Real men wear pink

If men everywhere are to follow the fashion rules that movie character Alfie adheres to, we will be seeing the world through pink-tinted lenses. Or rather, the men will, because they will all be wearing dulcet pink tones. According to Jo Adams of the Observer, Wall's strawberry ice-cream pink is the colour to wear. Adams advises men to keep it simple, so no ruffles and no City boy pinks either.

Jude Law's character Alfie, in the same-titled remake of the sixties' classic, is the unwitting inspiration for this new colour palette for men. However, the look originated in the US where men everywhere have been spotted in bubble gum and soft pink tones. Even presidential candidate John Kerry has been sporting pink ties.

Head-to-toe pink for men has even come to encompass coats and shoes and boots. Pink trainers are all the rage in the States, with men even lining up to buy the women's version. Chicago Tribune reporter Nara Schoenberg ventured a guess as to why pink was suddenly so hot and came up with: "Uneasy times call for upbeat colours."

But there is more to it than that. US rappers and hiphop artists appear to have led the way in the pink revolution. Especially Harlem rapper Cam'ron Giles. He even went so far as to carry a pink cell phone and drive a pink Range Rover. However, as always, it seems that we are lagging behind the trends just a little. Cam'ron recently announced that he was 'over' the colour pink, and wanted to move on to a new colour. As yet, his choice has not been confirmed, but with a new album called Purple Haze coming out in December, the choice should be limited.