Men's fashion week S/S 2013 show invitations

The finest Men's fashion week invitations to land in our laps this season

Words: Apphia Michael

Kenzo sent out this tin box containing a mini survival kit for the great outdoors - a cryptic nod to the jungle-inspired collection revealed at the show

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Acne also referenced its collection in a themed invitation pack: a gold embossed card came inside a white and navy blue stripe envelope, mimicking the maxi stripes on the runway

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Acne

An unassuming white envelope with a simple typewritten address label from Maison Martin Margiela...

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... folded out to reveal a vintage-style map of Paris, which guided people to the show venue

Maison Martin Margiela

Kris Van Assche also opted for a fold-out envelope for its mininimal invitation

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Kris Van Assche

The back of the Dior Homme envelope had an elegant horizontal slot for its flap - a small detail but a neat one

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Opened up, the matte Dior Homme envelope revealed a glossy inner lining - a nice prelude to the classically set out embossed invitation card

Sacai's A4 paper offering could be unfolded from its rectangular card base. Details were clearly laid out in unfussy sans-serif script, but the type was playfully reversed on the back

Sacai

The layout of the Comme des Garçons invitation subtly changes with each season, but the bones of its visual identity remain unchanged

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Housed in a small envelope, Givenchy's miniature poster opened up to reveal an illustration of various abstract body parts

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Givenchy

Junya Watanabe Man sent out this poster, featuring a photograph of an urban skyline, reflected on water

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Also in poster format, the Ann Demeulemeester invitation, printed on A2-sized rice paper

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Berluti's pack sleeve was embossed with an etching of its venue, the Palais Royal gardens. Inside, a thick white card with silver edging summed up the presentation details

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We thought we'd seen it all from Bernhard Wilhelm's tongue-in-cheek invitations, until we received this one. Sent out in a discreet silver foil wrapper, it features a random collection of excerpts; from diary-style notes about the show venue... to images of cock rings

We can't help but approve of Willhelm's cheeky email-style question

A sliver of silver on the envelope for Issey Miyake Man...

... continued on the enclosed invitation letter

An embossed copper plate stood out at Dries Van Noten

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A simple grey 'plastic bag' envelope from Yohji Yamamoto...

... enclosed with an ultra-thin invitation delicately ripped at the edges 

An abstract sea-scape fronts Louis Vuitton's gilt-edged card

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Louis Vuitton

Details of the 3.1 Phillip Lim show were initially concealed behind a black satin ribbon

3.1 Phillip Lim

Thick card invitations were a recurring trend this season, as championed by John Galliano Homme, Rick Owens and Paul Smith

John Galliono Homme's card - backed by a cloudy sky - was sent out in a blue envelope

On the card's reverse, the show details came printed in a white san serif type

The Rick Owens card was a play on contrasts, with a setting of grey, black and white blocks

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Paul Smith's glossy, collaged rose later appeared as a print in his Spring collection

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The Lanvin logo came stamped on the invitation envelope

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Inside, Lanvin's show details were revealed on a classic gilt-edged card

Moving on to the Milan shows, Salvatore Ferregamo sent out a clash of colour, made all the more striking with the help of the die-cut text on duplex printed card

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Salvatore Ferregamo

These graphic flags from Moncler Gamme Bleu referenced a nautically-influenced collection and show performance

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A simple, debossed card from Calvin Klein Collection

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Marni's brown cardboard envelope was contrasted with a bright canary yellow invitation

Marni

The push and pull effect of the embossing / debossing and gloss / matte detailing on Jil Sander's invitation pack nicely marked the German designer's return to her namesake label

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Prada's invitation pack referenced the linear architecture of the Spring show space

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Prada

A craft-focused suede card from Bally, with a stitched border

Bally

Featuring a simple die-cut logo, Gucci's card was held together with a magnetic strip

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Notice the reflection of the Gucci logo on the mirrored gold surface

Giorgio Armani also held its invitation together with a magnet this season - concealing it discreetly in a leather strap 

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Giorgio Armani

Z Zegna lined its invitation sleeve and card with moss green textured canvas

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A decadent gold mirrored nugget from Alexander McQueen

Stare long enough at Fendi's grid of die-cut squares and you'll notice its show details hiding underneath

Fendi

A perfectly symmetrical landscape from Dolce & Gabbana

Over in London, Christopher Raeburn sent out this nostalgic toy parachute to mark his 'Deploy' collection for Spring

Christopher Raeburn

A colourful marbled foam offering from Topman Design

Martine Rose also chose foam to feature in her invitation, machine-stitching a thin later of brown tracing paper on top for contrast

A black and white photograph of a textured wooden floor gave a touch of understated elegance to Margaret Howell's invitation

Taken on David Waddington's iPhone, this witty image fronted the invitation for the Fashion East menswear installations at London's Carlton Gardens