New Season Trends: Yay or Nay?

KAT TARLING and ELEANOR WILSON assess the pros and cons of some of this season’s trickier trends.

12 years ago

It happens every season. Your trusty fashion magazine (or should that be bible?) starts tirelessly throwing up images of garments that the untrained eye would deem outlandish. Alas, with spring on the horizon, it is that time again. We weigh up whether these tricky pieces will score you admiring glances, or stares of confusion.

THE FLATFORM

£35, River Island

YAY

Kat: Ok, so these may not be the sexiest shoes you’ve ever seen, but for a vertically challenged girl like myself, it is refreshing to see a shoe on the market which offers a few valuable extra inches minus the pain of stilettos. Add a relaxed summer dress and you could float around elegantly in these all day without the risk of heel fatigue. A friend of mine has a pair and claims she can do a cartwheel in them; nuff said.

NAY

Eleanor: There are rare moments in fashion when common sense must overrule; this is one of them. There is no denying it; this, frankly, resembles a jazzed up orthopaedic shoe. However, this obvious and worrying similarity did not deter the designers. The platform’s ugly twin was a fixture at fashion week, sent down the S/S ’12 runway by the likes of Marc Jacobs, Miuccia Prada and Derek Lam. And it continues its victorious march onto the high street shelves. I resolve to use intelligence and resist.

Derek Lam, S/S'12

THE PLEATED SKIRT

£48, Topshop

YAY

Eleanor: Yes, it may look suspiciously similar to what your grandmother wore last time she visited for Sunday lunch, but with the trend towards granny chic of recent years, the knee-length pleat skirt just seems oh so right. At Whistles, their version ‘Carrie’ has already caused a stir amongst the fashion elite, selling out nation-wide, and countless celebs have been spotted working the trend. A pastel version paired down with a slouchy tee or jumper is a wearable look for day, and a metallic number is perfect for night, à la glamazon Blake Lively. This spring I plan to make my granny proud and don this ladylike trend.

NAY

Kat: The pleated skirt is far too reminiscent of my much loathed grey school uniform skirt (which I spent the best part of my school days trying to improve). The mini and maxi versions are wearable, but the below -the-knee version is only flattering if you have fabulously long legs like Ms Lively. If you are short, it will only serve to make you look even shorter, with lovely chunky calves.

THE PRINTED SILK JACKET

£48, Topshop

YAY

Eleanor: At first, this jacket’s loud print and lurid colours seem a daunting prospect. This season’s Topshop lookbook may recommend you pair this piece with clashing blouse, leggings and clutch in similarly garish designs. (I somehow doubt the stylists considered their followers in small-town North Norfolk when they put these looks together.) But, wallflowers take note: worn with a loose pastel tee and a maxi skirt, this jacket could even look, dare I say it, elegant. A refreshing take on retro. Dare to stand out from the crowd of denim jackets this spring and invest in a printed silk bomber.

NAY

Kat: I’m sorry; I thought we’d left the ‘80s behind? All I see here is an inventive new take on the shellsuit. This is the kind of trend that only looks good in a fashion editorial, or if you are Rihanna.

Topshop Lookbook S/S'12

Eleanor Wilson