When we sat down to discuss all things spring 2020, the world looked a whole lot different than it does today. How were we to know that when we named vacation-ready tropical prints as a trend to watch that vacations themselves would become more or less obsolete? Or that office-ready shoes like heeled loafers would never get the chance to serve their purpose? Those days leading up to last spring were so innocent when we had no idea what the actual season would bring (no seriously, take me back to that time).
Well, here we are a year later and let’s just say the fashion landscape has shifted as much as the rest of the world has. While it’s typical for us to do a check-in and report on the status of seasonal trends, this year the difference between what’s current and what’s outdated feels that much more noticeable. As for what hasn’t made it to 2021? Well, I compared notes with our trend coverage from this time last year and happened to notice six trends of last year’s trends missing in action.
Keep reading to see which styles we’re simply not seeing as much of anymore and dive into the new themes taking their place.
Checks, please. If there’s one thing we know about spring trends, it’s that the more eye-catching, the better. Checkerboard prints are a trend that came in hot at the beginning of the year and we expect it to only keep gaining steam as designers high and low experiment with the graphic pattern. That being, said the tropical prints that ruled the spring 2020 runways are nearly evaporated. Seeing our suitcases have gathered dust over the past year, it’s not hard to see why.
Is there anything the fashion crew loves more than a slightly weird shoe trend? While office-ready heeled loafers seen to have completely tapered off, it’s these elevated thong sandals with either kitten heels or cushy platform soles that are capturing their attention now.
Let’s talk colors. There are plenty of bright colors trending at the moment, especially shades like bubblegum pink, tangy tangerine, and grassy green. Since these can’t-be-missed hues are ruling the scene right now, they’ve eclipsed the softer sherbert hues we saw a lot of last year.
It wouldn’t be trend roundup if we didn’t address at least one more risqué style. Last spring, netting was shaping up to be a big theme and since we haven’t seen much of it, the fashion world is clinging to a new barely-there look: tummy ties.
Workwear, utility, cargo—this look hasn’t gained much traction in 2021 since escapist aesthetics like “cottagecore” have taken hold.
Hemlines? They’re getting shorter. Well, not that short. My fashion friends have traded their hotpants for micro-mini skirts that feel just as retro but a lot more wearable.
Speaking of trends, see which shoe styles were starting to feel dated (and what’s replacing them).
