Today’s hype-fueled fashion landscape yields a mountain of fresh menswear every month. Which is why every issue of GQ now includes The Drops, a guide to the best of the best new gear as it hits stores. With spring finally on the way, we’re highlighting a boatload of the swankiest transitional essentials—from slime-toned trail sandals to rugged all-American belts.
TEMPORARY TATTOOS
You could spend thousands of dollars and untold painful hours accruing a torso full of sick tattoos—or you can just cop this inked-up Balenciaga zip hoodie ($1,350).
NOTHING UP YOUR SLEEVES
This mod striped Marni blazer can be worn over your shoulders like a cape, arms poking out through the split-and-fraying seams of the sides and sleeves ($2,600).
007 O’CLOCK
From its inky carbon-coated steel case to its menacing red-tipped crown, everything about Dior Timepieces’s latest Chiffre Rouge watch (including the name) feels tailor-made for a superspy ($7,900).
THE ZIPPY ZIP-UP
Australian-born, London-trained, Madrid-based designer Edward Cuming is quickly making a name for his namesake label on the strengths of his slouchy, sensual knitwear and clever command of color ($600).
WATER SHOES WITH DRIP
They’re built like gorpy kicks, but the pearl-and-crystal charms on Simone Rocha’s new Crocs collab make it clear these are for hiking down city streets ($200).
STAR-MAKING SHADES
These vibey frames by Thistles—the eyewear line from NYC-based stylist and photographer Thistle Brown—draw from a pair favored by Jackie O in the late ’60s ($275).
VINTAGE SWEATS
To celebrate his 10th anniversary at Coach, designer Stuart Vevers paid tribute to his favorite New York haunts—including the 74-year-old Upper East Side steakhouse Donohue’s, whose logo he reproduced on this exquisitely worn-in sweatsuit (sweatshirt, $195; sweatpants, $250).
RED-BLOODED BELTS
When you need something all-American and built to last, you go to Polo Ralph Lauren. The label’s timeless leather belts cover every size, shape, and dress code—from beefy suede born for cinching denim to plaque-buckle styles that play nice with a suit (from top, $78, $150, $95, $148, $90, $148, and $125).
TWO-WAY TOTE
Consider this reversible canvas MCM bag your new mood ring: light and natural on one side, rough-and-moody black on the other ($699).
YEE-HORNY
Between the sumptuous suede and the skin-baring slits on the chest, it’s tough to imagine a sexier shirt than this Commission Western snap-front ($1,695).
DOWNTOWN DENIM
To kick off the rebooted Helmut Lang, creative director Peter Do chopped up the label’s legendary 1998 New York taxi ads, which he emblazoned across pieces like these stout patchwork jeans ($495).
GREEN MEANS GO WILD
The trail-sandal wave is in its chaotic good phase, as evidenced by this minty Versace pair gussied up with shiny calf leather ($850).
STUDENT BECOMES MASTER
Margaret Howell somehow makes quaint British classics feel exquisitely elevated, like this wide-striped, muted-palette revamp of the preppy repp tie ($180).
WELCOME TO THE O.C.
Remember when board shorts owned beaches in the 2000s? So does Miu Miu, which gave a silky sheen to the surf-brah staple. Don’t forget some undies (briefs, $925; shorts, $1,750).
RIPLEY’S BELIEVE IT OR NOT
Look close and you’ll realize that the dark floral print on Prada’s latest Hawaiian shirt looks a lot like the nightmare-fuel work of Alien creature designer H.R. Giger (price upon request).
POSTMODERN TICKER
The ceramic-and-white-gold Richard Mille RM 07-01 timepiece is a geometric, pastel-happy homage to the Memphis design movement of 1980s Italy ($205,000).
CAT POWER
In keeping with Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello’s rock star MO, this ferocious taffeta trench seems built for a multiday, multicontinent bender ($6,100).
MAKE ELTON PROUD
Sometimes you need a pair of sunglasses that generate more glare than they block, like these Swarovski-crystal-encrusted Loewe shades ($550).
ISN’T THAT PRECIOUS?
Your grandma’s brooch collection has nothing on this showstopping Dior Men polo, bedazzled with dozens of dangly polished gemstones ($65,000).
SUPERSIZED ICE
The jewelry of right now is unapologetically big and bold, like these heavyweight diamond-studded David Yurman chain bracelets in yellow and white gold (left, $65,000; right, $50,000).
A VESTED INTEREST
No matter your headspace, pulling on this sleeveless Bally leather flight jacket will make you feel like a world-beating badass ($3,050).
TWO BECOME ONE
Sacai founder Chitose Abe, queen of the freaky fashion mash-up, channeled her mad science into a Carhartt piece that surgically combines the Detroit brand’s iconic canvas chore coat with a rakish blazer ($1,190).
MONSTER MASH-UP
From his early-aughts trucker caps to that towering fedora, Pharrell knows a statement hat. Now the Louis Vuitton Men’s creative director has applied his expertise to this Frankensteined checkerboard beanie ($705).
WORLD-CHAMPION DENIM
As if Eckhaus Latta’s gold-toned jeans didn’t already deserve the number one spot in your rotation, they also fit like a dream ($545).
A CARRYALL WITH CHARACTER
This leather Givenchy Voyou crossbody bag doesn’t just look like a thrifted grail—it’s made from actual vintage leather, which means all the cracks and bald spots were earned the hard way ($2,790).
BUCKAROO BOOTS
Lucchese has turned out the Wild West’s wildest boots since 1883—and this rose-embroidered pair, cooked up in a collab with country star Parker McCollum, prove the brand’s not slowing down ($2,995).
Yang-Yi Goh is GQ's Style Editor.
A version of this story originally appeared in the March 2024 issue of GQ with the title “38 Ways to Revive Your Style This Spring”
PRODUCTION CREDITS:
Photographs by Bowen Fernie
Prop Styling (still life) by Suzy Zietzmann
Prop Styling (laydowns) by Barbara Eisen at Mark Edward Inc.