Get into Summer Gear with Debenhams

It's Feb and cold , so set your mind in to Summer holiday mode and start looking for your holiday basics.

Nautical Stripes always make a great summer hit.

Label here is Red Herring :
Left model -Vest 39.50, chinos £30. Wear with Straw Trilby hat for those hot sun blazing days £26
Right model - Tee £14 and chinos £35

J Jeans by Jasper Conran
For those windy days don't forget the Casual Jacket £75, tee £18 and shorts £35

Layer your tee with a cool Cotton or Linen Shirt.
Shorts are a holiday must

Manteray striped shirt £32 and shorts £35.
Rucksacks make great holiday bags.
Red Herring rucksack £30
















Wear with Coloured Chinos for a contemporary twist.

J.Jeans by Jasper Conran knitted cardigan £65,  striped tee £18, chinos £35 and shoes £35.

For the fun look say 'Aloha' to the  Hawaii style shirt 

Red Herring shirt £28 here teamed with a pale striped tee £14

A pair of Espadrilles make a good beach shoe. Manteray £12












And of course don't forget your Swimshorts!

Maine £25

 Images provided by Debenhams

H&M Spring 2012 Menswear Collection

For Spring, H&M are mixing work with play - blending street smart casuals and tailoring with sportswear.

The nautical theme is always a winner for Spring.
Here shown as as the classic blue and white striped jersey top teamed with white trousers and bright red anorak .

The classic short cotton double breasted navy blazer and deck shoes are given a burst of youthful colour by the vivid orange cropped chinos and leather bracelet.

Whilst the cotton seersucker adds texture and gives a cool relaxed tailored look matched with whites.

Key garments are the double breasted blazer, cropped chinos, nautical striped sweater ( all as above) plus the bright orange cropped parka...

... strong coloured tee shirts.....

....and relaxed tailored suiting. Here worn with round sunglasses- one of the key accessories.

Main colour palette is blues, khakis and neutrals...

... with statement splashes of bright yellow....

,...... orange (seen here with another key accesory - the contrast sole brogues), and red.

Some available now from H&M stores and online on ww.hm.com

A peak at Sebago's new Flagship Store in London.

Sebago renowned for their iconic boat shoes, Docksides, have sailed down Regents Street in London and anchored their new flagship store at number 78.

The decor is of course of a nautical theme with Docksides inside portholes...

and 'all feet on deck' footwear displayed on wooden shelves hanging by rope.

To celebrate the Olympic Games, Sebago have brought out a range of Docksides in red and white with blue inside and blue and white with red inside, both with a union jack sole.

But there is also a touch of the gentleman’s club with comfy distressed leather chairs if you need a rest from all that shopping.

Obviously you had to have bubbly to launch a flagship, but in keeping with the nautical theme the Oyster Meister was there with his fresh catch of oysters. www.oystermeister.com

Here's a sneak peak at their SS12 collaboration with Filson :

Ranch jacket in Filson's tan rugged twill with contrasting collar in Seabgo leather. Gilet/vest in Filson's durable and protictive oil tin cloth. Lining in a red check.

Matching cap in Filson oil tin cloth.
Foreground: Briefcase in Filson tan rugged twill. Brattle spectator brogues in leather and waxy canvas on top of suitcase near mannequin - available in brown or tan. Beacon boot and Docksides also in leather and waxy canvas on top of front suitcase - both available in dark brown or olive.

And  a peak at their handcrafted limited edition SS12 Artisan collection influenced by an eclectic mix of emerging design talents, urban artists and lifestyle bloggers:

The front boat shoe is the St Croix, a collaboration with leather speciality brand Billy Kirk. This is a shoe of handsewn construction, statement laces and contrasting Sebago Docksides slip resistant boat sole.


And a few pieces available to buy from their AW11 collection:

Thanks Chase PR for the invite
www.sebago.com

Nautical Look - French Riviers playboy look for the Spring

It’s usually the fine knits here as the look is fresh, clean and oozes style. Cool cotton knits are a popular choice for those hot yachting days. Mainly navy and white and lots of horizontal stripes.
The authentic nautical stripe is the Breton stripe originating in the French Provence of Brittany . Here the fisherman found the fine double twist cotton protected them against sudden gusts of wind. They were introduced to the French navy in 1858, where the stripes helped spot any sailors who fell overboard . The original also had 21 stripes , one for each of Napoleon’s victories.
Now it’s just a classic but still comforting to know if you do happen to fall overboard.

