Keep up With Fashion Trends
Dressing fashionably is a great way to express yourself and boost your confidence. It can lead to success in other areas, even your professional and personal life. However, fashion trends change quickly. It sometimes feels impossible to keep up with the fast-paced and often inaccessible fashion world. Nonetheless, even if you aren’t in the fashion industry, you, too, can keep up with trends and incorporate them into your own personal style.
Contents
Steps
Finding Outside Inspiration
- Watch the runway. Fashion brands and designers have shows twice a year at designated “fashion weeks” in various cities around the world. While it is difficult to gain access to these events, there are many resources available online that recap the shows with photos, videos, and written reviews.
- Style.com and nowfashion.com are two reliable places to see recent video footage and photographs from runway shows. You can also watch archived shows from past years to get an understanding of how trends have changed.
- Notice what shapes and colors the designers are using. Even if you can’t see yourself wearing some of these clothes, you may see more wearable versions of these on the streets in months to come. By going to the source, you will be ahead of the trends when they reach the general public.
- Read fashion publications. Even without a subscription, many prominent fashion publications have free and accessible content. These websites are tailor-made for regular people trying to keep up with trends.
- Magazines like Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, Women’s Wear Daily have many online articles about current fashion trends and how to wear them.
- Fashion bloggers are regular people with an interest in fashion. They have free websites devoted to new trends and brands to watch out for.
- Follow social media. Many bloggers, models and designers use Twitter and Instagram to share information about their favorite trends and sources of inspiration.
- Explore the #fashion hashtag on Instagram and find the accounts that get you most inspired and excited about new trends. Follow celebrities and designers whose style you most admire.
- Even if you don’t have access to a smartphone, you can access these social media accounts through the Internet.
Keeping Up With Retailers
- Go window shopping. One way to stay informed about fashion trends is by paying attention to what merchandise stores are selling. Watch what the mannequins are wearing.
- Retailers translate more inaccessible styles from high-end designers into wearable every day clothes. Being informed about what stores are selling can give you a sense of what’s “in.”
- Change your shopping habits. It may be helpful to shop more frequently and buy fewer things at once. This will allow you to be aware of trends and make sure you are only buying things you love. .
- Don’t feel pressure to buy something every time you go shopping. Make an informed purchase by taking time to look around and by doing research online.
- Force yourself to explore new stores. You may not think a certain brand is your style, but it will help broaden your fashion education!
- When you find an item you like, think about of two other items in your wardrobe that you can pair it with. That way, you will have a wardrobe full of clothes that you actually wear.
- Explore online shopping. You can explore fashion trends without braving a busy mall. Online retailers allow you to explore new merchandise quickly and easily.
- Sign up for emails from your favorite stores. Many brands send out email blasts when they have new inventory and styles.
Editing Your Wardrobe
- Downsize your closet. Having a smaller closet means more room for seasonal and trending items.
- Throw away old styles. Make space for new items by throwing away the clothes you don’t wear.
- Be honest. If you haven’t worn something in a year, you could probably get rid of it.
- Throw away items that do not fit you anymore. We all have sentimental pieces of clothing. However, clothing clutter will only keep you from expanding your style.
- Keep the basics. Keep a small collection of your favorite basic items, such as well-fitting jeans and t-shirts. These items are timeless. You can pair them with trendier items you buy.
- Small items, like jackets and shoes are a good way to spruce up your basics.
- Create a new organizing system. Make sure you are keeping track of everything you own. This will force you to be honest about what you are actually wearing. It will also help as you continue to refresh your wardrobe.
Staying on Budget
- Embrace accessories. Using accessories to spruce up a well-fitting base wardrobe is a great way to stay both on trend and on budget.
- Save on basics. Trendier items can be more expensive. Make sure you are budgeting accordingly. Look for bargains on t-shirts and jeans so that you can splurge on the occasional trendy dress or pair of shoes.
- Explore thrift stores. Trends tend to reemerge over time. Consignment shops and thrift stores are great places to find extremely affordable clothing in older styles. This is a way to enliven your wardrobe when an older style comes back into fashion.
- Set limits. While it is easy to get wrapped up in keeping up with fashion trends, set a monthly monetary limit so you do not spend more than you are able to on clothes.
- Remember that fashion trends change so quickly that it is impossible to keep up completely. Buying a few items a month will keep your wardrobe lively without exhausting your wallet.
Tips
- Confidence is key. You can “pull-off” anything with the right attitude. Find ways to be yourself while still being trendy. It is important to maintain a balance of new pieces that challenge you, and pieces that fit your personality.
- Fashion can be affordable. Keep your closet small and only buy items you love. Once you understand what is trending, search for similar styles in thrift stores and discount stores.
- Be bold. It is scary to step outside your comfort zone. However, experimenting with new styles can make you feel revitalized.
- It is possible for clothing to be overly trendy. Avoid clothing that seems impractical or too "out-there." These styles sometimes only stay popular for a few weeks. Find a balance between trendy and wearable clothes that will last for seasons to come.
- Be yourself. It is important to adapt trends to your own personal taste and personality. Your clothes should show off who you are inside! Make sure the items you buy are age-appropriate and comfortable.
