Tailoring designed to move

1. A kinetic kind of authority

Menswear has traditionally been judged on a body standing still: shoulders set, front closed, cloth smoothed flat. This season changes the test. Vogue Runway describes Saul Nash’s SS27 clothes as pieces the wearer can open, close, tighten and layer at will. Gathered backs, elasticated waists and curved volumes bring movement into familiar forms. Monocle identifies the same intent: sport and tailoring meet inside the cut, not as a superficial styling trick.

This matters to the long men’s skirt. Its surface comes alive through stride, air and shifting folds. A rigid jacket above that movement can feel like a lid. An action back, expansion pleat or elasticated rear waist picks up the rhythm while preserving a clean front. Authority no longer depends on stiffness; it comes from control in motion.

2. Four details, four clear jobs

An action pleat gives the shoulder blades room without enlarging the jacket’s front. A bi-swing back opens as the arms move and settles again at rest. A two-way zip releases the hem so a jacket does not bunch above a high skirt waistband. Adjustable side tabs refine the outline without adding another belt.

Numéro Netherlands specifically notes technical zip jackets, adjustable fastenings, gathered backs and elastic waists in Nash’s collection. Hunger reaches a similar conclusion on Milan: two-way zips and technical garments were engineered to move fluidly with the body. Performance need not resemble gymwear. It can work quietly inside tropical wool, washed linen and dry cotton twill.

The modern cut shows strength not by standing still, but by organising movement cleanly.

3. Jacket and skirt share the work

A flat wrap skirt suits a jacket whose activity sits at the back: the front remains calm, while the function appears in motion. A knife-pleated skirt can take the graphic line of a two-way zip because both elements work vertically. A smooth linen column needs only a short field jacket with a bi-swing back. A utility kilt can support articulated sleeves and side adjusters, provided pockets and hardware remain restrained.

Distribution is everything. Not every garment needs stretch, cords and zips. One kinetic intervention per zone is enough: movement at the upper back, controlled volume below and assured boots at ground level. The outfit does not look like sportswear; it simply behaves with the same intelligence.

4. Cloth governs the return

Engineering only works when the handle is right. Tropical wool keeps an action pleat crisp and returns after a stride. Washed linen can respond more softly through a bi-swing back. Technical taffeta suits a two-way zip when its surface is matte and quiet. Cotton twill carries adjusters and a utility pocket without drifting into tactical costume.

AP characterises Milan SS27 through lighter, ventilated tailoring and points to Thom Browne’s summer seersucker and pleated skirts for men. The connection is important: lightness is more than thin cloth. It is created by patterns that plan for air and movement. In that system, the long skirt is not an interruption but the most coherent lower silhouette.

5. Men Can: confidence needs room

Copenhagen Fashion Week SS27 opens on 3 August. Its official programme again brings established and emerging Nordic voices into a platform that examines convention and fashion’s social impact. On the eve of that European moment, the useful question is not whether a man may show movement. It is how precisely his clothes can carry it.

“Men Can” means that strength does not need to be proved through rigid shapes. A long men’s skirt, an elasticated jacket and quiet boots can be disciplined, body-aware and free at once. Italian tailoring provides the line; technical intelligence makes it contemporary.