Trend Spotting

Walking through the Oculus, the stores I looked at were Another Story, Sam Edelman, Kate Spade, Vince Camuto, and Tory Burch. A couple of trends I spotted were jute platform bottoms for shoes. This trend spread across almost all the stores. Another trend that was very prominent across all stores were these little fluffy balls brightly colored, on shoes, on bags, on jewelry even on some sweaters (in Kate Spade) they came in different sizes depending on what item they were on. Another theme that wasn’t prominent amongst all stores but I noticed it first at Kate Spade, there was a very obvious peacock theme going on amongst products however with Tory Burch, I first noticed the white washed peacock chair in the window and it was interesting because I intern at Jimmy Choo for Visual Merchandising and we had a peacock chair in a natural finish delivered for our Madison store. Back to Tory Burch, the peacock theme was less obvious here in my opinion it was more about the color scheme. As the weather becomes warmer, we can definitely see the silouette of desired clothing becoming looser as skirts start to span out and dresses are a bit wider and don’t cling to your body.

The question I decided to ask was “Why are “New Yorkers” associated with wearing all-black?” I made a survey on SurveyMonkey asking the following questions of where people see this trend in New York and basically describing the typical person they see who follows this trend and why they believe it is a trend in New York. Location wise, it was so diverse so its safe to say there isn’t a specific area in the city where people are known for wearing all-black but its just a general consensus, some people said Greenwich Village, Soho, Korea town, Lower East Side, West Village all the answers were varied. The answers are to why are also extremely varied, theres isn’t one specific reason. I got answers that said that all-black is trendy, casual, comfortable, classic, minimalistic, luxurious, low key, mature, artsy, high-fashion, goth. I think the best statement I received when I asked a participant on the street was that “a New Yorker has to look chic whether its for brunch or a night out and an all-black outfit does that for them.” An interesting question that I asked was if they believed that this “trend” would continue into the summer 60% of people said this trend it would and 40% said no. In conclusion I believe that New Yorkers are associated for wearing all-black because of all the adjectives people gave above, as a diverse population of people we have artistic, working people, minimalists whoever the people are at the end of the day, New Yorkers are chic. All-black is a convenient way for us to look chic at all times of the day whether its for brunch or night out or for work. We are put-together people and obsessed with efficiency and an all-black look is a safe choice that accomplishes all of the above. “it’s easy, it’s comfortable and it looks good.”

Survey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/YZN6YTQ

My consumer product obsession is definitely lipsticks. I honestly just received a package from ColourPop and I ordered 7 new colors. I have multiple nude colors, multiple shades of pink, purple, red, brown. I even have colors like black and dark blue. I have metallic finishes, matte finishes, velvet finishes  but I definitely don’t have any glosses. I’ve always had really big lips and when I was younger big lips weren’t as big a trend as they are currently, I used to use lipstick as a way to make them look prettier. I used to be quite self conscious about them. But now, I really like embrace them and I like to wear different lip colors all the time. I guess my collection has become a bit obsessive now because no one needs 10 versions of one color. I also have the ability to wear a lot of colors based off my medium skin tone. Of course, I stay away from the really light shades and glosses. I think my product obsession also comes from the youtube makeup guru phenomena, I’ve been so hooked on to makeup tutorials and I kept looking at new products and new looks and it started becoming an obsession. But the difference from the documentary is that I actually wear these products, some more than others but its definitely not a collectible its something I use.

Celebrities are very influential in this trend when they attend Coachella; Coachella is known for having a huge celebrity crowd not just movie stars but a vast array, musicians, models, youtube personalities. I hesitate to say “basic white girl” adoption but I feel like thats what comes to mind when one thinks about who adopts these trends. This style tribe is definitely influenced by contemporary events, it’s currently festival season. With Ultra, Lolapalooza and Coachella coming up, each slightly different in style due to the music differences but there are aspects that go across all festivals. Ultra is more about bright colors because of Electronic music and Lolapalooza and Coachella are more bohemian vibes however based off the current trends of colored glitter and gems, beauty looks are currently quite similar for all festivals. The glitter trend goes beyond just the face, we now see this trend for the hair and the body. Glitter roots are currently very in. Last year, flash tattoos were definitely the accessory that was trending around this time, now its more about glitter and highlight and colorful gems. A very unicorn ethereal look. Makeup is also used to achieve this look. Also a current popular accessory for these festivals are body chains, not just simple ones but ones that resemble clothing. 

