Berlin Fashion Week: Capsule Trade Show Review

Entering the Capsule trade show at Berlin Fashion Week was like entering the height of shabby-chic. Minimal metal bars displaying clothes stood alongside bare wooden crates, industrial concrete flooring and original brick walls. The interior of this urban factory-style building reflected the trends that would be found in the Spring /Summer 14 collections. Aesthetica takes a look at the trends emerging at the start of Berlin Fashion Week.

A single glance was all that was needed to identify some clear trends within menswear, the most obvious being the modern gentleman. A swarve bearded man reclining in a traditional barber’s shop greeted visitors as they arrived at the OAK men’s stall. An equally smart man sporting a meticulously trained moustache manned the stand, offering an insight into the lifestyle of the male consumer for the new and current trends.

Moving away from the hardcore grunge looks seen in previous collections, the general consensus of the pieces was a smarter, more minimal grunge. The new interpretation referenced the 1990s style of bucket hats, lumberjack shirts, bomber jackets, combined with muted, natural colours. Navy blue, mustard yellow and earthy green covered almost every inch of rail in both male and female sections. There was a clear absence of black, only appearing in clean cut leather biker jackets by designers such as Marine Machine, contrasting massively with the natural soft colours and textures that dominated the other stalls, particular at UCON and Studio RUIG.

Male accessories also appear to be on the rise. In recent years there has been an explosion of people wearing snap back caps and the stalls at Capsule represented a further development. Almost every stand displayed a huge array of five-panel and snap back hats, constructed from a variety of materials, including recycled t-shirt, black suede and tribal prints. The Ampal Creative is at the forefront of this snap back hat trend, who utilise whatever textiles they can get their hands on, as such, all the comapany’s hats are ethically made in LA using upcycled materials.

The accessory trend extended into womenswear and a representative from TBA Shoes explained: “ Last season was all heavy black boots and flatforms, this season we have used the same ideas but given them a softer feminine colour pallet to keep in fitting with the evolving trend, making them smarter and more minimal”.

For more information on Berlin Fashion Week keep an eye on the blog for further updates.

Words: Baibin Downey-Orr

Credits
1. Image courtesy of Capsule Show.