Fashion-forward men know the power of Pink
Litmus
Real men dare to wear the pastel.
By Tanika White
Sun Staff
Originally published July 20, 2004
Think pink.
If you're picturing ballerina shoes or a flouncy sundress - pretty,
girlie, feminine things - then you're way behind the times.
These days, pink is popping up in the most unlikely places. Over hairy
chests. Covering bulging biceps. Atop a buzz cut.
This is the summer of the masculine pink. Rappers, politicians,
business types, inner-city boys on the city bus - all dressed in
bubble gum, cotton candy, sunset pinks. For them, and other confident
men, pink is the new white.
"Pink is just fly," said Kenny McAllister, who studies lifestyle
trends at the New York-based marketing company AMPdi. "It's big
everywhere. Especially on men."
The springy color choice is surprising. Not just because for ages men
have been prisoners to the dark, drab latter half of the color
spectrum, but also because pink has long been stereotyped as only for
girls. Period. The end.
Today's fashion-forward man is rejecting that idea. If modern women
can wear combat boots, tuxedo jackets or Charlie Chaplin hats and
still be feminine, then why can't a man wear pink and still be
masculine?
"I think it actually shows confidence in your masculinity," said The
Apprentice's Kwame Jackson, who more than once this winter was shown
across the boardroom table from The Donald wearing a natty pink shirt.
"It shows you have like a subtle flair."
Jackson likes the look so much, he's including at least two pink or
pink-accented shirts in a line of men's clothing he hopes to launch
this fall - a sign that the color isn't just for summer apparel.
In fact, experts say, pink is only going to get hotter - figuratively
and literally.
At the recent men's fashion shows in Milan, observers noticed much
brighter colors, and many more of them - hotter pinks as well as
brighter oranges, purples and yellows. Passion fruit for the manly
man.
"I'm expecting pink to be a trend for the next year," said Stan
Williams, fashion editor at Maxim, a popular men's magazine. "And I
think it'll be even bigger next summer than this summer."
The pastel trend may have started with the flash-and-dash hip-hop
crowd, McAllister said - a daring group that often takes its cues from
over-the-top fashionistas such as the ultra-bold Donatella Versace.
In the last several months, rap star and fashion award-winner P. Diddy
has turned heads sporting pale pink suits to see-and-be-seen events.
Hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons has been photographed in striped pink
polos and pink baseball caps. Rappers Fat Joe and Cam'ron unabashedly
rock pink from head to toe; even Cam'ron's tricked-out SUV is pink.
"The first guys that were wearing it were wearing it to say, 'I'm so
confident in my masculinity, and I'm so hard and I'm so gangsta, I can
wear pink,'" McAllister said, calling such risk-takers "fly guys."
Like most fashion trends, it didn't take long for hip-hop heads and
music video-watchers to catch on. The logic goes something like this:
If Usher, R&B's latest multi-platinum phenom, can pull the ladies
wearing frothy pink pants, then Jamal Generic can sport a pink shirt
to the club on Friday, and it's all good.
Now, the ubiquitous white T-shirt worn by every inner-city teenage boy
in America is being replaced with Pepto pink tees, or pink polo-style
shirts. Baggy jean shorts, unlaced Timberland boots and a crisp, pink
three-button polo. Go figure.
"The pink trickled down from the fashion heads to the fly guys to the
masses," McAllister said. "And now, unless someone puts on a pink
tutu, I don't think people are going to look at it funny."
Retro revival
But pink isn't confined to R&B crooners and corner boys.
In just the latest reminder that the '80s have returned, preppy pink
has become about as hot now as it was during the heyday of Miami Vice
and The Breakfast Club.
Political observers have spotted Democratic presidential candidate
John Kerry in pink ties on the campaign trail. Former President Bill
Clinton has worn a pink tie at book signings and interviews across the
country - most notably on a recent Oprah segment, where he and the
show's pretty-in-pink host were color-coordinated.
J. Crew, these days, is a veritable pink palace.
"There's a larger kind of preppy revitalization coming on across the
board, and pink is sort of a staple within that fashion palette," said
Peter Hyman, author of an upcoming collection of humorous essays
called The Reluctant Metrosexual: Dispatches from an Almost Hip Life.
"It is kind of a classic part of that preppy repertoire."
