0 Casey Legler, The First Female Menswear Model – In Pictures

Thursday, 28 February 2013 - Casey Legler, with her distinctive androgynous features, is the first woman to sign a contract to work exclusively as a menswear model. 'We have very strict ways in which we identify ourselves as men or women and I think that those can sometimes be limiting,' she says. 'Seeing me on the men's board … speaks to a notion of freedom. There's something really bold about that.' Here she presents some new-season menswear looks for the Observer

Bomber jacket, £175, T-shirt, £30, both All Saints 08449802211 allsaints.com

Crystal and spike necklace, £348 (in Casey’s mouth), Joomi Limmatchesfashion.com

0 Men's Blue: Eight Different Looks - In Pictures

Thursday, 28 February 2013 - Mood Indigo: From sharp shirts, to relaxed denim, it's time to tune in to blue.

Bomber jacket £275, PS By Paul Smith, mrporter.com
Rascal shirt £110, The Dark Peak, ideologyboutique.co.uk
Trousers £435, Jil Sander at Browns, brownfashion.com 
Trainers £50, New Balance, asos.com 
Rucksack £116, APC, apc.fr

0 Whistle Stop - In Pictures

Friday, 1 March 2013 - Look sharp, boys – this season you'll be able to step out in a stylish suit whatever your budget.

From left: Michael wears suit jacket, £875, and trousers, £445, both Alexander McQueen. T-shirt, £14.99, H&M. Trenchcoat (on knee), £1,150, by Jonathan Saunders, from Dover Street Market. Shoes, £690, Dior

Matt wears suit jacket, £667, and trousers, £281, both Marni. Top, from a selection, by Raf Simons, from Oki-ni. Trainers, £95, Nike

Reece wears suit jacket, £69.99, trousers, £29.99, bomber jacket, £29.99, and backpack, from a selection, all H&M. T-shirt, £180, by Christopher Kane, fromMatches

0 David Bowie: Eight Classic Looks – In Pictures

Tuesday, 12 March 2013 - As the V&A in London prepares an exhibition devoted to the Thin White Duke, we celebrate some of his coolest outfits – inspiration material for all sharp dressers.

The Tux

Has anyone ever looked more incredible in a tux than David Bowie at the 1975 Grammys? I think not. Will you just look at him in that hat, which is angled just so, with his cheekbone slightly rouged? We all know Bowie could win the prize for the best haircuts in the history of pop music hands down, but his brilliance at using a hat to add mystery and glamour is often overlooked. The lapels on this tux are fantastically wide and of their era, but the white bowtie on a white shirt? That is totally ripe for revival.

Hunky Dory Slacks

During the Hunky Dory period, around 1971, Bowie was often seen in bellbottoms, floppy hats and shoes by Terry De Havilland. In his book When Ziggy Played Guitar, Dylan Jones compares Bowie's "great cheekbones" to those of Katharine Hepburn – and both fashion icons share a fancy for wide slacks worn with a classic shirt sensibly tucked in. It has also been frequently suggested that Hepburn looks like Bowie in the 1935 film Sylvia Scarlett. Meanwhile, in fashion right now, a wider trouser silhouette is brewing – see the spring catwalks of Acne and Lanvin.

0 Rick Edwards On Fashion: Men's Accessories

Sunday, 17 March 2013 - Don't fret over what you're wearing – a cleverly chosen accessory makes anything look more interesting…

One of my favourite quotations (yes, I regularly compile my top 10 quotations, what of it?) is: "Manners maketh man." I think it dateth back to the 14th century, but it stands today. Ill manners are inexcusable. Not only that but they tend to bring out my passive-aggressive side, which is definitely not my best side. Fortunately this is not a column about the rights and wrongs of social conduct, so you won't have to suffer me harping on about it. Instead, I'd like to propose a slight alteration to the quotation. I think it should read: "Manners and accessories maketh man."

What I mean by that is: if a man has a nice wallet, or a good belt or a striking watch, it can really bring an outfit to life – elevate it beyond the sum of its parts. For example, if someone is wearing a plain sweatshirt, jeans and trainers but has a snazzy Anderson's woven belt poking out at their waist, the whole ensemble becomes much more appealing. I suppose my eyes are a little like a magpie's – hungrily searching out a glint of something interesting.

