Given the speed with which Balmania has swept the fashion world, it was only a matter of time before we began to see exaggerated shoulder pads on the high street. And now we’ve received an exclusive tip that the self-proclaimed arbiter of male style, Kanye West, has jumped on the trend for his latest movie with a specially commissioned shoulder-pad-tastic jacket by womenswear designer and stylist Romero Bryan.

Bryan has already adopted the Balmain style shoulder in his own clothing, adapting t-shirts for nights out:

“Giving myself wider shoulders makes my waistline appear a lot smaller giving me the perfect V shape body,” says Bryan. “If I ruled the fashion world there would definitely be more shoulder pads!”

The truth is that menswear designers and tailors have a better understanding of the power of the shoulder pad than anyone.

Men’s suiting relies on a strong shoulder which can create all sorts of subtle illusions with the male form. The tailors of Saville Row have always known what women are only just rediscovering – a strong shoulder makes everything else look slimmer and more defined. Different tailors favour different shoulder styles – boxy classics look best with double breasted suits while a rounded shoulder creates softness.

Ozwald Boateng caused a menswear revolution with his modern take on narrow shoulders and colourful fabrics. Jill Sander’s latest menswear range used sharp tailoring with rounded shoulders and high waists to create a cartoon-esque hourglass shape, while Alexander McQueen used bulk to create a menacing presence on the catwalk.

Never the less, the shoulder pad in menswear has, generally, stayed where it was always assumed it belonged – on tailored jackets. But with Balmain making the strong shoulder acceptable on the high street, it may only be a matter of time before menswear gives us its own twist on the trend and begins installing shoulder pads on men’s t-shirts and knitwear. Will it look any good?

Well, it’s a look that may take a while to get used to , but with its macho overtones its more likely to be a hit than many of the other trends that have come and gone over the past few years.

Hark, men’s fashion is exuding a renewed optimism, with jarring silhouettes and inspired tailoring shaking up tradition. The cummerbund is a case in point. When Stuckey & Murray reinvented the tuxedo’s cummerbund to take on a more detachable utility, I applauded its progressiveness. Since then, I’ve seen the cummerbund take on dizzying new heights in men’s wear courtesy of Marc by Marc Jacobs and Burberry Prorsum.

Conventional use of the cummerbund has been largely confined to formal appearances alongside a dinner jacket. However, Jacobs and Bailey switched formality for exuberance in the form of expressive patterned cummberbunds that would leave Alan Flusser sweating in his boots.

Aligning himself with the fresh resurgence of paisley, Jacobs juxtaposed Marc by Marc Jacobs’ slightly threadbare meets luxe aesthetic with the sprightly pattern atop cummerbunds and let’s just say the mélange had me at hello. It seemed that the marriage was fated as the psychedelic teardrop motif seen in paisley lent credence to Jacob’s utility of such a formal element in menswear. In short, the ensemble didn’t feel estranged, with Jacobs’ leaving me comforted at the idea of a cummerbund being removed from its semi−formal surroundings.

Bailey’s AW09 Burberry Prorsum line followed suit with the same conventional contortion of the cummerbund. Bailey sifted back in time to reinvent tradition with tradition as the Fair Isle knit made a sophisticated entry on the back of the cummerbund. The sartorial pairing couldn’t have been better as the inclusion of the timeless Fair Isle pattern was a jarring delivery of newness—job well done Mr. Bailey.

In retrospect, what Bailey and Jacobs’ have accomplished here is a literal undoing of the accepted functionality of the cummerbund. Heralded as largely semi−formal in utility, these two designers have deconstructed the cummerbund to a level of everyday use. However, in both cases, fashion is never forfeited. Jacobs’ paisley rendition would charm the most ardent Etro patrons while Bailey’s folksy knit cummerbund evokes a fashionable Old English savoir faire that doesn’t miss a sartorial beat.

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In comparison to our female counterparts, menswear can be viewed as rigid. To some, the stoic tradition that defines men’s fashion is what keeps things on an even keel. For others, these rigours serve as creative license to unsettle what seems to be the norm. I say all this because I’m noticing a rebel of sorts within menswear that would leave the staunchest traditionalists livid. However, for the longevity of men’s fashion, I think this break with tradition can be healthy. Or maybe not. Well, you be the judge as I share with you some recent avant garde encounters and sightings that had me shook.

So a few weeks back I was on the board of interviewers tending to a candidate for an entry−level business position. To our bemusement, the young man walked into the interview with fully exposed white socks paired with black dress shoes!?!? Bewildered does not begin to describe how I felt at such a fashion faux pas. However, what had me more puzzled was the fact that this young lad had the audacity to attempt such fashion brazenness in a setting this formal. Experimenting with sock colours is one thing, but at least wait until you land the job. Only then can you slowly inject personality through your dress à la Steve Erkel if you must.

