PRINT INSPRATIONS – S/S 2014

THE PAC MAN

PAC-MAN is our man of the moment. With PAC-MAN staging a mighty comeback this fall, the print world is all set to be engulfed by the perk of eighties pop.  It’s difficult to not be inspired by the vibrant colours of the minions, the playful maze and the plethora of interpretations surrounding it. In all its pixilated wonder, the quirky game inspires artists & designers conceiving contemporary versions of it today; while some focus on restoring the nostalgic vibe of its child-like appeal, modern adaptations make for commercial digital prints. PAC MAN is back and icons claim their territory in the blink of an eye. Take a hint and hit the play button. Courtesy www.fashionforwardtrends.com.

FASHION THE SERPENTINE WAY

It’s the year of the snake and fashion doesn’t stay behind, embracing the trend once more. The python print is lurking around still, with plentiful variations. The runways have attested to the trend yet again with Proenza Schouler’s popping greens and neutrals fused with colored leather, Erdem’s basic subdued sheath with lace interlays and Gucci’s splendid green sheat. The print maybe executed in dresses, jackets, skirts and even pants in the category of apparel while the same may be used in shoes, bags and other accessories. The prints come to effect in the form of allovers, panels or in conjunction with elements like leather, lace, sheer or denim. Topshop and Equipment are amongst the few retailers that have already put the trend on shelves. Also big at the runways of resort 2014 other variations being observed are that of real or faux snakeskin, basic shades or even the fresh colorful brights! Courtesy www.fashionforwardtrends.com.

THE HARLEQUINS OF THE 50’S

The classic harlequin print, which is most likely to take over the SS 2014 seasons patterns, having a long history behind it, actually dates back to the 11th century AD and is symbolic of the “clown” or the court jester.  Known for his physical agility, the character generally depicted as stupid and gluttonous, performed acrobatics to entertain and dressed in a unique looking bodysuit, with an allover print of repetitive rhombuses, recognized as the classic patterns of clowns ‘harlequins!’

While the clown lost its charm overtime, the concept made its way into the world of fashion with the 1940’s and 50’s taking inspiration from it. Started by Adele Simpson designing bold diamond patterns on the town suits she created in 1944, Louella Ballerino, Tammis Keefe, Norma Risemen are all personalities that used this print on several garments in different ways like a apron overskirt, a large table cloth and a wraparound colorful blouse throughout the decade…

Staying true to fashion’s cyclical nature, it is time turn back to the 50’s. Almost recognized as the fashion print of the 50’s, Harlequins are bringing the era back in the retro style. With Balmain using graphic harlequin checks on formal wear, mixing it with other patterns and lace; Aquilano Rimondi using it cleverly in his mini and midi electrically colour blocked dresses and Moschino using it in an oversized form in his 60’s colour pop collection, this trend is soon going to be all over the runways, and with some fast fashion brands even before you can say 2014. Courtesy www.fashionforwardtrends.com.

THE NEW FLORAL – CHRYSANTHEMUM

Chrysanthemums, often called mums, are perennial flowering plants, which are native to Asia and northeastern Europe having 30 different species. With fashion gaining more and more inspiration from the Oriental and Asian influences since the past few seasons, the chrysanthemum print is the new floral which is being used in several unique ways by various designers. First seen to gain momentum on the SS ’13 runway of Gucci in an abstract way; other designers like Hermes and Marni following suit to make this flower pop refreshingly in the fashion scene. Flowing into the fall, Carolina Herrera used it as an all over print for her dresses and Prada stuck to a colored black version for its Resort ’14 ensembles. Spotted once again on the SS ‘14 menswear runway recently, for Prada and Dries Van Noten, in dull shades of purple and maroon, the trend is sure to become wilder next year, taking florals to a whole new level. Courtesy www.fashionforwardtrends.com.

SMUDGED

Moving away from smudged eyeliner, the trend of smudging can now be seen on apparel too. Having varied effects ‘smudged’ as a trend is defined as ikat effects, ink saturation, rippled and wavy, distorted imagery, filtered prints, twisted and warped. The technique is simple and also accidental – think of drawing straight lines and the hand suddenly shakes, leaving behind something imperfect. Traditionally looked upon as an error, the error today is made to look appealing on the SS ’14 runways by many designers. While Fendi gave the trend a futuristic look, playing only with earthy tones, Mathew Williamson and Antoni and Alison went for the distorted stretched look with a bright palette, and House of Holland played with both, a smudged and saturated look. The key is to keep the silhouettes mostly simple since the print itself makes quite a statement, favorable for pants, dresses, jackets, and loose flowy tops. Courtesy www.fashionforwardtrends.com.

PIXEL POWER

The classic 8-bit video game, in all its computerized wonder, has given a solid print inspiration for the coming seasons- Pixilation. Taking a cue from the broken imagery of Pac-Man and Mario, the designers have fashionably face lifted a gamers’ delight to a chic print statement, by interlacing it with corresponding print trends as seen in the fall winter collection of Topshop Unique and Preen. While former presented an elaborate floral print on an oversized jumper, the latter broke a leapord print into sparsely placed pixels on a knee-length, cinched dress. The pixilated trend translated brilliantly on sweaters from Julien David’s Spring 14 collection, complimenting the chunky knits of the dandy sweater. Courtesy www.fashionforwardtrends.com.

SLICED PRINTS

A new trend direction cropping up on the menswear runways of S/S ’14 is that of prints which are interestingly sliced into horizontal stripes. A combination of the regular stripes that have been a stable in fashion over time along with prints has somehow brought the creative technique of collage art into the eyes of serious fashion influencers. Still at a nascent stage, the concept is certainly new and inspirational which can see a major growth in the coming seasons.

While Givenchy incorporated the look in his Nerd Africa collection with shreds of boom boxes, reel-to-reels and home studios broken down into their component parts in consecutive rows, James Long used a similar approach by chopping bright colored prints into stripes, and Agi & Sam’s took a refined take with the trend being used generously on formal suits. For the future, the sliced formations can not only restrict themselves to straight lines, but can also vary from florals to checks to mosaic cutouts. Undoubtedly ‘Sliced patterns’ are soon going to transcend from the world of art to fashion with heads turning. Courtesy www.fashionforwardtrends.com.

COLOUR DIVIDE

This trend, as the name suggests, creates various segments of a garment by partioning it in geometrical shapes. The end product looks like multiple garments were sewn together to form one. This SS’14 men’s runways at Paris and Milan saw a lot of this trend popping up with Lanvin using bold horizontal stripes, Dior using different hues of blue strategically to highlight each segment, Givenchy getting creative with the trend and Junya Watanabe’s line looking almost like patchwork with the pockets starkly standing out from the background shades. Colour divide can be created in formal and casual wear, both by creating a bold impact on suits, pants and overcoats but to keep it subtle and yet, fashionable, it could be tried on accessories like ties and belts too. Also, this trend looks the best when the segments are colour blocked. Courtesy www.fashionforwardtrends.com.