ARE YOU FEELING MOD? I AM

Posted by Fashion Editor at Large
Additional research Bethan Holt

Last week we explored aspects of Teddy Boy style. This week we delve into the even more influential-for-now Mod style...

Incidentally, British high street fashion retailers have reacted to the Mod influence shown in pre-fall and catwalk collections for Autumn/Winter 2011, so be prepared for an onslaught.


The Mod and his Moped were inseparable (image from 60smodfox.blogspot.com)

 The Mods (i.e. Modernists as opposed to Traditionalists) can truly lay claim to having permanently changed  the British cultural landscape. Their key stomping ground was Carnaby Street where they would all meet up on a Saturday to spend their hard-earned cash on sleek Italian tailoring and Parkas to protect said tailoring as they sped about town on their most important accessory- the moped. The shopping destination of choice was John Stephen's 'His Clothes' from where trends were dictated. Here is Stephen himself telling us his key pieces for the wannabe Mod.  Particularly interesting is his response to the analysis that Mod fashions might be effeminate. For his generation, no, he says: that is the old thinking which he and his peers are seeking to challenge. These sentiments are so key to the events which would come to give that decade its ‘Swinging Sixties’ moniker- swinging from the old school, stiff upper lip to a sexual revolution  which ultimately came to be expressed in the hippie movement.

The Beatles in moddish mode with their sharp suits and chelsea boot/winklepicker hybrids (image from last.fm)

The details here- the contrasting lapel and skinny collar- scream Mod (Celine Pre-Fall 2011)

In 1966, The Kink's 'Dedicated Follower of Fashion' signified just how much the Mod generation had permeated the national consciousness- they had become so big that they were now worthy of a highly public mocking. According to The Kinks, Mods were all 'eagerly persuing the latest fads and trends' and could alter their attire at a moment's notice- 'one week he's in polka dots, the next week he's in stripes'. 

The Mod look has proved a huge source of inspiration for the AW11 collections.To perfect the Mod look, there are several key pieces which your wardrobe must contain. An extremely slick overcoat, preferably of the parka or trench variety, slim fit trousers, crafted using the very latest in Italian tailoring techniques and a skinny collared shirt- the specific colours and patterns would have changed on a weekly basis for the 60s Mod. but for AW11 it seems that Celine's geometric blue will set the standard.

One of the four amazing parkas from Joseph Altuzarra's AW11 collection



The sharp lines of the trench, with it's exaggerated epaulettes, and peep of tailoring in Burberry's AW11 collection
recall the Mod silhouette

Celine's generous and precisely tailored coat from the Pre-Fall 2011 collection is perfect for emulating the Mod's preferred cover-up while also encompassing vibes of the Italian tailoring worn underneath

The perfect moddish shirt- Celine Pre-Fall 2011

 On the shoe front, the Teddy Boys' beloved winklepicker was also a Mod favourite- a chelsea boot or desert boot will also do the job nicely. And finally, it won't fit in your wardrobe, but to carry off the Mod look to perfection, a moped, preferably a Vespa (Italian clothes, Italian wheels) is essential.

A Chelsea Boot try on session (Image from thesongsthatpeoplesing.wordpress.com)

Burberry and Celine are the go-to labels for the AW11 interpretation of the Mod look but be prepared to see plenty of high street references too. The Mod's sartorial signature soon gained a more futuristic and geometric slant. Silhouttes became bolder and colours brighter. This was also when the female Mod look really came into its own, with mini lengths and the Vidal Sassoon five point hair cut . At Balenciaga, there is a nod to this brighter aesthetic but the Italian tailoring and longer length coat still dominates.

Celine's Pre-Fall 2011 trench seems to bridge the gap between the 'classic' mod look and the progression to colour and geometric construction

Balenciaga also showed space-mod influences for AW11

Balenciaga AW11

Images courtesy of Catwalking.com and Style.com