大学之道

英国男士不愿穿色彩艳丽的服装，这要归咎于荷兰。15世纪60年代中期，查尔斯二世(Charles II)让英国卷入了有欠考虑的对荷战争。战争期间，英国首先遭遇了瘟疫，而后又经历了伦敦的大火。1666年，由于需要节俭，查尔斯二世颁布法令，宫廷服装必须简化，去除以前过多的装饰。此后出现的夹克、马甲和马裤全部为单一的黑色，一些服装历史学家把这视为统治男装几代之久的三件套西装的前身。

But over the years there have always been men who have bucked the sartorial rules. And at the recent Pitti Immagine Uomo trade fair in Florence, where the world’s men’s wear buyers viewed next spring’s collections, I embraced what might be called a southern European attitude to colour. I was particularly pleased with an outfit comprising tangerine linen trousers by Brooks Brothers, a lilac Ralph Lauren polo shirt and white leather loafers from Trickers. But while the outfit worked well in the Florentine sunshine, even I felt a little odd walking across London’s Victoria station in the early hours, having just arrived back from Italy. It’s all to do with the light in the UK.
然而，多年来，违反这一服装规则的一直是男士。在最近佛罗伦萨的Pitti Immagine Uomo男装展上，全球男装采购者在这里看到了明年的春装系列。我在这里接受了可能被称为南欧式的对颜色的态度。尤其让我高兴的是装束是Brooks Brothers的橙色亚麻裤、拉尔夫•劳伦(Ralph Lauren)的紫色马球衫和Trickers白色休闲皮鞋。尽管在佛罗拉萨的阳光下，这身装扮非常亮眼，但在刚刚从意大利回国后，穿着这身装扮在清晨穿过伦敦维多利亚车站时，我还是感到有些怪异。这完全是因为英国的光线问题。

But Scott Murdoch, founding and managing partner of chartered surveyors and retail property advisors CWM, which includes Burlington Arcade among its clients, has learned to use colour to his advantage in business. “When I started the company 16 years ago I was as conservative in my dress as every other chartered surveyor, but in the last five years or so, I’ve realised that wearing colour can get you noticed. Today, even for meeting the most conservative client I’d wear a boldly striped Duchamp or Etro tie with a blue suit and white shirt. For less conservative meetings, I like my Dolce & Gabbana suit – a deep purple with a pink pinstripe. For really fashionable clients, I wear jeans with an Ozwald Boateng jacket that’s burnt orange with a deep purple lining. I can’t be taken seriously by fashion companies if I look like I’m wearing Man at C&A.”
然而，特许测量公司和零售地产顾问公司CWM的创始人兼管理合伙人斯科特•默多克(Scott Murdoch)已学会把色彩作为他在业务中的优势。CWM的客户包括Burlington Arcade。“当我16年前创建该公司时，我的穿着与其他所有特许测量师一样保守，我知道，穿上色彩鲜艳的服装会受到别人的注意。如今，甚至在会见最为保守的客户时，我也会带上大胆条纹设计的Duchamp或Etro领带，一身蓝色的西装和白色的衬衣。对于不太保守的会议，我喜欢穿上Dolce & Gabbana的西装——带有粉色细条纹的深紫色西装。对于真正时尚的客户，我会穿上牛仔裤，搭配一件Ozwald Boateng火红色、带有深紫色衬里的夹克。如果我的穿着看上去灰里土气的，那么时装公司就不会看重我。”

But if the thought of wearing orange, pink or purple makes you worried you might be mistaken for the Joker, fear not, as there are less strident ways to bring a little colour in to your wardrobe. Kean Etro, the Milan-based designer of the colour-rich Etro menswear collection has this advice: “I’d recommend men find a pivot they are confident with and build around that piece. So, if you like brown chinos, try them with a deep blue sweater. Colours are determined by their transmission of light, and white is the ultimate reflection of light. That’s why white is a good pivot for other colours. Or if you like navy blue trousers, it is not such a big move to try deep purple trousers, which have a blue cast.” So enamoured with colour is Etro that its website has a guide to the characteristics of 16 shades. Pink, apparently, is regenerating; apple green is refreshing.
但如果穿上橙色、粉色或紫色服装的想法让你担心，你可能会被人误以为是小丑的话，不用担心，因为让你的衣橱多一点点色彩也有不那么张扬的方法。Etro颜色浓烈的男装系列的米兰设计师基恩•埃特罗(Kean Etro)的建议是：“我会建议男士们找到一个他们自信的中心，然后围绕这个中心做一些变化。如果你喜欢棕色斜纹，试试穿一件深蓝色毛衣吧。颜色由光的传导决定，白色能够反射所有的光。这就是为什么白色是百搭颜色的原因。如果你喜欢深蓝色裤子，试试深紫色的裤子也不算过火，因为它们同属蓝色系。”深深迷恋色彩的是Etro，该品牌网站有一个介绍16种颜色特点的指南。很明显，粉色给人新生的感觉；而苹果绿让人精神振奋。

