2017 Was The Year Fashion Got Serious Daddy Issues

“Prediction: as Kanye transcends into dad-life, he’s going to make dad-core trendy and cool,” wrote one Reddit user in 2015. “Would it be a far reach to predict that, as Kanye becomes older and more mature, his fits will reflect his lifestyle? With another kid on the way, and plenty of artistic (and business) ventures to explore, Kanye might eventually depart from the streetwear realm entirely and actually make dadcore look cool.” The post received three comments before slipping into Reddit obscurity. Yet, two years on, here we are. It may not have been precipitated by the sartorial choices of Mr West – who had a decidedly lowkey year after cancelling his Saint Pablo tour at the tail end of 2016 – but perhaps the overarching prediction of the Reddit user, KlausFenrir, was correct. Dad-wear was one of the defining aesthetics of menswear in 2017, filtering onto runways and into our wardrobes. In June, Demna Gvasalia debuted his SS18 Balenciaga menswear collection, which saw a host of real dads walking the runway with their children. The clothes followed suit – washed jeans, oversized blazers and decidedly sensible waterproof cagoules. “It felt like they needed to have some relaxed, comfortable, cosy moments,” said the Georgia-born designer of the collection, which riffed on the idea of dads on their day off, taking their kids to the park. At Martine Rose – who also consults for Balenciaga – we saw a similar celebration of the previously-unfashionable raincoat, as the London designer drew from the understated, functional approach dads have to dressing. Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, whose unfussy wardrobe has seen him become an unlikely style icon, was also on the moodboard. Read more at Dazed.