Summer has a way of robbing you of your sartorial chops. A few months of shorts, T-shirts and shoes without socks and suddenly the prospect of assembling an actual outfit feels bewildering. Layers? Knitwear? A coat? How does it all go together again? Thankfully, the Aimé Leon Dore FW26 lookbook has arrived right on cue.
As usual, the New York label’s latest collection doubles as a fairly comprehensive lesson in how to dress when the temperature drops. Teddy Santis and co. have long been masters of taking familiar menswear ingredients and combining them in ways that make you wonder why you hadn’t thought of it yourself. Aimé Leon Dore FW26 is no different.
There’s plenty going on. Sharp tailoring rubs shoulders with vintage sportswear and collegiate pieces, while outerwear ranges from puffers and long overcoats to chore jackets and technical shells. ALD’s ongoing relationship with The North Face continues too, with outdoor pieces including a new take on the Heli vest, while GORE-TEX brings some genuine bad-weather credentials to the more technical end of the collection.
But the real reason to spend five minutes scrolling through the lookbook is the styling. Rugby shirts are worn with tweed tailoring. Quilted vests sit over smarter layers. Plaid scarves and berets appear alongside Yankees caps and Knicks-orange beanies. One minute it’s tailored trousers and a sweeping overcoat; the next, a puffer over a sports jersey or a bright trail jacket thrown into the mix.
It shouldn’t necessarily all work together, but that has always been part of Aimé Leon Dore’s appeal. The brand is exceptionally good at pulling from seemingly unrelated corners of menswear – Ivy League, downtown New York, old-school sportswear, hiking gear – and making the resulting outfit feel coherent rather than contrived.
So, if several months of warm weather have left your layering skills a little rusty, consider this your refresher course. Aimé Leon Dore FW26 is now available to shop on the ALD webstore.
