Style Icon: Kanye West

With the launch a new clothing line in the pipeline for US rapper and fashionista Kanye West is hot property not only in the music industry but fashion too.

Summer is a great time to be experimenting with new looks. You have the option of wearing brighter colours and can hook up different trends on holidays if you're conscious of the wrong person seeing you out on the town. One thing is for sure, if you're going for cool, then you don't get much cooler than Mr Kanye West.

Even if you don't think you can go to the extremes of urban as Mr West does, there is a lot to be learnt from his use of colour, design and accessories that you can use as much or as little when planning a new look.

The blue jacket in the main picture to the left is classic Kanye. Using block colour makes him stand out from the crowd, and as an entertainer, that's something he likes to do.

This blue blazer is a great piece to wear irrespective of the occassion. It can be worn with jeans or cream chinos and gives you pop. It also looks very classy, so try it on a night out too? You never know until you give it a go! Available from Asos for £75.

Another must if you're going for the understated cool look is some slouched jeans. They suit this look to the tee and you'll be able to plan so many different outfits with them - making it a stylish and practical piece of clothing, if you want to look good but shopping isn't your thing.

A pair of white trainers like these Nike Air Force 1s are recommended footwear for this look. Or coloured if you prefer. The style is the important thing and this high backed heeled are great for getting the Kanye look.

Bright T-shirts are a good way of getting colour into your style without having to do much else. You can look stylish with the minimal effort. Just throw on some jeans, a jacket and perhaps a necklace to accessorise and you've got it!

Glasses are the big thing! The bigger the better, just try to avoid the plastic shutter style. It's not cool to be a complete copycat!

Throw on a scarf, a fave accessory of Mr West and it can make an outfit. Again, it's all about getting the look without having to spend hours doing it. Find a monotone scarf and you have the perfect accessory that can go with any coloured outfit!

Oh and...don't forget some bling. We'll leave that to you.

MaleXtra Jen Fordie