Style
5 Emerging Trends Worth Knowing From This Season’s Catwalks
Discover the hottest new fashion trends emerging from the international Autumn/Winter 2020 catwalks, and how to recreate the top looks
The Autumn/Winter 2020 international catwalks presented a plethora of emerging trends, but it’s the unique and surprising movements that are generating the greatest deal of excitement. The runways of New York, London and Milan delivered peekaboo bras, cut-out details, rainbow bright hues, conversation-starting knits and a new take on the Western and ranch fashion aesthetic. Explore these five emerging trends, find out which designers presented them best- and then learn how to wear them without spending a fortune on luxury brands.
Note to readers: This article was prepared prior to the start of the Paris Fashion Week Autumn/Winter 2020 shows.
Peekaboo Tops
The world has the still-new yet wildly successful luxury fashion brand Khaite to thank for the peekaboo top trend for Autumn/Winter 2020. Stylish denizens of cities with milder temperatures may enjoy sporting sexy and sophisticated bra tops with matching or complementary sweaters or jackets. Khaite proverbially broke the internet when actress and artist Katie Holmes was photographed hailing a taxi in their now-famous cashmere bra top and matching cashmere sweater set. The iconic street style image represents the best way to wear a peekaboo bra: with a sense of casual elegance. Holmes donned the look with delicate jewellery, jeans, low heels and a simple ponytail; the sweater hung stylishly off one shoulder.
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Still, the trend may be worn for dressier occasions. At New York Fashion Week (NYFW), Brandon Maxwell presented a high-shine bra under a satin jacket with silver metallic trousers – cocktail party perfection. Meanwhile, Jonathan Simkhai presented a bra beneath a soft, hip-length sweater, styled with baggy leather pants for a look that’s equal parts edgy and confident. At Milan Fashion Week (MFW), blogger-cum-designer Chiara Ferragni presented bra tops beneath jackets and even a winter coat, creating a youthful, potentially more practical outfit for the colder months. To achieve the look for less, fashion lovers may purchase bra tops and wear them beneath their favourite sweaters (especially hip-length or cropped styles), blazers, jackets and coats.
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Cut It Out
Cut-out details are big again, with a special emphasis on cut-outs at the front of the garment; some designs are even cut to reveal the navel. NYFW cut-outs appeared on the runways of brands including Monse and Proenza Schouler, showing geometric cut-outs at the shoulders and chest, and a long-sleeve maxi dress with a cut-out across the torso, respectively. Across the pond at London Fashion Week (LFW), Victoria Beckham’s cut-out accents appeared at the torso and even down the sleeves, as was the case for one warm knit sweater dress.
While the top designers offer cut-out designs for a major premium, the aesthetic will appear in a wide range of stores, from high-street brands to couture houses alike. Or, alternatively, scouring resale sites is another practical option, with used Versace and Cushnie Et Ochs (now simply called ‘Cushnie’) dresses at the top of the list.
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Rainbow Bright
The Autumn/Winter season will look a lot happier in 2020 with bold, rich, saturated colours punching up the cloudiest, rainiest and even snowiest days of grey. It’s an easy trend to replicate, as fashion fans will find appropriate pieces in boutiques of any price point, not to mention vintage shops and even their personal wardrobes. To ease a rainbow bright shopping expedition, shoppers would do well to look to stores specialising in colour-coded merchandising such as the popular American boutique chain Intermix.
Many designers have opted for the rainbow bright aesthetic, with a special emphasis on NYFW, including electric greens, chartreuse, glossy reds, blues and violets at Sally LaPointe, monochromatic ensembles in primary colours at Carolina Herrera, and lustrous outfits in head-to-toe pastel hues at Marc Jacobs.
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For those preferring more subdued colours for the colder months, experimenting with pops of brilliantly hued accessories is a commitment-free option to successfully sport the rainbow bright look, albeit in a more controlled way.
Remarkable Knits
Knits to write home about certainly trended on the Autumn/Winter 2020 catwalks. At LFW, Roksanda showed chunky, colourful collage knits with a strong art world aesthetic. Meanwhile, Richard Malone introduced unexpected knits with cut-out details (expertly incorporating two emerging trends at once) and unusual but attractive asymmetrical hemlines. At NYFW, Staud presented an intricate knit coat with a matching handbag crafted from the same glossy, golden-brown fabric. The knits of Autumn/Winter 2020 beg to be noticed, concurrently playing the role of wonderful icebreakers.
Beautiful knitwear can be expensive, but cost-saving strategies for sporting this trend include knitting one’s own sweaters for the season and scouring luxury resale sites such as The RealReal, 1stdibs and Vestiaire Collective.
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The New Western
While it’s not surprising that Western and ranch-influenced designs are back on the fashion radar, the way the trend appears in its most recent revival is decidedly modern and filled with newness. High-neck, long-sleeve dresses were seen at shows including Ulla Johnson, fringed dresses were presented by brands like Michael Kors Collection, and colourful – or simply creative – knit ponchos are trending thanks to a cluster of labels including Gabriela Hearst, Zimmermann, Longchamp and Alice + Olivia. Meanwhile, prairie dresses present one of the top modest fashion trends of the season. American fashion designer Tory Burch showed flouncy, extra-feminine versions alongside riding-inspired, floral-print leather boots. The Great, Etro, Ganni and others also rocked the prairie look.
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Of course, the easiest way to ride the Western trend to success is to incorporate high-quality accessories: traditional Western retailers, experts of the craft, are the best sources for investment pieces meant to be worn for many years, such as cowboy boots, belts and hats.
The Silk Road
The silk scarves tied bandana style around the neck as seen at Khaite is arguably the easiest emerging trend to emulate. Reaching into one’s personal wardrobe is a fast and free way to reproduce the look, and those seeking to purchase new silk scarves would be wise to shop from the ultimate scarf creator: Hermès. Yes, an Hermès scarf is a sound, affordable and savvy investment: they’re designed to last for decades (with appropriate care) and tend to fetch healthy resale values in the second-hand market. What’s more, styles such as the Silk Up Bandana 55 retail for just over $200.
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