A while back I lost my lovely blue Comme des Garçons wallet. It's infuriating to misplace any wallet, but I had huge affection for this one. So I bought an identical replacement. Subsequently, the wallet that I had insisted to the police had been "stolen from my pocket" turned up at Baker Street lost property, all contents intact. This meant two things: 1) I had to apologise to the police for wasting their time, and 2) I had two identical wallets. Generous soul that I am, I gave one to a friend. I now derive great pleasure from the regular compliments upon it that he receives. I should silently bask in the reflected glory of the compliments, but I tend not to do that. I tend to state quite emphatically that I (inadvertently) bought it for him. Is that bad manners? I hate myself.

In further evidence of inner conflict and uncertainty, I've made a massive U-turn on the thorny issue of watches. I used to feel that anything showier than a Casio digital was unnecessary – an affectation designed to crudely display wealth. Clearly that is still true of some watches. But then there are many that, while not as cheap as the trusty Casio, do represent good value in the head-turning stakes. OK, I'm exaggerating. No one's going to stop you in the street because of your watch. Unless you're Flavor Flav. Which you're not. But it's nevertheless worth thinking about splashing out on a far-from-ostentatious Uniform Wares watch, or even a minimalist Braun (because it's always a pleasure to have a watch that matches your electric toothbrush).

Don't forget, though, that a sweet timepiece and statement wallet will mean nothing if you don't mind your Ps and Qs. You need both.

0 Burberry Brings Its Menswear Home – To The London Catwalk

Wednesday, 13 March 2013 - The classic British label will show its menswear collections in London rather than Milan from this summer – along with big names including Alexander McQueen and Tom Ford

Burberry has announced it will be joining brands including Alexander McQueen and Tom Ford by moving its menswear collection to Londonmen's fashion week. The British label will present its June 2013 show in London rather than Milan as previously.

This is a huge boost for London's newest fashion week. London Collections: Men, as the three-day event is known, began in June 2012 and has proved a great success three seasons in. Plugging into the rise of the male fashion consumer, new British designers such as Richard Nicoll and Agi & Sam have enjoyed critical acclaim at the shows; while more established brands such as McQueen and Ford have added kudos to this burgeoning fashion week. Burberry's move is a clear vote of confidence that the menswear showcase can cut it on the international stage.

"The country's proud menswear heritage and outstanding contemporary talent give it a unique and powerful energy," said Burberry chief creative officer, Christopher Bailey. "It is a wonderful time to be bringing our menswear show home." The Burberry relocation has been greeted with excitement from the industry. Vogue's editor Alexandra Shulman described it as "great news" on Twitter.

It's not just a patriotic gesture. Menswear is increasingly seen as a growing sector in fashion. Alexander McQueen opened a menswear-only store late last year, and Selfridges opened the biggest men's shoe department in the world. Net-a-porter's brother site Mr Porter, meanwhile, has blossomed since launching in 2011, with 4,000 new customers each month.

Burberry's move also fits into the brand's strategy of highlighting its Britishness. Since bringing the womenswear show to London in 2009, Bailey has increasingly emphasised Burberry's roots – using everything from black cabs in adverts to rain on the catwalk. While the largely womenswear-driven expansion in China experienced a slowdown late last year, menswear has been the fastest growing sector in the first half of 2012/13's financial year. Sales in tailoring, a new focus for the company, increased by 50% in the last three months of 2012 and an additional London HQ will also open, close to the brand's existing Pimlico HQ, later in the year.

0 From The Observer Archive, 10 March 1963: Men's New Passion For Fashion

Sunday, 10 March 2013 - The desire to look different has made style-conscious men turn to suede and slim trousers, and to look abroad for inspiration.

There was a time when accent was all to the Englishman. Nowadays his clothes mean more. Accent tells you where he wants to go.

