The Belstaff Autumn/Winter ’16 collection is based upon cold adventure riding and the pursuit of freedom, illustrating a journey that takes you through tough terrains, snowy mountains and icy glaciers in comfort and style.
The collection has been designed to meet the demands of protection (ie against water, wind and friction), mobility and adaptability, merging the heritage of Belstaff classics with innovative new materials, constructions and functionalities to ensure unprecedented warmth and comfort.
Outerwear
This season, Belstaff’s iconic wax-cotton styles have been insulated for winter with detachable fur and shearling trims – specifically in four-pocket jackets and fishtail mountain parka styles.
For more extreme cold environments, there is an Arctic duck-down filled all-in-one exploration suit in high performance nylon twill, together with an Arctic duck-down four-pocket parka with a fully adjustable fur-trimmed hood, an internal snow skirt and rib storm-cuffs rendering the ultimate in cold weather protection.
This Arctic genre is endowed with a technical wool/nylon blend, in keeping with Belstaff’s tradition of experimenting with new fabrications that combine functionality and modernity. Furthermore, tri-layer membranes in nylon/wool and finished with insulated nylon linings and rib storm-cuffs enable an even greater degree of breathability and technical performance.
For graphic impact, a new interpretation on the camouflage print has been executed three ways and on a variety of technical and traditional fabrics such as jacquard nylon down and heat-sealed polyurethane.
Coats - Wool has been given an explorer treatment with long wool/cashmere melton overcoats coming with a water-repellent finish. A classic Speedmaster jacket has been readied for the depths of winter too with a detachable shearling collar, further building upon Belstaff’s outerwear identity.
Shearling / Leather
Manifold styles of shearling complemented with leather trims present rich textures for this winter.
Longer aviator-style jackets add to the classic four-pocket silhouette.
Moto-inspired zip-through biker and four-pocket silhouettes come in hand-burnished, down-filled, oiled nubuck. These are finished with fur trims, internal rib storm-cuffs and nylon linings.
A stealth black aviator in a clean leather adds a harder modern edge. This season also sees the introduction of the Belstaff Riding jacket, based on a traditional motorcycling style from the 50s.
Fleece / Knitwear
The concept of mixed media and technical fleece continues for winter with shearling mixed with fleece in a hoodie along with a more technical nylon/fleece mix inspired by the endurance adventure theme.
Belstaff continues to build upon its knitwear identity with the introduction of a British Fair Isle pattern with moto stitch detailing and a new lightweight cashmere group for Winter 16.
The concept of knitwear as outerwear is still key, epitomised by a rich shearling-panelled zip-through knitted bomber with applied leather pockets and a protective high-neck ribbed collar. (model on left)
For the collection’s presentation, Belstaff took over the dilapidated Victorian red-brick arches of Southwark’s Ewer Street, providing a bleak backdrop to set the scene for this cold adventure.
Casting included a mix of established and new faces from all corners of the globe, with veterans Paul Sculfor, Simon Clark and Felix Friedman flanked by key new faces, such as finalists of Model of the Year Tim Schuhmacher and Models.com Break-Out star Sven De Vries, and other youngsters from wider Europe, America, Korea, Japan and Africa.
Levison Wood, contemporary adventurer and Belstaff ambassador, attended as special guest having just returned from his latest challenge of walking the length of the Himalayas. The expedition, which took six months and four-million steps trekking 1,700 miles across the roof of the world, is currently being aired on Sundays at 8pm on Channel 4 and its book was published this week.
He wore the Belstaff ‘Levison’ jacket that he and Fred Dyhr had created especially for his expedition, available to buy from February ’16.
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| Levison Wood |
Other guests included Labrinth (musician), Jack Fox (actor), Johannes Huebl (model, husband of Olivia Palermo), Robert Konjic (model), Dermot O’Leary (TV presenter), Hu Bing (Chinese model, LCM ambassador), Oliver Cheshire (model), Craig McGinlay (actor), Hugo Taylor (actor, entrepreneur), Alistair Guy (social photographer), Nicki Shields (presenter and face of Formula E!), Samantha Barks (actress and singer), Betty Bachz (Chinese TV presenter and model), Tilly Wood (daughter-in-law Ronnie Wood) – all wearing Belstaff;
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| James Fox |
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| Labrinth |
For the first time, Belstaff is offering an advance pre-order service on select pieces from this new collection.
Photo credits:
Collection shots: Jason Lloyd Evans / Nick Harvey
Social shots: Nick Harvey
