Danielle Meder
It isn't often that men's fashion delivers a novelty trend so easily improvised that ubiquity may be a given, but such is the case this fall, which has blessed us with extra-large scarves – many as big as blankets – from such noted arbiters of style as Burberry Prorsum and Michael Bastian.
For some time, directional brands including Thom Browne and Balmain have been minimizing focus on the legs via tighter pants, higher cuffs, shorter inseams and lower crotches while also maximizing the torso through longer shirts and jackets and even tunic shapes. The oversized muffler – or manket – takes the fetishization of the languid, top-heavy torso to its most unnatural extreme yet, this time at the expense of the head.
A scarf as big as a throw is a good visual trick for any would-be peacock, instantly broadening the chest and shoulders. It also provides many opportunities to perform the charmingly insouciant gesture of tossing it on and off, conveying the look of a gentleman who is always ready to warm a cold companion. Canadian men, take note: This look lets you capitalize on your climate for a change.
Of course, a resourceful man may wish to repurpose a blanket instead of purchasing the designer equivalent, which is fair enough. Just don't wrap your Spiderman sleeping bag around your chest like a cape.
This story originally appeared in the October 2014 issue of Globe Style Advisor. To download the magazine's free iPad app, visit tgam.ca/styleadvisor.