STYLE – Name to Know: Hardy Amies
Words: Violet
The 1930s resonate strongly today; like then, we’re holding up through a great recession following years of overinflated decadence.
Enter Hardy Amies. The 1930s saw the English designer explode onto the fashion scene, directing a Mayfair couture house and beginning a long career that saw him dressing Queen Elizabeth II for 40 years, before passing away in 2003 aged 92.
Creative Director Claire Malcolm explains their AW13 collection; “I’m always inspired by the 1930s. I imagined Hardy attending weekend parties at Balmoral as a young man amongst other exciting creatives of the time.” These other creatives include, in Malcolm’s imagination, fellow contemporaries the Bauhaus collective, and foremost its pioneers, the Albers. Malcolm set off the Bauhaus fascination with line against the traditional Prince of Wales tartan to produce a novel ‘Bauhaus check’, the innovative streak of the collection.
Why We Love It…
Hardy was fiercely patriotic; an early break-out collection was called ‘Made in England’, and he served as a spy during WWII – surely you love him already?
The brand continues in the same vein today; the accessories part of this collection is the product of a collaboration with British leather goods darling Cherchbi. Vegetable-tanned saddle leather iPad cases and hold-alls incorporate Malcolm’s Bauhaus check with understated aplomb; we simply fell for this plain black, oiled rucksack.
Malcolm was adamant that the immaculate tailoring so espoused by the 1930s gentleman was the keynote of this collection. This theme is brilliantly brought into 21st century London by a campaign fronted by rock progeny Tara Ferry, and starring the streets of Spitalfields. As Ferry shows, these clothes sit as well in the ale house and the tube train as on the runway; day-to-day refinery is the vibe, not rare glamour.
Key Pieces…
1. The Prince of Wales check, developed with a British mill, weaves through the collection. We particularly loved its incorporation into a flannel two-piece suit, complemented by an exquisite charcoal silk tie.
2. We must admit that the street-suited, sharply tailored woven wool overcoats remind us of a current Brit hero of ours: Peaky Blinders’ Thomas Shelby. This rust cotton garbardine trench, tonally accompanied by a knitted scarf referencing the Bauhaus line, is something Tommy might wear on a mild Autumn day.
3. Meet the Bauhaus check (left). Seen here in grey melange charcoal and French blue wool on both a trouser and a duffle coat, we’re in. The exploded check of the duffle coat is a refreshing twist on a winter staple.
4. The impeccable elegance of this (right) suit shows how this collection really achieved its sartorial aim. Why? It’s the detail that seduced us. The ‘Albers’ micro-check of the silk pocket square sits beautifully against the charcoal wool suit. Sir Hardy would be proud.
Look Book…
As if all the above wasn’t enough to have you fully obsessed with the brand, just a quick look at their AW Look Book staring the rather dashing Ben Allen and Jester White, photographed by Roger Rich.
All items shown are available from hardyamies.com
By Charlotte Beale
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