Bold in The Cold
by Caroline Long
As a contrast to spring’s (groundbreaking) floral line-up, winter has always presented us with the latest fashions in gray, cream, and countless shades of black. Being able to bundle up and still look like sleek and put-together has become an art-form in and of itself, and city-dwellers from Boston to NYC are notorious for sporting dark, neutral colors in an attempt to stay trim and put-together under a mountain of winter accessories and puffy down.
But what if “blending-in” was never your forte?
While it’s true you can never go wrong with neutral colors and denim, Eugénie Trochu via Vogue Paris reiterates that bold colors are a trend this winter, stating that red especially has “never been more present.” Giambattista Valli, Prada, and Alexander McQueen all featured the bold, primary color as staples in their Fall/Winter 2018 lines. Equating a red piece to the class of a red lip, Trochu writes “an electric red accent will give off the cool girl vibe you’re aiming for.” The bold-color trend in 2018 has taken off in waves of yellow, red, purple, and hot pink.
photos by Milan Sachs
Following last fall's New York Fashion Week, the Pantone Institute created the year's Pantone Fashion Color Trend Report; a color overview highlighting the top colors fashion designers will be featuring in their collections for the upcoming season. It's an easily accessible guide to the season’s most important color trends. Some unexpected colors this year include Valiant Poppy, Nebulas Blue, Ceylon Yellow, Crocus Petal (a soft lilac), and Ultra-Violet.
Laurie Pressman of the Pantone Color Institute writes that the "Colors for Fall/Winter 2018 express our need for individuality, ingenuity, and creativity. There is a continued transition away from cyclical trends, and instead, a strong focus on self-expressive colors that evade antiquated seasonal structure."
People can sport bold hues paired together like in statement pieces such as fluid dresses and knee-high boots. For those off the runway and running into the city, the shades can be toned down by coupling them with softer tones, camels, and denim. You can throw anything on over a pair of Levi’s paired with a white shirt and black boots. Literally, anything.
The outerwear trend that struck last fall was the return of the colorful puffer coat (they’re not just for ski trips anymore!) A two-for-one 90s nostalgia and bold color trend, the style made its way off the backs of runway models and on the shelves of mainstream retailers such as Urban Outfitters and Madewell.
If the leaves and flowers don’t return until April, then it only makes sense that we make some color of our own. What better way to combat the winter blues than by wearing some?
