Universal Works AW15 at London Collections:Men

One of the brands I always look forward to seeing at London Collections:Men, the twice yearly fashion celebration of London's place in menswear design, is Universal Works. They have now been producing contemporary menswear for six years and have developed a casual, simple, tailored, comfortable style of their own, slightly workwear in nature, using high quality materials and manufacture. Unlike so many contemporary menswear, the designs are classic and wearable, ideal for the older or younger man looking for a contemporary, but not too challenging, look.

Image Universal Works

Their AW15 collection follows the trend, very apparent at LC:M this January, of muted or monochrome colours, very occasionally punctuated by strong accent colours. For current products, see Universal Works.

Image Grey Fox Blog

Style for the older man: the unstructured jacket & the rise of smart comfortable wear

The rise of British manufacture has revived skills which are bringing shapes and styles to menswear which have roots in a long heritage. Tailoring has long British traditions in producing formal suits, jackets, blazers. These are all structured garments with lining, internal canvas pieces and a construction that makes them formal and shaped in appearance.

Older man style: an unstructured jacket allows me to wear a suit, but feel comfortable, as if in jumper and jeans

But another style of jacket has been revived in the last few years. It's unstructured, unlined or semi-lined, and comfortable, with soft shoulders, patch pockets and even (as mine above) shirt-style cuffs. It's generally cheaper than a tailored jacket because it has its roots in the working coats that used to be turned out for engine drivers, bus conductors, mechanics, road repair and factory workers.

Workers needed to wear a garment that was cheap to produce and allowed freedom of movement while looking reasonably smart (this was a time when men, however humble, still took pride in their appearance). These characteristics are exactly what younger, middle-aged or older men are now looking for in their search for smart but comfortable casual wear.

The rise in popularity of this style coincides with the deformalisation (if that's a word) of menswear. Men now wear suits for both semi-formal and casual wear, encouraged by the comfort that an unstructured jacket brings. I find I now throw on my Oliver Spencer linen/cotton mix suit (pictured above), with its unlined jacket, as readily as I might a cotton jumper and pair of chinos - and I feel just as relaxed. 

Such styles are available from many menswear labels that design and/or manufacture in the UK including -

Old Town
Tender
Private White V.C.
S.E.H. Kelly 
Albam 
Cro'jack
Universal Works
Oliver Spencer and others.

Try them and you'll find a coat jacket that's immediately comfortable. The tailoring won't be as sharp or the fit as snappy as a structured and lined tailored jacket - but that's the strength of a garment that is fuelling the rise in comfortable, smart casual menswear.

London Collections:Men SS15 - Grey Fox's picks

I didn't get to any big shows at London Collections:Men, so was able to spend some time delving into the brands on display in the Designer Showrooms, both ready to wear and accessories. I find it very exciting seeing the creativity and enterprise on display among the smaller labels; some new, some not; some made in the UK, some not - all with great ideas.

There were many labels that caught my eye; here is a quick pick of their SS15 collections. I hope to write about many in more detail in future. Where possible, I have given the brand's website so you can contact them to find out more.

TOBEFRANK of England

A young brand priding itself on the traditions of British menswear. I met the founder, Frank Phillips, and a lady who knits her knitwear from wool from her own flock of Jacob sheep - what a great story, and one I'd like to cover in more detail soon. See Tobefrank's website.

INDEFINITELY WILD

This collection of British-made men's shirts will not appear until SS15, but the quality and design are superb. Again, I hope to tell you more soon. Meanwhile see the Indefinitely Wild website here.

JAEWAN PARK

I've spoken about this designer before - his beautifully tailored jackets, with clever and humorous twists on conventional designs, are a joy to behold. Look carefully at the lapel of this pinstripe jacket... 

UNIVERSAL WORKS

Well-established now, but a firm favourite of mine. See Universal Works.

GLOVERALL

An established British-made brand making a comeback - I hope to cover Gloverall in a future post.

MR START

I liked the clean lines and beautiful fabrics of this collection, about which I know little. I will remedy that and write more about them on the blog soon. I loved this wool and silk summer jacket (with matching trousers) in this rather poor iPhone shot, but hope you get the idea - it could have been made for me. See Mr Start.

MAKE YOUR ODYSSEY

An interesting young brand with some lovely beach/summer wear. I'm waiting to hear from them with more information and images, meanwhile, here's one from my iPhone that will give an idea. Website here, but seemed not to work when I last tried. 

MARWOOD

A favourite of mine and I've talked about them before. Outstanding design and British manufacture. See Marwood's website.

ALICE MADE THIS

Alice makes beautiful men's accessories, in particular cuff links and pins, like the exquisite example below, in England using traditional techniques and her product design experience. See Alice Made This website.

CAMPBELL COLE

Campbell Cole's leather bags and accessories are objects of design and manufacturing perfection; beautifully-made and presented. A young brand that we will hear much more of. For more information, see Campbell Cole's website.

Universal Works - workshop denim jeans made in England

Universal Works have sourced 13oz denim made in Portugal on vintage narrow looms and made two styles of jeans in central England. As with all the best jeans, the denim is raw - no artificial distressing - allowing them, with time, to acquire that natural wear and patina of well-used denim which cannot be beaten by man-made ageing processes.

Available in slim and regular fits from Oi Polloi and Peggs & Son from April 4th - price £135. Also available at Universal Works online or at 37 Lambs Conduit Street and 40 Berwick Street, London.

If you're an older man in two minds about wearing denims, you may like to read this.

Regular fit

Slim fit

A few grey hairs at London Collections: Men

A few of the well-dressed older men spotted at London Collections:Men over the last few days.

I will be writing more about the exciting brands each represents, offering so much to men of style of all ages, over the next few weeks. Meanwhile, please visit their websites for more information.

Stuart Maxwell of Esk, designers of the most beautiful knitwear www.eskcashmere.com

T-Michael, a real gentleman with whom I shared a taxi and had many great discussions. Designer and bespoke menswear guru - www.norwegianrain.com and www.t-michael.com

David Keyte and Stephanie Porritt of Universal Works - a wonderful brand about which I hope to say more in the not too distant future.