by Wyatt Smith
Oliver Spencer is a British menswear designer who designs for his own eponymous brand entitled, as you may have guessed, Oliver Spencer. The London Collections: Men kicked off this week and Spencer was one of the first brands to show.
Oliver Spencer started his own brand back in 2002, and its grown to sell in 151 stores worldwide along with 4 stand-alone stores of its own. Spencer draws inspiration from art, architecture, and London's ever-changing culture. This is clearly reflected in the clothing, as classic shapes and silhouettes receive modern tailoring and materials. This brand is for the fashion-conscious man who appreciates simple style and doesn't want to over-extend himself.
This collection draws inspiration from the landscape of Souther Italy according to WWD, with Spencer adding "I had the blue from the sea, while the villa is pink and yet red and changes and gets orange. And all of the greens came from the trees, so it was as simple as that."
It seems as though half of the collection is for the London man on the go. Dark, modern colors mixed into sharp, clean suits, billowing over-coats, loose but tailored pants, and anoraks made of waterproof materials. The other half suits a man on vacation in Italy, consisting of lightweight shorts and shirts in bright pastel colors and even sport coats that could be worn on a cooler summer day.
This collection feels slight inconsistent and not very cohesive as a whole. The colors range from dark indigo and black to pastel colors such as bright blue and yellow over top off-white, and then all the way to a harsh maroon red. There are definitely pieces in here worth buying, and most of the garments on their own can be easily assimilated into your wardrobe. But it feels as if half of Spencer's head was in London while designing, and the other half in Italy, and it would've been more satisfying if he stayed in only one of those places for this collection.
Oliver Spencer started his own brand back in 2002, and its grown to sell in 151 stores worldwide along with 4 stand-alone stores of its own. Spencer draws inspiration from art, architecture, and London's ever-changing culture. This is clearly reflected in the clothing, as classic shapes and silhouettes receive modern tailoring and materials. This brand is for the fashion-conscious man who appreciates simple style and doesn't want to over-extend himself.
This collection draws inspiration from the landscape of Souther Italy according to WWD, with Spencer adding "I had the blue from the sea, while the villa is pink and yet red and changes and gets orange. And all of the greens came from the trees, so it was as simple as that."
It seems as though half of the collection is for the London man on the go. Dark, modern colors mixed into sharp, clean suits, billowing over-coats, loose but tailored pants, and anoraks made of waterproof materials. The other half suits a man on vacation in Italy, consisting of lightweight shorts and shirts in bright pastel colors and even sport coats that could be worn on a cooler summer day.
This collection feels slight inconsistent and not very cohesive as a whole. The colors range from dark indigo and black to pastel colors such as bright blue and yellow over top off-white, and then all the way to a harsh maroon red. There are definitely pieces in here worth buying, and most of the garments on their own can be easily assimilated into your wardrobe. But it feels as if half of Spencer's head was in London while designing, and the other half in Italy, and it would've been more satisfying if he stayed in only one of those places for this collection.