The amazing speed at which male fashions are now disseminated makes the task of the fashion-conscious man even tougher. The shirt seen in Mayfair in March will be in Maidstone in May, in Middlesbrough by midsummer. The time-lag in fashion between London and the provinces used to be three years. Now it is down to three months.

The pressing problem is to be different at all costs. This year if you haven't the money or imagination to acquire that 1964 look it would be better to have the 1937 rather than the 1962 look. Nothing is more despised than last year's fashion. Better to be an eccentric than a hick.

When all celebrities on television look and sound alike, you remember the one who wore that extraordinary floppy Fair Isle cravat. It is touches like these that the sartorial climber strives after.

To dress differently takes time and skill, originality and a tailor of fine eccentricity. For instance, a writer I know bought a pair of check trousers in one of those newly ubiquitous shops that cater for men without hips. Fortunately this writer had no hips and the trousers fitted him like a pair of shrunken mittens. His feet, poking out at the bottom, looked enormous. Initially, he was embarrassed, but, being a man who thinks about his clothes, he decided that with a matching jacket the ensemble would be eminently wearable. He persuaded his tailor to make the jacket. Perfectly capturing the spirit of the trousers, it turned out like a long, cylindrical, checkered drain-pipe with two arms attached. My friend has now achieved his aim – he is now distinguishable from any other writer in Britain and, maybe, even in the world.

Another acquaintance, in advertising, covets that American Ivy League look, patented by Brooks Brothers: the trousers are slim and without front pleats, the jacket unwaisted and with the minimum shoulder padding. Altogether, it can miraculously make an overfed Madison Avenue executive look like an ex-football quarterback.My friend, after a long search round Savile Row, eventually crossed over to Soho and found a tailor who togged out American embassy personnel. Now, in Berkeley Square, he has the look of a fast-rising Manhattan executive and keeps his English suits for his annual trip to New York.

This practice of wearing the right clothes in the wrong country is a simple snobbism for the sartorially uncreative. A case in point is the man who goes annually to a small Italian resort. Out there, he wears long khaki shorts, cellular shirts, suede shoes and knee-length socks. The natives revere him as L'Inglese and point him out as a tourist attraction. The same man back in England wears nothing but gunmetal slacks, slip-on shoes, and looks like one of Rocco's brothers.

Wearing the right garment, but in the wrong material, is an increasingly popular ploy in the clothes game. The use of suede, for instance, was once limited to footwear. Now there is scarcely a self-respecting artist or photographer who doesn't have a suede jacket to call his own. Consequently suede jackets are old hat, and leather jackets have gone the same way. The future lies with the man who first eases himself into suede trousers or pulls on his first pair of tweed shoes.

This fight for masculine uniqueness has has reached such nerve-racking proportions that its most advanced exponents are now sponsoring a reaction. "Clothes," they say with utter disdain, "never give 'em a thought." The exponents of this new negligent line spend more time on their wardrobes than anyone else. For proof just look at the carefully rumpled appearance of the suit (the material is usually specially designed not to hold a crease, but to hold a rumple for ever). Look at the extraordinary clashing of colours, such bad taste cannot happen by accident.There is one gentleman, a poet – his name cannot be revealed, but he usually lives on a Mediterranean island – whose ability to match up old but unique pieces of clothing is unsurpassed. As his wardrobe goes back over a fair number of decades, he has quite an edge over his younger rivals.

When he emerges briefly in London or New York the effect is staggering. He might or might not be wearing a pyjama jacket, but the eye can't decide because it is immediately caught by a waistcoat that could have belonged to the Prince Regent. Then the tie – it could be a strip off some old bath flannel, more probably it is some fabulous new material made up at great expense from the bark of a rare tree found only beside the Amazon. That whole effect is topped off by a hat that looks like an Astrakhan that some deluded Astrakhaner once tried to sew a brim on.

For the new clothes-horses who want to win influential people the tyranny of the wardrobe is a constant nightmare. Nor is there any end in sight to the energy and money they have to spend. Perhaps they dream of ultimate release in a univeral nudism; a millennium when "Naked as Nature intended" is more than just a film shot by a lot of showbusiness boys in personality suits.