Monday morning began with a double feature from Zegna: back-to-back runway shows of both the Ermenegildo and Z variety. Ermenegildo is of course the more grown-up collection, and it came first. VMAN harbors a love for a good suit and appreciated the perfect details, like leather linings under the collars on some suit jackets, the array of slightly short waisted sports coats. Z Zegna is a bit of a younger look, and the amazing casting helped to highlight that point. The piqued seams were nice, as were some of the washed, almost nylon-looking textures. One of the coolest things presented were the hi-tech fabrics which basically let you wear a dark color jacket in the summer by giving the fabric the ability to reflect light (and hence heat) in the same way a white fabric would. We’ll raise a Campari to that.

Anyone who likes rock ‘n’ roll in their fashion has been enjoying the last few seasons of Gucci, and this show was no exception. A decidedly 70s louche rocker (that was the height of it all right?) was on display. Many tailored looks were made out of fabric that evoked a denim hue. Full suits were worn shirtless, imbuing things with a sense of debauchery. Oh yes, and Gucci was probably the best place to see that the dark jacket with white pants look is most definitely in this season.

Etro was all about Tree of Life. LIterally. One was painted on the runway backdrop, ushers wore t-shirts featuring the same image. And the soundtrack was hippied-out to the max. As one might expect, the collection featured wild prints, some sublimated to a more subdued organic place—to very nice effect.

The weather in Milan was beautiful on Monday, which made the picnic-themed D&G show ever the more enjoyable. Shirts were made of red and grey gingham-print cloth, the same fabric lined jackets and shorts, which could be rolled up to show the design. An array of retro-feeling islander and surf prints were vacation ready. Just to mix things up a bit, one stand-out T shirt featured an image of Cry Baby era Johnny Dep. Oh, and incase you are curious, a D&G picnic bag inched baguette, sausage, fruit, and a lovely bottle of wine.

Giorgio Armani had people talking with the shortened length of his suit tailoring this season. The man who defined power dressing, took up the lenths and sucked in the waists. This topside silhouette was paired with wider, looser legged pants, all of it in strong dark colors. At least mostly. A few highlights and accessories in “chartreuse” and yellow lightened the mood.

Dean and Dan Caten built their ideal man’s perfect apartment at the foot of the runway for their latest. Amazing furniture, a crazy bike, and a ceiling-suspended workout bar (complete with a guy working out on it) were among the accouterments. The clothes of course matched. Suits made to seduce. Sportswear that felt effortless yet expensive. The soundtrack, which included the song “Money (That’s What I Want)” indicated that, for the man who lives in a home like the one on display, the good times are rolling again. Bravo!

Now onward to La Belle Paris.

KEYWORDS: fashion week, runway, shows