Top St Martins Graduates:

No 6: Sander Lak

Sander Lak's designs combine many elements of the austere style of Raf Simons and the youthful grunge of Marc Jacobs. His constantly evolving and inspirational take on menswear is something to be applauded, especially since this category has many more boundaries and limits than its Female counterpart. This young CSM graduate admits that his narcissism helps the creative process as he constantly draws on his own male style, experiences and dreams.

For his graduate collection he drew on his childhood experience of having to wear hand-me-down clothes from his older brothers. He researched the durability of timeless childrenswear items like the polo, the bib and T-shirts and then combined the patterns of casual, basic menswear with elements of the shape and fit of children's clothes (No shoulders, short legs and different proportions.) He describes the result as a "cheesy tribute to Jan Kremer" and "A subtle, wearable collection for the kid in every grown-up."

At the tender age of 21 this Dutch designer had already caught the creative eye of Marc Jacobs for whom he was interning in New York. The designer took him somewhat under his wing and Lak helped add a few touches to the collection himself. We can expect many great things from this young menswear designer I think.