Talking fashion with the man behind Love Island's divisive wide leg trousers and fisherman sandals.
From Lemaire to Love Island: Brett Staniland Talks About His Villa Wardrobe
Most fans of iTV’s hit reality dating series Love Island are tuning in for the drama, the tension, and, of course, the promise that the singles competing actually find love. The fashion, while exuberant and expressive, isn’t typically one of the reasons to check in each week. Brett Staniland, a model and fashion expert, flipped the script, bringing a suitcase of camp shirts, wide-leg pants, and Casablanca kicks to the villa when he appeared as a contestant on the show’s seventh season. While he lasted only a handful of episodes, his fashion sense was in marked contrast to the tight, bro-y looks that define Love Island menswear—instead of Boohoo Men, he packed Lemaire!
Staniland’s on-trend menswear didn’t always translate for the audience–one viewer remarked of his Katharine Hamnett jacket and fisherman sandals, “Did Brett get dressed in the dark tonight?”—but it did resonate within the fashion community, where he is an avid member of High Fashion Twitter, often collaborating with other emerging critics and commentators. Here, Staniland shares the ins and outs of his Love Island style and which couple he’s rooting for in the finale tonight.
Steff Yotka: Why did you want to be on Love Island? Were you surprised, excited, or scared to be selected?
Brett Staniland: I did the show for genuine reasons and that was to actually find love! I hoped I would offer something different to the usual archetypal males that go on the show; in terms of masculinity as well as a slightly more educated person on the show. I was really excited to be selected; there was still lots of uncertainty about the circumstances around actually entering the villa and you’re never fully confirmed until you step foot inside, so it was definitely a nerve-racking process! The recoupling on my first full day was very intense! Priya helped calm my nerves that night for sure!
How did you plan your wardrobe?
I tried to plan ahead, so I put together some resort-wear for the daytime. I had a few pieces from Orlebar Brown (polos, terry toweling shirt, silk resort shirt, and swim shorts), as well as some seersucker swim shorts from Hemingsworth. For the evenings I took mostly shirts, some from Lemaire, Nanushka, King & Tuckfield, and SamsoeSamsoe, but annoyingly couldn’t wear some of them as they strobed the cameras! I did manage to wear a few, including one from Riley Studio and t-shirts from Asket. The white denim jacket that I let Teddy wear, and that I left in, is from the Katharine Hamnett Reimagine collection with Patrick McDowell. Teddy wanted to buy that off me but there was no chance! I wore a wide leg suit trouser in nutmeg from Nanushka and some other pieces from the French tailoring brand De Fursac. Trainers were New Balance x Casablanca and the burgundy loafers and the famous suede sandals were from Church’s.
This story originally appeared on: Vogue - Author:Steff Yotka
