New York Fashion Week descended on the city last week, delivering a wealth of new inspiration for consumers and high street retailers. From electric shades of yellow and green, to a spotlight on handcrafted details, here are 10 Spring ’19 trends bound to make a splash at retail in a big way.
Power suit
Women’s suiting has been on the up and up for several seasons, but the category breaks out of its novelty zone with wider silhouettes and sophisticated fabrics for Spring ’19.
Calvin Luo found inspiration from the ’30s and ’40s, resulting in pencil skirt suiting and matching trench coats. Cutouts added a contemporary and architectural feel to the looks. Gabriela Hearst took to tailoring with fuss-free pant suits in feminine colorways. Checks and pinstripes grounded Tibi’s suiting, which included wrap-around blazers and longer silhouettes.
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And for its 40th anniversary show, Escada channeled ’80s vibes with loose and slinky double breasted summer suiting reminiscent of Vivian Ward’s makeover look in Pretty Woman.
Fluorescents
Color lit up the runway, but none like the Day-Glo shades of green, yellow, pink and orange that illuminated NYFW. Sheer and satin neon pieces by designers Angel Chen, Christian Siriano, Prabal Gurung and Milly glowed on the runway.
The intense colors will undoubtedly be part of the ’80s and ’90s revival—as seen in the spring collections from Jeremy Scott and Opening Ceremony. However, the colors will also make an impact in the dress and ready-to-wear categories, serving as a modern update for slip dresses, suiting and handkerchief hem frocks.
What’s more, the colors already have a stamp of approval by tastemakers like Bella Hadid, Kim Kardashian West and Kylie Jenner, all who have been sporting the shocking colors this past summer.
Travel mode
Designers are churning out swimsuits, kaftans and fashionable travel accoutrements to feed millennials’ wanderlust.
Michael Kors did what he does best, Americana kitsch, with retro vacation wear. The collection was a collage of nostalgic references—spanning ’50s swim dresses and caps and ’60s floral prints, to ’70s floppy hats and sun bleached denim. Designer Anna Sui translated her signature gypsy look into a global range of floral swimsuits and sheer dusters, chinoiserie separates, beaded tunics and turbans.
3.1 Philip Lim’s metallic knit separates dialed up the trend’s glam factor, while Oscar de la Renta fittingly brought elegance to travel style with dramatic kaftans and cascading tassels.
Black and white
Black and white arguably never go out of style, but the color combination was presented in new creative ways bound to have mass appeal.
The hue duo was a natural go-to for Christian Cowan’s checkerboard prints. Naeem Khan’s deconstructed butterfly print looked sharp in black and white. Wes Gordon’s first collection for Carolina Herrera featured off-the-shoulder tops, long skirts and ruffled frocks in contrasting black and white polka dot prints. The color trend also suits fashion’s movement toward ’90s minimalism. 3.1 Philip Lim summed up this look with simple silhouettes in black and white with body-conscious cutouts.
Fringe
There’s a fringe for every style this season. Marcel Ostertag and Oscar de la Renta channeled flapper fashion with swingy cocktail dresses. However, the flourish was also used in more wearable ways, including as trim on Oscar de la Renta’s chic suits. Libertine turned swatches of shimmery fabrics into a cascade of fringe on its youthful coats.
And then there is Coach’s prairie-meets-Santa Fe-collection that honored American craftsmanship with fringe suede and leather vests and jackets. Longchamp took a Western approach as well with fringe swaying from its gladiator sandals, leather jackets, leopard print ponchos and wide belts.
Knots
Named one of the key NYFW trends to watch by Edited, knotted details lived up to the hype. The twisted technique proved to be a figure flattering and effortlessly chic way for designers to add shape to jersey or poplin tops and dresses. In the case of Bevza, knots served as a creative way to introduce color blocking.
And the trend is also evolving. Expect to see tops and dressed pinched in unexpected places to add volume and drape.
Feathers
Designers weren’t afraid of ruffling any feathers. Colorful plumes graced the Marc Jacobs’ catwalk, where the designer juxtaposed wild ruffles and giant flowers with coats covered in colorful feathers. Christian Cowan added a Vegas showgirl-worthy sash of feathers of his prim and proper pastel suit, while ostrich feathers slithered down Calvin Luo’s shift dresses.
The trend is bound to be picked up by accessories designers seeking a seasonal update to the colorful furry shoe and handbag trend that kicked off last fall.
Mixed prints
Prints—with an emphasis on the ‘s’—made an impression on the runway. Mixed prints added a joyful, springtime feel to separates, dresses and even men’s suiting. Michael Kors used prints with contrasting color palettes for his spirited vacation collection. Australian brand Zimmermann opted for vintage romance with frocks made from a collection of ’70s-inspired paisley prints.
Libertine designer Johnson Hartig, on the other hand, selected a wide variety of prints—from botanical and abstract florals, to geometric patterns and faux needlepoint bunnies—for his upbeat collection. The prints came together in men’s suiting and women’s silk skirts.
As the trend for maximalism in fashion escalates, expect to see more designers embrace mixed prints. It’s an easy and impactful way to standout on the sales floor, and may provide new opportunities for designers to integrate upcycled fabrics into their collections.
Transparency
“Transparency” may be the apparel industry’s buzzword as of late, but the term is also striking up fashion trends in a more literal sense. Transparent plastic rain coats, acrylic handbags and clear shoes—a trend launched by Kanye West’s Yeezy Season 4 collection—have been milling around for a couple of seasons. However, the new crop of transparent fashion is more ethereal as designers mix in sheer chiffon, tulle and organza.
Luar layered voluminous sheer dresses under structured princess-like bodices. Romantic lace added transparency to collections from Oscar de la Renta and Cushnie. The fabrics also help tone down the season’s injection of intense neon colors, as seen in Sally Lapointe’s breezy coordinating separates and Jeremy Scott’s punkish cropped trench coats and high-low tops. The trend bodes well for the lingerie category, which will take front and center stage if this trend catches on.
Crochet
Michael Kors, Rodarte, Oscar de la Renta and Carolina Herrera were among the big names that gave crochet a seal of approval for Spring ’19. The knitting technique smacks of nostalgia, handcraftsmanship and whimsy—three elements that appeal to millennial-age consumers—and complements other key trends for the seasons, including transparency and vacation dressing. Expect this trend to take shape with coordinating separates, dresses that double as beach coverups and accessories like bucket hats and fringe tote bags.
