The 8 big menswear trends of spring 2024
Yes, layering in the warmer months is possible. Utilitarian dressing is king. Camp collar shirting reigns supreme and in one way or another, cowboy-core will influence the way you dress. Here, we break down everything you need to know about dressing for spring 2024
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THERE’S A REPRIEVE when spring rolls around, fashion-wise. By now, we’ve grown tired of repeating the same rotation of trousers, coats and thick knits; we’re restless about shedding these skins for something lighter and easier. And as the influence of trends in the northern hemisphere spring/summer seasons trickles down south, we’re only too eager to jump on, say, the long shorts and cowboy-core styles that have dominated our feeds over the winter.
But the transitional season does have a rep for mourning one of our favourite things about winter: layering. But we’re here to tell you that the warmer months are not an excuse for one-dimensional dressing. Nor does the arrival of a new season signal the death of a favourite piece, such as the trusty camp collar shirt (this is menswear, after all, where trends move at a more sustainable speed).
So, what should you be wearing this spring? If you’ve found yourself staring into your wardrobe asking yourself this question, to help you out, we’ve selected the trends and pieces that will help your spring wardrobe sing, as well as the accessories, shirting, and suit cuts that will shape the way we dress as this year segues into 2025. Read on for the masterclass.
Read more of Esquire’s spring style coverage:
10 of the best spring fragrances, which balance woody and fresh notes
How to stay cool and dry in a summer suit, according to a tailor
Prepare for the return of huge shorts
The biggest menswear trends for spring 2024
Tinted sunglasses
Earlier this year, we identified the five sunglass shapes that would define 2024. But as the year’s rolled on, tinted sunglasses are the obvious winner. Case in point: the style marked the accessory of choice for many of the most stylish of men at the Venice Film Festival this year. Spotted on Joker: Folie à Deux lead Joaquin Phoenix, Daniel Craig, and Aaron Taylor-Johnson, their colour in formal settings lends itself to a playfulness that’s really only appropriate in the warmer months. But in more casual settings, say, a dinner party, the translucent lenses won’t dim your vision or make you look obnoxious for wearing shades at night.
Jacques Marie Mage Enzo Square Frame Sunglasses
Prada Blue Tinted Sunglasses
Celine Bold 3 Dots Square Sunglasses
Camp collar shirts
Hot take: T-shirts and linen for spring-summer shirting are terribly overrated. T-shirts can feel sloppy (they’re originally an undergarment, mind you) and most of the linen out there is either too starchy or too gauzy. And why should our options be narrowed down to two? Instead, a cotton poplin button-up shirt is the best thing to happen to our upper bodies come summer. For one, the cool and crisp cotton is more elevated than a T-shirt; this ensures shape and structure is maintained throughout the sweaty day. And, hear me out, the flat folded collar of the camp collar is the same casual energy from a bowling shirt. In this sense, it’s a classic in that the style is omnipresent, not what is popularly tasteful.
Venroy Embellished Relaxed Cotton Camp Collar Shirt
Prada Short-Sleeve Cotton Shirt
Marni White Bowling shirt
Deconstructed suiting
When Esquire recently chatted with Zi Nori, co-founder and creative director of Umi Nori, about how to nail wearing a suit in the warmer seasons, the Sydney-based tailor recommended that deconstructed suiting is the go. What is deconstructed suiting, you ask? No, it’s not a suit that’s been ripped up and put back together. Basically, a deconstructed jacket essentially means there’s no padding or lining, making it highly breathable and less structured, therefore less formal. And two, choice of fabric in a deconstructed suit is key. Think linen, cotton, seersucker, lightweight wools; natural fibre fabrics that wick away moisture. Whether you’ll be wearing one to the office or to a mid-afternoon wedding, it speaks volumes nowadays to wear a full suit (not just a shirt) in spring; you look like someone who knows what they’re doing.
Uniqlo Comfort 2B Jacket
Venroy Unlined Blazer
Auralee Unlined Single-Breasted Blazer
Big, long, tailored shorts
During the spring/summer 2025 fashion shows in June, it was designers in Europe that sent a unified diktat down the runway: long shorts were in. Take it from the likes of Jacquemus and Mr. Armani, who’ve built entire fashion empires on what stylish Euro-summer dressing looks like. But it was also a trend that may have ruffled some feathers, especially if you sat in the polarising short shorts camp. The discourse around inseam length has probably been the healthiest debate in menswear for a while; the popularity of both has proven that men wear short shorts, long shorts, and everything in between.
