Lagos Closes, the CFDAs Loom, and Winter Drops Land

Lagos Fashion Week reaches the end of its main runway programme today at the Federal Palace Hotel, closing a week staged around the theme CRAFTED: Heritage. Innovation. Circular Futures. The finale bill runs from IAMISIGO through Andrea Iyamah and Emmy Kasbit to Lisa Folawiyo, with Ugo Monye, Fruché and Ejiro Amos Tafiri on the final full day.

For menswear, the week has been a lesson in letting cloth do the talking. Handwoven Aso-Oke and indigo-dyed Adire have shown up as tailored suits and co-ord sets rather than costume, while Day 2 put men in crop tops and fringe on the runway and reimagined traditional textiles in modern cuts. Outside the tents, the street-style code has been just as clear: monochrome tailoring, breathable sleeveless shirts, knit vests over linen, and printed jackets worn over a plain black tee.

The takeaway for a wardrobe, rather than a moodboard, is proportion and material. One strong textile, cut clean, beats a pile of accessories. Chunky gold jewellery and hand-carved leather bags finish the look in Lagos; everywhere else, the same discipline applies to a good wool suit or a heavyweight cotton co-ord.

Monday night at the American Museum of Natural History, the CFDA Fashion Awards settle the most interesting menswear race in years. The nominees for American Menswear Designer of the Year are Dao-Yi Chow and Maxwell Osborne for Public School New York, Ralph Lauren, Thom Browne, Todd Snyder and Willy Chavarria, with Matt Damon presenting the category.

The storyline writes itself. Public School returns to the ballot nearly a decade after the duo last won it, Chavarria arrives as the two-time winner whose Paris spectacles have made him fashion's loudest conscience, and Ralph Lauren — last year's womenswear winner — crosses over into menswear. It is a field that spans establishment polish, downtown tailoring and Chicano-rooted street scale.

Whatever wins, the direction of travel is already visible in the nominees' recent work: generous proportions, workwear roots and tailoring that refuses to be quiet. Chavarria's adiSignature project for adidas Originals, launched October 23, is the most wearable version of that argument — heavyweight 420g fleece sweats rebuilt from the stitch up, priced from €45 to €100.

Kith Winter 2026 went live on October 30, and it is the rare seasonal drop that earns its scale. Kit Harington fronts the campaign in the English countryside — the Jon Snow casting writes its own joke — wearing updated Corey, Midi and Maverick puffers, a waxed cotton Darcy hunting jacket, a reversible knit Jaysen bomber and a shearling patchwork Becker jacket.

The footwear is the real draw. Ronnie Fieg and Timberland revive their 2013 partnership with three boots: the Wheat 6-Inch Shearling 40 Below, a hybrid of the classic 6-Inch and the 40 Below Super Boot; the Wild Dove 40 Below Shearling Super Boot; and a burgundy classic 6-Inch with gold-tone hardware. Clarks Originals 8th St and the adidas Originals Classics Program round out the shoe wall, and the collection even stretches to marble home goods and Modernica chairs.

The styling lesson is texture over logos. Shearling, waxed cotton, washed Japanese indigo from the debut SEVEN BY SEVEN capsule and Giorgio Armani tailoring under the &Kin line all sit in one wardrobe because they share a material language, not a graphic one.

Outside the AW26 shows, the street-style verdict was unusually unanimous. First: blackout. All-black looks built on proportion, structure and leather texture rather than decoration. Second: volume. Wide trousers — cargos, denim and tailored cuts alike — keep getting wider, and the season's most confident looks let the leg do the talking.

Third, and most useful for real life: the tie is back, but not with a suit. The new move wears a tie over slouchy off-duty layers to sharpen an otherwise relaxed outfit, the same way the loafer crossed over a few seasons ago. Scarves finish the formula — chunky and voluminous or sleek and streamlined — and longline coats that fall below the knee give the whole thing its silhouette.

The practical version is simple. Take one wide, well-draped trouser, ground it with a proper boot, add a long coat and a scarf with some attitude, and let a tie do the work of a jacket when you want to look intentional without dressing up.

Halloween 2026 has made one decisive break with the past: the best costumes this year are not costumes at all. The shift is away from cheap polyester one-night outfits and toward real menswear pieces that go back into rotation on Monday — a dark suit, a structured overcoat, a rugged leather jacket, a navy workwear coverall, with one thematic accessory doing the character work.

The easy wins are already in most closets. A black tuxedo and polished derbies make Bond, no explanation needed. A hockey jersey over a long-sleeve tee with Levi's and New Balance nails the season's romantic-jock moment. A rust-orange suit with Timberlands channels Timothée Chalamet's all-orange press run. Even the wilder ideas — a purple leather trench for the Joker, a maroon wool suit for Beetlejuice — work because the tailoring is real.

The rule to carry past midnight: if every piece survives November, the costume was a good purchase. Buy the garment, borrow the character.