Attendance numbers at June's 76th edition of Pitti Uomo weren't fantastically high, yet they were slightly better, compared to the rates recorded in January.
One strong trend prevailed at the Florence-based trade show and that's the importance of offering consumers quality products – a concept many companies forgot about in the last few years in favour of, maybe cheaper, but less luxurious clothes and accessories – accompanied by another concept, that of discreet “everyday luxury”.
These concepts were also at the core of the Milan's menswear catwalk shows, together with another key point: innovating one's designs by going back to your own roots as Missoni or Armani did.
In the next few posts I will try to catch up with the Milano Moda Uomo catwalk shows, alternating them with the Parisian menswear shows.
Milano Moda Uomo was presented in a shortened edition, condensed in just four days in which 41 designers and brands presented their collections through catwalk shows, while 54 labels decided to opt for press presentations.
One of the first catwalk shows last week was Ermenegildo Zegna's. The company, that is celebrating next year its centenary, is traditionally synonymous with stylish and tailored pieces, but this time Zegna’s collection was characterised by a younger appeal.
Suede blouses and trousers had a relaxed silhouette; soft cardigans gently opened on jersey shirts; linen suits had a streamlined silhouette while cotton canvas trench coats were characterised by round shoulders.
Large bags and raffia hats completed a few looks, hinting at the main theme behind this collection, travelling, while the colour palette went from grey to beige/cream/white with a few splashes of purple. Zegna may be on the right path to renewing and updating itself, though, if it wants to attract younger customers, it will have to be less scared of using colours.
There was a sort of monochromatic syndrome also at C.P. Company's show. The hope of seeing something new and maybe uplifting also thanks to the arrival of the new menswear head designer Wallace Faulds, was dramatically reduced by a series of pants with rolled cuffs and tops in plain fabrics and pleasant, though not really varied, shades of blue. In a way it was hard not to wish to see on the catwalk more designs revolutionising the concept behind the brand like Aitor Throup did a while back with his Mille Miglia jacket.
A thirst for everything young and slightly rebellious was probably in Ennio Capasa’s mind while he worked on the new Costume National collection. Unfortunately, though, any kind of rebellious instinct he might have had was reduced to a kaffiyeh scarf wrapped around the neck or around the shoulders. There wasn’t anything extraordinarily new in the suits, while linen mesh tops paired with silk trousers with floral embroideries, also used in dressing-gown-like jackets, produced the undesirable “warrior turned dandy” look.
It’s only natural that in a country where the Prime Minister enlists young local women to be the members of his very personal harem, some fashion designers decide to have their high-profile customer’s pet/toy boy on the runway.
It happened at Dolce & Gabbana's where Madonna’s partner Jesus Luz modelled some looks from the new collection after starring in the brand’s new advertising campaign photographed by Steven Klein and inspired by Luchino Visconti’s Rocco e i suoi fratelli (Rocco and His Brothers). Luz was actually perfect to incarnate the Latin macho look that D&G's fans love.
Dolce & Gabbana's collection featured dazzling evening jackets decorated with sparkling crystals and intricate embroideries and patterns, denim trousers ripped to pieces with long johns-meet-boxer pants peeking out and even denim shirts (right when you thought we had managed to get rid of them…) also available in crumpled and washed versions.
Luxurious embroidered bathing robes, voluminous knitwear, sequins on vests and black trousers, perforated details on jackets (actually the most interesting part of the collection) screamed excess, while the foreign press got excited by what was described as "men’s clutch bags", better known in Italy simply as the borsello, an accessory often carried by mature men, especially in the past, say between the 60s-70s (by the way, thanks for making it popular again, rather than buying it, I think we will dig it out from our uncles/grandfathers' wardrobes…).
There were tenuous references to D&G’s Sicilian roots in the skinny pinstriped suits and coppola hats, the latter worn with leather jackets and black trousers, a look that called to mind the clothes favoured by Simone in Visconti’s Rocco e i suoi fratelli. 
Fans of the art and fashion connection rejoiced at Jil Sander's show where Raf Simons filtered the classic lines of menswear through the art of Japanese artist Tsuguharu Foujita.
In some cases even the models’ hairstyles and glasses echoed Foujita’s signature bowl cut hair and circular frame glasses, while the artist's works were printed on trousers and almost transparent vests, shirts and cardigans.
Lightness was definitely one of the main themes of the collection, emphasised by the prevalently white palette, broken by a shot of light blue used for a trench and of dark navy employed in classically cut suits.
Transformation was another important theme. Ordinary polo shirts and vests gradually transformed around the torso and developed two large pockets around the hip area, turning the garment into a jacket.
Simons seemed to use the lightness/transformation themes to explore the structure and construction of various garments, but his tailoring skills emerged better in the special details such as the rounded hems of the jackets and tops that turned classic garments into sportswear items while giving a sense of perfectly balanced geometries to the entire collection.
The nomadic atmospheres explored by Ermenegildo Zegna came back at Missoni’s. The menswear collection perfectly counterbalanced the womenswear collection presented in February, though in this case we were spared the excessive layering style that in the womenswear case hid some of the most beautiful pieces.
The mood was explorer-meets-nomadic traveller: trench coats, trousers, jackets with ample and relaxed silhouettes and even Missoni’s signature jumpers were all a bit crumpled and worn out as if the models had been wearing them through stormy landscapes and deserts.
Linen and cotton prevailed, but sky blue denim made a welcome appearance in an almost successful attempt at rejuvenating the label, while keeping it as sophisticated as possible.
There was an explosion of grey nuances at Armani, from anthracite to light dove, at least at the very beginning of the catwalk show. The main suits were based on his timeless pieces, but were reinvented in check fabrics to be faithful to the "classicism 2010" theme of the collection.
An ample section of the catwalk was dedicated to more casual and sporty pieces, with soft leather jackets with asymmetrical fastenings to striped jersey tops, parkas in techno fabrics or in printed crocodile leather.
A touch of further luxury was added with the accessories, especially the snakeskin sneakers and suede espadrilles.
Armani's signature blue nuances – from bright blue to navy – appeared towards the end in impeccable shorts, jackets and blazers, proving that despite the rumours and speculation about his health, the "king of fashion" is still retaining his throne.
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