New York Fashion Week just wrapped up, with fashionistas prowling the streets of NYC setting new style trends for this year’s Fall/Winter season. This Fashion Week was a premiere of designers’ Spring/Summer 2017 collections, so for the current Fall/Winter 2016 must-haves it is smart to look to the Manhattan streets for the styles you need now. The NYFW attendees are made up of fashion’s elite editors, artists, models, bloggers, and celebrities, so it is no surprise that they lay the foundation for what will be hot this season.
Overall, this season’s style is all about textures, structures and relaxed looks. Some of the trends are incredibly bold, but easily adaptable to your everyday look. Here is my list of the trends I saw most in the street style at New York Fashion Week and how to add them to your wardrobe. I expect these will make their way into your lives very shortly, if they are not already on your radar. Happy Hunting!
SILK
Recently, silk has been popping up in boutiques and on Kardashians. Now it is on the backs of the hottest fashion trend setters this week in Manhattan. Silk slips, tops and frocks are ultra sexy but layering them over a classic white cotton tee or topping them with an oversized jacket or bomber gives them a more casual/cool vibe.
VELVET & SUEDE
The 70’s boho look is BIG right now and with that comes lots of suede and velvet. Suede and velvet dresses, skirts, pants, tops and bags. My current favorite use of this trend is suede and velvet shoes! On both streets and runways, earth tones in these lush materials are all over Fashion Week. For those hesitant on these textures, wearing these in neutral tones is an easy way to subtly incorporate them into your wardrobe. Conveniently, suede and velvet are all over stores right now, from high end to affordable retailers, making this look easily obtainable and workable in everyday life.
MEN’S DRESS SHIRTS
This was the trend I saw most for this season in the street styles at NYFW. The men’s dress shirt has been taken and reworked to create a feminine look. Men’s dress shirts have always been a sexy low-maintenance “slept over” look but now these shirts are anything but low-maintenance. Romantic draped sleeves, tie waists and off-the-shoulder dress shirts are the new way to wear this old classic. Get your hands on this “Hamptons-ready” look before winter weather strikes.
POP OF COLOR
Neutrals are always in style but now with just a touch from the rest of the color wheel. Adding one or two items with a dramatic hue offsets a normally mundane palette and is so fun! For people afraid of color, this is a great way to dip your toe into the wardrobe color pool. Bright colors, specifically yellows, are here for the normally dim Fall.
SHOES
Shoe trends this year in NYFW street style: square heels, ankle boots, loafers, athletic sandals and mules. Square Heels: Almost everyone that was in heels this week, was in square heels. Like I said before, the 70’s are back and this chunky heel is too. Ankle boots: Also a nod to the 1970’s, ankle boots are hitting the pavement in NYC and are super sexy with pants, skirts or dresses. Mules: Women’s slide-on mules (essentially backless shoes) are the “it” shoe this Fall. Expect to see them everywhere. On a positive note, they’re actually comfortable! Loafers: For men, suiting was big and with that came loafers. Wear these for casual and dressy events. Athleisure Footwear: With athletic-chic still in style, so are designer tennis shoes and slides. The fur slides from Rhinna’s PUMA Fenty line, and similar designs, are on all fashion fanatics’ feet. Fur in general will be big this Fall/Winter. If you were to tell me a few years back that fur covered athletic sandals were going to be all the rage in Fashion Week I probably would have laughed in your face. But they are here and they are hot.
ATHLEISURE
Guy or gal, athleisure clothes and sweats were a constant this week. These are not your typical “Champion” sweats people, this is designer work out gear. This look can be accomplished by a head-to-toe sporty chic outfit or just by adding one athleisure item to an otherwise typical ensemble. With Rihanna’s own line of athleisure with PUMA, DKNY doing an entire athleisure show and now Alexander Wang teaming up with Adidas, these athletic wear+designer looks are not going anywhere.
GUCCI HANDBAGS
I have never seen one designer handbag more consistently on the arms of fashion’s elite than GUCCI at this years Fashion Week! (Chanel doesn’t count, they’re a given.) GUCCI reigned supreme at NYFW 2017. I am so happy for this classic brand, that have had less than a stellar last few years in handbags. These new lines including Padlock, Marmont, Dionysus, Sylvie and GucciGhost, are incredible and they are getting the attention they deserve. Giving a serious 1970’s vibe and a quirkiness that is so hot right now, Gucci’s 2017 bags are THE bags.
DENIM
For both men and women, denim was a constant element. Denim pants, skirts and jackets were elevated beyond their normal casual level. Denim usually gets a bad rap, so I am excited to see it in more formal settings. There are so many fun ways to work a denim, but for this season vintage denim jackets, high waisted pants, flares jeans, french boyfriend jeans and denim mini skirts are back.
BLACK DISTRESSED DENIM
Black pants were also a unisex hit. Black is never out of style, and this year distressed black denim pants will be on lots of legs. Feel free to splurge a bit on these because they are a wardrobe staple.
VINTAGE CONCERT T’S
A popular choice this year, and always a favorite of mine, is concert tees. Black looks good on everyone and these t-shirts are an easy way to incorporate a new trend into your existing wardrobe. Graphic shirts have come a long from Goodwill bins and now are available at stores ranging from Barney’s to Forever 21. Vintage or faux vintage, these t-shirts are uber-cool and make you look effortlessly badass.
JACKETS
Layering in general is trendy right now and jackets are a perfect way to do so. For women: thin duster jackets, oversized denim jackets and bomber jackets were the biggest statements for the fashionistas this season. For the men: denim jackets, sweatshirts, bombers and Members Only jackets are essentials for your closet. And as a general unisex rule, good leather never goes out of style.
EYELET
The Summer staple of the eyelet dress, sometimes considered laser-cut or lace, is still hot for Fall. Models were wearing these feminine frocks as they raced to their next job and bloggers were wearing them in the show’s front rows. For the Fall/Winter, eyelet dresses with an off-the-shoulder or large gypsy sleeve are the two new trends for this 2016 classic.
BAGS
In addition to Gucci bags, the street style members were rocking lots of top handle bags, mini bags, chains straps, large clutches, side satchels and buckets. For men this year, it was all about the backpack. These bag trends were also featured in numerous Spring 2017 designers’ shows this week, which will keep these styles very prominent for the next few seasons.
WILD WAVES & SLICKED LOCKS
On and off the runway, the long and wild “gypster” look and the clean and slicked back “wet hair” style were trending for men and women alike.
An easy way to give that 70’s gypsy+hipster trend a try, is by adding light waves to your hair with a curling rod. For waves, rather than curls, spend less time curling each piece, leave out about 1 inch of the ends of your hair when curling, and once completed brush through your curls for a more natural look.
For the adventurous, the slicked back “wet hair” look is ultra cool and is pretty simple. Heavily tease the hair on the top and crown of your head, then comb your teased hair back and away from your face, using a large amount of coconut oil/ argon oil on the comb. Leave the ends of your hair dry for the voluminous runway look or drag the oiled comb all the way through for an “all wet” look.
Those are the highlights of the biggest street style trends at the Spring/Summer 2017 New York Fashion Week. Keep an eye out for my next piece, where I highlight my favorite looks from Spring/Summer 2017 Runways!
Collages are original Beauty & the Beet creations.
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