A chat with the ever-evolving Tom Ford

Milan

"CLASSICS," designer Tom Ford said, looking out over his showroom. "We make classic menswear. That's what I like on men."

Directly in front on him was a display of evening jackets: one in a Pucci-esque swirl of psychedelic greens, another in an electric shade of pink. A few models were circling the room, some outfitted for evening, one in an animal-print swimsuit small enough to ball up in your fist. It was 9am.

Ford is returning to colour. He had been in a neutral mood the past few seasons, but now colour is back, often shown in the tone-on-tone style he prefers. "It's a very sort of '70s thing to do," he said. "There was, in the '70s, a moment when even a few luxury companies used to sell a tonal shirt and tie together in a plastic box. I love that." He himself, as usual, was in his customary dark palette. "I don…