THE JOURNAL
Context is everything in fashion. Take camouflage. Designed for the purpose of blending in, the military pattern has, somewhat ironically, become one of the easiest ways to stand out. Worn on a battlefield as it was originally intended, it disrupts the silhouette of an outfit, mimicking the shapes and colours of leaves and trees – or snow, sand or rock, depending on the terrain – to blur seamlessly into the background. But in an urban environment, against the sharp edges of buildings and the solid blocks of navy, grey and black that make up the majority of our clothes, it has the exact opposite effect.
A visually chaotic and disruptive pattern by design, and one with military undertones that can quickly become overtones if deployed in an overly gung-ho fashion, camo is best used sparingly. A single item is sufficient for most outfits: you don’t want to be mistaken for the kind of guy who spends his weekends lurking in the bushes with an Airsoft gun in his hands. Handled correctly, though, camo is a great way to enliven any outfit with a little colour and panache. It’s time to heed the call of duty, then, as we roll out three foolproof ways to do just that.
01.
The camo trousers
While camo’s enduring popularity as one of the staple patterns in menswear has seen it applied to everything from blazers to sneakers over the years, it’s on utilitarian, military-inspired garments where it feels most at home. Cargo pants are a failsafe choice when dressing your lower half, as they share the military roots of camouflage itself. But we’ve held back on the functional details for this outfit, opting instead for the cleaner silhouette of these straight-leg trousers from Palm Angels with a classic M81 or “US Woodland” camo print. Worn with heavy-duty boots from Gucci set on chunky rubber commando soles, it provides the solid foundations for a ready-for-anything weekend outfit.
Camo is inherently informal – in a military sense, it falls under the category of combat uniform or fatigues, as opposed to dress uniform – so feel free to lean into this. We’ve done so here with a white T-shirt by Dries Van Noten and a checked western shirt from CHERRY LA. And while you could call it a day right there, we recommend throwing on a few choice accessories to take your outfit to the next level. Of note is the olive-green messenger bag by LOEWE, echoing the military vibes of the camo print.
02.
The low-key camo accessory
Deployed on large, expansive surfaces such as trousers or jackets, or in vibrant fluoro and neon colours, camouflage print can’t help but dominate an outfit. True to its original purpose, though, there are more subtle ways of working it into your look, using it as an accent rather than a base. That’s precisely what we’ve done here with this ripstop-nylon tote bag from Porter-Yoshida & Co, which features a monochrome camo print so low-key it’s barely visible. And isn’t that the point of camouflage?
To give it the space it needs to stand out, we’ve avoided anything too shouty and paired it with an outfit that’s big on neutrals: a beige cotton-canvas track jacket from Bottega Veneta, a silk shirt from Séfr, denim jeans from LOEWE and a pair of classic penny loafers from the cult American shoemaker Yuketen. As for accessories, we’ve kept it simple, matching the cool metallic tones of these round-framed sunglasses from Oliver Peoples with a chain bracelet from Tom Wood and the silver buckle of a suede belt from Loro Piana.
03.
The camo hunting jacket
Not all camo is drawn from the military kitbag. This shell jacket from the cult Japanese outerwear brand Snow Peak borrows its realistic camouflage print from the parallel world of recreational hunting, making it a great place to start if you want to channel the enduringly popular outdoor trend. We’ve done so here by throwing on a pair of khaki shorts from John Elliott, an off-white T-shirt by KENZO, Asics trail-running shoes, and a brimmed hat from fellow Japanese brand OrSlow.
A word of caution: it’s all too easy to go too far with an outfit like this, but the addition of a few choice accessories – in this case, a pair of Balenciaga sunglasses and a bandana from KAPITAL – will keep you from looking like you’ve gone full duck hunt.