Giving Into the Latest Trends: 5 Ways To Know When One Is Right For You

Staying up to date with the latest trends is pretty much in the “job description” of a style blogger. Not to mention that if you love fashion in general, it’s almost impossible not to at least glance at fashion trends every new season.

But learning how to integrate them in our wardrobes takes a bit of work. After all, buying every new fashion piece under the sun will not make you more stylish. Not if those pieces don’t fit your existing lifestyle, your aesthetic, your look.

So then, how do you know when to buy a new trend? How do you filter the ones you will absolutely love from the ones you will forget on the bottom of your drawer, tag still on?

Well, I usually say YES to a trend if I know:

I’ve given it some thought

Trends come and go with the purpose of exciting your fashion taste buds, and urging you to BUY BUY BUY! They will always be the shiny, new, cool (sometimes strange) kids on the block. The ones who make you want to drop everything to go out and play with them.

Not to mention that trends are normally created as an antithesis, a rebellion against current fashion looks.

Just think about it:

Funky 60’s were followed by the boho 70’s. Over-the-top 80’s by the grungy 90’s, and so on. The definitory trends of each period were easily recognizable, and would challenge the style status quo. So of course, being on trend has always been wildly popular!

But as much as trends do make for fun impulse purchases, I would always give them a second thought before buying.

Just try picturing your looks in two years- would your future self still stand by that electric blue faux-fur coat? Or would you immediately throw it out, because it’s just old-fashioned or garish?

Taking a step back to think, instead of buying on a whim allows you to make better, more satisfying purchases in the end. And it can save you some pretty cringeworthy moments in your style evolution.

That particular fashion trend suits you

Another thing about fashion trends is that they are meant to be adopted universally (and then promptly replaced). This means that they are in no way tailored to each individual, but more an instrument of mass homogenization.

The conclusion?

We can’t expect each and every trend to suit us in particular. Designers cast a wide net every season, and it’s up to us to filter everything, and select what makes us look and feel our best.

My example: living coral is the colour of 2019. And while I could easily pull it off when I was a brunette, as a redhead, I feel it clashes with my shade of hair.

So I will wear it sparingly, and not near my face, but rather in accessories like belts, shoes and bags. Closer to my face I will reach for strong jewel colours, or nude hues like sand and blush, which I know suit my complexion better.

After all, who wants to sacrifice feeling their best in their chose outfits just because the trends dictate it? Life’s too short not to have fun with what you wear!

It is still a practical piece

An issue that trends often pose is lack of practicality. Since they are the result of extravagant runway creations, very trendy pieces can be hard to incorporate in day to day wear.

An easy example:

Neon is on the rise again as a summer trend. Which I understand, since it looks great against tanned skin. But still, it’s not the easiest to wear in daily setting (ie. on the job, at school, at art events, or even in many going out outfits).

So this is a trend I for one will be passing on. 

Which also means that I will be looking for more wearable trends- ones that make sense for my daily bike riding, office going, terrace hopping lifestyle 🙂 And I encourage you to think about your daily activities, and do the same.

Because here’s the thing:

Even if a trend is short lived, it still needs to hold a degree of practicality for you to adopt it. It needs to make sense for your particular lifestyle, otherwise, you may very well end up never wearing it-or even worse, wearing it once, and feeling totally out of place.

It doesn’t cost an arm and a leg

This is a personal belief of mine, but one that’s been confirmed along years of trying on, swapping, shopping and more shopping. I would never recommend sinking a large sum of money into a trend, specifically because they tend to have a short shelf life.

So then, what to do?

I would always look for trendy items on sale, since they are fun, experimental additions to my wardrobe.

Even better if you can exchange it with a girlfriend! Or get it second hand (gently loved) on Facebook marketplaces, or in your local swap&shop groups.

This way, you’re not envouraging mass over-production of trends.

But, like every “rule”, it has an exception, namely:

That style has evergreen potential

Every now and again, there are trends that actually become long-standing tendencies. They manage to permeate the often changing landscape of fashion, and cross into style territory.

These are the trends worth investing in, because they are the ones you’ll be able to keep for a long while to come. And this is also when you could look into buying the best versions of them you can find.

Because those are the trends you can feel good about knowing they will make you smile every time you don them. And they will more than makeup for their price, giving you a better cost per wear in time.

I’m curious to know, did you find these tips for picking and choosing which trends to buy into? Do you normally follow trends, or are you always faithful to your own style? Let me know in the comments- and as always, thank you for reading!