Forza Italia

Even though Jil Sander and Haider Ackermann had been the first catwalk shows to open the SS11 season at the Pitti trade fair Men's fashion week officially kicked off in Milan yesterday with big names the likes of Burberry Prorsum and Dolce & Gabbana opening. I am trying hard to catch up as I was flying home yesterday so I decided to sum up the first of the first day in one post. I will, from now on, try to make individual posts of my favourite shows and review them.

Jil Sander was the first show to be streamed live and both the collection and the location of the show lived up to the excitement that first shows entail. Talk about colour blocking. Raf Simons epitomised the famous trend with taste and skill. The bold colours appeared to have been carefully hand-picked to only use the best shades, including the über-famous Klein blue. Tailoring was the protagonist of the collection, with slight variations like crotch-scrathing shorts and belted blazers. And the colourful soles of the shoes were to die for.

Christopher Bailey made me smile. Despite how much I loved the shearling jackets from Burberry Prorsum's FW10 collection I was overall a little disappointed in Bailey's restraint. That's why I loved SS11 so much. The Burberry essence is ever present in the shape of the staple suits and trench coats and the brand's iconic colours. But SS11 introduced a hardness factor by means of leather and spikes that seems almost medieval which creates the most interesting combinations of texture in contrast with the remains of Burberry's traditional romantic softness. A collection absolutely packed with future best-selling items.

Domenico and Stefano already redirected their men's line for FW10 taking inspiration from the Sicily of the 1920's. They opted for the kind of all-star Italian clothing that had put Italy in the fashion map in the past. Fortunately, they continued to follow that line for SS11. They celebrated their 20 anniversary with the most delightful colour palette of whites and faded greys and blues. The kind of clothes a Mediterranean man was expected to wear for Sunday mass when the sun was shine bright and hot. I absolutely melt at the light creme and white combos for suits and the utterly retro underwear.

To me, Corneliani was all about the trousers. They took the baggy linen suit trouser Armani has been doing for years and reformatted it for the younger, cooler man. They wrinkle just the right amount at the bottom to add a touch of casualness without the risk of looking sloppy.

Season after season I always love Trussardi. There is something so Italian and so cool about it that simply drives me crazy. For SS11 they picked up on leopard just as so many women's Cruise'11 lines did. And they did so in just the right amount so as to not look tacky. It is true YSL had done the same belt before and Acne the same desert boots but Trussardi takes it to a new level by creating jackets in blue and khaki leopard prints that hadn't been done before in menswear. I simply can't wait to get a hold of most of the pieces from this collection.

I'm off.

[Pictures: Style.com, GQ.com, DianePernet.typepad.com]