FALL FASHION: REDUX

When we were deciding how exactly we would present Playboy.com’s 2013 Fall Fashion Preview, we mulled over a couple of options: we could have taken to the trenches, guerilla shooting street style in the thoroughfares of major metropolitan cities, posting them frantically on Instagram with less the funny captions. But that seemed laborious. We could have sorted through the relentless runway images from Fashion Week and compiled a gallery, but that seemed dull and passé. Like it had been done to death. We could have shot the products at sunset, laid out on rustic wooden backdrops and sponsored to high heaven, but that didn’t seem quite right. Instead, we got five of our favorite models together, dug up some body paint and produced ten totally new shoots, highlighting the best of what the Fall fashion season has to offer. As for the fashion, well, let’s just say we stuck with the adage less is more…

So in case you missed Playboy.com’s Fall Fashion Preview 2013, allow us to recap it for you. Or rather, allow Yevgeniya Diordiychuk, Elena Romanova, Victoria Marquez, Erica Grisby and Lina Sav recap it for you.

Check out her behind-the-scenes video below and see the 10 exclusive Fall Fashion pictorials, featuring Yevgenia, Victoria Marquez, Erica Grisby, Elena Romanova and Lina Sav here.

FALL FASHION PREVIEW: PAISLEY

Paisley. Once thought to be exclusive to carpets and curtains in Victorian homes, it has in recent years quit the halls of home décor and carved out a nice little niche for itself in haute couture.

That isn’t to say that paisley prints are reserved solely for custom-fitted, au courant French fashion houses; just the opposite. The pattern has been making the rounds and has reached a point of critical mass, the precipice so common to style in which a trend, used carefully and creatively enough, can no longer be contained to the runways and begins cropping up everywhere in everyday dress.

That is indeed where paisley finds itself today.

FALL FASHION: BURGUNDY ACCENTS

Over the past few years, burgundy has become nothing less than a staple menswear color. The combination of its approachability, versatility and sophistication has helped secure its place in the stylish modern man's wardrobe. And while it has appeared throughout the range of men's clothing—from sweaters to trousers to shoes and even full suits—it can often make its biggest and most stylishly subtle impact as an accent to a well-tailored and put together look.

Because of burgundy's versatility, it pairs well with just about anything, especially the colors that form the foundation of most men's wardrobes, including black, navy, gray and brown. As an alternative to a standard and bold red accent color, burgundy projects confidence, maturity and a certain sartorial sophistication.

FALL FASHION: GRAY-ON-GRAY

One of the most important things to consider when purchasing a suit is how much wear you’ll get out of it; you want to pick something you'll look forward to wearing often. From that perspective, a gray suit is the most versatile choice: it’s less formal than black and less businesslike than navy. Whether in a darker charcoal color or a lighter fabric, gray suits offer a lot of flexibility. You can feel free to experiment with your choice of shirt, shoes and tie (for more dressed-up occasions).

Apart from just color, gray suiting usually offers plenty of choice of texture, from rugged speckled wool to something smoother and more breathable. If patterns are more your thing, a subtle windowpane is always a smart choice. Just be sure that your choice of shirting and shoes is a sensible match to the fabric of the suit. For more casual outfits, you can experiment with socks that offer a pop of color to offset the gray. Playing around with how you wear a suit can make it seem like a whole new outfit.

FALL FASHION: FLORAL

In the sea of plaid and stripes, florals are a bit of an underrated trend for menswear. This is mostly due to the fact that floral patterns are unfairly tainted by misconceptions of femininity and memories of cheesy ’70s porno.

If you fall victim to these dated beliefs, it's time to press on the pedals for some petals. Pun intended.

FALL FASHION: TIES

I once met a guy at a bar who told me there were three things every man needed to know how to do. First, he needs to know how to pick out a quality cigar—learning how to smoke it is implied. Second, he said, a man should learn how to dance the waltz. Let’s be honest, every woman loves a man who can dance, and what’s classier than dancing the waltz? Nothing.

Learning how to tie a tie was the last requirement he mentioned, three pints in to his Gentlemen’s Guide, and I would agree. There is nothing sexier than watching a man tying his tie, loosening it or having him take it off.

Ties can be seen as masculine, stylish and even kinky (ask any woman who’s read Fifty Shades of Grey). Long gone are the days of only accessorizing for formal or business occasions; men’s accessories have become more playful and more accessible, so men have no excuse not to stock up their closets.

If you’re not sure where to start, in the words of Justin Timberlake’s “Suit & Tie,” “Let me show you a few things.”

FALL FASHION: BACKPACKS

You probably abandoned the backpack some time ago, back in your grade school days perhaps, at about the same time you became super self-aware and suddenly very conscious of your style choices. Something about the staple L.L.Bean bag with your initials carefully sewn into the cloth just didn’t sit right with your ever-evolving (and, upon further reflection, awful) style.

All told, it was probably the right move at the time; even slinging the thing over one shoulder went out with the Fresh Prince, Full House and Family Matters. But fashion trends always tend to come full circle, on an infinite slow loop, and so in 2013 we find ourselves back to backpacks.

FALL FASHION: CAMOUFLAGE

Of all the trends to tread lightly with this fall, camouflage really requires the most care. Whilepaisley can most definitely be overstated and florals need to have a masculine edge, camo can go sideways in any number of ways: too much, too early (fall/winter, folks). Wrong colors in the wrong places with all the wrong patterns (orange is out). Pants, period. Never wear camouflage pants.

But as dangerous as it is, and as often as it is butchered, it is a staple (what’s style without a little risk?), just one that requires some forethought; we’re going for fashion-forward, not Cobra Commander.

FALL FASHION: FUR

[Editor’s Note: We’d like to point out that no animals were harmed in the making of this shoot, nor does Playboy.com condone the use of real fur in the name of fashion. When we refer to fur in the following we are referring to faux fur and would like to further point out that countless models who have appeared in our pages—including Pamela Anderson and Olivia Munn—have made a point to pose nude for PETA for just this reason.]

Paisley and floral patterns might be daring, camouflage tricky, but these fall 2013 trends pale in comparison to the risk/reward associated with fur.

For starters, there will always be a wide circle of critics, ranging from the mildly offended to the militant, ready and willing to mark you (sometimes literally) as a pariah. Fur, whether faux or genuine, is what you might call a wedge issue; you’re either for it or against it, and there doesn’t seem to be much of a middle ground.

FALL FASHION: TRIBAL

There is no sense trying to discern the origin of any given tribal trend; they are an amalgamation of styles, drafted by designers from varying locales and fused together to create what we call fashion.

Back in 2009, it was in vogue to keep it to form, to rock not only the patterns but the garments on which they were traditionally worn. But a mere five years in the future, the trend has become to weave these often complex and colorful patterns through typically Western styles.