Lou Stoppard reports on the Jonathan Saunders show
Saunders' skill is knowing exactly what to pull through from season to season and what to chop and change to keep his fan base on their toes. Silhouettes stay neat, slim and flattering, cut to fit rather than fight the male form. Similarly, key pieces pop up time and time again - the textured knit, the graphic jersey, the casual bomber.
Jonathan Saunders makes life easy. He creates clothing that stylists will adore, buyers can bank on and shoppers can wear to death. His skill is knowing exactly what to pull through from season to season and what to chop and change to keep his fan base on their toes.
Silhouettes stay neat, slim and flattering, cut to fit rather than fight the male form. Similarly, key pieces pop up time and time again - the textured knit, the graphic jersey, the casual bomber. Fun variations this season included polos and sweatshirts that were hemmed with elastic to create a bubble effect and cuddle-friendly fuzzy teddy bear outerwear. To mix things up, last season's micro geometric patterns had been replaced by a fine cameo print, which had the effect of rapidly dabbed paint.
Notably beautiful pieces included his watery fade-out tops and bomber jackets, whose subtle gradual tones were mirrored in the graphic stripes on stiffer pieces of wool tailoring. The general effect was to make the collection look as if it was melting away into a gorgeous watery mix of jewel tones like vivid orange, fuchsia, turquoise and inky indigo.
Saunders has really cracked the menswear code. He knows that no matter how adventurous the male customer is supposedly becoming, he still wants something easy - something that will look good without working hard. Although you never get surprised at a Saunders presentation, his consistency is undoubtedly his greatest strength.
