Fashionistas, I hope you have saved your money because there are several new trends this fall that (in my humble opinion) you will want to have.
But first, let’s see what’s coming back. Boots are still being shown, thank goodness because I love boots even though I live in a warm climate. From short “booties” to the tall “hooker” boots, they go great with all the skinny pants and jeans.
Yes, “skinny” jeans are still available with tunic tops or layered tops and jackets. Now the really fashion forward are saying the skinny pants are on the way out and a more natural fit is in but I have a feeling they will be with us for a while. We love them in the fall with boots, flats, tunics, sweaters and they look great on everyone. I say that as a plus-sized, over 50-year-old.
Strapless dresses with lots of sparkle and lace are still being shown for evening wear, although all the designers have dresses with sleeves now, too. Check out Elie Saab for the most gorgeous dresses of the season.
As for colors, black is always popular and many shades of gray are still on trend. We’re still seeing teal and brown, tan and gold. From Calvin Klein to Elie Saab, ombre shading, and color blocking are popular with many designers this Fall.
Faux fur is still really popular. Christian Siriano did a line of faux fur jackets for fall and they look pretty good but it’s just so easy to translate the designer pieces into cheap looking copies so beware the knock-offs. And even some of the big designers got it wrong, case in point, Alexander McQueen with his skunk furs. I kid you not! Check them out on www.style.com.
Now for the new trends. Clunky shoes with short skirts and skinny pants. I love a clunky shoe but I’m not too crazy about the proportions of being paired with a slim pant.
Christian Dior showed jumpsuits, yes, think 1980s, in denim, satin and everything in-between. Those really have to fit well to work on most bodies.
There are some new colors being added to the on-going mix. You will see a lot of what designers are calling “blood red” (must be because of all those vampire tv shows) and copper was very big with Badgley Mischka and others.
One of the biggest changes that will take a while to “trickle down” to us regular folks is bracelet length sleeves. For many years now, jackets and blouses and sweaters have all had knuckle-length sleeves but they are slowly climbing up the wrist again. This is good news for short armed people or people who hate dragging their sleeves in their soup.
In general, the silhouettes are over-sized, the fabrics are textured, and the mixture of fabrics is interesting. There used to be very set rules about mixing plaids and prints but those rules are being thrown out the window and it seems that anything goes now.
As usual, if you want to get a good idea of what the designers are showing, check out www.style.com and click on the fall runway shows. And if you want a sneak peak, check out the spring 2015 runway shows to see what’s coming up next year.
Barbara Stone is the owner of Barbara Stone Designs, a full-service tailoring and dressmaking business at 5200 Churn Creek Road, Suite P, Redding, CA, 96002. She can be reached at (530) 222-1340 or bstonedesigns@sbcglobal.net.
