Latest looks in menswear: all about lines

Gucci discipline

The Gucci man for next summer has earned his stripes, along with golden buttons, epaulets, insignias and other trappings of a mariner's life.

The collection, shown against a background of shimmering water, has a decidedly nautical flair, featuring trim and dignified white, navy and red suits with suggestions of officiality in stripes. But these are not mere costumes. The collection projects both luxury and a free-spirit.

The silhouette is disciplined, with the expected blazer, double-breasted jacket and peacoats, but creative director Frida Giannini also includes jackets with Neru collars and blousons with a contrasting buckle waistband that can function as a shirt or jacket. Pants are lean and straight, or baggier and lose.

Frida Giannini gives the look a modern twist with bold navy and white vertically striped pants and jackets, worn together for an eye-popping optical effect but more often mixed and matched with plain colors.

The stripe appears also appears on lapels, scarves tucked inside jackets that substitute for ties, and on the straps of the collection's ample leather duffel and messenger bags.