‘Making a comeback’: GQ on the surprising men’s fashion trends coming back in style

The menswear style lessons we learned from this year’s red carpets – and how to apply them to your everyday wardrobe. Here are the best ways to suit up.

Party season is well and truly upon us. But amid the excitement of a few end-of-year drinks comes the age-old question: what’s a guy to wear? While a bespoke tuxedo remains a go-to classic for men of any age, some of this year’s biggest stars have been putting their own unique spin on modern tailoring.

Take local sensation Troye Sivan. The Australian singer and actor arrived at last month’s ARIA Awards wearing a modern and elegant blouse by Prada paired with tailored pants instead of a simple suit and shirt.

Troye Sivan attends the 2023 ARIA Awards in Sydney. Picture: Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images

“Troye’s outfit proved unique silhouettes will always impress when worn confidently,” Vogue’s senior fashion and market director, Kaila Matthews, says.

“The unexpectedness of the top, combined with the classic tailored trousers, proves you can have the best of both worlds.”

Not for everyone, perhaps. But you don’t have to be as adventurous as the talented Mr Sivan to get in on the trend, with plenty of other famous men swapping old-school suiting for their own idiosyncratic approaches to event dressing.

This year, Colombian singer Maluma attended the prestigious Met Gala (referred to by many as the Fashion Olympics) in an ensemble by German suiting mainstay BOSS, but instead of sporting a shirt and jacket with his grey, short-sleeved waistcoat, he did away with both, instead topping the look off with a simple scarf worn over the shoulders.

Maluma attends The 2023 Met Gala. Picture: Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images

He’s got the biceps for it, of course. But even if you’re not the type to bare arms, there are still plenty of other attendees who stuck more closely to the traditional tailoring route.

Look at Italian tennis star Matteo Berrettini, whose own BOSS suit and bow tie were classic red carpet fare but with a twist: a white shirt was swapped out for one in black, which helped to create a seamless flow between the suit and accessories, and made a statement, without going overboard.

“Matching the colour of your shirt to your suit renders even the simplest looks more striking than they were before,” Emma Kalfus, GQ’s executive fashion editor, says.

“If you’re not quite ready to deviate from more classic tailoring, but still want your suit to stand out, a colour-coordinated shirt and blazer is a win for any event.”

Matteo Berrettini attends The 2023 Met Gala. Picture: Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images

Even shorts had a moment this year. Pedro Pascal, the star of The Last of Us, took to the Met Gala red carpet in a red coat, shirt and tie with tailored shorts.

Sure, it’s event season, but it’s also summer here Down Under, and there’s no reason why you can’t show a bit of leg.

Why should the ladies get all the fun?

Dressing for the red carpet doesn’t quite match what we wear in our everyday, but the tailoring choices of this year’s biggest stars offer plenty of inspiration.

If a clean-cut, traditional suit is still your go-to party look, the right accessories can allow your personal style to shine, even when dressing for the everyday.

GQ Australia recently released a GQ Hype photo shoot, with a quartet of emerging Australian stars: actor James Majoos, dancer Rhys Kosakowski, content creator Lucas White-Smith and model Jarvis Aivali, who each put their own spin on elevated tailoring.

GQ Hype. Picture: Rob Tennent

“It’s been a really interesting time for men’s suiting,” GQ Australia editor in chief Jake Millar says.

“After the boom in streetwear over the past few years, it’s been nice that more tailored menswear has started to make a comeback.

“But it’s also been great to see Aussies like Jacob Elordi or Troye Sivan putting their own modern spin on what is often traditionally seen as a more conservative approach to dressing.

“The upshot is that tailoring is here to stay – but it’s anything but boring.’’

It’s a lesson we’ll no doubt see on display next week when GQ Australia holds its 15th GQ Men of the Year awards, in association with BOSS.

Lucas White-Smith for GQ Hype. Picture: Rob Tennent

And with the event taking place in Sydney’s iconic Bondi Beach for the first time, it’s anyone’s guess what the winners’ take on black tie might be this year.

Boardies and blazers? Bow ties and budgie smugglers, perhaps? Maybe not. This is a GQ event, after all.

And with previous attendees including Aussie heavy-hitters Jacob Elordi, Baz Luhrmann, Joel Edgerton and many more, the new rules of sophisticated event dressing are likely to be on display.

Best leave the double-pluggers at home.

Follow all the action from the 2023 GQ MOTY awards at GQ.com.au/MOTY

Originally published as ‘Making a comeback’: GQ on the surprising men’s fashion trends coming back in style