Seersucker often evokes images of stodgy Southern dandies, New England businessmen and Colonel Sanders. But each season, younger, more style-conscious gents embrace the quintessentially Southern material.
Seersucker, typically characterized by puckered blue and white stripes in cotton, has also expanded beyond the region — with help from new fabrications and trendy male shoppers. But most wear it as separates, not as a whole suit, according to Cutting Edge Image Consulting in New York. Style mavens will pair the blazer with some ripped jeans and the trousers with a blue blazer.
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That look is popping up on the streets of New York, and in fashion magazines such as GQ, which featured an Etro seersucker blazer as one of the hot items for summer. It has even caught on in Hollywood.
In “Hitch,” smooth date doctor Will Smith wore the fabric, and Luke Wilson wears a seersucker suit by Haspel in his current movie, “The Wendell Baker Story.” Actor Taye Diggs sported a blue seersucker blazer on the May cover of Ebony magazine.
In Atlanta, the Barneys New York Co-Op at Phipps Plaza devoted a window to it with the caption, “There’s a seersucker born every day.”
The growth of seersucker items has been fueled by the textile industry, which learned to make seersucker softer and therefore more appealing, says Anthony Miller, a professor of current trends and forecasting at the Savannah College of Art and Design.
“I think a lot of people thought it would go in and then go out, but I think it might just continue, perhaps as a staple fabric even,” Miller said. “It’s gives some texture, gives you the ability to add some color.”
Options for women too
Several labels, including Hilfiger and American Eagle Outfitters, have seersucker options for women this spring in options ranging from dresses to strappy sandals.
Designers such as Etro offer the fabric in pink, orange and green for spring. Several other labels from J.Crew to Burberry also sell seersucker in various colors and stripes of varied width.
Though Etro is known for being unorthodox, the resurgence of seersucker may be linked to its retro appeal. David Wolfe, creative director at the Donger Group, a collective of fashion trend analysts, has noticed its rising popularity among young men, even though it’s been available every summer.
“Essentially it harks back to a time when men were more dressed up. It’s a kind of classic, hot weather look,” Wolfe said. “Suddenly it’s back in the spotlight because classic is back, and seersucker is a classic summer look.”
Turning sideways
But the seersucker revolution may get turned on its side now that Lindland Clothing, a San Francisco-based company, is offering horizontal seersucker in blue and gray.
If Lindland’s horizontal seersuckers, called Summerounds, sell well, the Web site will expand with pleated seersuckers and updated versions of hats and jackets in horizontal corduroy.
Miller Bros., an Atlanta clothier, has offered the horizontal pants for years. Robby Miller, who started the store in 1996 with his brother, Greg, previously worked for H. Stockton, a high-end traditional men’s store that also offers seersucker items.
“Seersucker has always been something in our customers’ wardrobe,” Miller said. “But now it’s hip. Young guys are wearing it to clubs. I guess what goes around comes around.”
Barneys is pushing the fabric to introduce young men to an older, yet classic, way of dressing. The store also was inspired by the “New Prep” trend in collections such as Burberry Prorsum and Tommy Hilfiger.
“We saw a lot of polos and bright colors in the market, and so we got inspired,” said Wanda Colon, vice president and divisional merchandise manager of Barneys men’s Co-Op and designer.
The Barneys windows feature stylish mannequins in seersucker blazers of various colors, paired with different colored slacks.
A full seersucker suit is a bit too Tom Wolfe for New Yorkers, according to Michael Clerico, an associate with the firm.
“No one really wears it like that,” Clerico says. “It’s a tough sell, unless you’re going to the Kentucky Derby.”
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