Why does it seem like fashion writers are hastening a demise of heritage/Americana?

Just when menswear is getting really interesting, writers seem to be chomping at the bit to be the first ones to declare it all "over" and ushering a "darker, Euro look." Is the traditional American nostalgic look ever really "over?" I took the last couple years in menswear as a sign that men were just dressing better... Can't we just take cues from Europe without being told that our entire closets are now full of passe garbage because frat boys discovered boat shoes?

Example:

http://www.businessoffashion.com/201...-menswear.html

Originally Posted by JesseJB

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Just when menswear is getting really interesting, writers seem to be chomping at the bit to be the first ones to declare it all "over" and ushering a "darker, Euro look." Is the traditional American nostalgic look ever really "over?" I took the last couple years in menswear as a sign that men were just dressing better... Can't we just take cues from Europe without being told that our entire closets are now full of passe garbage because frat boys discovered boat shoes? Example: http://www.businessoffashion.com/201...-menswear.html
Because the whole workwear/Americana thing was yet another trend. And fashion thrives on trends.

Right. Personally I think if you're a connoisseur of the Americana/heritage look, you should welcoming it passing out of "trend" status.

Also - it's not fashion writers, it's the designers.

Fashion writers are just reporting on what they see on the runways or in the collections.

Fashion writers need an injection of common sense if they believe every office in America and Europe will be jam packed by those wearing all black outfits (suits, ties, shirts, shoes). Absolute crock of ****, never will happen. I avoid reading those articles generally, stupid people write them.

Originally Posted by JesseJB

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Is the traditional American nostalgic look ever really "over?" I took the last couple years in menswear as a sign that men were just dressing better...

Frankly I find the hipster beard + red wings workwear look just as gimmicky and passe as the black-on-black goth ninja trend or the tie dye + bell bottoms trend.

Originally Posted by TRINI

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Because the whole workwear/Americana thing was yet another trend.

It really was. It was an honest trend, though. It was born out of the recession, in some ways. Banks were collapsing. People were losing their homes. There was this feeling of longing for a more stable time, a time when America was constantly on the up and up.

So in came plaids, raw denims, etc. Stuff that lasts. Good, honest products built well.

But, as always, people didn't want to play nice. You couldn't just wear that raw denim for 10 years and then retire it. People wanted to sandpaper it down to nothing to get their fades right (http://denimdebate.com/). ACL and Billy Kirk collaborate on a nice, old world bag, and some idiot on the internets is tripping over himself to destroy it before the first good use (http://thepackhold.tumblr.com/post/1...years-of-wear).

So out of the recession came this desire for honest goods, but people couldn't help their consumerist urges and had to destroy it. They were dying to make their **** look old and distressed and ruined and ridiculous. This is the stuff people laugh at Abercrombie for doing in their factories, only to go do the same **** in their basement.

Ultimately, the "Americana" trend was just that, a trend. If sleeker fabrics and cuts become the rage, so be it. Maybe people will stop sandpapering wallet fades into their asses (the Denim Debate site it like this amazing chronicle of human stupidity, all in one place...it's like an accident you can't look away from). The **** wasn't gonna last, and, in any case, it will come back in 10 years or so, so don't miss it too much.

Good riddance

There is such an explosion of content and commentary right now. A million different voices... A million different photogs... It's hard to discern the real trends. But from what I can see, the RL / Americana look is thriving. Look at the number of blogs and tmblr sites celebrating that vs tailored. It's not even close.

Well there is the point that people into classic style don't really need to listen to the twitterings of fashion writers...but

The American renaissance look may have been somewhat co-opted by the fashion community and supplied by bandwagon fashion houses, and these always move onto the next thing. This doesn't mean the style of it goes away and disappears; it only means it stops being a fashion 'trend'.

For the record, people in Europe don't wear 'only dark colours' and 'mostly black'. You'll find as many glen checked suits and tweed jackets as will anywhere else. It's always been that way.

Trends are for fools.

I'm wondering- was the author trying to lump the American Ivy-look fascination in with the fading out of the workwear trend? If so, I can see how workwear was just a trend but the "Ivy League/JFK on a boat" thing seems more like a reclaiming of American style. Not much out of any of these looks will be unwearable when everone stops blogging about them...

Men's suiting "trends" move at a glacial pace, mainly because people spend too much money on suits to give them up at the first whiff of a narrower (or wider) lapel, etc. As I think about it more, the workwear trend may very well be an example of permanent casual style, if done right. It's practical, it's simple, it flatters most body types and, if done right, it never looks forced. The fact is, even if "slicker" European looks come into fashion, there will still be people wearing Alden boots, selvedge denim, subtle plaid shirting and a Barbour/Belfast to top it off. Nothing in the aforementioned look would be inappropriate in really any era - it's just that people get antsy are constantly looking for the new "thing." I'm just saying that people who stick to the old thing won't exactly look out of place.

Originally Posted by CaymanS

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Men's suiting "trends" move at a glacial pace, mainly because people spend too much money on suits to give them up at the first whiff of a narrower (or wider) lapel, etc. As I think about it more, the workwear trend may very well be an example of permanent casual style, if done right. It's practical, it's simple, it flatters most body types and, if done right, it never looks forced. The fact is, even if "slicker" European looks come into fashion, there will still be people wearing Alden boots, selvedge denim, subtle plaid shirting and a Barbour/Belfast to top it off. Nothing in the aforementioned look would be inappropriate in really any era - it's just that people get antsy are constantly looking for the new "thing." I'm just saying that people who stick to the old thing won't exactly look out of place.

I agree only instead of for workwear, I say the same of a fitted polo and slim khakis. A pair of sperrys or quoddies. An oxford button down shirt with a sweater or fleece. A navy blazer and chinos.

Originally Posted by JesseJB

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http://www.businessoffashion.com/201...-menswear.html

Menswear will be "darker", "European", "well-tailored", "tailored", "black-on-black", "a blackout", "pitch black", "tailored", "razor-sharp", "angular", "edgier", "European", "sinister", "darker", "tailored", "European", "sleeker", "European". "Darker." Surely that's simple and repetitive yet meaningless enough to persuade fashion fans out of their old boots.