You can see where some trends in fashion come from: the influence of the way the clothes are worn in a big film; the style exhibited by an influential star or a rock band or habitués of a nightclub with a distinctive look. Then there are others who seem to have been plucked out of nowhere: you imagine all the designers sitting around towards the end of whatever long meeting they have where these things are decided, suggesting pretty much any old cobblers in the hope of wrapping things up so they can get back to their ateliers in time for A Place In The Sun: Home Or Away.
I assume this monkey-tennis stage is where this season's vogue for paint splatters is rooted. It's not without precedent, usually among people who want to align themselves with the fierce artistic spirit of Jackson Pollock – such as The Stone Roses and The Clash, who wore paint-spattered uniforms in their early days. This time the look is more extreme: photos in style mags suggest everything from blitzkrieg by the seagull Luftwaffe to manhandled out of B&Q following a psychotic episode: "Applied to trouser legs towards the cuff, the splatters travelled upwards to give an impression of having jumped in a puddle of spilt emulsion," wrote one of the Gaultier collection.
I'm duty-bound to say that, in moderation, I think paint-splatters look pretty good, perhaps because I'm from a generation for whom The Stone Roses were a game-changer. One item, probably a shirt: fine. Head to toe, as some stylists seem to suggest: short cut to looking like a decorator's radio.
Alexis wears jeans £180, by Diesel.
T-shirt £19.99, by Zara.
Shoes £125, by Russell & Bromley.
Photograph: David Newby. Stylist: Aradia Crockett. Grooming: Jen Fechter at Era Management.
