5 trends to rock out this Spring/Summer 2017
Underpinnings move out to take centrestage, pastel pinks give way to eye-popping fuchsia, the power suit is reinvented in ways you’ve never seen and Marie Antoinette plays the unexpected muse. The biggest trends of S/S ’17 dare you to amp it up because this season, fashion is absolutely fearless.
Yes, springtime is most often associated with sweet sorbet hues but designers this season are proposing something much more impactful.
Trade in cotton candy pinks for full-on fuchsia and re-engine reds for an attention-grabbing entrance every single time. The freshest way to pull off hot pinks and reds is by wearing it in a single print-free block or column from head to toe.
Elongated silhouettes and clean lines like the ones seen at Hermès, Loewe and Vetements exude sleekness that balances out the strong colour. For an added pop, clash pink with accents from the same colour family like Balenciaga and Valentino did with purple and burgundy.
GOING BUST
Skin is always in when the temperature creeps up and while fashion’s focus for the past few seasons has been the shoulders, the décolletage is making a triumphant comeback.
Celebrate your womanly curves in all manners of bra tops and bustiers – for S/S ’17, this foundation garment becomes the focal point instead of staying hidden under other layers.
For a sophisticated take on the style, look to designers like Altuzarra, Miu Miu and Bottega Veneta who touted a retro appeal by pairing bra tops with chic Forties-inspired skirts.
Alexander Wang and Fendi opted for a more modern and sporty approach and for the fainthearted, try layering over a shirt a la Prada, Kenzo and Dries Van Noten.
Seemingly out of nowhere, Marie Antoinette (and her undying style legacy) has entered the fashion conversation again.
Designers, as varied as Rihanna to Simone Rocha to Karl Lagerfeld, are channelling her more-is-more sensibilities, sending out pieces that would do the French queen proud.
But instead of faithful historical reproductions, designers are giving the look a modern twist – chopping away trains and hemlines, lightening and loosening up cumbersome layers, and adding a splash of 21st-century colours and materials.
The best iterations of the aesthetic can be found at Fendi and Fenty x Puma, where saccharine hues, rich brocades and pearls galore were given an ultra-modern sportswear remix.
The exoticism and the rich heritage of the Far East are inspiring the most visionary of today’s designers. In her quest to seek elegance in our current information-overloaded world, Miuccia Prada pared her silhouettes down to simple qipao shapes and embellished them with sprinklings of feathers.
At Loewe, Jonathan Anderson explored Japanese craft and fabric while Dries Van Noten also looked to the Land of the Rising Sun as inspiration for his serene yet extremely lush collection.
At Gucci, Alessandro Michele’s designs looked less like clothes from our era than fantastical creations Paul Poiret would whip up for the Ballet Russes in 1920s Paris.
When the queen of evening glamour Donatella Versace dedicates an entire collection to the dynamism of activewear, you know that fashion and sport has become inseparable.
Playing a starring role in this marriage this season is the parka. Versace’s versions come embellished with glittering crystals or transformed into adjustable drawstring bodycon dresses while similarly glamorous floor-length parkas can be found at Isabel Marant and Fenty x Puma.
At Max Mara and Stella McCartney, the humble sport staple is elevated with smatterings of standout prints while Paco Rabanne did an optic white cover-up for the city girl on the go.