But if we’re talking about spring-time essentials, long shorts remain the sensible choice for our 21-degree average days. Tailored long shorts, in particular, are the natural successor to integrating tailor trousers piece into your rotation for warmer months. Our tip: they look best when worn with a shirt tucked in.
Jacquemus Le Short Melo
Nanamica Navy Deck Shorts
Wales Bonner Dusk Shorts
Utility vests
We’re here to tell you that, if done correctly, layering is for spring, too. The idea is that light layered pieces are the key here. If you don’t wish to do away with your knit vest when the temperature rises, we recommended making friends with utility vests. Unlike most workwear garments that enter the fashion space only to be appropriated and rendered decorative, their utilitarian function is front and centre.
Brands in the workwear-slash-gorpcore space have always pushed utility vests into the zeitgeist with authentic renditions in techy and hard fabrics, and all the pockets you’ll ever need – which is why you might be sitting there saying, ‘this is nothing new.’ But the spin that crafty fashion brands like Engineered Garments have taken to simplify volume, making it palatable to be worn in a not ironic way, is breathing new life into the utility vest. And as someone trying to grow up from my tote bag, because I’m tired of scavenging through it like a racoon, having everything on your person and being able to access it with a simple flick of a pocket is more . . . effortless.
Engineered Garments Fowl Vest
Uniqlo U Utility Vest
Carhartt WIP Balto Waterproof Gilet
Overshirts
The overshirt will be your spring dressing saviour. The wardrobe basic can come in a variety of fabrics, colours and styles to suit your preferences. Chore jackets are the workwear-friendly overshirts for their abundance of pockets, thick cotton twill, and combining the collar of a shirt with the structure and cut of a jacket. In other words, it’s smart-casual attire. Even regular button ups can also be treated as an overshirt, too, with a T-shirt underneath (one colleague affectionately referring to it by its portmanteau, shacket).
Polo Ralph Lauren Twill Utility Jacket
Country Road Relaxed Fit Denim Shirt
Nudie Barney Worker Jacket
Western–inspired everything
It’s undeniable that cowboy-core has been the defining trend of 2024. With the release of Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter, Pharrell sending cowboys down the runway at Louis Vuitton in Paris, and the return of the hunky American heartthrob with Glen Powell dressed in Wild West-appropriate attire on and off the screen while promoting Twisters, the image of the American archetype has inundated our feeds and – I don’t know about you – seeped into the way people around me are dressing.
What’s spawned is a revival for Western motifs, only now, it’s showing up in unlikely but compatible places. Japanese brand Toga Virilis updated its black loafer with metallic details, the kind which you’d see in an old-Western as the protagonist bursts into a saloon. Western silver belts have proven to be a small yet effective way of giving character to the often overlooked accessory. And there’s perhaps no louder pronouncement than wearing a wide-brimmed cowboy hat today; the style becoming popular among grooms seeking a statement for themselves.
Toga Virilis Black Polished Loafers
Nudie Jeans Western Silver Belt
Golden Goose Studded-Strap Hat
Merino wool
The smell of spring (jasmine, freshly cut grass) might make us feel like we can leave the house without our coats. But don’t be fooled (it’s the optimism you’re smelling), some days are still cold. A fine merino wool jumper is essential for days that start at eight degrees and peak around the 20-degree mark mid-afternoon. Thankfully, knit polos have been all the rage for the past few seasons, coming in even more variations of lengths and cuts.
Uniqlo Merino Crew Neck Jumper
Country Road Merino Wool Ribbed Polo
Nanushka Long-Sleeve Wool Polo Knit
What are the spring colours for men in 2024?
Do you like to dress by colour? The colour-wheel oracles over at Pantone have spoken, and these are the shades they recommend adding to our rotations:
- Chambray blue: a bright denim blue
- Pastel lilac: soft powdery lavender
- Rooibos tea: red with woody, ochre notes
- Orangeade: a citrus-like red-orange hue
- Watercress: peppery green
- Desert flower: warm, sun-lit pink
Observed during the spring/summer 2024 season in New York, the six chosen colours from Pantone are described as familiar shades with a contemporary, artistic edge. Whether this is something that will appear in stores during the season, or if you’re looking for a little guidance for a new direction, this is a good place to start.
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