This was the fashion week that made us go “hmm.” Like New York Fashion Week street style stars that slid into some of Spring 2022’s latest drops despite the plummeting temperatures, much of the Fall/Winter 2022 collections that debuted this month, set for release this fall, looked more like Spring Fashion Week part deux.
Gone are the voluminous puffer jackets and aprés-ski wool sweaters we saw last season; in their place, sheer fabrics, slinky dresses and skirt suits. There were nods to wintry weather, like shearling and quintessential fall hues of brown and red, but all styled in a less-is-more credo that dominated the runways. Case in point: turtlenecks slashed and wrapped around the torso like a bandage in Marc Jacobs’s off-runway, digitally-released collection.
Frostbite concerns aside, there was so much to love this season. Grand, glitzy dresses and billowy maxi skirts were made so luxe at Altuzarra, Oscar de la Renta and Carolina Herrera. Hemlines went up and oodles of sequins trickled down the runways, in what can only be interpreted as life, post the worst parts of COVID, getting better. As we ooze out of the cozy, lounge-y, bundled-up feeling of 2021, things are definitely looking up.
Here, our round-up of the hottest fall/winter trends from New York Fashion Week, a premonition of what we will be wearing come fall.
Party Like It’s 2019
The parade of sequin paillettes on dresses at Oscar de la Renta, Christian Cowan and Altuzarra sent one clear message: we are so ready to get into clubs again. More after-dark dressing took the form of slinky off-shoulder dresses; standouts were a ruched Victor Glemaud dress in a warm latte hue and a white one-shoulder piece from Khaite.
Sheer Thing
And the party vibe just kept going. Sheer pieces screamed show ‘em what you’ve got, from a dress with a sheer skirt and arms at Christian Siriano, to a completely see-thru top dress at LaQuan Smith. A sheer black striped dress at Jonathan Simkhai took the spotlight, declaring in one gorgeous gown that the time for the re-emergence of glamor is nigh.
Hole-y Julia Fox
Cutouts have become a fashion week staple, and this season, “It” girl Julia Fox started the trend off with a bang at LaQuan Smith. Fox stormed the runway, fierce gaze in tow, in a black floor-length turtleneck dress with slashes above and below her chest. The crowd went wild. Other shows—like Prabal Gurung and Elena Velez—had dresses with cut-outs in the same spots.
Up and Away
As much as maxi skirts had their moment this season (that pleated leather black maxi skirt at Altuzarra, paired with a striped sweater and fur-collared jacket—so much ooh), hemlines were on the rise. There were miniskirts in bold, saturated colors and prints at Sergio Hudson and Adam Lippes, and feather-trimmed short dresses at Lisa Von Tang and Bronx and Banco– all clear signs of a collective movement away from the loungewear year that was 2021.
Cold Shoulders
Bustiers and corsets, renewed for yet another season, were a dominant go-to party look on the runways. Our faves: a Madonna-esque corset at Carolina Herrera mellowed down with a pair of tailored trousers, leather moto and furry, winter-appropriate bustiers at Dion Lee, and another made sheer and accented with beads and glittery bands at No Sesso.
Edited by Demi Vitkute.
