The Purple Prediction.
Seeing a lot of purple cloths appearing in my Dormeuil and Scabal books recently and I am glad to say it’s getting some traction amongst my clients. Now it’s not like I am making boat loads of purple suits but I will have made three (and all three-piece solid purple) in the past three months compared to zero in the past 10 years. Of course high-end cloths would not have come in colors like this as readily even a year ago. I think as soon as people started wearing “midnight blue” (which gets lighter and lighter every season) after Sky Fall, we started to see an emergence of colors outside of navy and various shades of grey for men. in fall/winter 2015 Loro Piana, Scabal and Dormeuil did a lot of Burgundy and I think this will continue for 2016 but the new emerging color to watch for 2016 will be purple.
Of course a solid purple suit is not for everyone but I have also been seeing the color used in linings and cloths as an accent color like in this very, very English flannel from Hardy Minnis I finished up recently.
Its is not just limited to more formal cloths either, it can also be found in Scabal’s “Ascona” book of brushed cottons which can be made into great moleskin trousers
and in Dormeuil’s range of very high quality cashmere that can be used for dramatic sport coats or overcoats.
Funnily enough the second bespoke suit I ever commissioned for myself 16 years ago at the age of 19 was a deep purple. It was rather over designed, 4 button fastening, two top welt pockets and gauntlet cuffs. It was a great suit to wear though, made from gaberdine it was highly resistant to beer and G and T that could be spilled on you at the student union.
I found it a very versatile color to wear as well, it went with both black or brown shoes and matched up with lots of shirts and ties but as my tastes developed I became more turned on to better and better cloths and Dormeuil or Loro Piana just weren’t doing purple (I got my purple gaberdine off Leeds market, god knows where it came from). So this color makes me feel nostalgic, and I am glad I can now scratch that purple itch.
