I recently posted a TikTok about fashion forecasters, editors, and analysts hitting a wall when it comes to predicting trends. There’s too much going on at one time. The instant access social media gives us to everyone and the overconsumption trap Gen-Z has fallen into with fast fashion brands has the trend cycle in hyper speed.
2023 will be the year that the trend cycle implodes. People will have to get accustomed to being concerned with themselves and themselves alone when they get dressed. 2023 is the year to worry about you.
One comment posed that some people need fashion trends to know how to dress “presentable” in their everyday lives because they do not care enough to form a personal style. This has me thinking.
The Rules of Dress
How “presentable” is defined here needs to be fleshed out because many factors affect how a person and the individuals around them may define “presentable.” That word raises my hackles as a chubby, Black woman on the taller side. But I’ll give the commenter the benefit of the doubt.
But again, this idea of keeping your eyes on your own paper should be applied. We all encounter places and situations that already have a dress code tied to the culture, i.e., work, your grandma’s house, a rave, an elementary school, etc. You will know by virtue of existing in society and absorbing however many years worth of social cues what will and will not be acceptable or expected in said settings. You have a bearing on how much skin would be egregious to show, what colors would make you stick out for better or worse, and so on and so forth. What effect do fashion trends have on these moments?
To Freedom!
And I mean truly. Styles like the wrap dress, tweed sets, and shoulder pads swept through the corporate world decades ago, but you weren’t necessarily “unpresentable” for not participating. In a time where everything could arguably be in, what is having an “updated” wardrobe? Really?
I’d say that people who categorize themselves as the “everyday person” benefit most from the move away from trends. The everyday person can worry about functionality, comfort, and genuine interest rather than the often arbitrary definition of “presentable.”
Yes, curating your personal style is much more intentional and methodical than most people care to get. We, as fashion folks, know that. But we also know how easy it is to stumble upon your signature style when you have the room to explore and act without peer pressure. The trend cycle implosion may serve as the catalyst to redefine the words “style” and “taste” to the everyday person. We may even be one step closer to doing away with presentability politics.
I sure hope so.
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