Trendy Fashion 2022: A Tale of Two Cities

London and Paris are known for their fashion labels and well-dressed civilians who walk the streets. After spending some time in each city, I have found Paris men's fashion to be more feminine and London fashion more masculine. It is ordinary to see men wearing colorful scarves in Paris, while most men wear darker-colored suits in London. Home of the Sun King, Paris fashion seems to push the boundaries of men's and women's clothing in all aspects, particularly in color. London stays true to the garments and colors that have been working for decades. Both cities are known for starting new clothing trends; however, I think Paris pushes the fashion line further than any other city. For this assignment on trends, I looked for people I thought embraced the style of their land while standing out from the crowd.

With sustainability becoming one of the essential topics in the fashion industry, I have found many people walking around with homemade or upcycled clothing. In Shortage, a hipster part of London, many people wore colorful garments and upcycled clothes. My favorite outfit from this area that I felt embodied the spirit was a woman wearing a homemade dress and upcycled corset. Her dress had a vibrant tie-dye color pallet, and her mocha corset completed her self-made style. Being in a neighborhood with many young designers and a fashion school, I felt that her outfit perfectly represented making something new while using a garment from earlier centuries. I saw many patrons upcycling in London on a macro level, not only in the Shortage region. While walking Oxford street, I found a colorful man wearing the most excellent Birkenstocks I have ever seen. He turned out to be the creator of a company that sells upcycled Birkenstocks using old Moroccan rugs. The rest of his outfit was just as original as his shoes, making him the best-dressed man on the longest shopping street in London.

In Paris, I continued to find men and women wearing vibrant colors. While shopping at a speakeasy clothing store, I found a man preparing to roll a cigarette on the owner's desk, wearing a very cool vest. He also had a bright yellow shirt and a hat that matched his colorful vest. I started talking to other shoppers in the store and found someone wearing my new favorite microtrend: utility vests. Unlike other utility vests I have seen in retail, this vest was very simple and brandless. On the way out of the speakeasy, I found a man hosting a popup shop featuring his new clothing brand wearing multicolored hair and garments. My favorite accessory was his light purple sunglasses that matched his shirt. I have found younger individuals wearing very vibrant clothing in London and Paris. However, each city does the bright color macro trend differently. I saw bright colors in London on those who upcycled their dress, and Parisians wear bright colors in new fabrics.

The street style in London and Paris is far more creative than anything I have witnessed in the United States. I found older generations wearing tighter silhouettes with less vibrant colors and younger generations wearing more lively colors with baggier clothing. I found a mix of more aged trends in Shortage, accompanying newer trends with bright colors. A micro-trend I saw in London was detached puffy sleeves on women as they had in the 19th century. Paris seems always to be looking ahead to what's coming up next. As the capital of fashion, I see the bright color macro trend becoming the norm around as more people are trying to stick out of the crowd in the age of individual sovereignty for all.

London Macro Trend: Upcycling