Times may be hard, but Canadian menswear designers for spring have their minds on easy living. In a runway show presented at Manstyle, a three-day trade show that ended recently, the emphasis was on relaxed construction, soft colors and washed silk.
Those elements of fashion have been around for a few seasons, but there seems to be a strong conviction now that it is about to hit mainstream.
The Oggi fashion line, for instance, consisted of athletic zippered jackets, shorts and trousers in exuberant mixes of colors such as yellow and mauve, green and orange.
Designer Roger Edwards included a shirt-like jacket and trousers in deep blue with contrasting top stitching. The jacket, like many, had a drawstring waist — a popular means for making loose garments seem other than overblown.
Lynn Roberts, a knitter with Knitnetwork, offered a sweater with drawstring waist and sleeves, in a pale yellow patterned with blazing orange suns. Particularly slouchy were drawstring jackets in suede, such as were featured in collections from Jez Leather and Georges Larocque.
Most tailored jackets were double-breasted.
