At Fashion Week, "Bad" Clothes Were the Best Clothes

You're reading Shopper: Highsnobiety's bulletin on what’s taking up headspace from the marketplace. Below is an edit of June 29's newsletter, in which Shopping Editor Max Migowski savors fashion week's strange taste(s). Subscribe here, or head to the Shopping tab for more recs.

Bad Taste Is Back In Fashion. Thank God!  

For so long, luxury has been so quiet that you could hear a pin drop. I'm not even going to bore you with the definitions of the trope, because by now, even the most casual fashion observer is well aware of the recent beige-cashmere-ification of fashion. 

While there isn’t anything inherently wrong with wearing understated clothing, the most annoying aspect of “quiet luxury” was the belief that “taste” — another now-meaningless buzzword — was something that could be objectively agreed-upon and commodifiable. Cut to a culture where we’re all watching the same influencer’s room tour, having done little to nothing to actually nurture our own sensibility for anything. But per this recent run of men's SS27 shows, we might be witnessing a return to actual taste, in all of its subjective glory. 

Don't get me wrong: None of what stalked down the catwalks in Florence, Milan, and Paris these past weeks felt entirely unruly. There were no collections that completely scrambled our codes for what is sartorially “right” and “wrong.” But from the depths of the details emerged a playfulness, weirdness, and absurdity that finally undid the laws of practical minimalism and related The Row-inspired clichés — without, however, totally surrendering their wearability.

We saw Prada's lean jeans, hung with climbing pouches, all but vanish, either by losing opacity or deploying high-water hems that receded up models’ legs. Auralee's characteristically low-key clothes were jumbled in ridiculous combinations, courtesy of genius stylist Charlotte Collet, with jackets layered over jackets, and chunky knits paired with towels and bermudas. 

At Ralph Lauren, the best pieces looked ruined and repaired times over. Giorgio Armani's suits went from stiff to slouchy, while Thom Browne's were pleasantly... awkward. Acne Studios and Saint Laurent each presented comically elongated footwear — animal-skinned and translucent, respectively. Dries Van Noten waved goodbye to sad-if-stealthy greiges in favor of fleshy nude hues on silken shirts and palm-tree-embroidered trenchcoats. Celine and its Reeboks — honestly, I have yet to wrap my head around. And hell, even the famously, fabulously austere Lemaire bent to a version of the feared flower print.

So wait, are florals groundbreaking again? Of course not. But there's something to be said about this shift in tone: After being beholden to (or repressed by) the “trend” of timelessness, designers are inviting fun back into the wardrobe. By way of silly little accessories, scarves worn as tops and tops worn as scarves, primary-colored leathers à la Givenchy, or even just tiny interventions like Rier's outside-collar brand tags and flipped zippers — any common aesthetic theme across houses has since collapsed into an entertaining disarray, with no two offerings building off the same moodboard or some universally held belief in what we ought to be wearing next year.

Isn't that kinda great? All the Rimowa luggage, USM Haller sideboards, and Maison Margiela tabis in the world do not good taste make, despite a mass-cultivation of desire for them by the algorithmic powers that be. How wonderful then, that, for the first time in a while, Fashion Week didn't feel like we've been collectively doomscrolling the same feed.

Open Tabs: Everything We've Got Our Eyes On Right Now

• This A.P.C. denim tote bag is a reasonably priced and cleverly designed canvas tote. And as you may remember, that's a difficult balance to pull off.

• “Screw totes and bring back backpacks, amirite?!" is what the brains behind Visvim must have thought while making theirs. The process behind the brand’s candle is not as clear, but appreciated no less.

• The collared long-sleeve and striped v-neck here embody Miu Miu at its best —  delightfully quirky, but easy to throw on.

• The Elder Statesman wove a cashmere waffle henley; trust that you'll never, ever want to take it off.

• Same goes for a certain Swiss brand's *chef's kiss* white T-shirts, by the way. So much so that we’re collaborating on an exclusive Highsnobiety x Zimmerli drop. Cat's out the bag!

• ​'Tis the season of shorts talk. But where does that leave those of us who don't like them? Well, Stone Island's cotton twill pants make for an ultra-leightweight, well-shaped, full-length alternative.

• …as do Bad Bunny's Zara drawstring linen pants, for that matter.

• If your problem with shorts is that they seem too casual, then let a tailored linen pair by COS change your mind. (Also consider a slim-fit tee while you're there.)

• If your problem with shorts is, instead, that you're unsure about ideal inseams, then check out these Nike basketball shorts. I'm told they have near-perfect proportions. 

• Other than just a competition between measurements, summer's also known to be a battle of the boat shoes. Bottega Veneta, for instance, threw these pretty babies into the ring.

• I personally think, however, that these Sebago ones are even prettier. But go ahead, you be the judge! 

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