Afterwards, I got to thinking: was I antiquated or had visibly sporting white socks with dress shoes become trendy overnight? I’ve been under the impression that the Michael Jackson “Beat It” era had been vanquished, but when three is a trend (and men are boldly entering interviews with black lace−ups complete with white socks), you have to start reprogramming your style schema as to what is and isn’t acceptable.

On that thought, I embarked on a bit of trend spotting and low and behold, peppered throughout cities far and wide, a revolt was in place on the established order of sock wearing. The streets are definitely talking and they are all for white socks and black dress shoes. Judging from these four looks, it’s safe to say their foray into the sartorial unknown is largely personality driven, with the odd dollop of style. In that sense, pardon may be granted to them for their subtle channeling of a nerdy élan.

However, my run in with white socks and black lace−ups was utterly unacceptable and left me unconvinced at the growing fad. But then again, who’s to say that the interviewee wasn’t emboldened by the same forces that spurred these four men to opt for verve at the expense of sartorial traditions. Even if that was the case, there’s a time and a place for the instinctive quirk in one’s style to surface and the boardroom is not one of them.

That being said, I’ll give it a couple months and revisit these pictures and see where my stance lies on the matter. I guess in the department of socks I’m what you would call one of the traditionalists that are yet to be won over to the whimsical ways of the new school. Sticking to conservative blacks, grays, browns, and tans has left my sock collection rather void of a crotchety style. Then again, in reference to the quandary at hand, I’m well aware that pairing white socks and black shoes steers clear of the bootee phenomenon (when you’re socks match your shoes hence there being no demarcation between where shoe ends and sock begins). However, when I see white socks worn with black lace−ups, I can’t help but envision Michael Jackson and his flailing legs bedecked with sequined white socks (yes, check out the “Beat It” video to relate to this mental imagery). So if anything, I believe come two months I’ll still be in agreement with the Style Guy in saving “your white socks for your white suit and white shoes.”

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John Legend may have eschewed all levels of style etiquette by venturing out with a suit complete with Wellingtons, but please don’t let his missteps lead you to cast a finicky eye over the trend. Unfortunately Mr. Legend didn’t get the memo, but keeping one’s Wellingtons away from the red carpet is a no−brainer.

As a child I had that lone pair of Wellingtons I trudged to and fro to school in, but once the pitter-patter of winter’s rains dissipated, I never really looked to gumboots as a stylish auxiliary. My partiality to see Wellingtons as a silly trapping continued into adolescence and began to extend to all four seasons. Whether it was raining cats and dogs or, in the case of Mr. Legend, not even drizzling a lick (in southern California), I had arrived at place where you would never have caught me dead in a pair of Wellingtons.

Then Glastonbury came, followed by GANT, and I began to reassess my leanings on what seemed to be the highly sought after Wellington. Was I being over critical about John Legend’s get up? Not in the slightest. The mishmash was just too much of an insult to my visual senses as Legend un−heroically paired the outdoorsy with formal. Stay with that point.

On the contrary, as I clicked through Material Interest’s photo-documentary on Glasto fashion, I realized that the jaundiced eye that I had glaringly cast over Wellingtons, as a whole, was a tad presumptuous. Amid the backdrop of a marshy, rain−bogged music festival like Glastonbury, Wellingtons stylishly foot the bill. Even the recent Sartorialist−inspired GANT fall ad campaign featured a rather spiffy looking Brooklyn hipster decked out in wellingtons. As removed as a concrete Brooklyn stoop is from the pastoral terrains of Glastonbury, the Wellies don’t look one bit outlandish. Moreover, the fall/winter months are marked by the occasional downpour so, in retrospect, investing and strolling about in a pair of wellingtons may not be a stylish faux pas like some (myself included) may think.

I do happen to draw the line, however, when suits, blazers or other proper modes of dress are thrown into the mix. When a scruffy gumboot is mirrored next to a sports coat, the polarity is a trifle too much to take in….

especially when one’s jacket is not even fitted….

And the moral of the story is this – when pairing Wellingtons for fall, rock them with understated outerwear like a cardigan, leather jacket or a hoodie and leave the blazer at home!

[Image: Style.com/GANT]

It seems as though designers have found inspiration from the Scottish highlands this season as runways at the Autumn/Winter 2008 shows saw the return of the check.

Dsquared and Rykiel Homme were among the names responsible for bringing the multicoloured woven cloth back to life once more as shirts, trousers, jackets and ties all gleamed with checks.

The pattern, which was once a key fabric associated with the era of punk, has now been adapted by high street stores as well. Topshop are now following suit with the launch of their new ‘thinking mans’ trend. This season you’re invited to rediscover the style of the American creative types in the 1960s with checked ties, trilbies, bow ties and cotton cardigans. Checks also come on shirts and casual open neck tops in a range of patterns and colour schemes.

So instead of reaching for the safety of an effortlessly cool black shirt when dressing for your next night out, remember that the checks are back and it’s most definitely time to ensure that you don’t blend in to the background.

To see checks in all their glory, check out Topman, ASOS and Urban Outfitters this month.

