How Italians are approaching the summer suit in style
British men may be ditching their jackets in the heat, but Italy is offering impressive seasonal tailoring at Milan Men’s Fashion Week, as Stephen Doig reports
There are some things that are distinctly Italian: a jolting espresso macchiato, the renowned Telefono pasta at Milanese dining institution Bice (cardiac arrest on a plate but so worth it) and – to the trained eye – the drape, cut and particular nuances of an Italian suit. Not for nothing does the Instagram tag #italiansdoitbetter run to half a million mentions.
The tenets of Italian masculine style have always been distinct from the Bello Uomo’s stately, more patrician older brother on Savile Row; here the shoulders of a jacket are sloping and softer, not the ceremonial peaked affairs of British tailoring. The cut is – in general – looser, allowing for a greater degree of breathability in the heat of a Roman summer, and the silhouette built for movement and a sense of ease; nipping around in a Vespa requires a degree of flexibility.
It’s handy then that as the British heatwave is causing debate on what men should be wearing in the office – the TUC has urged employees not to wear suits to work in the sweltering heat this week – Milan Men’s Fashion Week has given us a host of examples of how to dress with polish when the mercury is ascending. “This was very much about lightness,” said Umberto Angeloni, CEO of Italian fabric specialist Caruso, unveiling a springsummer 2018 collection of soft cream shaded jackets and trousers, which blended cashmere with silk. The result? Fabric as light as a feather and designed to keep the wearer cool while looking effortlessly sharp.
While reports of the suit’s death have been greatly exaggerated, it’s been subject to a heavy dose of cosmetic surgery these past few years; nipped, tucked, pulled and pestered-with to morph shapes and technical fabrics where once only traditional wools would do.
This is never more apparent than at Ermenegildo Zegna, where designer Alessandro Sartori marked his second collection at the house – which is renowned for having one of the best textile factories in Italy in northern Trivero – by, in his words, “combining classicism with modernity”.
This meant a sportier aesthetic, designed for the man who spends his life in transit rather than in a dusty tailoring atelier. Suits designed to float away from the body, half-lined or unlined for a freshness and fluidity, with webbed patches or perforated sections to allow breathability. Sartori teamed jackets with joggers, or combined soft-structure suits with gauzy tops instead of shirting; in fact, shirting was entirely missing from the collection. And for when evening falls, the Zegna chap can slip on a washed silk double-breasted ensemble, as cool as an Aperol Spritz and entirely effortless.
Brunello Cucinelli, the “King of Cashmere” who has an entire village in Umbria devoted to creating his cloud-soft clothing, has long deconstructed the formal codes of traditional suits to create a more relaxed proposal for men. Not that the end result is anything other than utterly luxurious; those jackets in the best cashmere the world can offer run into four figures. Patch pockets are something of a hallmark; that is, rounded pockets that sit outside the main canvas of the suit, instead of concealed, for less rigid appearance, worn with a polo shirt and perhaps an elasticated waist jogging trouser. And at Canali, the design studio set their fabric technicians a task – to create a light wool that’s both waterproof and easily packable, scrunchable as you like and still sharp. They came up with Impeccable 2.0, a wool of extreme lightness that’s pliable and doesn’t crinkle. Marcello Mastroianni might choke on his espresso at such a proposal, but these developments are the future of suiting – especially for summer. Alongside the relaxed stance that characterises Italian tailoring, the more highvoltage Italian houses also know how to create real occasionwear, for the Portofino playboy who wants to turn up the ante for evening. “When I look into the archives, what surprised me most was Gianni’s suits,” said Donatella Versace. “He did very strong shoulders, very powerful.”
Dolce & Gabbana showcased a “secret” show before their main one to showcase the prowess of their Sartoria tailoring studio, as a reminder of just how potent a masculine cut can be; their suits came with solid shoulders, wide lapels to broaden the chest and nipped in, narrow waists. In short, defiantly masculine and oozing sex appeal. From the louche, easy arrangements for broiling hot days to the more seductive options for evening, like the best food and wines, Italians excel.