Ermenegildo Zegna Couture A/W 2014

The crown jewel fabrics spun for over a century in Zegna's Biella factory have never found a caregiver quite like Stefano Pilati. The maverick Italian designer, now in his second season at the classical menswear powerhouse, has a magic touch that transforms traditional sartorial snoozers into fantasy-laden gems. In Pilati's hands, a basic wool suit - jacket cut slim around the shoulders and cropped short with a pronounced flap, pants straight but relaxed - is given expert complexity and depth. Pilati twists tradition in whatever he touches, wringing out the boredom of plaids, wools and flannels by ribbing them, quilting them, or giving them a micro-structure that splinters the surface into a galaxy of pin points. What is remarkable about his exercise is that the clothes look 100 per cent normal, and yet, they still possess an assured power to intrigue. We craned our necks in his unusually configured show space (no front row-what a treat!) to get a better look at tent shaped puffer jackets, deliciously fox collared anoraks and the line-up of supremely cut bomber jackets. But best of all were a pair of crocodile galoshes that are just begging to stomp through winter's pesky rain puddles. Photography: Jason Lloyd Evans