Ah to go bare-sleeved in an open neck in fabrics that breathe, sway as they body-sculpt in comfort fit. Trend forecasters, the people all over the globe who scout for fashion trends have proclaimed that fringes, metallics, florals, skirts, wide-legged trousers, peplums, all things baggy, and the like will rule.
We have also had Pantone, an authority on colour, announce ‘peach fuzz’ as the colour for 2024. Peach fuzz as in a "velvety gentle peach whose all-embracing spirit enriches mind, body and heart", and highlights "our desire for togetherness with others and the feelings this creates".
"In seeking a hue that echoes our innate yearning for closeness and connection, we chose a colour radiant with warmth and modern elegance," a Pantone official said, adding it is a shade that “resonates with compassion, offers a tactile embrace, and effortlessly bridges the youthful with the timeless”.
So if you happen to go to Europe or the US when their summer has set in, all their shop windows will showcase peach fuzz in all its glory and on all kinds of clothing and accessories, and you will also see a multitude turn out in shades of these apart from their regular whites, greys, blues, browns and black.
While these trends work elsewhere, and are followed religiously almost, do we really follow them in our country? Some yes, specially if you see the branded players, but not quite otherwise. For instance, during a recent trip to Kolkata when I asked the president of a trade organisation whose members supply garments to shops across the country, he disdainfully countered: “What trends? We collectively decide which fabric, what patterns to work on for a particular season and work accordingly!”
Similarly for us, mango man and woman. I am all for fringes, metallics and florals, and have always had these in my closet, irrespective of trends, what we do need to keep in mind is to pick and choose according to our body type and complexion.
There is no one colour or cut that suits all. Each body type is unique. Just as the doc exhorts to listen to your body, before you dress up to step out, or actually before you indulge in retail therapy, remember not to shop for fashion trends blindly.
