Column by Emily Tozer
Tozer is a senior magazines major and can be reached at [email protected]
New York Fashion Week: When the fashion editors, fashion buyers, fashion bloggers and more flock to the city for the shows and I watch the instant photos go up on Style.com and catch up on all the news via Fashionista. After the fact, though, I did my fair share of stalking research and can assure you that large, colorful fur coats and full patterned, brocade suits will be all the rage on Drake’s campus next fall. Not buying it? Ok, there are a few other trends from the runways that will work in real life.
Black and white was almost ubiquitous at the fall shows — each designer showed it in their own way, of course. The two designers at Proenza Schouler did a 180 from last season’s vibrant prints and instead played with silhouettes in an entirely neutral palette: Black leather slouchy pants, a crisp, full white jacket and side paneled black and white pants were among the highlights. Rachel Zoe mixed tailored black menswear pieces with glamorous, white sparkly dresses. In what Wu called his most grown-up collection to date, cheeky sheer panels and edgy leather offset the sophisticated shapes. Whether you love a structured blazer, die for a feminine pleated dress or are drawn to relaxed pants, you can easily update your look with a few cool black and white pieces.
Both Wu and Altuzarra dabbled in another big fall trend: Fur. One of my favorites was an almost Cruella de Vil-like knee-length number at Altuzarra. From there, they only got more colorful. Oscar de la Renta had a few navy and burgundy furs while Peter Som showed more vibrant orange and blues. Before you write off this trend as something saved for the big cities, think about investing in a faux fur vest or coat next season. There’s nothing warmer, and that’s about as practical as you can get in terms of Iowa winters.
Aside from your usual jewel tones (Carolina Herrera, Oscar de la Renta and Narciso Rodriguez were a few contenders), leather (Burberry, Alexander Wang, Calvin Klein) and menswear (Victoria Beckham, Jason Wu, Rag & Bone) trends, another big one was prints and fabric blocking. With all-over printed maxi dresses at Jenni Kanye and Alice + Olivia to mixed patterns on skirts and jackets at Oscar de la Renta, full printed suits at Kate Spade and Behnaz Sarafpour, you can be sure this is one trend that’s sticking around. A full print is the easiest place to start, but don’t be afraid to try mixing them either. After all, fashion’s about having fun.