The color I’ve chosen for this Color Forecasting Blog Post is “Warm Taupe.” Its a very subdued color, extremely low saturation and it is a tint of brown. A color that I would definitely classify as a “classic,” just because it can be paired with anything, its a neutral after all. Its a muted color, which just emphasizes simplicity and sophistication. Pantone describes this color as “trusted, organic and grounded and approachable.” You can perhaps classify this as an earthy color. We see this shade of color appear in the collections of Chanel, Derek Lam, MaxMara, Loewe, Valentino and Ralph Lauren just to name a few. We see it appear numerous times in the form of a trench-coat but because of the versatility of the color it can be on almost any item of clothing.

If I had to pick a group I would say this color definitely appeals to the ‘color loyal’ group who play it safe with color. But regardless, I think anyone can wear this color, they can choose to pair it with a much more bold color or other neutrals. Especially people who have to dress for work or meetings or any office setting but not limited to. This color could be very “preppy” however it can be worn with so many different things and colors that it doesn’t really have any limitations. This color definitely falls under the “lightening phase” of the Long-Wave Color Cycle. Essentially this color would come back into trend after the bright colors, high chroma, multicolors fade away.
There definitely can be some kind of Seasonal Continuity with this color, I would say no matter where the trend cycle is in regards to what color is currently “trendy”, this color will always reappear every fall and winter.

A pop culture trend that has been booming recently in our society is “feminism.” The recent political election instigated this concept to become a “trend” so to speak, as we see the masses in protests wearing slogans and phrases standing up for their rights. Our efforts to protect our rights as women and protect our equality is reflected in the fashion industry today. As a feminist I have mixed feelings labelling this as a “trend” just because then maybe we start to divert away from the real meaning and purpose of the word and the movement and it just becomes something thats “fashionable” and “cool.” However, it is the current issue and as a result the fashion industry will respond to what society is facing.

At this years New York Fashion Week, Dior designer Maria Grazia Chiuri debuted a shirt that had “We Should All Be Feminists” which has been seen worn on pop culture icon Rihanna and a known feminist spokesperson at the Women’s March and actress Natalie Portman. Another high-end designer who promoted feminism through his collection was Prabal Gurung who debuted a collection of with messages that said “The Future Is Female” and “Neverthless She Persisted.”

This years political election prompted many celebrities to speak up about their political stances, whether it was through their performances, presence in protests, campaigning with the political candidates or through their social media. Famous examples that come to mind would be Lady Gaga, Beyonce and Jay Z, Katy Perry, Amy Poehler and Tina Fey, honestly so many celebrities from musicians to actors to models. Vogue also published an article stating their political opinion, which is extremely rare for a magazine especially one with such prestige. In my opinion, I think these celebrities speaking out had an indirect influence over the trend of “feminism,” I think they prompted their fans and raised awareness and encouraged others to partake in protests and stand up for everyones rights that were in jeopardy which not only meant women rights, but LGBTQ, immigrants and human rights in general.

Through the protests we see “pussy hats” and protest slogans and protest wear and I think that is really what had a direct influence on high-end brands to debut these T-Shirts with feminist sayings. I would say the Trickle-Across Theory would be most applicable to this trend. It wasn’t a matter of the elite introducing this fashion trend, it was due to the social situation and how the masses were reacting. It is also not a Trickle Up Theory just because the elite were simultaneously partaking in the public reaction and protests. We see the protests and the “normal” people with all these feminist slogans and protest signs, we see celebrities speaking up and wearing these feminist slogans and then we see them debuted in Fashion Week by high-end brands, and now there are going to be readily available T-Shirts at our fast fashion stores. I made a graph that resembles a “classic” fashion trend because I believe that “feminism” is a concept that has been going strong for years now and it has recently picked up even more due to current events, but it cannot be a concept that just fades away like a fad because it will always be a pressing issue.

As the article The Economic Impact of the Fashion Industry states “Fashion is a $1.2 trillion global industry.” At then end of the day, a designer designs clothing and the consumer will buy the product if they like it, that itself is a measure of the designers success. If times are tough, for example if theres a recession then fashion trends start to reflect the hardship of the time. Yet if we look at the economic situation currently, after Trump winning presidency the stock market is doing great which means consumers are happy and that would mean they are willing to spend, to splurge. So it would be my educated guess that fashion trends would lean towards more extravagant and more lavish styles. That is just one potential example of a direct relationship between economics and fashion trends.

