Trend-Spotting

The newest article up at my website, titled Fashion Trends for Fall 2008 highlights the design trends that I forecast will appear in clothing lines this coming Fall/Winter season. These predictions are based in part on what appeared in fashion shows earlier this year, and also on some sneak peeks into several clothing lines' designs that are all ready to launch when fall clothing hits the stores.

Now you're probably scratching your head in wonderment, especially if you read my blog post Fashion Versus Style up at Wardrobe Planning for Anyone. It was there that I mentioned that I think the hoopla surrounding fashion shows and trend forecasting is rather ridiculous. And I hold to that opinion!

So why am I making predictions of my own?

After ready-to-wear hits the runways, mass-market design teams begin to interpret these new designs and implement them into upcoming seasons' clothing lines. Each brand label interprets the ready-to-wear designs a little differently, which is why there can be such variation amongst styles from label to label. These interpretations are the styles that you will see manifested in the stores that you shop in.

However, just because a style hits the stores, does not mean that it will catch on. Even though the mass-market designers are fairly skilled at disecting prêt-à-porter and figuring out which way the fashion wind will blow, it is anybody's guess which styles will stick and which will not. There is a difference between predicting which styles will manifest in stores and which styles will become truly popular trends. Certainly, the designers would like you to think that simply because they've designed it, it will be popular. But we all know that some things just never catch on, while other things (crocs, anyone?) defy explanation.

I don't think anyone can say with perfect accuracy what people will choose to wear until the trends actually hit the streets. And if you are a trendsetter, you don't need anyone to predict for you: you make your own predictions. So I eschew all of the predictions that attempt to give the "top ten must-haves" for the season before the season is really underway. These lists are, more likely than not, marketing ploys for lemmings.

However, I think it can be quite valuable to have a general sense of what trends the mass-market collections will showcase. If you know the styles, colors, and fabrics you will probably encounter when shopping, you can be better prepared when drawing up your wardrobe plan for the next season.

And that is why I like to offer my clients my forecast of what they can expect to see in stores in the upcoming season.