How trendless can we actually be?
The more time I dedicate to writing for publications the more I’m told to look out for trends.
The media love trends, it’s how the industry works. Whilst I rolled my eyes at first and even questioned the idea of having to be so mainstream as to tap into trends, ever the good student who does as she’s told, I’ve been keeping my eyes peeled.
The reason for my eye rolls and wincing were obvious to me. I’ve spent the last four years of my life dedicated to curating a capsule wardrobe and detaching myself from all things consumerism via a more minimalist mindset. Trends have little place in such a method - ignore them I’ve told myself and lots of others too. They’ll cost you money and you’re dancing to the tune of consumerism by buying into them.
With a new awareness of what trends are actually popular right now, has come the realisation that maybe I don’t skirt as far around them as I think. Maybe none of us do. Maybe we can’t.
The other week I went down to London for a brand event I was invited to. I’m not usually one to go to brand events, it’s one of those areas of my life where my introversion can grant me a delicious permission slip to remain a hermit. Nevertheless the invite said there’d be high tea and an afternoon of crafting and it sounded too good to miss. It felt like a good opportunity to push myself out of my comfort zone too, which is something I’m actively working on.
The day itself was as lovely as promised but I found myself with time to kill afterwards. I booked the off peak train home because it was cheaper. Sat in the Sourced Market window seat (they have USB charger slots and sell a mean spinach and feta bake) at St Pancras train station I found myself with three whole hours to spare before my train set off back the countryside to return me back where I belong.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a creepy person who stares but I do like to take mental notes of what other people are wearing. I find it so interesting and minimalism aside I’ve never lost my love of clothes or styling. I’d picked up on a dress or two I admired at the event, all long, floral and worn with casual trainers. Sat there in the window seat at Sourced Market I saw another long dress go past, then another, and another. I felt excited for doing my homework properly and spotting a trend.
Next I started noticing long sleeves and higher necklines. If women of London are dressing modestly that means modesty dressing is a thing. A trend! On reflection it feels obvious modesty dressing has slowly been creeping in since the me too movement. We want to reclaim our bodies and send a strong message they’re not objects. Before I got on my train I pottered around the shops trying to add more pieces to the modesty puzzle. It wasn’t hard. Mannequin after manikin was draped in a whole assortment of what I would consider modesty dresses. One even had the white trainers placed right next to it.
I was gushing over one particular long sleeve floral number, but the capsule wardrobe devotee in me advised me to resist. You don’t want it badly enough Jess and it’s a trend remember. You’ll be sick of it next year and have wasted your money.
When I got home, with my new awareness of modesty dressing in tact, I was reunited with my own wardrobe and sharply realised that maybe I’m more susceptible to trends than I think. My wardrobe, all be it less than 50 pieces and very much capsule has become peppered with long sleeves, long hemlines and high necklines. I hadn’t bought into the florals but you could slot modesty in there as a key word to define it. Until that moment I’d had no idea but I’d subconsciously succumb to trends all along. I’d noticed my style changing over the last year or so but I’ve been convinced it was all part of passing the post of 30 and moving to a tiny village in the countryside. Now I’m not so sure.
Remember that scene in The Devil Wears Prada when Anne Hathaway’s character scoffs at Miranda Priestly in the run through meeting because of all the fuss being made over the exact belt they want to choose for the issue? She’s smug because she thinks fashion is dumb and doesn’t apply to her. Miranda rightly points out that the exact colour of the sweater Anne is wearing is a direct result of Oscar De La Renta’s cerulean gowns that went on to filter right down to the high street and then the bargain bin where she found it. Miranda says “it’s comical you think you’ve made a choice that exempts you from the fashion industry when in fact you’re wearing a sweater that was selected for you by the people in this room”. Anne is suddenly not so smug. After my own trend realisations I haven’t been able to get that scene out of my head. Am I Anne? Are we all Anne in some way?
Trends go way beyond fashion. I have a friend who prides herself on her individuality, much more than I do. She loves to be different to everyone else. She thinks all fashion is girly, silly even and in no way wishes to buy into mainstream trends, yet she’s a creative business coach. Without the recent trend for coaching and starting your own business her job wouldn’t exist. Are we all part of a much larger machine without even realising it? Even when we’re dead set on boycotting the trends, how realistic is it to achieve?
Just like Anne’s cerulean sweater trends are indeed determined by the powers that be and proceed to filter down to even the most unaware of us at the bottom whether we want to buy into them or not. The sustainability trend for example, is coming from the climate change crisis we’re facing and there’s a lot of greenwashing going on as brands jump on the band wagon. No wonder my inbox is full of brands wanting to work together in the name of sustainability! I’m reframing what trends mean to me. They’re not all bad and goodness knows we need the sustainability trend more than ever right now.
We only have to look as far as Instagram for more trends we’re influenced by. Scandinavian interiors, slow living, minimalism, interiors in general, countryside living, gardening and running your own creative business, even timelessness seems to be a trend right now - my eyes are well and truly open. As individual as some of us like to think we are there’s a reason we like the things we do, take pictures of the things we do, own the things we do and wear the things we do. Worth keeping on your shoulder perhaps, it’s now permanently lodged on mine. Turns out trends maybe aren’t so bad after all, it’s what you do with them that counts.
I feel fascinated by this idea and could talk to you about it all day long. What do you think? Let me know in the comments.
