H&M’s Menswear Designer Is Inspired By Parisian Street Style
This week, American designers will be showing their Spring 2016 collections at the first ever New York Men’s Fashion Week. While we’ll have to wait until next year to find see these coveted pieces hit the stores, we were able to talk to Andrea Löenstam, the head menswear designer at H&M to find out what we can expect from his upcoming Fall 2015 creations. “I love the shift in menswear to these elevated pieces where cut and cloth are key,” he tells Yahoo Style. Read on to find out about his style inspirations and 2016 trend predictions.
Andrea Löenstam
Yahoo Style: You’ve mentioned that the shift in menswear is all about the cut of the garment, if there’s one piece from the fall collection that you think sums that up what would it be?
Andrea Löenstam: I would need to say the unconstructed wool coat. The coat is a must-have piece for the coming fall. This specific coat is cut to give you an almost cocooning silhouette when wearing it. The classic quality and color in combination with raglan-inserted sleeves and laser-cut edges create a modern piece, which is perfect for a smart layered look.
YS: The fall collection seems to showcase a loose approach to tailoring compared to seasons past. For a customer who wants to try this out without looking unkempt, what advice can you give them?
H&M
AL: Personally, I would combine a looser fitted piece with something slim and not go for mixing roomy with roomy. The unconstructed wool coat that I mentioned earlier looks fantastic in combination with a pair of tight fitted pants - or the other way around, wearing a pair of loose fitted pants with a classic fitted knitted sweater. This fall it’s all about playing around with layers of contrasting fits and silhouettes.
YS: It seems like the fall collection has a lot of nineties references especially with the looser fit. What were some of the inspirations?
AL: We wanted to design a collection with emphasis on innovative qualities and new silhouettes in a sober color palette. Modern essentials that have the flair of “affordable luxury,” soft and hairy surfaces and authentic details were something that we wanted to create. Throughout the whole look book we had the model wearing white high-top sneakers in order to achieve a contemporary, fresh and sporty feel. We didn’t really talk about any nineties references from the beginning; though you are not the only one referring the collection to this era.
H&M
YS: The spring collections just wrapped in Europe, what is one trend you’re looking forward to next season?
AL: I just came back from Paris Fashion Week where I saw a lot of trendy guys on the streets wearing printed tops combined with patterned pants. This urban pajamas is so cool - and yet so comfortable. I really hope to see more of this trend for next season. Another trend I believe we will see more of next season is the clean, monochrome and technical look where the modern man wears new and innovative sportswear in layers. If you ask me, I find street fashion at the moment very inspiring and look forward to seeing more of it.
YS: What is one piece that you’ll always create and will always do well?
AL: The classic white poplin shirt.
YS: Who are your design heroes?
AL: Helmut Lang, Raf Simons, Dries van Noten and all my super talented colleagues of course.
H&M
YS: Where will the H&M man be this fall? Can you paint us a portrait of who he is?
AL: The H&M man feels inspired and creative when mixing clearly presented season must-have items with modern basics. Fashion shouldn’t be more complicated than that.
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