There are 2 very strong fashion trends in the new
fashion season of 2007
that just about everyone can follow and you don't even need to
diet for the first one.
Firstly consider getting a
capacity oversized handbag that is in fact more of a shopper
or overnight bag. Get the 'It' accessory.
Just choose a big super sized bag and don't worry too much
about the brand. This season size is more
important than a designer name on your bag. Cream Leather Tie
Side Bag (to the right) is from River Island and costs £100/€168.
Use the large clutch the most currently fashionable
of small bag alternatives, as a purse from within your
larger bags. You are then prepared for all looks
assuming you can safely deposit your larger bag at your venue.
Bag image courtesy of River Island Clothing Co.
Ltd.
Secondly don't consider the dress as something to buy or
reject this season -
a dress is a 'must have' item. There are
so many varying fashionable dress styles available, one of them will suit you.
Hemline Interest
These white Spring/Summer 2007 A-line
dresses are both from Wallis and offer two quite
different lengths. There really will be a
length for you out in the shops.
Left - Wallis White linen
futuristic dress £60/€99.
Right - Wallis White linen dart detail short dress -
£60/€99.
Whether
your fashion dress is ultra micro mini, tunic, on
the knee or maxi, choose from some of these styles
suggested.
Select your dress styles from :- Tunic, Empire line,
floral,
jersey, Grecian,
shirtwaisters, cutaway dresses, halter necklines, Trapeze A-lines, Smock yoke band dresses, bejewelled
frocks, Posh parka sporty dresses, Balloon puffball dresses,
layered chiffon and tulle dresses, fabric flower textured dresses,
sash, belted and wrap dresses.
The variety of dress styles on offer is
huge this year. If you are a fan of dresses
now is the time to stock up.
Yet, if floral romantic dresses like those shown
below are simply not your brand of street cred then you can
still follow the dress trend, but in good old denim.
This modern short shirtwaister dress right is
from Dorothy Perkins Spring/Summer 2007 and is just £25/€40.
Images courtesy of Arcadia/Wallis/Dorothy
Perkins.
These
top KEY themes are the ones to consider most when choosing from
fashion trends to add to your existing wardrobe
for Spring/Summer 2007.
Colour
is important, so the main spring summer 2007 colours are soft powdery colours - earthy tones, golds,
silvers, strawberry ice, sky blue, golden apricot, ultramarine,
putty and nude tones. There are also some dazzling neon
brights like ultramarine, electric blue, yellow, red, tangerine,
emerald and purple as well as monochrome black and white
schemes.
The shorter dress set with a hemline on or above the knee
should be your wardrobe staple for spring - the chic dress is
very fashionable for 2007.
For the brave
and fashion forward with good legs, the ultra-micro mini or tunic dress
is the main purchase. If your arms have lost their firmness you will find plenty of
elbow sleeve and longer sleeved dresses in the shops.
Left - Black and white print border shift dress £12.00 from the
Primark Spring Collection for 2007.
When you are older then a dress grazing the knee is always the
alternative to the shortest looks.
This navy and
white dress right fits that bill and is from Phase Eight. Phase Eight striped dress £120, belt
£35, Shoes £80.
When dresses on offer are
too short for your taste or nerve, then it's still acceptable to
team them with skinny trousers, leggings or coloured tights.
You will also find the illusion
hem discussed below, a style worth traipsing shops to find.
Right - Floral Print Smock Tunic, £39 from Discoo - Online
fashion store is perfect for this season’s
trend of floral prints, this Smock Tunic is a great length and
can be worn as a dress or tunic top.
If existing dresses have the balance to be shortened, then shorten your dresses. Start
pinning them up now to check how they look. If your
legs look wobbly get going on some daily walking or lunges!
Images above courtesy of Matalan, Phase Eight and Discoo
www.Discoo.co.uk
Look no further for inspiration than ladies clothes from the
Marc by Marc Jacobs designer range if you seek a designer who favours
folkloric patchwork styled
smock frocks. But if price is important, then
be inspired by affordable
Folkloric looks at
Topshop.
Look for tops like the smock right from Dorothy Perkins. These have Slav inspired folk prints, plain solid colours or
interesting abstract exotic designs. Right Dorothy Perkins
Spring/Summer 2007 collection, blue and cream floral smock top -
£24/€40. Image
courtesy of Arcadia/Dorothy Perkins.
Floral and botanical prints -Liberty and Laura Ashley
style ditzy prints or full blooms.
For the full on
romantic fashion look opt for tulle tiers and sheer layers. If
the tulle dress is too girly for you then adopt trims, ruffles,
frills, fine Fortuny pleats, flounces and bows elsewhere.
This pretty silk chiffon flame and cream floral dress left is
£120 and is from Phase
Eight. It has a dreamy summer look with its flame coral sash, empire line
bodice, 2 skirt
layers and a soft fluttering cap sleeve making the resulting
frock super feminine.
Lace Fabrics.
An important trend
you could pick up on now as it grows toward autumn
is lace and other textured fabrics. Lace shift dresses with sleeves over toning or
contrast satin underslips may be one way for you to wear a little satin sheen.
The longer lace sleeves of the main dress will flatter older
less toned arms that haven't seen daylight for years.
Right Ivory cotton lace tunic
lace dress £60/€99 from Wallis Spring/Summer 2007.
Images courtesy
of Phase Eight and Arcadia/Wallis.
Long lean tunics.
The lace dress above right is suitable to be worn as a long tunic
over skinny satin pants or jeans or leggings. Long tunics
and short jackets can easily compliment slouchy trousers and
long tops can
double as mini dresses for night and clubwear.
Fabrics that shimmer with sheen.
Metallic glimmer, gold, silver and sweet wrapper colours.
Shimmering metallic fabrics often combine well
with fashion forward futuristic shapes. Make sure that shimmer isn't highlighting the areas you
personally need to play down. Also check that you look
good in gold, bronze, copper or silver looks. Women rarely
look good in all the metal tones so your personal colouring may
mean you should steer clear of the cooler silvers or the warmer
golds.
Brocade and textured brocades
Fabrics with arts and crafts texture - Pailettes,
buttons, jewels, rings, embroidery.
Bejewelled necklines.
With dresses that have
embedded stones, buttons and paste gems as bejewelled looks, avoid overdoing additional neckline
jewellery. Choose button decoration on the chest
area only if your figure can cope with the extra texture and
bulk it creates.
For
the not so brave select the Maxi dress or a frock safely just on the
knee.
Maxi dresses and skirts were popular daytime alternatives to
short looks and hot pants in the 1970s.
Flamenco ruffles, flounces and frill are visible on many garments from blouses to
skirts, as are accordion pleated frills like Fortuny pleating.
Many of these maxi dresses have a final frill at the lower hemline.
Right is a floral print maxi dress for
Miss Selfridge Spring Summer 2007 and courtesy of Miss
Selfridge/Arcadia. Note the soft full frill at the hemline.
Flounces created by elastication and drawstrings are also evident on
folkloric dresses especially at shoulders. Long
tunic or mini dress gypsy
tops with elastication that can be pulled on and off the
shoulders with ease will enable you to customise your own
fashionable look.
Again don't be afraid to ignore any of these lengths and find a length
that flatters your body and your legs. You have to feel
comfortable and once you find a shorter length that is just so
for you, then you are more likely to wear it with confidence.
As a baby boomer I know my limits on this one despite liking my
pins.
Do you know yours?
If a maxi seems to extreme for you fear not,
illusion
hemlines will be everywhere as dresses get shorter.
Baby boomers take note. Look
out for shimmy fringe false hem illusions, mesh, lace or pastel
flesh toned hems that are used to create deceptive dress
lengths.
False illusion hems are a typical 60s ploy to give an
illusion of shortness whilst in fact offering extra length.
In the 1920s this was achieved by the handkerchief hemline
and in fact in the noughties we have been playing with this
indeterminate length for some time.
The illusion hemline is being applied to both dresses and
skirts as this dress and skirt right both from Dorothy Perkins
clearly illustrate.
Brown and yellow floral dress -
£25/€40 and Cream skirt with black trim - £25/€40.
Look for deep bands of contrast colour that creates an optical
illusion of wearing a shorter garment than the longer real leg
cover the dress or skirt truly offers.
Volume and fullness in sleeves. Sleeves are a
great way to gain volume in clothing without excess untamed
fabric folds bulking you out too much. If a puffball skirt
fills you with dread then try a balloon sleeve.
Look out for elbow and just below elbow sleeves.
Burberry is featuring coats with 3/4 Lantern sleeves that have
bell like flounced flares or trumpets at the elbow. Wallis
have a very good look alike version shown on the main
Spring/Summer Fashion Trends 2007 Looks page.
Now
is the time for interesting full sleeves such as short, long,
balloon, bell, lantern, trumpet or kimono sleeves.
Familiarise yourself with these terms as there is great deal of
difference between an average puff sleeve and the fulsome
balloon sleeve left.
Puff sleeves vary in volume from dainty puff to leg of mutton
balloon puffs. This sleeve in the photo shown left is a
full balloon sleeve. It is the top part of a leg of mutton
sleeve which normally reaches the elbow is the balloon part.
The white poet shirt at £65 is by Helen Berman and available
from House of Fraser. The poet shirt has been teamed with high
waisted belted cropped trousers at £35 also HOF. This
shirt strikes me as the perfect high street shirt for this
season.
Let's face it when it comes to trousers, pants, call them
what you will, the best pair are the ones that suit your
personal body shape. Cropped relaxed pants are still
good for summer wear. Wider looser pants are easier
to wear for most people.
Skinny pants and skinny jeans are
for skinny people. But they will work well with long
tunics or dresses once you have squeezed into a pair.
No one wants to see bare midriff jeans anymore and most of us
are just so glad it has passed into costume history it's a trend
so dead in the water.
You can come into 2007 by purchasing a pants style of leg,
full or narrow that suits you, but which is higher waisted like
the waist in the photo just above or on these slouch denim jeans
left. This wearable look is likely to sharpen up as a
trend leaning toward more androgynous tailored looks for autumn
2007.
This photo has all the elements of a fashionable look of 2007
- wider high waistline trousers, big slouchy bag and full
sleeved blouse.
Right - Oasis pleat front jeans £50, white oversized slouchy
bag £30, silk balloon sleeve blouse £45.
At the time of writing both romper suits and Harem pants are for the fearless early
adopters. Fine if you are as long and leggy as Erin O'
Connor, in which case a mini dress might still do you more favours. Image
courtesy of Oasis.
If you are a fan of trousers then jackets and coats will
be a top cover up option for you. You can read more about
wardrobe needs for coat and jackets and
luxury parkas on other
pages. The pages highlight changes in use of buttons,
pockets, volume, collars, cuffs, sleeves and fabrics. Keep
an eye out for newer jacket lengths. Whilst the cropped
and bomber jacket still reigns, some jackets are gaining length
again.
You can also read more wardrobe needs for accessories on the
Accessories page.
Think carefully about these trends
There are always so many
ideas on offer that have filtered from the catwalks to the high
street, but think twice about some looks before you even leave
home.
Consider
carefully what you are trying to say when you decide to don an
adult Romper-suit as a
fashion statement - fine for the beach - not great for town -
you are a grown woman aren't you?
Animal print leggings and the nasty legging dropped crotch look
- this is almost cruelty to grown women and of course even worse
for the onlookers.
Do you really
want to look like a WAG with squared off
white tipped manicures and fake spray tans - go for soft oval
nails. If you must use fake tans (on legs only) opt for
paler golden tans rather than dark mahogany or frankly orange
looks.
Crocs - strictly
for
your beach bag and wandering on cobbled beaches where seawater
just might run over that brand new pedicure. Not for town.
Turbans -
featured in summer shows and perfect to cover up messy hair
on the beach or especially useful for those between hairstyles.
Yes turbans are perfect for fashion shoots, but unless you are an
early adopter think twice if a turban is really a must have for
your personal list. In my opinion there are better looks
that define this season and now you should go shopping for them. That sunny spring day really is just around the corner.
Happy shopping.
2007 New Fashion Trends - Wardrobe Tips Spring Summer 2007 -
Spring 2007 Image Planning
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