Trends for Fall 2008/Winter 2009


Sketches: Caroline Bautista
Photos: FashionSyndicatePress.com

Colors
Black and grey are huge this season, dominating the forecasts, the runways, and now showing up in mainstream retail. Ombres are also big, and they're being used in everything from dresses and tops to scarves and tights. The trendiest and most desireable ombres will be those that are very carefully and subtly executed, indicating high quality. Splashes of color are making an appearance amongst all the black and grey; the most important colors being persimmon or a bright melon, brick and reddish-browns, yellow and ochre, dark blues and muted aqua (almost-but-not-quite turquoise), lavender and dark plum, and a bright almost-kelly green and olive greens.

Forecast
Trends are forecast about 18 months in advance by various companies who look at current fashion as well as all kinds of other factors, and come up with their best guess of what will be important in the future. You can read more about trend forecasting here. For the Fall/Winter 08/09 season, the forecasts were fairly accurate. They predicted that black and grey would be huge, and they forecasted the ombre trend. The colors they forecasted have held true on the runways and now in retail, and while the silhouettes have gone through the expected changes, they are evident as well. Here's an overview of the four main themes from the forecasts for this season. 

  

Think of this theme as cartoon couture. If it's not all about bright colors, it's all about pastels. Oversized knits are a big part of this theme, as are girly details like big bows, knit flowers, and fluffy yarns.

 

This trend has been forecast in several previous seasons, and it will probably stick around as long as the whole green/organic movement is going strong. Heavily influenced by that movement, this theme features soft colors and soft designs. These are very easygoing knits without fussiness, but still with lots of interesting details. They are pretty and feminine, with shaping details that flatter the form. 

  

 

 

 

Runway
Designers certainly use the trend forecasts, but the clothing that actually comes down the runway does not usually look exactly like what was forecast. Each individual designer adds their own sensibility to the themes, as well they should, or fashion would be very boring. And yet the forecasted themes are still apparent, since there is a financial incentive for designers to not stray too far from what other designers are doing. Here are some examples of the forecasted themes, as they appeared on the runways.

Celine shows this trend in a few styles, most notably in the image to the left. It's a simple knit dress, in the season's hottest color, but there's all kinds of extra details such as the decorative coils and cables on the top and pleating on the bottom. Celine has another great example of this trend, this oversized sweater coat with little sculptural doodads on the shoulders.

Tsumori Chisato showed an oversized coat that features ombre-like coloring, and lots of pleats around the neckline.

Fendi showed a great little sweater with all kinds of cabling and openwork. and an oversized jacket with extra sculptural detail on the arms. The latter is a good example of how the oversized knit trend is meant to be worn this season. Big knits are paired with skinny pants or skirts and tights, and cinched in with belts or other figure-flattering details.

  

 

 

 

 

Impertinent/Techno Hedonist

Leave it to John Galliano to create some over-the-top knits. His hats, such as that on the right, perfectly embody this theme. Of course we all aren't going to wear these exact hats, but think about how you could tone this down but keep the fun and wild sensibility of the original. Here's another example, but his whole collection is really worth a look. 

Betsey Johnson showed some pretty wild knits as well, including this sweater with its ironic intarsia.

Byblos showed some great oversized knits with huge collars. 

 

  

 

 

 Conceptual/Eco Craft

Dries Van Noten showed a beautiful example of this trend, the sweater at left (and in detail). The sweater is actually done in neutral tones, and the color is showing through the openwork from a colorful top under the sweater. 

James Coviello, who can always be counted on to include a few beautiful knit pieces in his collection, showed this basic knit top with some pretty lacework.

 

 

 

 

 

Scenographic/Couture Fiction & Couture Fantasy

AF Vandevorst interpreted this theme in oversized knits with interesting details, such as the sweater to the right. Another example in the same collection is this sweater with a sortof shawl component, cinched with a belt.

Kenzo showed the ultimate fantasy knits, including this one with serpent-like sculptural elements. Kenzo's whole collection is worth a look.