A little over a month ago in the quaint town of Poitiers in western France, a gentleman by the name of Dominique Moreau engages in a movement against the rigid, gender−based sartorial codes of fashion. He—in league with thirty other able bodied men—spends a good part of the day wearing skirts.

Why, you might ask? Well, it just so has it that, historically, the skirt has been a item of clothing not exclusively marked out for women and Moreau wants to instill that verve to wear skirts in men once again!

Hearken back a month and, quite frankly, we wished Mr. Moreau and his organization, Hommes en Jupe (Men in Skirts), all the best in their endeavors at culling legions of men to their somewhat gender-bending calling, but now we’re reevaluating. Based on the events that took place on Wednesday at New York Fashion Week, Hommes en Jupe’s male skirt movement will definitely gained some pep in its step courtesy of a new patron: Marc Jacobs!

Heroically clad in a red tartan kilt, Jacob’s gaily received accolades for his Marc by Marc Jacobs show. Tartan is seriously doing the rounds this season so the pattern was a pleasing nod to the enlightened, however, there’s no doubt in my mind that a flurry of men who are both expressive with their clothing and comfortable with their sexuality will begin to latch unto this skirt craze.

As is the case with androgynous trends, questions are sure to arise as per the acceptable length at which a man should don his skirt. Unlike the fiasco that currently surrounds men, shorts, and how short is too short, skirts on men and the appropriate length is more of a weighty matter that needs serious discussion.

Not too long ago, The Sartorialist quipped about whether men’s skirts should fall above or or below the knee. My response to that is keep in consonant with Mr. Jacobs—below the knee—and you won’t draw too many added stares!

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Ok, so winter may be on its way and it’s a fact we are all well aware of. Talk of summer holiday destinations no longer dominates office lunch breaks, coats and jackets in all shapes and sizes have started to hit stores and worst of all Harrods have already started to sell Christmas gifts.

But before we enter a state of despair as the days start to get shorter and our car wind screens start to get icier, relax in the fact that top designers have thought ahead this season. Louis Vuitton, Yves Saint Laurent and Michael Kors are among the top designers who are trying to protect us from catching a cold this winter by bringing back the polo neck top.

To avoid looking geeky, stiff necked or pretentious in this new trend, be sure to team your polo of choice with a casual open neck top or sharp suit jacket, (taking inspiration from Mr Ronson above).

If however you’re not brave enough to embrace the high necked trend, there’s still nothing wrong with the traditional knitted woolly scarf to keep winter chills away….

As the age-old fashion faux-pas of wearing socks with sandals sauntered down the runway of Alexander McQueen’s men’s SS09 show, US Vogue came out with their “Ageless” issue to celebrate the fashion industry’s old guards.

A very interesting corollary, but does this mean that sandals and socks are in vogue? The look is one that is synonymous with the elderly so I’ll keep my fingers crossed for McQueen if his creative license of resurrecting a fashion faux-pas has any longevity whatsoever amongst his youthful legion of followers.

Mind you, sans the pastel grey socks, the shimmering gold dress shoe sandal was eye-catching and could very well be a strong contender for the new look sandal of next summer. The gladiator sandal is definitely being worn thin so with a hint of deconstruction (i.e., lose the socks), McQueen may be on to something.

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Just the other day, I reported on the ankle sock and lace-ups trend that sprouted over the course of the spring/summer men’s shows in Milan and Paris.

Yes, ankle socks are slowly becoming a source of comfort and style for those men who would rather not go sockless for the summer. And, ahem, given I’m not one to endorse socklessness; I’m mighty thrilled at this development.

However, as with most trends, for it to reach bonafide status it helps to have a following beyond just one individual and one locale.

The Sartorialist spotted the ankle sock in Milan and Paris during the spring/summer 2009 men’s shows and my hopes were ignited. Now all the way in the blonde hair, blue-eyed, avant-garde populous of Sweden, Face Hunter has sighted yet another ankle sock look and I’m feeling real gutsy about rocking ankle socks avec dress shoes!

I don’t know about you all, but I think we’ve stumbled unto something here…stay tuned!

[Image: Face Hunter]

There is a margin of frivolity when dealing with bow ties. When done correctly the traditionally formal pieces can redefine the level of casual dressing sanctioned in streetwear. Battles in the bowtie arena have been undoubtedly won by Andre 3000 and rejuvenator of iconic couture house Lanvin, Alber Elbaz.

Andre 3000 is known especially for his quirky use of plaids, driver caps and an occasional kilt or two and his Prince meets the country club stealth in applying paisley bowties is unrivaled.

On the other hand, Alber Elbaz has turned his neckwear into a fully blossomed iconic look. After every successful collection, his cartoony, satin ties play peek-a-boo. Coincidently the rest of the industry is following the smell. Most prominently being Armani Prive’s fall couture collection where models followed in Elbaz’s steps with animated bowties to compliment the one-of-a-kind tailoring of les smokings.

I’ll be getting my bowtie soon. It’s a much better trend to follow than the pointlessness of Shutter Shades.