Fall/winter fashion stays safe

GONE ARE THE EYE-BLISTERING loud pieces meant to be devoured in a second on social media - the clickbait fashion of the recent past. Fall 2021 fashion collections, presented (mostly virtually) in this COVID-19 era are about timeless, unapologetically commercial pieces that encourage snapping up, and snazzy dressing. For Zoom-bies faced with the possibility of heading back to the office, and leaving behind WFH sweats to catch a plane, the optimistic collections can be read as one long shopping list of sartorial treats. From high-impact shades to luxe takes on comfortable clothes, fashion houses offer plenty of reasons to shop for endemic times ahead. Henceforth, we'll see fashion trends - for all genders - that make sense, finally.

XXL JACKET

Extra-large jackets have become a theme, almost literally through the A to Z of fashion. Every label, from Armani to Zegna, has made it easier to be ready - and cosy - for any business occasion or dinner date. Sharp yet comfortable, tailored without being stuffy, these oversized outer garments let you quickly pull them on when called into a sudden Zoom meeting. An instant solution to hide from unsuspecting colleagues a multitude of sugary snack-induced sins.

BOLD COLOUR

Nothing expresses the mounting optimism for a reopening world than the vibrant colours seen on the runways. We're seeing saturated shades in all colours of the rainbow - from electric yellow at Versace to cyclamen at Chanel. For maximum impact, consider wearing one colour from head to toe; for the less confident, perhaps one brightly coloured thing will do just as well. For extra impact - make it oversized.

LOGOMANIA

Labels seemed to collectively agree that it is time to rebrand with a vengeance. Designer logos are now plastered all over garments and accessories of all kinds, without subtlety or irony. The de rigueur logo look everyone will be wearing is camouflaged as repeat patterns, spelt out in fancy initials, and stamped all over caps, cuffs and trainers.

NEW/OLD TAILORING

Old wine, new skins. Designers are reinventing and deconstructing the very principles of classic menswear tailoring, as if acknowledging how the old world has broken and must now be stitched into a familiar, albeit transformed, shape. This trend questions the past, and translates its rigorous traditions to fit a dystopian present. For example, you can see this in an oversized blazer jazzed up with hardware at Dolce & Gabbana, a fitted and belted coat at Chanel, or a jacket with rolled-up sleeves at Prada.

DARLING LITTLE BAG

If any item is a sign of our contactless times, it must be the arrival of the smallest of mini bags - little more than a pocket on a chain, really. It's not the It-Bag, it's the Itsy Bag. Since the advent of tapping instead of tipping, everything has become a non-essential and these tiny bags free your hands to never leave your phone. The darling little things have little room, just the one credit card, a wand of lip gloss, and your Trace Together Token!

VARSITY JACKET

Reassuringly retro and redolent of 1980s American TV shows and the golden age of Hollywood "college movies" like Grease, the varsity jacket - sporty, rugged, wholesome - is steeped in both optimism and nostalgia, qualities embraced in all the collections. The jacket straddles both lockdown comfort, and the energy of the world outside, with a youthful and athletic energy.