Though designers are, no doubt, the stars of the show during fashion month, it would be wrong of me not to give a heap of credit to the stylists responsible for taking every look to the very limit of its potential.
Think about it. The final ensemble at Matthieu Blazy’s Bottega Veneta F/W 23 show didn’t go viral because of the individual pieces—a tank top, jeans, and a pink leather shirt—as much as the styling of the three together, with the pink shirt tied effortlessly around the model’s waist. (I-D.‘s editor in chief, Alastair McKimm, was credited for styling the show.) The same goes for Miu Miu’s show for fall. Many of the looks featured elevated versions of basics like hoodies, leggings, and cardigans. It was the ways in which Miuccia Prada and stylist Lotta Volkova combined the offerings, creating interesting proportions and eye-catching color combinations, that really took them to the next level of cool.
As much as fashion month inspires our shopping wish lists for the season ahead, it also brings with it a bevy of styling ideas for elevating both those items we’ll eventually purchase and ones we already have sitting in our closets. Below, discover the 15 tricks I took note of during the month of February, each of which I’m planning on re-creating very soon.
If what you’re wearing feels a bit one-dimensional or in need of something to splash it up, adding a thin turtleneck underneath your shirt is the perfect unexpected contribution.
I almost always tuck in my tanks, tees, and button-down shirts, but until this season, I never really considered tucking in a blazer. Now, I can see that it’s a great way to add cool proportions to an outfit. Blazers typically have heavier shoulders and are more oversize than shirts, so when they’re cinched in because of the tightness around the waist of your pants, it adds a ton of shape.
By now, you’re probably all too aware that tights are trending, but one thing you may not have heard about them yet is the styling hack that involves yanking up your tights waistband so that it’s visible above low-rise pants and skirts, as shown at Gucci and Miu Miu.
I wouldn’t say tying a shirt around your waist is new, but the ways that designers and stylists are using the styling trick now feels very nuanced and modern.
Typically, I’d think that if you’re wearing two coats at the same time, it’s because it’s below zero degrees out and you have them on for strictly practical purposes. But brands like Remain and Miu Miu made the concept seem alluring for style more than utility this season, with doubled-up coats now becoming a sort of IYKYK concept in fashion.
Opera gloves have always been a staple in lavish formalwear, but Versace’s F/W 23 show and more made an immaculate case for styling them with ready-to-wear, even just jeans and a poplin shirt.
Thanks to Victoria Beckham and Tory Burch, fishnet tights are having one of their biggest moments yet. Paired with dresses, skirts, and blazers (no bottoms required), the affordable add-on has the capability to take an outfit from okay to excellent.
Miu Miu’s show was all about visuals, so of course, the proportions displayed there were immaculate. One such example was the hoodies and peacoats worn with tights and no pants, showing how you can go heavy on top and light on the bottom for an interesting and unexpected ratio on the body.
At Fendi, nearly every model wore some version of the skirt-over-pants trend in a tailored, almost workwear way that has the potential to change the way fashion people dress for the office in the near future.
Clashing color combos have been making a huge splash in fashion, with the charge being led this season by Tory Burch.
My usual version of the two-bag trend is a cute handbag and a not-so-cute tote that carries everything that doesn’t fit in the first one. However, I’m changing my ways by doubling up on aesthetic purses à la Bottega Veneta.
Obtaining a pair of leather gloves is only the first step. Next is to layer them with cool bracelets and watches, as seen here at Versace.
The pants-less trend took on another level this season with over-the-knee boots replacing bottoms altogether.
The fall/winter 2023 shows taught me that dresses and pants aren’t the only garments I should be belting. Coats and blazers, too, need to be cinched in, either with a simple belt or a statement one.
To take a suit from boring to noteworthy, do like Prada and unbutton the buttons of the blouse you’re wearing underneath. Fashion tape can keep it in place. A word to the wise: Do this for a night out, not work.
