The Best Trends: Spring/Summer 2012

While the trends that have been highlighted on this blog over the past ten weeks haven’t been the only trends of spring and summer 2012, they have definitely been some of the most popular. According to encyclopedia.com, fashion trends became widely known and divergent during the 70s and 80s, but they’ve been changing constantly ever since. One of the greatest aspects of fashion is that everyone has their own opinions on and variations of each trend. As I’ve stressed in every post, it’s important to make the trend your own. Different people achieve this differently by playing up their look with accessories or by combining two trends to create diversity.

Students at Western Kentucky University have declared their favorites of the trends I highlighted and they have spoken out about why their favorite trend appeals to them the most and what they do with the trend to make it work for them.

 

If you are just finding out about the hottest trends of spring and summer 2012, don’t fret. There is still time to find your niche and make it yours with help from the advice given in my posts and projects.

As always, please share a photo of how you work your favorite trend as a response to this post. Share your style ideas!

For any questions regarding this post, contact me at courtney.cheatwood353@topper.wku.edu.

Plaid

With a touch of intelligence and a hint of spunk, the plaid trend will help give you a “smart and tough” look this spring and summer. As many of the other trends, plaid comes around nearly every year. Vogue reported a statistic that if you’re standing in a crowd, you will always be no less than ten feet away from someone wearing plaid. The pattern itself is timeless but how to wear it varies year to year. Plaid can be a trend for just about anyone because depending on which way you choose to wear it, it can have a preppy, rocker, or country feel.

Guys can casually sport the trend by pairing a plaid button-up shirt with jeans. Pairing a plaid shirt with light jeans will appear more casual than pairing it with dark jeans. A plaid shirt paired with dark jeans would be a nice look for going out on the town. Girls can casually wear plaid by also pairing it with jeans, but also by wearing an oversized plaid shirt with a belt to accentuate the waist and some boots or ballerina flats. Guys can wear the trend in a dressy way by wearing a plaid dress shirt, pants, tie or bowtie. Girls can wear the trend in a dressy way by wearing a plaid skirt, dress or blazer.

Plaid can be found for reasonable prices at Forever 21 for women and men. They carry a variety of items, including a casual shirt and a dressy blazer for women, and a casual button-up and plaid dress pants for men. Pricier items, such as a dressy skirt and a casual top can be found for women at J. Crew. Express carries pricier plaid in both casual and dressy button-up shirts for men.

Examples of this trend can be found all over the internet. If you’ve already gotten in on the trend, please share a photo of how you work your plaid as a response to this post. Share your style ideas!

For any questions regarding this post, contact me at courtney.cheatwood353@topper.wku.edu.

Animal Print

While others will be looking sweet in their flowers and pastels, you can turn heads with fierce animal print. This trend is similar to Afrocentric prints because animal prints can sometimes be considered Afrocentric, but Afrocentric prints aren’t always considered animal print. This trend has been popular since the 1980s, and it continues to be just as popular today. Animal print has continued to be so timeless because it is such a diverse and versatile trend. While an article on Enzine Articles states that zebra print is currently the most popular, leopard, cheetah, and snakeskin prints are also heavily worn.

Different animal prints look best when worn different ways and at different occasions. Black and white zebra print looks great when paired with almost any bold color, leopard and cheetah prints are pleasing when paired with red and/or gold, and snake print is often worn with black and leather. For brunch-type events, animal print is appropriate when it is subtle and soft. Animal print can be worn in the workplace, but keep the color schemes simple and professional. Lastly, animal print is ideal for a night out because the nightlife gives you the opportunity to  go “wild” with your print.

For those of you who like to be frugal, animal print can be found all over Forever 21. This store has a wide variety of zebra, leopard and cheetah print tops and dresses. If you like to splurge, check out Express for zebra, leopard, and snakeskin print skirts, dresses and tops.

Examples of this trend can be found all over the internet. If you’ve already gotten in on the trend, please share a photo of how fierce you look in your animal prints as a response to this post. Share your style ideas!

For any questions regarding this post, contact me at courtney.cheatwood353@topper.wku.edu.

Pastels

Spring colors are one of the first things that pop into mind when the spring season arrives. Baby blues, pale yellows, soft pinks and light greens are seen all over the place- including clothing. According to to purelypastel.com, pastels are sticks of pure pigment and clay which causes them to never fade in a work of art. Just like in art, pastels will never fade away from fashion. Despite this, though, many people are turned off by the thought of pastels and clothing. Don’t fear the colors any longer, because two fashion-forward women from Western Kentucky University’s Textiles and Apparel Merchandising program are letting you know how to work the pastel trend this season.

