Issue link: https://www.balharbourdigital.com/i/262375
reverse on his new men's loafers, which include a leather upper resting on a sole covered in woven raffia. Others are applying the woven designs in equally imaginative ways. Take the work of Italian designer Cesare Paciotti, who found the means to restyle a classic chukka boot—an important shoe shape from designers as diverse as Armani, Brunello Cucinelli and Paul Smith— using woven strips of leather for a lightweight, airy spring alternative to an otherwise traditional Fall favorite. And while gladiator sandals and woven lace-ups vaguely reminiscent of those found on Sicilian fisherman continue to fascinate the talents of Domenico Dolce & Stefano Gabbana, the design duo are also using the woven technique to their own unique fancy at Dolce & Gabbana, including a tightly braided dress shoe and exotic-skinned sneakers with braided soles. Although texture is universal in men's footwear this season, other styling techniques such as the use of bold colors, prints and other optical effects also lend versatility to the mix. Two of those style tenets collide in Etro's decorative woven shoes, which include colorful Mexican serape-inspired patterns woven into dress slippers with sleek leather soles. Likewise for the designs of Bally and Paul Smith, whose multicolored trainers, available at Saks Fifth Avenue, are color-blocked like a Mondrian painting, or woven from a Maharam upholstery fabric, respectively. Even Giorgio Armani—rarely one for gimmicks—applies a batik-like graphic print on many of his lace-ups and loafers this season for an unexpected visual treat. At Gucci, the Florentine company's menswear is coming up roses, with floral arrangements found on everything from jackets and pants to sport shirts. However, designer Frida Giannini purposely kept the brand's footwear unadorned by concentrating on classic leather sneakers with ubiquitous white or natural rubber soles. This mixing of aesthetics also plays into the footwear designs of Miuccia Prada, who tethers a pair of monochromatic or two-tone twill weave sneakers with oversized rubber soles to just about every outfit in the Spring collection, from classic gray suits to tropical floral jackets to slouchy trousers. Prada calls it "the cliché of the exotic (florals)" mixed with "the cliché of summer (sneakers)." Meanwhile, Salvatore Ferragamo designer Massimiliano Giornetti says he was thinking of "the vibration of the sportsman" when he created his sporty collection of tri-colored slip- ons and open-toed sneakers reminiscent of Olympic gladiators of centuries long ago. Of course, even in Spring when men's footwear is generally softer and more colorful, there is always room for shoes with a more serious side. For some time now, shoemakers have been looking to Old World tanning techniques to give contemporary footwear a vintage, bespoke look. That concept is employed to great effect this season by brands like Dolce & Gabbana, Louis Vuitton and Ermenegildo Zegna, the latter also eschewing laces on dress footwear in exchange for flexible gussets to hold the shoe in place. Although Brunello Cucinelli's wing tips are decidedly classic in form, the Italian designer renders them in soft, colored suede for a modern interpretation of an Old World favorite. Bally, available at Neiman Marcus, understands that color and texture are not a replacement for comfort technology. With that in mind, this Spring the brand introduced Flex Tech, a proprietary technology in which the leather sole of a soft-sided cap-toe shoe is hollowed and replaced with a soft deerskin inlay that allows the soles of even the most serious footwear to bend in half without sacrificing the shoe's sinuous shape. Although texture is universal in men's footwear this season, the use of bold colors, prints and other optical effects also lend versatility to the mix. Paul Smith cheetah print leather Juniper ankle boot Cesare Paciotti basket woven leather chukka boot Dolce & Gabbana woven raffia oxfords inspired by Sicilian fishermen Dolce & Gabbana highly polished crocodile oxfords Etro tribal print woven silk smoking slippers 82 BAL HARBOUR