - The Bow Tie

Christmas and New Year are near, festivities have started including Black Tie events .

At a glance, it looks as though you’ve got it easy when it comes to black tie attire: all the guess work of what to wear is nonexistent, everyone expects you to turn up in the same outfit as everyone else and you get to wear it over and over again! Plus black tie attire is going to make you look ‘smoking hot’ – no matter what body shape you are.

Eton

But smoking hot can turn in to a damp squib if you don’t follow a few simple sartorial rules. 

So let's start with the obvious: The Black Tie

The colour clue is in the title - black, no other colour is acceptable at a true black tie event.

The tie also should also be a Bow Tie, preferably of silk and should always match the texture of your jacket’s lapels. If your lapels are smooth satin silk then go for a satin silk bow tie but if your lapels are of grosgrain then your bow tie needs a textured finish such as grosgrain, barathea or faille.

Matalan

Go for a self tie one rather than a pre-tied. How else are you going to get that sexy loose draped tie look at the end of the night?

Keep the tie proportional to your face – the ends of the bow should be in line somewhere between the edge of your face and the outer corners of your eyes.  Anything smaller or larger your head will look disproportional.

The type of tie is also important:

Moss Bros - Butterfly style bow tie

The Butterfly tie is a large bow and should only be worn by men with a large neck size, bigger face and chin; otherwise you may end up looking more like a clown than James Bond.

Primark - batwing style bow tie

The straight Batwing tie is narrow and is best for thin men with longish faces and a narrow collar size.

Diamond pointed Bow ties are not as common so are good to add a bit of individuality whilst sticking to the black tie rules.

Eton - thistle style bow tie

However the Thistle or semi-butterfly is the more classic and popular tie.  It is smaller than the full butterfly and thicker than the batwing tie so is a safer choice for most men.

Remember a black bow tie will make you look stylish, a coloured one will take away most of the sophistication.

Part of article as seen in 
http://www.eclipsemagazine.co.uk/NewEclipse/Joomla15/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2026:black-tie-the-bow-tie&catid=48:mens-fashion&Itemid=74


All images from PRShots

Black Bow Ties available on Amazon: