THE JOURNAL
Photographs by The Urban Spotter
How emerald, olive and khaki have become the go-to colours of the 2016 Pitti Uomo in Florence, and camouflage the must-have print – and why you don’t need to be blue anymore.
Pitti Uomo is here! Yes, the summer instalment of Florence’s menswear trade fair/biggest impromptu style promenade is in full swaggery swing. And one of the first major trend-spots to emerge from the braceleted, sockless ranks of attendees – apart from the continuing appeal of bracelets and the continuing disdain for hosiery, obvs – is the ascent of green. So much so, in fact, that Pitti olive has more or less displaced Pitti blue as the default shade for the swell-egant cognoscenti. These looks not only give the lie to Mr Kermit the Frog’s oft-stated lament that “it’s not easy being green” – they also put the “art” into chartreuse.
CAMO CRAZY
Photographs by The Urban Spotter
While green is obviously an indispensable hue for any military-inspired ensemble, this gentleman gives things a Boy Scout/Great Gatsby spin – and that’s quite a dizzying oscillation – by teaming his camo jacket with a bandana, baggy cuffed shorts and co-respondent shoes. This is one of those classic it-shouldn’t-work-but-it-does-but-don’t-ask-us-how instances of Pitti chutzpah.
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SAGE ADVICE
Photographs by The Urban Spotter
The “love of green… is always the sign of a subtle artistic temperament,” wrote Mr Oscar Wilde, and who can deny the truth of that statement when faced with a green-anchored palette as audacious as this? The sage blazer is a diverting substitute for navy, particularly when set off by other comestible-inspired shades like the delicious sherbet of the trousers and the jellybean-blue of the check shirt. We feel a sugar rush coming on…
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KHAKI COOL
Photographs by The Urban Spotter
Green doesn’t carry the formal baggage of navy or grey, so it lends itself quite naturally to unstructured summer suiting. This gentleman’s double-breasted khaki cotton tailoring, with its playful detailing – generous lapels, extra-low buttoning, turn-back cuffs, slouchy pockets – makes for a consummately smart-casual summer look, particularly when paired with a simple white tee.
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