Fashion – Henry Neuteboom

A deconstructed jacket is a staple in the men’s wardrobe, ideal for many occasions because it can be dressed up or down. It looks good with everything, and it’s supremely comfortable.

The garment reaches its highest level of sophistication in products by Boglioli, famous above all for their K-jacket, which received screen consacration when it was worn by Simon Baker in The Devil Wears Prada. The K-jacket is made from vintage look cashmere with délavé colour. A micro-worn look contributes to the garment’s signature mellowness. Something that is appreciated by many: the brand’s enthusiasts include Bill Clinton, the Rolling Stones, and the team Ajax Amsterdam whose sports garments are by Boglioli.

Crafts expertise, design sophistication
The operatives at Boglioli inherit decades of crafts expertise, and this shines forth from the unmistakable style of every garment that leaves the factory. The design team’s work enhances and builds on these skills, creating a look that is always refined and sophisticated. Boglioli collections cover a range that goes much further than the iconic K-jacket. All the fundamental components of men’s looks are produced, along with a women’s line. The Boglioli style is very different from seasonal trends, and this adds to its recognizability. To describe it, you have to start with its refined, lived-in look, along with the impeccable tailoring. To use an expression coined by the New York Times, their deconstructed jackets express Luxury Vintage.

The textiles themselves are fundamental, comprising finest-quality yarns such as linen, silk and cashmere. The colours used are superb, coolly dark even when in uptone hues such as red, blue and violet. Layers create contrasts of hue and texture, from the outerwear – K-jacket, Dover jacket, or Coat jacket – down to chunky cardigan, poplin shirt, and flannel trousers. The impression is one of country gentlemen who have turned streetwise. It’s a great look that will ensure that you stand out on all occasions as a result of its crossover construction.

Family pride
Boglioli’s origins run back to the early 1900s, but it was in the 1970s that it moved away from contract work for other brands, expanding into international trading under the leadership of chairman Mario Boglioli. The company is run by Mario with his brothers Pier Luigi and Stefano, operating from Gambara, near Brescia, in Italy. The enduring and constant popularity of the K-jacket and its other products have enabled it to weather the international crisis very well, with current turnover at about €30 million, and one of the highest profit margins in Italy’s fashion sector.

We recommend a visit to Boglioli’s showroom in Milan, with a refreshingly different approach to fashion, based on transparency. Inside, the materials and colours reinforce the brand’s image, making for a pleasurable experience. Which is exactly what you feel when you wear Boglioli.

Milan boutique:

Boglioli, Via Pierlombardo 30, Milan

Tel. +39 02 5456 387
www.boglioli.it
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I couldn’t really say that I’m a fashionista, but there are certain occasions that call for a smart outfit, and so last weekend I was on the road in search of a place to buy a dark suit. Ermenegildo Zegna was what I wanted, and the place was The Place, a small mall just south of Biella, Piedmont. The low, modern structure is surrounded by thickets of bamboo, and the boutiques are arranged around a green courtyard. As well as Zegna, there are Gucci, Agnona, La Perla and Bellora, plus a bar, and lots of parking space.

I visited only Zegna because that was what I was after, and I found it, along with courtesy and skill in recommending the type of suit that would fit. I learnt about trousers with and without ‘pinces,’ the different types of cut for a jacket, shirt collars and cuffs, and came away with the outfit. It would have been easy to purchase loads more, because everything is so perfect, from textiles to colour and style. Beautiful pairs of dark green trousers in a velvety fabric were artfully hung next to a spectacular jacket in a glossy light green sheen that changed as the light caught it. Fantastic blazers. Beautiful ties, shoes, sunglasses. All items were discounted, and some even more, with large orange labels indicating one-off sample pieces.

I would say that Ermenegildo Zegna is a brand that does it right. Apart from style and all that, there is its social commitment, which translates into a green attitude that led to all that bamboo, plus a protected nature reserve up in the hills nearby. The ‘Oasi Zegna’ is 100 square kilometres of spectacular nature, where you can walk, mountain bike, paraglide and hang-glide. Zegna is also currently supporting a cancer clinic project to provide screening and rehabilitation services for the local population. In the leaflet that publicizes The Place, they provide information on two other interesting places to visit, the Candelo ‘ricetto‘ which is a fortified village, and the Santuario di Oropa, surrounded by another nature reserve. The ricetto was like taking a step back into the Middle Ages, and it has been used as a film set on many occasions. The Santuario will have to be for another visit, when I next return to The Place.

The Place, Via C. Battisti 99, Strada Trossi, Sandigliano, near Biella. Take the Carisio exit on the Milan-Turin motorway. Tel. +39 015 2496 199. Open every day 10.00-19.00.