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I’m of the opinion that everything in fashion is essentially a form of self-expression and gives us a read into our overall values. Fashion allows us to assert a self that tells a story by bridging the gap between where we have been, who we are and where we are going. Garments are the individual elements of design within a fashion period and are a tangible part of the human identity, thus, mirroring the individual's sense of relevance while living a collective experience in a material reality. Yet, many of us do not take into consideration that our actual garments connect us to our past while also propelling us into our future through the expression of the styles and even moreso, the producers of the clothing we choose. When I look at a garment I don’t simply see something beguiling, boring, flattering or intriguing, I see an expression from an artist created in a moment in time- an era-  and brought to market to help communicate the specific identity of a given individual's purpose to the larger society. Fashion is a language which can be used to seperate or bring us together. It speaks across socio-economic lines, genders, and ethnicities.

Since the industrial revolution most of us in society at large have lost touch with the people, process, and inspiration behind those creating our garments, seperating us from clearly understanding even our own choices to wear what we do. Three hundred years ago, we would have known every detail that goes into what we wear from the plant or animal the fabrics are made from, to the people designing and contructing the garment. Today, the fashion community is often mocked for being the perpetrator of things shallow and vain, many of us fail to realize that couture is one of the last remaining places where one can learn to be an artisan of garment making. A consumer of couture, for example, will be educated on where the fabric comes from, and has all of the relevant information regarding it's construction readily avaible to him or her. The garments are made specifically for the wearer.

It would be intersting to see what those who find themselves “not interested in the fashion world,” think about if they were to have the origins and construction process of their Old Navy tee shirts and blue jeans explained to them. Most clothing is disposable and made to keep a massive industry thriving in order to fullfill the insatiable demands of people encouraged to remain on the fast-track of mindless consumption at huge expense of other culures and people in far away places. At one time, garment making was the craft of artisans who create works of art for self realized individuals who understand the balance of things in nature as well as in society. In the modern world, however, it is a rare person who can call him or herself a couturier. Living  in Seattle, Francisco Hernandez of Built For Man is a quintessential example. Subterfuge editor-in-chief Sarah Caples and I were invited to Francisco Hernandez' Capitol Hill Built For Man studio for a sneak peak and photo shoot of his latest collection.

The designs for Built For Man are comprised of three origins of garment construction: The Loom Project, Built In Seattle and Industry. Each of these elements makes Built For Man a socially responsible brand, separating it from the pack when it comes to Seattle design houses.

The Loom Project reaches out to rural Peruvian communities providing them with looms, thread and the opportunity to keep ancestral weaving techniques alive in their culture. The artisans get paid fair-trade prices for the materials they produce and they get to keep the looms to continue to teach further generations their craft. The Loom Project is also completely green in the sense that looms do not require electricity to run, cutting down on the emissions produced by factories housing industrial weaving machines. The traditional unku, a rectangular robe that Francisco brings to the 21^st century, is one of the items crafted on these looms. This item would be warm and cozy to wear on a rainy, cold Seattle day, yet it is surprisingly masculine in appearance. One would think any man would gladly shed his frumpy fleece for this garment, which exudes a casual formality functioning like a sweater because of the knit, but able to do the job of a trench coat in terms of style.

Built In Seattle, is the in-house component, where garments are made at Hernandez's studio, producing items like his popular corvatts- a modern take on the traditional cravat. This item is even more appealing than an ascot, and slightly more versatile and super sexy.

Industry, the third origin of the garment construction, includes the carefully selected factories with favorable ethics regarding the environment and hiring practices. Built For Man is also renowned for its use of talented up-and-coming design students through rewarding internships.

Francisco thinks of Built For Man as a tribe rather than a brand. The core principle of this tribe mentality is that everyone brings something unique to the table. In the Americas, in order to be allowed into a tribe you had to bring something special of yourself to give and, of course, you were also given something as well. This process ensured the thriving of individuals as an intrisic part of the community, and therefore communities thrived as well. Francisco fully believes that when artists produce in a tribe like environment they can grow together.

Currently, Built For Man is using Andrew Springer, a stunning newcomer on the modeling scene who recently won the Planet Adonis 2011 Calendar Competition (designer Carole McClellan and I were both judges) as the face of its newest collection. He represents the iconic Seattle man of Nordic decent: a rugged man of the new world, yet refined. Someone with progressive, avant- garde ideas, self aware, insistent on living in harmony with his natural environment and as a leader within the social arena. A refreshing point of view for today in its optimism, and a much needed archetype.

The development of menswear has been stagnant for the last 100 years with little advancement except in the exaggeration of fit. Hernandez plays with various menswear design elements -that most designers are taught to leave alone- such as button placement, yokes and the building up of the neck and shoulders in silhouette. Francisco has been able to develop a look and feel that is his own, if not revolutionary in the field of menswear. Built For Man’s aesthetic of the “Urban Nomad” is a concept that Hernandez has been developing specifically for the Seattle man. Working from the fiber up, soon, from the animal up using the best fibers such as baby alpaca yarn – a hollow fiber that is lightweight, incredibly warm, and much more breathable than traditional European wools. Also, pima cotton, a fiber that’s undeniably soft to the touch, and silk, to create practical and polymorphic separates that when used in a man's wardrobe, bring about new and wondrous possibilities. As a designer, Hernandez is in tune and in front. These pieces are the next big thing, redefining the way men think about modes of dress in Seattle, if not the nation. He has developed a look that falls well into place with the Seattle customer and with men in general, simply because it reflects who he is so thoroughly, from the artisinal aspect to the design elements, and even pricepoint. The pieces are bold and adaptable, making them covetable items. They flatter and work with a man's physique, instead of against it, giving the feeling of elegant dominance but are still somehow down to earth. Recently named number 38 in Seattle Metropolitan's “Top 100 Reasons We Love Seattle”, it’s my guess that for sartorial, bellwether men, Built For Man will be number one.

For more information on Francisco Hernandez or Built For Man please visit www.builtforman.com