The Only Fashion Trends for Spring/Summer 2024 That Concern Me I’m here to inform you about the spring/summer 2024 fashion trends that are actually wearable and will have a significant impact on your wardrobe for the next six months (and beyond, if I have anything to do with it), after practically analysing them for months. S/S 24 has a lot to discuss, but the catwalk approach hasn’t always been this way. Fashion Month has long been the costume cupboard, if all the world’s a stage—a treasure trove of froth and fluff, sparkle and glitter made to grab and hold the attention. A dressing-up box that is fun to play with but doesn’t always hold up in real life, while being enjoyable. This isn’t always a bad thing—after all, who couldn’t use a little amazing escape from time to time?—but in the end, you have to be able to live in these creations when you go outside the safety of your closet. At least in the real world; we’ll discuss the virtual one next. I have to commend designers for producing designs for spring/summer 2024 that are both beautiful and appropriate for everyday wear. But first, let’s go back in time to September and October of the previous year and consider how things transpired.
A total of 299 designers presented their collections in the four fashion capitals of New York, London, Milan, and Paris; 19 of these designers were new to the Fashion Month circuit, as opposed to 247 for the spring/summer of 2023 (thanks to Tagwalk’s fashion data analysts for performing these figures). Personally, I found it difficult to accept that growth is a desirable thing, especially in the creative industries. I can immediately recall a few designers who either lost their brands due to severe financial difficulties or were unable to get funding for their shows (I’m still haunted by the vacuum left by Christopher Kane in the London calendar).
Change often accompanies progress, and this season’s largest shift might have been a renunciation. After 26 years with the company, Sarah Burton, Creative Director of Alexander McQueen, declared that the spring/summer 2024 collection would be her last. After the legendary and trailblazing founder of the British institution, Lee Alexander McQueen, passed away in 2010, Burton took over the helm with dignity, and her succeeding collections were a tribute to his impact and precociousness. The last, poignant moments of Paris Fashion Week saw Cate Blanchett arrive, Naomi Campbell walk, and a standing ovation erupt.
Milan also saw a significant shift. Prior to assuming this post, Sabato De Sarno worked for Prada, Dolce & Gabbana, and Valentino. It was his debut collection for the brand that garnered significant attention in September of last year. A front-row seat to this show would likely have cost as much as a Birkin, so anyone interested in fashion without a ticket would probably have informed you that buyers, editors, and celebrities had flocked to the Italian city to witness the spectacle.
Without question, Alessandro Michele, De Sarno’s predecessor, put Gucci on the map with his geek-chic sensibility, which would go on to define a significant period in fashion history. However, as time went on, we witnessed De Sarno guide Gucci into a new era that values necessities over eccentricities—a concept that is being observed throughout the rest of the industry.
A company that caters to customers’ need to be seen wearing slick new items will inevitably run into problems. The thing that felt “new” this season, though, was how certain things remained the same. The most important lesson, arguably, was that trends don’t seem to have the same influence as they formerly did. It feels like making trends just for the purpose of making trends may be going away. Of course, I’m generalizing; if you even go down the no-trends-actually-being-a-trend rabbit hole, things become meta pretty quickly. “The spring/summer 2024 collections have shown a continued commitment to 1990s nostalgia and the extraordinary everyday, where everyday items are elevated to exceptional levels of design and style whilst remaining chic and comfortable,” says Libby Page, market director for Net-a-Porter She is correct, too. A genuine focus on quality over quantity and investing in items that last have become priorities for previously frivolous customers, causing a seismic upheaval in the industry in recent years. The most recent collections showed this.
The unpredictable political and economic climate surrounding the spring/summer 2024 presentation may have encouraged many designers to take additional care when creating their looks. The consumer has also grown more conscious of their purchasing and the absolute privilege of being a consumer in this day and age. Although there will always be a desire to purchase, there is a conscious effort to make it less conspicuous (i.e., this season will include considerably fewer logos). Many of the patterns were carried over from the previous season as well. In addition to what Page just mentioned, everything about it felt familiar, yet with a fresh appeal: the color scheme, the designs, the jewelry, the large purses, and the ballet flats. In terms of our bank accounts and wardrobes, no major leaps were taken, and our editors could easily picture themselves wearing a lot of what they saw on a regular basis. Applause for the pants with wide legs!
The more focused patterns that we did observe served to brighten a moment when happiness seemed to be lacking. There was an all-around celebration of color that might have easily occupied this entire trend report. The color red is still very popular, and Hermès’ designs serve as a sobering contrast to the candy-pop styles that adorned the runways of Versace, Prada, and Eudon Choi. There was shimmer, but it was shaken up; the overall sweetness was reduced and the silhouettes were more pronounced. For spring, flowers? They may not be revolutionary, but there is still life in the trend we thought we had seen it all in, with seismic petal dimensions and blossoms that pop off the toile they are delicately connected to.
“I’ve seen a lot of fleeting trends over the past few seasons as someone who self-diagnoses as ‘chronically online,'” says Elinor Block, editorial head at luxury fashion gaming firm Drest, which lets its users create endless outfit options in the metaverse. “In the past year, Gen Z and the TikTok community have embraced several major, zeitgeisty aesthetics, including Barbiecore, “blokecore,” and “tomato-girl summer.” And while some are based on large trends, in real life, things that are timeless and wear well throughout the year are unquestionably more appealing.
However, I definitely approach dressing differently when I’m toying with clothes in Drest. With bolder items from daring labels like David Koma or Balmain, I can create outfits that I might not have thought of otherwise thanks to the virtual world. I can’t stop thinking about that cherry-red, rose-covered dress I saw on the S/S 24 runway. It allows me to try more things and figure out how to incorporate them into my real-world wardrobe without taking too many chances.” This, my dear reader, is the appearance of the dressing-up box of today.
As always, you should only invest in items that you want to keep in your wardrobe for an extremely long time, regardless of whether they are influenced by the trends listed below or not. I’ve taken great care to choose just the candidates who stand a chance.
Without further ado, continue reading for our summary of the key spring/summer 2024 fashion trends as reported by the industry insiders, which includes some of the editor talent from Who What Wear UK.
Presenting the Most Important Fashion Trends The Only Fashion Trends for Spring/Summer 2024 That Concern Me
Extraordinary Daily
Style Advice: As I’ve just demonstrated in detail for my dissertation, designers have grown extraordinarily diplomatic. Extending the trends from the three seasons prior to this one as well as the current one, it is evident that the exploration of finding joy in everyday clothing remains central to the high-end collections. This was succinctly summed up during Net-a-Porter’s biannual trends presentation. “At Net-a-Porter, our biggest mood for the season, The Extraordinary Everyday, does exactly what the title says—making everyday clothes become extraordinary,” adds Page. This is about taking everyday wardrobe staples and pushing them to new extremes in terms of extraordinary style and design. The sculptural organza-infused tank dress by Khaite is so beautiful and informal that it’s the ideal addition to a capsule wardrobe. I can’t stop thinking about it.”
“Even the foundations can turn heads, as the runways are demonstrating,” writes Florrie Alexander, commerce writer for Who What Wear UK. This season, craftsmanship and design skill will take center stage as designers have left bells and whistles at the door. Take note of the exquisite cut of Stella McCartney’s tuxedo shirt or the subtle pleating of JW Anderson’s trench coat. The understated, well-made, and thoughtfully chosen movement persists until 2024, whether one chooses to adhere to absolute classics or creates a standard design with a twist.”
