Love or loathe the tube, there's no denying the fact that London Underground has a truly iconic aesthetic. The world's first city subway is awash with classic design, from Harry Beck's topological Tube Map to the station signage and typography.
To celebrate the tube's 150th anniversary, Roundel - a 'contemporary youth brand inspired by London and designed for the world' - fuses a warmth and fondness for this quintessentially 'London' iconography with urban fashion to create a unisex range of clothing that embraces the capital's cool, street style edge in understated basics.
As logo-heavy fashion continues to dominate, the simplified and historical London Underground motifs seen in the Roundel collection appear on trend, but in a more understated way. The laid-back clothing styles - hoodies, t-shirts, bomber jackets - combine with a clever use of prints for a vibe that draws on a variety of archetypal music identities from indie to ska and punk - well suited to a city whose fashion and music scenes are so culturally intertwined.
The footwear element of the collection comes courtesy of a collaboration with Nike and is one of my favourite recent releases. Two classic shoe silhouettes make up the Roundel drop which comprises the Air Max 1 Jacquard SP and the Nike Air Max 90 Jacquard SP, feature the District Line's famous colour blocked fabric design, updated in Nike's modern engineered woven jacquard. I love the style touch on the tongue which features an embroidered monochrome roundel (the name of the strikethrough circle tube symbol). These sneakers are hot property with trainer connoisseurs and design fans alike, and have been selling out constantly so my top tip would be to look out on social media for restocks.
Shop the full range of Roundel London clothing at www.roundel-london.com which offers free worldwide shipping.