It is not by chance that Stockholm is the hometown of the H&M brand. Swedes are very well-informed about trends and love to follow them. The boys around the hip area called SoFo are now wearing turn-up trousers, wide-brim hats, striped t-shirts, conservative haircuts with gel, and the most recent trend, the fisherman cap.

All not so surprising. With fast fashion brands becoming so ubiquitous, all the world is dressing more similarly. The inevitable comparison to the concept of uniforms shows the direction that fashion is taking nowadays.

For this reason, perhaps, I ended up more interested in the attire of the Swedish army.  A strong connection with the Viking heritage still exists. Although the Swedish Army is neutral, you cannot say the same about its’ uniform. Querelle, our favourite anti-hero from the seas, would love it.

Not to miss: the video from Ok Go! band for the song “This Too Shall Pass“.

From the top: three images of the Royal Guards of Sweden and its uniforms; young Swedish soldier rests; windows displays from a tailor shop and H&M store in Norrmalm and Prince Carl Philip from Sweden in April this year and one year before, on his 30th birthday.

Photos: Hermano Silva © 2010 / Julien M. Hekimian and Abaca