History of the Riviera Style
The “Riviera Style” refers to a style that evolved over the course of a few decades by affluent holidaymakers from around the world, who would travel to the French and Italian Riviera to spend their summers starting from the turn of the century.
The items of clothing are a mix of influences, due to the mix of people from different backgrounds that ended up congregating on the riviera, and included clothing from sportswear, clothing for sailing, civilian wear, even military wear.
Here is our take on the breton stripe:
It was then further glamourised by the Hollywood elite in the 50s and 60s - think Alain Delon in Purple Noon or Cary Grant in How to Catch a Thief.
Given the warm climate, those who would normally dress formally in their day to day opted for lighter fabrics and materials and to “loosen up” up their fits in an effort to stay cool and relaxed.
It is therefore no surprise why what we now term the riviera style makes a person still look so well put together and has an air of formality, even though the person donning the outfit is so relaxed - in essence it is still formal items of clothing, just very much designed with light materials and drapey fit in mind.
How to do Riviera Style
There are a few quick style tips that instantly put you within the riviera style and signal a break way from the more ordinary modern summer style, but in its essence, it is underpinned by a sense of relaxed elegance. The trick is to still wear items of clothing that are formal, but in a relaxed way.
The nice thing about riviera style in the summer is that it still makes you look well put together but without the pitfall of looking out of place or that you are trying too hard.
Top:
On the top, you would want to stick to collared shirts and polos, and if you want to wear something collarless, a knitted t-shirt, rather than an ordinary cut and sewn t-shirt. Other common items that quickly denote riviera style are old sportswear pieces like breton stripes. You would then want these to have a slightly relaxed fit. Some of the Riviera Style pieces from our range of knitwear would include the following:
The Cashmere Silk Tennis Polo:
The Cashmere Cotton Breton stripe:
The Cashmere Silk Resort Shirt:
Further down, we’ve curated some looks featuring these knits to give you some inspiration on how to pull off your own riviera style using our knitwear.
Although not essential, and very much a matter of personal taste, you can then further elevate the outfit with a bandana to add a point of interest:
Bottom:
On the bottom, you would want to wear something equally relaxed and light weight, like a pair of loosely fitted trousers or shorts. But note, that the style of the bottoms is still formal (so no jeans), it’s just that the silhouette is relaxed, like so:
Shoes:
Lastly in terms of footwear, you would want to keep your ankles aired, so loafers, open toe or closed toe sandals or espadrilles are easy favourites.
Colours:
In terms of colour combinations, you would want to either go for something high contrast between top and bottom, like a dark brown top and cream bottoms:
Or if you wish to dress tonally, then do so cream/beige, like so:
We’ll now go through the pieces from our range that will help you effortlessly pull off riviera style and give you a few looks to try yourself.
Riviera Style with the Cashmere Silk Tennis Polo
This look here features our cashmere silk tennis polo in dark brown with a pair of loosely fitted white trousers and white deck shoes. The cream trousers are loose and are quite formal, yet relaxed and the polo isn’t too fitted, draping comfortably, thus emanating the riviera style:
You can complete the look with our superfine lambswool tennis cardigan in oatmeal, the oatmeal ties in with the cream colour of the trousers. Again the cardigan isn’t too fitted and is styled in a relaxed way:
Having a pair of cream, loosely fitted trousers we find is very helpful for the riviera look as you can simply swap out the top and the trousers will go with virtually any colour. Here we’ve swapped out the dark brown polo for a cream one, and it works just as well, allowing for a tonal riviera pool side look:
If concerned about the evening breeze, you can sling a cable knit round your shoulder like we’ve done with our cricket jumper:
Or you can wear a light blazer over the top, like so:
Another example of how wearing formal items but in a relaxed way goes a long way in executing the riviera style. Here we’ve opted to pair with cashmere silk tennis polo in dark brown with oat. The oatmeal suit, though formal, is relaxed and in a light, linen fabric:
A couple more examples of how the cream trousers can go with many different colours, and how a light weight blazer can help finish the riviera look effortlessly, starting with the cashmere silk tennis polo in olive:
And cashmere silk tennis polo in terracotta:
Another hallmark of the riviera style is to wear something like a polo shirt or knitted shirt loosely with shorts, like so:
In keeping with the riviera style, you can drape a light piece of knit in a tonal colour over your shoulders for when it gets breezy by the beach:
Riviera Style with the Cashmere Cotton Breton Stripe
Our first look here is a simple pairing with a white trouser with our cashmere cotton Breton stripe in the traditional ecru and navy. We’ve layered over the top with a light weight chambray shirt to add interest, but note it is styled in a relaxed rather than a buttoned up way:
If you prefer a darker colour, our dark olive/navy colourway works well too with the white trousers - here is an example of pairing something dark on top with something light on the bottom, a characteristic of the riviera style. We’ve finished the look with a loosely fitted navy blazer:
Riviera Style with Merino Sport Shirt
We’ve mentioned above that the riviera style is all about relaxed refinement so there are no features of t-shirts or jeans. But if you wish to wear something like a t-shirt, then you will have to opt for knitted t-shirt top, like our merino sport shirt. The reason is because it looks more formal than a t-shirt and the premium, fully-fashioned nature of the construction means that the curves of the shirt follow the contours of your body like your shoulders, making it look more elevated.
Here are a few looks to inspire you. The first one features our merino sport shirt in camel, and we’ve gone for a classic combination, with a pair of loosely fitted linen trouser, espadrilles and bandana round the neck:
Another look here, this time we feature the merino sport shirt in olive and it is worn with a pair of shorts and a loose, very light weight, slightly wrinkly linen blazer with our oatmeal sweater round the shoulder for an extra non-chalant, but elegant look:
Riviera Style with Cardigans
For layering over the top, a light weight, relaxed cardigan is always a good call for the riviera style, and borrowing sportswear inspirations, our merino club cardigan would be the prefect fit, given the stretchy and relaxed, comfortable feel of the material:
You could also make use of our superfine lambswool tennis cardigan, for styling over the top of a loosely fitted shirt:
Riviera Style with Cashmere Silk Resort Shirt
Finally our cashmere silk resort shirt is the epitome of riviera style. Loosely fitted, and buttoned down with functioning cuffs, it’s knitted in a remarkably soft and light cashmere silk yarn, giving the piece a draped look. Pair with white trousers and a relaxed brown blazer for an effortless, elegant riviera look:
