PICKS OF THE WEEK

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This weeks top three picks from the high st embrace the current print trend.

This African print t-shirt is perfect for the Global Traveller look. It's an easy print to wear with jeans or chinos as well as chino shorts. If you're brave then mix with printed shorts. Check out Mansnaps contributor Owen Moss-Proctor editorial post for ideas!

Forever 21 offer affordable fashion had this vest is a prime example. The colour block print is a versatile piece, it will look great with shorts on the beach or layered under a shirt. Also the dark colour way will make it transitional through autumn as a layering piece.

I am in love with these paisley print shorts! If you're looking for something a little bit different this summer then these are perfect. Reasonably priced and a great style, these shorts will work well for print blocking or with a plain t-shirt or vest.

UNION JACK PRINTS

Rule Britannia!
The upcoming Queen's Jubilee and Olympics have resulted in a surge of patriotism across the high st. Union Jack prints are on literally everything, from t-shirts and vests to plates and bunting.

In recent years, the Union Jack print has been more commonly associated with British "Chav" culture which for the style conscious male, isn't the ideal advert. The time has come however to wipe the slate clean and where your blue, white and red with as much enthusiasm as the stars and stripes we see, season upon season in our stores.

As we start to build bridges with the Union Jack print there must be a degree of caution with your outfit choice, the last thing you want is to be branded a "Chav". So, it should go without saying that unless you are part of Team GB in the Olympics, avoid wearing sportswear with your Union Jack print. Certainly take inspiration from the Olympics but aim for a more "sports luxe" look mixing chinos, shorts with hoodies rather than jogging bottoms.

IT'S NICE THAT / HAWAIIAN SHIRTS

ASOS latest collaboration with cult magazine It's Nice That features five contrasting print shirts.

Five hand picked artists - Jonathan Zawada, Michael Willis, Mike Perry, Mario Hugo and Hisham Bharoocha have all been asked to design graphics for five different Hawaiian shirts for the collection titled It's Nice That / Hawaiian Shirts.

The collection is bold and gives me a real 90's Ace Ventura vibe, but in a good way. I posted about Hawaiian shirts on the high st a couple of weeks and these prints are crazy in comparison, but in a good way. I don't know if I could pull one off, but I'm definitely inspired.

For more info visit www.ASOS.com.

HAWAIIAN PRINT SHIRTS

There's no denying the huge increase in popularity of shirts this season, thanks largely to the current Aztec trend. I featured the new shirt trends in a post back in January and this is the follow up!

Hawaiian print shirts (or tropical print shirts) are going to be a big look this spring/summer. Designers such as James Long, Givenchy and Kenzo featured the prints on shirts, trousers, shorts and jumpers in their s/s12 collections.

The look is now starting to build on the high st and already there are a range of prints to suit everyone. Note that the majority will appear on short sleeve shirts. With prints this busy it would be difficult for every man to pull off the look in a long sleeves.

Much like the Aztec prints, you will either love this look or hate it. Personally, i love the look. Menswear is more exciting now than it has been for a while and we seem to be given options which are usually reserved for women. The nautical and Aztec trends both appeared at the same time as they did for women and Hawaiian prints seem to be following suit. So why not release the chains of those check shirts and reach for something more fun?