After much menswear excitement on red carpets, this awards season, the expectations were high for something interesting at the Oscars. Apart from Billy Porter’s voluminous train, it was a fairly conservative and traditional night. Those immature-looking, shrunken velvet suits were rife, while the rest opted for traditional black tie.
The man to offer us something new was British actor, Nicholas Hoult, in Dior Men AW19. From the recent AW19 collection, the suit was reimagined in plain fabric with a shorter sash. The simply singular button and sash wrapping around the shoulder, around the back, then to the side, is elegantly different.
Nicholas Hoult is tall enough to have carried off the original length, but, I think it would have looked chicer with black fringing at the end. It would have also weighted it down.
It certainly saves needing a napkin!
Just as I was writing the Oscars off as boring and a sea of black tuxedos out comes along a group of guys having fun on the red carpet. While the womenswear has gone safe and dull, there’s not much ‘fashion’ to see anymore, the menswear has seen the opportunity to express the wearer’s personality. The trick is to have fun yet also look cool and stylish; a hard task, let me tell you.
Here are my thoughts on the night’s highlights:
What a peach of a picture! A king is born. Timothée Chalamet is giving me young Sun King here in virginal white. We all know what happens in the film! It feels like a costume, yet it's cool, and the black boots keep it grounded in youth. Hammer has gone fairly safe in a standard red velvet number, but it's the contrast between the two which makes the cool factor high.
Left - Timothée Chalamet in Berluti, Armie Hammer in Giorgio Armani See the Call Me By Your Name Get The Look here
What a homage to the above by James Ivory. Wearing a shirt with the face of Hollywood’s new golden prince on. The shirt was painted by artist Andrew Mania.
Left - James Ivory in Andrew Mania
It’s difficult for any man to look anything other than elegant in a Tom Ford tuxedo jacket. It's the long jacket and turn-back cuffs that make it. A red one made it onto TheChicGeek Christmas Wish List 2017 - here
Left - Ansel Elgort in Tom Ford
Straight off the AW18 catwalk, this S&M take on a black tuxedo works because it still looks put together and polished.
Left - Adam Rippon in Moschino
These suits always say 'Prada' to me. The high shape makes it feel vintage especially with the less structured black bow tie.
Below - Tom Holland in Hermès
More ChicGeek Oscar fashion here
The Chic Geek's latest vlog looks at his favourite grooming brand of the moment, Buly, Tom Ford launches body sprays as a new way to wear fragrance, pimps his old Sperry Topsiders with a Vibram sole and shows you how to do Gucci black tie with a couple of pieces of velvet ribbon. Watch TheChicGeek video below and subscribe to his YouTube channel here