 

Retail

The trends and runway designs are toned down for retail, especially for mainstream retail such as Target. The forecasted colors tend to hold true, but we have to look a little harder to see the themes in the silhouettes. They tend to show up in small details such as the particular knit stitch that was chosen for a basic sweater or the shape of a sleeve, or the addition of little details like bows. Sometimes the themes get combined and it's hard to find examples that clearly represent one theme or another, but the overall trends still show up. Here are some examples of the forecasted themes, as interpreted in (mostly mainstream) retail. This does have a North American focus, but we have to base ourselves somewhere, and this is what we know. If you have international examples of these trends, send the links to robindodge@metapostmodernknitting.com and we might be able to include them here, or in a blog post.

 

Urban up-beat/Techno Chic
So far this theme hasn't had a big showing in retail. There are a few pieces that have the same structural elements in the forecasts, but there aren't any good examples of the "extras" that were forecast. Of course there's good reason for this, as sweaters with extra collars or sweaters layered over sweaters are going to have a smaller market than more basic pieces. The structural aspect of this theme can be found in this cardigan from Banana Republic, and this sweater from Target, but you can see how they don't incorporate the "extras" aspect of this theme, and they sortof blur the boundaries with the other themes. The sweater from Target could even be classified as part of the Eco Craft trend.

Impertinent/Techno Hedonist
This theme was supposed to be very wild, with lots of girly baubles, fluffy yarns, and bright colors. It's another hard sell for retail, but some details are showing up.The bow and bright red highlights on this cute sweater by Leifsdottir at Nordstrom is a good example of how just a couple of elements from the theme can work their way into retail.  This sweater from Target is a great example of the same idea. This theme forecast lots of bows and flowery details, but this sweater has just a few ruffles and a tie (note that it's in the very trendy ochre color).

Conceptual/Eco Craft
This might just be the easiest theme to find in mainstream retail, given its emphasis on comfort-chic. Here's a great sweater with a sortof homespun look by Free People, at Nordstrom, a casual chic sweater from The Gap, and a pretty and feminine sweater from H&M that almost could fit into the Impertinent theme as well. This sweater from Leo & Nicole at Nordstrom is almost exactly like the sketch we did from the forecasts, and it comes in a very trendy green, brick red, and grey color.

Scenographic/Couture Fiction & Couture Fantasy
This theme is another hard sell in retail because of its over-the-top style and oversized shapes. This theme might continue to show up in retail later in the season, but in a very toned down manner. Designers for the masses might interpret the oversized knits into slightly longer cardigans, or sweaters with slightly larger sleeves, but perhaps we won't see sweaters with knee-length sleeves and nose-high collars at Target any time soon. The costume aspect of this theme might be interpreted into exaggerated cables, such as this vest by Free People, at Nordstrom. This sweater by Haute Hippie at Nordstrom sortof overlaps between this theme and the Eco Craft theme, but it's a good example of the oversized knitwear trend, as is this one by the same company.

What to Buy or Knit this Fall

At the time of writing, it's a bit early to tell exactly what trends will dominate retail this fall. Fashion has become so fast, with turnaround times of only 3-6 months, that there's no doubt that retailers still have some surprises up their sleeves. But the forecasted themes and the runway looks give you something to consider as you do your Fall shopping and knitting. If you only buy or knit one trend this season, a long grey or black cardigan or sweater coat would be a very suitable and safe option. If you want to go for something a bit more trendy, try something in those hot persimmon or kelly green colors. Or take one or two elements from the trends and work them into your knitting. How about turning a cardigan into a double-breasted cardigan? Or incorporate openwork into a tunic. Or how about making one of John Galliano's hats? You never know, huge knit hats could be the next big trend.

Incorporating the trends into your knitting can be a very simple proposition, that can be accomplished by knitters of any skill level. If you are just beginning, you can knit a scarf in a very trendy color. Intermediate knitters might try altering a knitting pattern to include a different knit stitch or structural element. Advanced knitters might try copying a sweater directly from the runways. However you go about it, incorporating the trends into your knitting makes it a little bit more exciting, and it may just give you enough incentive to hurry up and get that project done this season!