MOOD BOARD
SPECTRUM STYLE A OF NEON BRIGHTS and the SUSTAINABLE PIECES YOU’LL WANT to HOLD ON to. HERE ARE the LOOKS and LABELS TRENDING in SEPTEMBER
AH, AUTUMN. Crisp amber leaves and the orange glow of an early setting sun (or, let’s be honest, the reflection of a light bulb on your tepid latte while it rains out).
Irrespective of where you are, provided you’re in the Western Hemisphere, September is usually the month we pack away the brights and replace them with deeper, earthier hues: rust red and rich burgundy among mossy greens; the kinds of colours you see blanketing the forest floor, as they did for Chanel’s autumn/winter 2O18 show in Paris.
But even Karl Lagerfeld is over that – he chose to kick those leaves aside and send models down the runway with peppy pink and electric-blue accessories, with neon leaf prints stamped over floor-sweeping grey coats. And he wasn’t the only one, with Prada’s electrifying paillettes, Sies Marjan’s technicolour coats and trippy prints at Molly Goddard all contributing to the season’s colour story.
The comforting palette of autumn is great, sure. But you can’t knock the mood-boosting, go-get-’em quality of bold colours. ‘Our moods and the colours we surround ourselves with are directly connected,’ says Sander Lak, creative director of Sies Marjan, a brand that has fast become a go-to for rich, unexpected hues, with an A-list fan base that includes Beyoncé, Emma Stone and Kelela. And at a time when the cultural conversation has turned to ‘generational colours’ (millennial pink, Gen Z yellow), it’s no surprise that the usually-sombre palette of the winter months has lost favour to refreshing, eye-popping brights.
Even the season’s darker pieces are surreptitiously introducing brights into our wardrobes. Sies Marjan, Maison Margiela and new label to know Area NYC all showed outerwear that appeared grey at first, but threw back lime green, cyan and pink when a camera flash hit them. ‘I don’t think old rules of bright in the summer and dark in the winter apply anymore,’ says Lak. ‘How we feel has more impact than the seasons.’ So it might be that, rather than fashion waking up to bolder hues, it’s broadening its palette to reflect our multiple moods (in case you haven’t realised by now, those seemingly contradictory states of angry and amused, ‘masculine’ and ‘feminine’, can co-exist without cancelling each other out). These are coats that can do both.
Preen, Rochas, Kenzo and Valentino, as well as newcomers Matthew Adams Dolan and Supriya Lele, are also lifting spirits with eye-opening brights. (Moschino took it to
“I DON’T THINK the OLD RULES OF BRIGHT IN THE SUMMER and DARK IN THE WINTER APPLY ANYMORE”
“A REASON
to INVEST? SCIENCE. EXPOSURE to VIBRANT BLUE
and GREEN MAKES us FEEL
BRIGHTER ”
the extreme, with Jackie O doppelgängers covered in blue and green face paint.)
You want a reason to invest? Science. Exposure to vibrant blue and green is proven to make us feel brighter and more awake, because colour literally carries energy. A study in 2OO4 found that the energy of a colour wave can be sensed through skin, so cloaking ourselves in coruscating coats and peppy neons is a tempting remedy against the winter blues. Consider it homeopathy.
As for how that translates into everyday wardrobes, the contemporary New York labels made the strongest case for easy-to-wear colour. Maryam Nassir Zadeh paired retinaburning green tailoring with softer, soothing greys to take the edge off, and at Tibi, suits came with sweaters and footwear in shocking shades for an AW18 update (the simplest way to dip your toe into the trend). ‘Shoes are the easiest way to introduce a daring colour,’ says Tiffany Hsu, buying director at MyTheresa. ‘Prada had some great options for neon styles. Its flame-heel sandals stole the show. I can’t wait to get my hands on them.’
Hsu adds that colour performs well, regardless of the season, because fashion today is so international, and we’re following and communicating with women all over the world online. ‘We’re accommodating multiple women around the globe, and I think bright colours translate well via mobile and desktop because they are so eye-catching.’
Neon in particular is a big talking point – not for its wearability or resurgence as a trend, but because of what it adds to the conversation following #MeToo (which largely takes place online) about visibility and women asserting themselves. This is hi-vis femininity, in the form of punch-packing pink and saccharine sherbets by Miuccia Prada and Molly Goddard. (Interestingly, Hsu notes that pink and red are among MyTheresa’s best-selling colours all year round.) ‘My dream,’ Mrs Prada said backstage at her show, ‘is for women to be able to go out in the street and not be afraid.’
So don’t be intimidated by this season’s bold, vivid outerwear. Own it (literally and figuratively), whether you opt to stand out in head-to-toe brights or add a subtle splice of coral to your everyday wardrobe.