L.L. Bean’s Fall Collection Has a Fresh Spin on the Classics
Menswear designer Todd Snyder had some exciting new ideas for two New England institutions this month.
L.L. Bean x Todd Snyder Bean Boot, $279 / Photo by Travis Rathbone
If you’re the type of purist who thinks the Bean boot couldn’t possibly be improved upon, consider turning the page now. But if you believe an old dog can and should learn new tricks, you’ll want to get your hands on L.L. Bean’s newest collab posthaste.
For fall 2020, the shining star of all-American menswear, Todd Snyder, has collaborated with the iconic Maine clothier to mix up the best of the backwoods with a tasteful dash of urban panache. “I’ve wanted to approach L.L. Bean since starting my own line in 2011,” the designer says. “There is so much history, heritage, and purpose in what they do.”
Available at L.L. Bean’s Seaport store this month, Snyder’s designs offer all of the things we love about the brand—comfort, durability, ruggedness—interpreted for a more stylish outdoorsman. To wit: high-pile Sherpa shirt jackets look as at home in a Vermont campground as they would on a chilly morning walk through the South End. A cozy oversize puffer jacket gets a show-stopping update with an all-over lakefront-vista print. And, of course, there are the boots themselves. For his take, Snyder kept the silhouette by and large the same, but played with details such as adding a blaze-orange sole and hunter-green leather upper. It’s definitely an adventurous spin on a New England classic, but Snyder was sure to keep his design choices within the brand’s existing vernacular. “Going back through the archives at Bean and seeing old photos of the founder, Leon Leonwood Bean, in his hunting gear, he had this very authentic and down-to-earth aesthetic. I really wanted to bring that to life,” he says.
Inspired by his new L.L. Bean collection, Todd Snyder’s “From Away” cabin at Hidden Pond resort in Kennebunkport, Maine, features a cozy fireplace and lots of plaid. / Photo by Jack Vatcher
Snyder’s Maine mania didn’t stop with just one collaboration, though. Inspired by the same textiles and aesthetics found in his L.L. Bean collection, Snyder has also redesigned one of the Treetop Lodge cabins at Hidden Pond resort in Kennebunkport, putting his signature touch on every plank and beam. Aptly titled the “From Away” cabin—because if you’re not from Maine, you’re “from away,” as any local will tell you—it features chairs reupholstered in L.L. Bean plaid, vintage Maine posters and artwork on the walls, and elegant midcentury furniture. It all makes for a very tempting place to kick your feet up—after taking off your upgraded Bean boots, of course.
Things We Love
Photo by Mona Miri
1 Patterned puffer jacket, $650.
Photo by Mona Miri
2 Crew sweater, $199.
Photo by Mona Miri
3 Sherpa shirt jacket, $159.