Eddie Prendergast, co-founder and managing director of UK menswear brand the Duffer of St George, was seen sporting white cotton trousers, white T-shirt and white leather deck shoes, topped off with a pale pink seersucker blazer from Duffer’s own collection at the recent menswear trade fairs. “It’s all been the look of the Hamptons, Nantucket and Cape Cod this summer,” he says. Prendergast stresses that the weather affects men’s propensity to wear colour. “In the UK, people like to wear dark clothes. But as soon as we get a spell of good weather, even men get adventurous and start to brighten up.” And while he admits his Anglo-Irish complexion is not suited to all shades of colour, even in his tailor-made blue mohair suits, a bright crimson lining adds a dash of colour.
有人看到在最近的男装展上，英国男装品牌Duffer of St George联席创始人兼董事总经理埃迪•普伦德加斯特(Eddie Prendergast)曾穿着白色棉质裤子、白色T恤和白色休闲皮鞋，最后是一件Duffer自己系列的淡粉色泡泡纱夹克。他表示：“这都是今年夏季Hamptons、Nantucket 、Cape Cod服装的特点。” 普伦德加斯特强调，气候影响着男人们穿着彩色服装的倾向。“在英国，人们喜欢穿深色服装。但一旦我们闻到天气晴好的气息，连男人们都开始冒险起来，他们开始穿上亮丽的服装。”尽管他承认，他的盎格鲁-爱尔兰肤色并不适合所有颜色，但在他的定制蓝色马海毛西装中，明亮的深红色衬里为整身打扮增加了一抹亮色。

Sean Dixon, managing director at Savile Row tailer Richard James, admits that the business was better known for colour when it first started 16 years ago than now. “When we were the new boys on the row, we wanted to be noticed. But we’ve grown up and so have our clients. They don’t want their clothes to shout, ‘Look at me.’ We do still sell colourful tailoring, like pale pink or blue jackets, but these would be worn in the south of France, Italy or Miami, not, say, London. But for the business community we have always done well with colourful shirts. Lilac is good for northern European complexions. And our silk ties are woven with two colours to give an iridescent effect.”
英国萨维尔街(Savile Row)品牌Richard James董事总经理肖恩•狄克逊(Sean Dixon)承认，16年前在公司创办时，公司比现在还要注意色彩。“当我们还是毛头小伙时，我们希望受人关注。但我们长大了，我们的客户也长大了。他们不希望他们身上的服装叫嚣着‘看看我吧。’我们仍然在卖彩色定制服装，例如淡粉色或蓝色夹克，但这些适合在法国南部、意大利或迈阿密穿着，而不是伦敦这样的地方。但对于商界而言，我们的彩色衬衣一直销量很好。紫色适合北欧的肤色。我们的丝质领带用两种颜色织成，以体现闪光效果。”

At the other end of Savile Row, William Hunt makes the point that while many men are wary of colour in a business environment, they happily embrace it on the golf course. He has a successful line in golf-wear to prove it. While he was responsible for the Union Jack trousers British golfer Ian Poulter wore for the British Open in 2004, Hunt stresses: “The idea with my collection is that men don’t look like golfers when they are off the course. They just look fashionable.”
在萨维尔街的另一头，威廉•亨特(William Hunt)提出，尽管许多商界男士对彩色服装相当谨慎，但他们在高尔夫球场还是很乐意接受这类服装。他设计了一系列成功的高尔夫服装，可以证明这点。尽管在2004年英国公开赛上，英国高尔夫球名将伊恩•波尔特(Ian Poulter)曾穿过亨特设计的米字旗裤装，但亨特强调：“我的系列的概念是，在男人们走出高尔夫球场后，他们看上去不像是一个高尔夫球手。他们只是看上去相当时尚。”

For his main tailoring range, Hunt is fond of unexpected colour combinations, such as a brown suit and a pale green shirt and tie. “The only rules on colour are the ones you impose on yourself,” he insists.
关于亨特的主要服装类型，他喜欢出人意料的颜色组合，例如一套棕色西装搭配一件淡绿色衬衣和领带。他坚持表示：“颜色的唯一规则是用在自己身上的规则。”

American menswear brands are a primary source for colour. Take Polo Ralph Lauren, which offers 40-odd shades in its polo shirts. At Brooks Brothers, John Hind, managing director of the company’s British arm, says a fast-growing option is its gingham short- and long-sleeved shirts, which include blues, reds, and yellows. Among business shirts, pink is a consistent best-seller.
美国男装品牌是色彩的主要来源。以拉尔夫•劳伦旗下的Polo系列为例，该品牌的马球衫颜色有40多种。Brooks Brothers英国分公司董事总经理约翰•欣德(John Hind)表示，越来越多的人们开始选择该品牌的条纹短袖和长袖衬衣，包括蓝色、红色和黄色。在商务衬衣中，粉色一直是最畅销的颜色。

A common mistake in wearing colour is to forget to team it with accessories. A brown belt or black leather Oxford shoes can ruin a colourful palette. A great casual option that avoids this danger is Fin’s, a line of soft suede loafers launched this year by London-girl-about-town Alexandra Finlay. The colours’ names – such as Portofino yellow and Ibiza raspberry – reflect their resortwear inspiration. “Men’s wear is full of classic staples and it’s difficult for men to experiment, but they can introduce colour through their accessories. We sold out of our first run of pistachio, violet and azure blue.”
穿着彩色服装的一个普遍误区是，忘记用配饰搭配。一条棕色的皮带或一双黑色牛津鞋(Oxford)会破坏整套彩色服装。避免这种危险的一个简单选择是伦敦时尚的亚历山德拉•芬雷(Alexandra Finlay)推出的小山羊软皮休闲鞋系列Fin’s。颜色的名字——例如波托菲诺黄和伊比沙紫——反映了他们的度假装灵感。“男装充满了经典的样式，他们很难去尝试，但他们能够通过配饰展现色彩。我们第一个淡黄色、紫色和天蓝色系列已经售罄。”

Finlay’s crusade took her on to a City trading floor, where, she reports, “the ‘Essex boys’ really went for the pink and violet.” Mindful that not everyone is ready for such excesses, she is adding black, navy and brown options in September.
芬雷的大胆举动受到伦敦金融城(City)交易场所的欢迎，她在那里宣布“‘埃塞克斯的男人们’确实钟情粉色和紫色。”她知道，并非所有人都乐意接受这种大胆色彩，因此她将在9月的系列中增添黑色、深蓝色和棕色选择