There are numerous indirect and direct relationships in my opinion between economics and fashion trends. Sometimes fashion trends are more artistic reflections to whats going on in terms of current events, for example the grunge period during the Bush presidency was a rebellion to the previously popular super polished look. During the Clinton presidency, NAFTA took affect and the EU was formed and a there was just a lot of deficit reduction, meaning that commerce was increasing and stimulating wealth. This was correlated with the rise of denim, high end raw denim perhaps there is a correlation? Regardless, correlation does not prove causation. Sometimes economics impacts trends, or music, or art or other current events.

In terms of focusing on New York City and the fashion trends here, New York holds the status of a global fashion capital with over 900 fashion companies, huge amounts of attention to all the events around fashion week. Because NYC is a fashion hub, a productive center for top fashion designers, wholesalers, retailers and  it would be one of the first places to analyze the change of trends. In NYC, fashion is a $98 billion industry their wholesale market for 27% of the US wholesale market., and as the article mentions that hubs and clusters starts to “research shows there are economic benefits when businesses in a particular industry cluster together in close proximity.” As I mentioned before in regards to how economics have a relationship with fashion trends, this is applicable to almost any place in the United States but more specifically places like New York and Los Angeles. I guess, New York would just be a place we would really start to see these trends start emerging and notice the public opinion.

Around 11AM, I started walking towards Toby Estate Coffee 44. An ideal brunch timing in New York City. I love the West Village, the simple yet classic townhouses with exposed brick walls all lined up along the streets. A quiet neighborhood but it was not due to lack of people. The people here are just quiet, most of them working in coffee shops. Just like the architecture, the people emulate a simple and classic look. The dress sense, of course being winter consisted of a lot of Canada Goose. I would say everyone in this neighborhood is fairly wealthy, a lot of branded items here and there. No one wore anything out of the ordinary, neutral colors, classic turtlenecks, jeans. Paired together nicely with a watch or a bag. Simple, yet aesthetically pleasing. Similar to the overall environment in the coffee shop, with the clean and elegant typography and the bonzai plants and the recurring exposed brick walls with marquee lights. Everything around me, just screamed “Instaworthy.” Everyone clearly thought the same because there was no shortage of picture-taking. There is a certain sophistication in the simplicity.

I didn’t realize that I was such an awkward person, I initially couldn’t bring myself to ask people what they were wearing and to take a picture. Thats why I only asked two ladies what they were wearing. The first lady I talked to was sitting right next to me, her name was Nousha. I saw her with her film camera around her neck and I was automatically intrigued. She was wearing vintage Clarks, Tanya V leggings, a Uniqlo jacket, a red scarf from India and an H&M beanie. Uniqlo is definitely an all around favorite in the winter, the “HEATTECH” clothing line is warm but it also lightweight. I could definitely spot out some Uniqlo pieces in the crowd, including my own. I had three layers of HEATTECH on.

I met the second lady that I asked for outfit details in the line when I went to order a latte. Her name was Kate and she seemed approachable so I felt less nervous. She was wearing Superga shoes, LaRock jacket, Rag&Bone tank top and an H&M sweater. Clearly H&M is a popular fast fashion store. I had never heard of Superga or LaRock before this encounter so that was interesting to learn.

My name is Anisha Subberwal. I’m 19 years old. I’m majoring in Communication Design. And, you’re probably wondering what that entails. Its basically Digital Design, so I learn the basics and art of typography and graphic design but I also get to learn web design, User Experience and User Interface Design. Studying User Experience design is exactly what it is, designing how the user navigates through the website/app and User Interface is just the aesthetic of it. Sorry, for boring you with some web terminology. My minor is Fashion Communication, I know… its a lot of communicating. Thats like fashion advertising, branding and merchandising. I currently intern at Jimmy Choo as a visual merchandiser, so I’m gaining a lot of work experience in my minor. I’m still trying to find a middle ground with everything I’m studying. A little more about me and less about my academics, I’m basically a foreigner everywhere I go. I moved from India which is my birthplace halfway through 4th grade. Then I moved to Indonesia for about 2 years and I went to the American International School. After that I moved to Singapore for about 2 and a half years and I went to a British School. Two schools actually. And then, I moved to Taiwan where I stayed about 11 months and switched back to the American system. And again there was another move before sophomore year of my high school, I moved to Hong Kong where my family currently resides. We’re coming on to our 5th year and that seems amazing considering our moving history. Where are you from? Wheres home for you? Probably two of the hardest questions I have to answer. When I say Hong Kong, people usually say “Where are you really from? You don’t look Chinese.” I feel like I’m in that scene of Mean Girls. But when I moved out of India when I was really young, whenever I visit I feel like I’m in a foreign place. It just doesn’t feel like home.