As the air cools and the leaves turn red, so will our wardrobes. However, the birth of new trends means the inevitable death of old ones.
According to a University of Minnesota Apparel Design professor, a student and a local women’s fashion boutique owner, these are the fall fashion trends campus is bound to see.
Quinessa Stibbins has been interested in fashion ever since she was young, and wanted to pursue apparel design after taking a sewing class in high school. While discussing fall fashion, she mentioned what some would refer to as a total closet crisis: the dying popularity of the skinny jean.
“Mom jeans are becoming even more popular, and I think that’s something we’ll definitely see on campus,” she said.
One item Stibbins hopes makes its way to campus is matching pajama sets — that’s right, as in pajamas as socially acceptable street wear. Stibbins first noticed the sets popping up on runways.
“I hope that gets adapted on campus because its comfortable and I want to participate,” she said.
Stibbins typically uses fashion forecast websites and magazines to determine new trends.
“Red is really in for fall,” she said. “But I don’t look good in red, so I’m not gonna wear it.”
Dr. Kathryn Reiley, whose research primarily involves vintage clothing, said similar things about this fall. As she flipped through her bookmarked pages of Harper’s Bazaar, Marie Claire and GQ, she discussed what was big on the runway and what will be big on campus.
“With the colder weather and walking outside a lot, going back and forth to classes, part of it is you want to be comfortable,” Reiley said. She added that, “Leggings should die.”
First skinny jeans, and now leggings? Isn’t college hard enough? In the midst of midterms and total suffering, comfort is key for students. But for those who would rather die than be seen in sweats, or God forbid, leggings or skinnies, new denims will be an easy fashion fix.
Women’s trends will include distressed and patch-worked denim, which incorporates different shades of indigo, as well as corduroy and velvet. Quilted and fur jackets, and leather or denim jackets with fur trim on collars and cuffs will also be popular as the weather gets cooler.
“There’s also kind of the 70s-craft trend that’s going on, and I think that’s a really fun way to incorporate color,” Reiley said. Reiterating Stibbins, she noted that red is going to be a huge fall color along with shiny and sparkly metallics.
For menswear, bold patterned crew-neck sweaters — think indie boy band — quilted vests and jackets, fur trimmed jackets and graphics are sure to have influence. Pleated pants or “slacks” have also shown up on the runway as of late, but Reiley isn’t sure how quickly it will catch on campus. Come on, boys, let’s make this happen. If leggings should die, so should hoodies and soccer pants.
Sure enough, some of these trends have already made their way to Minneapolis. Joshua Sundberg is a part-owner of Cliche, a women’s fashion and accessory boutique located in Uptown. Inside, chic jackets and coats hung from clothing racks, wide legged denim lined the display tables and reds, burnt oranges and yellows were everywhere. Sundberg spoke on Cliche’s new fall collection.
“All of it is huge, this season is more ’70s, also some ’80s and ’90s, little bits taken here and there from three of those time periods,” he said. “We’re definitely moving towards baggier trends … it literally may be the last season for skinny jeans.”