The pink polo shirt is the calling card of the neo-preppy, experts
said, but pink button-down business shirts and ties are gaining
popularity among the Wall Street and 9-to-5 crowds.
"Pink is even going beyond the ... shirts and making its way into the
ties and even into the linings (of suit jackets)," said Sanford
Bryant, a high-end menswear designer based in New York. "It's all over
the place."
And not just on clothes.
Liz Kennedy, a spokeswoman for Jewelry.com, said that fashion-forward
men are buying more exotic stones in shades of pink. A pink stone set
in pink gold has become the height of fashion, she said.
Soccer great David Beckham - the ultimate metrosexual - is known for
experimenting with pink in his jewelry, and rapper Jay-Z has added
some rose-colored ice to his collection of bling, Kennedy said.
Last month, Seagram's beverage company launched a new flavored malt
drink aimed at men. Its name, Pink Dragon, gives away the drink's
research-based color.
Gender neutral
Still, some men are reluctant to drink, wear or venture near anything
pink, no matter what research says.
"Pink is for sissies and girlie men," said Bill Shermer, operations
officer for Blue Goose, a local trawler charter company. As he ate
lunch yesterday in a Canton restaurant, clad in a dark blue company
shirt, he declared: "Real men don't wear pink."
Ridiculous, says Goucher College President Sanford J. Ungar, known on
campus for his now-trendy shirt hues.
"I absolutely reject the idea that colors are gender-specific," said
Ungar, who owns at least five pink shirts and other pink accessories,
such as ties with pink accents. "I've worn pink shirts for 20 or 30
years without any real thought to it being fashionable. I'm not trying
to make a statement. I just really like pink shirts.
"I guess fashion," he says, "has caught up with me."
Other men have been slow to warm to the trend.
Local stylist, artist and T-shirt designer Amanda Johnson said she had
a difficult time convincing most men to buy her latest creation: tees
emblazoned with her signature hot pink, impossibly high-heeled shoe.
But at a recent show and T-shirt sale at a Fells Point pub, Johnson
said the guys who did purchase her $20 shirt were far from girlie men.
"The man who wears this shirt is quite a man," Johnson said. "[He's] a
man who's very self-secure. His sexual identity, just his identity in
general - he doesn't question it. So to wear that shirt is a part of
his personality. And I think women - or even men - find that quality
attractive."
In fact, said Leatrice Eiseman, director of the Pantone Color
Institute, which forecasts trends in colors, pink is a color that has
always been associated with romance.
"So if you think about it, why would a man not want to be seen as
romantic?" Eiseman said. "If you wear something pink, it's going to be
more of an attraction to the ladies and not less of an attraction."
Its potential aphrodisiac qualities aside, pink is just a color that
has too many attributes for guys to ignore, experts said.
It makes skin look healthy and looks good on nearly every skin tone.
It's both classic and on the cutting edge. And it's easy to
accessorize.
Pink and gray is a classy, sophisticated selection. Pink and brown is
smoldering and sexy. Pink and olive is a beautiful, unexpected
combination.
Women have known this for years. Finally, men have been given license
to catch on.
"I think the most important thing that is going on right now is that
it used to be that guys gave each other such a hard time about looking
different and even looking good," menswear designer Bryant said. "And
I think that's changing now. Color is a big part of that. And pink is
a big part of that."
Think pink
Experts offer these tips on how everyday guys can ease into wearing
pink.
Start out with a pale pink button-down shirt. Coordinate it with your
existing wardrobe and ties.
If a full-on pink shirt is too much, try a classy pink tie, or a tie
with pink accents.
Once business wear is mastered, move on to a casual polo shirt - the
more traditional, the better - try Lacoste or Polo by Ralph Lauren.
Unless you're a celebrity or a fashion house head, don't overdo it. "I
would not recommend that everybody run out and get a pink suit," says
Stan Williams, fashion director at Maxim men's magazine.
If you're feeling daring, try a pair of pink socks. "That's really
doing it. That's really on the edge," says Peter Hyman, author of The
Reluctant Metrosexual: Dispatches from an Almost Hip Life.
Remember, comfort is key. "If you wear a pair of pink pants and you
don't feel comfortable, you probably won't look good," says Williams.
- Tanika White
I!
who wore pink occasionally.
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