Check out Banana Republic, Forever 21, H&M and Urban Outfitters for pastels in all types of clothing styles for all types of prices. Any piece of clothing that is a lighter shade than that of the normal color counts.

Examples of this trend can be found all over the internet. If you’ve already gotten in on the trend, please share a photo of how you work your pastels as a response to this post. Share your style ideas!

For any questions regarding this post, contact me at courtney.cheatwood353@topper.wku.edu.

Polka Dots

You’ll be easy to spot this spring when you wear the classy-cute polka dot trend. Polka dot, a term that has been around since 1854 when it was first used in The Yale literary magazine, refers to a pattern of filled-in circles arranged in a way that they’re equally sized and spaced from each other. Polka dots can be considered retro, because they were first popular fifties, but they are also considered classic, because they will never go out of style.

Whether you wear your polka dots with inspiration from the fifties, the eighties, or present day, wear them with confidence. The beauty of a pattern like polka dots is that it can be dressed up for a formal occasion or it can be dressed down for a casual outing. It’s also common for people to pair their polka dots with red accent pieces like a red belt or red jewelry.

Polka dot pieces can be found in all kinds of stores for all different ages and for all different prices. Forever 21 offers adorable polka dot slingbacks and flats for great prices. J. Crew’s polka dot selection is pricey, but broad with dresses, swimsuits, and classic organza shorts that can be casual or classy depending on what they’re paired with. Although many people don’t think of men wearing polka dots, J. Crew offers a masculine pair of men’s polka dot swimming trunks and Urban Outfitters offers a subtley polka dotted men’s dress shirt.

Examples of this trend can be found all over the internet. If you’ve already gotten in on the trend, please share a photo of how you work your polka dots as a response to this post. Share your style ideas!

For any questions regarding this post, contact me at courtney.cheatwood353@topper.wku.edu.

Uneven Hemlines

The upcoming spring and summer 2012 seasons are all about making a statement. There is no easier way to do that than sporting the trend of uneven hemlines. According to vanseodesign.com, people are drawn to asymmetrical things to symmetrical things because they are “more daring [and] interesting.” This trend will not only make you get noticed, it’ll help you add some spunk to your outfit and your personality. Don’t miss out on this trend; people all over the world are trying it! Check out the ePaper below to see how the uneven hemline trend is incorporated into American, Asian and Indian fashion.

 

The trend works in different ways for all different types of people. Whether you incorporate it into formal attire or casual attire, make it your own. Uneven hemlines can be found all over stores. For those of you who are frugal, you can find uneven hemlines in dresses, shirts and skirts at Forever 21. The trend can be found in higher priced dresses, shirts (uneven sleeve hemlines) and skirts at Gucci. Although this is a global trend, it’s difficult to provide examples of the trend in foreign stores due to differences in currency and language. If you are in a foreign country and are wanting to find the trend in your local stores, use the pictures provided in the ePaper and links above as a guide while you’re shopping!

Examples of this trend can be found all over the internet. If you’ve already gotten in on the trend, please share a photo of how you work your uneven hems as a response to this post. Share your style ideas!

For any questions regarding this post, contact me at courtney.cheatwood353@topper.wku.edu.

Shady Gray

After reading the title of this post, you may be thinking that gray is one of the last colors you would think of trending during the spring and summer. That same thought is the exact reason why gray is encouraged in wardrobes during the upcoming spring and summer seasons. Seen on the runways in Tokyo, Japan’s Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week, wearing gray during what are typically thought of as colorful seasons will make you stand out in a mysterious way.

Precision Intermedia states that the color gray is associated with stability and timlessness. For this reason, gray is often encouraged in the workplace for both men and women. While acknowledging this, keep in mind that gray definitely isn’t restricted to the office. Used in the appropriate way, gray can be perfect for an “everyday” outfit.

Lighter shades of gray are more suitable for the spring and summer months while darker shades are more suitable in the fall and winter months. Despite these norms though, any shade of gray can speak differently when paired with another color. A very popular way to wear gray, and perfect for the spring and summer months, is to pair it with a bright or pastel color. This not only tones down the gray but it adds depth to the color.

Gray clothing can be found for low prices at Forever 21 for both men and women and for higher prices at Express for both men and women. These links show just a few of many gray pieces offered by stores. No matter the time of year, stores are almost always guaranteed to have at least a couple of gray clothing options so get to shopping.

Examples of this trend can be found all over the internet. If you’ve already gotten in on the trend, please share a photo of how you work your pink short suit as a response to this post. Share your style ideas!

For any questions regarding this post, contact me at courtney.cheatwood353@topper.wku.edu.