New Look have a Breton striped knitted jumper in white with navy stripes at a swimmingly good price of £9.99. Ready for work aboard with cream shorts, red/blue boat shoes, orange mac and brown canvas backpack all from New Look. Available from New look stores or via www.newlook.com

Or go to the darker side and choose navy with white striped mariner jumper in pure cotton from Brooks Brothers (£89). Looking good with a pair of white lightweight chinos in the Milan fit (£89). Available from Brooks Brothers, 150 Regent St - 0203 238 0030 / www.brooksbrothers.com

However stripes as we know aren’t very slimming so make sure you don’t have them around your tummy area if this is a concern. Keep to the shoulders. Or go for something like the Musto sail classic cardigan. Plain navy with nautical strip detail going vertically down the neckline – a much more slimming effect- £70. Available on www.musto.com

Chunky knits can still sail their way in to this category with something like Musto’s chunky knit shawl cardigan in navy or white. Just team with a tee shirt underneath - www.musto.com

And there is always the plain sweater with the boat neck – New Look white knitted jumper. Available from New Look stores or via www.newlook.com

Nautical knitwear - the original Guernsey sweater

Spring is coming and the nautical look is always bobbing up from the fashion waters.
However the Guernsey, the ultimate sailing sweater, is more of a classic than a trend.

This medium knit from Guernsey works hard to make it look plain sailing, becoming a favourite for seamen due to its warmth and resistance to sea spray. The classic square-shaped tunic style has a split at the hem for ease of movement and a straight neckline originally so it can be reversed as alternating the front and back made sure is was more hard wearing. Today, you can get them in crew and v neck. During the Napoleonic wars, the Guernsey joined the British Royal Navy and changed from a fresh faced blond in unscoured natural wool to the more deeper navy blue.
The plain knit make this chunky knit look lean, which is a good choice for the larger guy who wants a thick warm jumper without the bulk.
Like most sailors, the Guernsey couldn’t resist having distinct markings on his arms -a rib at the top of the sleeves to represent a sailing ship’s rope ladder , a raised shoulder seam to represent the rope and the garter stitch panel for waves breaking the shore.
check out www.guernseywoollens.com or www.guernseyknitwear.co.uk for the original style

YMC (You Must Create) have updated the look with their Guernsey Briton crew neck with button shoulder. In the traditional navy. Normal price £170 on sale at £119 on www.hubshop.co.uk, dry clean only.

Country Tweeds-the modern sports jacket

Adapted from the hacking jacket, the modern sports jacket has longer lapels with either one or two buttons. The flapped pockets may or may not be slanted, and it usually has side vents for easy access to trouser back pockets. By the early 1900s it became fashionable for men to wear sports jackets at the more casual social functions rather than just keep them for sporting activities, and the jackets began to have a simpler cut losing the more practical sporting features such as the belt and bulky pockets.
The modern tweed jacket ranges from the classic to the trendy:

Devonport London, a newly-launched menswear brand, concentrates on the qualities of tradition, heritage and highly-skilled craftsmanship shunning the use of adhesives and other modern fusion techniques, looking instead to the traditional methods of hand-stitching, loose horsehair interlinings and hand-making collars.
www.devonportlondon.com

Whilst New Look brings tweeds to the younger man who doesn’t want to spend too much and just wants to have fun with the look, layering and mixing with other fabrics and textures such as jeans. www.newlook.com Whatever your style is there will be a Tweed jacket out there for you.

New Look Spring/Summer 2011 Collection for Men

This season New Look is adding their extra details to the three classic looks: vintage work wear; collegiate look and the nautical inspired look.

VINTAGE WORK WEAR

Inspired by 1930's America with double denim still on trend. Here they are pairing the American classic pale blue chambray shirt with a white tee, raw denim jeans and an eagle buckle belt.

Showing you've worked your fingers and jeans to the bone in this grey American motif tee and distressed jeans with braces.

For an alternative to the hard wearing denim, chinos show they are up to the challenge and come in shades of tobacco, ecru and navy. Here seen with a red & white check shirt and dark denim jacket.

COLLEGIATE LOOK

This time the colegiate look is a mix of all -American teens preppy and school Brits casual sports. Here a red varsity cardigan is teamed with a navy v-neck tee and grey cuffed tracksuit bottoms.

Working the look here is no sweat in this white military polo,light beige chinos and grey marl collegiate sweat.
THE NAUTICAL INSPIRED LOOK

And where would spring be without the ever perennial infusion of nautical wear? Here we have a red and white stripe tee with navy blazer and trousers.

Double denim also makes an appearance here in dark wash denim blazer and shorts with white and navy stripe tee.

And make sure you're ready for the high seas and match your Breton striped knitted jumper and cream shorts with an orange mac, brown canvas backpack and red/blue boat shoes.

New Look's collection is all plain sailing in the trend and value for money department.





Alternative looks on Amazon: