The Top 10 Fashion Trends of 2018
It’s been an absorbing year of fashion trends and styles and as it comes to a close, here’s our take on the top 10 trends that we saw dominate both global fashion weeks and Australian street style in 2018.
1. TINY SUNGLASSES
Compromised retina protection has never looked so stylish. Beginning with The Matrix inspired skinny sunnies trend and steadily shrinking over the course of the year, tiny frames have been the ultimate eye wear accessory of 2018.
Shrinking in size but still growing in popularity, this trend proves that the smallest details can make for the biggest style statements.
2. LOGOMANIA
Strongly associated with the excess of the 80’s and branding craze of the 90’s, the return of super visible logos a few seasons ago didn’t come as a surprise in our current retro-obsessed climate. The surprise was just how much staying power logomania proved to have.
Nostalgia continues to seduce, with 90’s inspired monogrammed prints dominating many major designer collections and large-logo pieces being worn without a hint of shame.
3. DOUBLE DENIM
Denim on denim has come a long way since Britney and Justin started it all with their appearance on the red carpet at the 2001 American Music Awards. Sure, denim is never not trending, but 2018 saw the rise of the most OTT denim styling we’ve seen in quite some time.
Ever divisive but undeniably cool when pulled off well, the ‘Canadian tux’ was a favourite across both womenswear and menswear.
4. SHADES OF YELLOW
Both within and beyond the world of fashion, 2018 has been full of rattling events and major blows. Perhaps this is why the most optimistic trend stuck around all year long. From subdued pastels to the flamboyant and fluorescent, all shades of yellow were embraced no matter the season.
5. TONGUE IN CHEEK
Virgil Abloh’s tongue-in-cheek designs were worn by so many fashion week show-goers and celebrities alike throughout 2018, we almost forgot they were meant to be statement pieces. Whether you thought the trend was sartorial sass at its best or simply eye-roll inducing, these designs spawned plenty of copycat styles and even more raised eyebrows.
6. BRIGHT PUFFER JACKETS
The puffer jacket is the tourist-chic outerwear trend that gained major popularity a couple of years ago, but street stylers in 2018 changed things up by refusing to play it safe when it came to colour. Puffer jackets in acid brights transformed the winter street scene this year and always turned heads.
7. LOUD SHIRTS
The warm weather equivalent of the ultra-bright puffer trend? Loud shirts. This year was all about stealing that Hawaiian shirt you’d been giving your dad grief over and embracing the loud and proud shirt trend. From florals to flame motifs, loud shirts were a major trend across menswear in 2018.
8. SNAKESKIN PRINT
Slithering just ahead of classic leopard print to take the spot as the standout animal-inspired trend of the year was of course, snakeskin. From faux-snakeskin accessories to head-to-toe reptilian print, this trend was a major one in 2018.
9. PURPLE
Colour experts at Pantone predicted 2018’s Colour of the Year to be Ultra Violet and shades of purple predictably popped up across runways and the street style scene all year long. Lavender and lilac in particular were standouts throughout the year and helped us all kiss goodbye to millennial pink.
10. THE CYCLING SHORT
Perhaps the most polarising fashion trend of the year is the cycling short. Making its way into fashion consciousness via the ever influential Kardashian-Jenner clan, the bike short trend seemed like another passing fad. It’s still going strong, so we fully expect for this trend to ride into the new year, too.