Bowled over: Menswear hits a strike with this season's must-have item

Spring/summer 2016 has seen men mired in a mood of retro – and no nostalgia trip is more ironically right-now than the classic fifties bowling shirt, says Lee Holmes

Valentino Spring/Summer 2016

The reappearance of the bowling shirt as the go-to top for this summer shouldn't really take any of us by surprise. Over the past couple of years, cherry-picking the 1950's era for menswear trends has become second nature for designers and high street brands alike. However, now that the Mad Men mania for sharp tailoring has seemingly died a death, what we're left with are relaxed old school classics – sportswear that’s still chic, men’s casual garments as envisaged in those halcyon, pre-shell-suit years.

The bowling shirt is the piece currently taking centre stage. But you shouldn't look to Steve Buscemi's Donny in the The Big Lebowski for your style tips - unless you're a vintage fanatic, Donny's shirts, made from heavy synthetic fabrics in garish shades, are an all-too-literal take on this All-American working class basic. Instead, this season, designers such as Louis Vuitton and Valentino used lightweight silks, while on the high street both Topman and H&M have opted for breathable cotton.

Whichever price bracket you fall into, or whether you opt for a traditional block colour or a jazzy print, the shirts in question are still undoubtedly heavy on nostalgia in terms of the cut; it should have a boxy shape and a straight hem that sits, untucked, on the waist. What's more, the open neckline should show plenty of that little known erogenous zone, the suprasternal notch. Plus, you don't need to be part of a bowling league to successfully blend it into your existing wardrobe staples.

And although ideally suited for casual wear - perhaps wear it over a wide legged pair of trousers - there's nothing to stop you from dressing this shirt up by wearing it under your suit jacket; the collars should be spread open over your suit lapels. However you choose to wear it, you'll look as though you know your strikes from your spares.