Mind Games
Third Floor Pulls Menswear Up a Level
Like any good haunted house, there are probably rooms in our mind better left unexplored and whole sections we’d rather not fuck with. The designers behind new menswear line Third Floor have a far healthier appetite for adventure, and find inspiration in darker, more forbidden recesses. “It’s about a guy who is trapped in his mind, ” says designer A (the group prefer to comment as a collective) of their debut collection Mind Over Matter. “We’ve all been depressed at some point in life, or opened a door in our mind that seems unfamiliar. It’s not that this guy is going insane, it’s more about finding that place where creativity happens.” With hunting green manteaus festooned with straps (the straightjacket cape) and oversized quilted sweats (the padded cell pants) the collection flirts with the line where insanity meets genius. Using futuristic utilitarianism and the anti-heroes of tragic youth as a starting point. Third Floor gently coaxes traditional men’s tailoring out of its comfort zone. — Chioma Nnadi