2024 is already shaping up to be a year of paradoxes and striving to hit one’s stride despite changes and setbacks. In a time when we see strife and uncertainty, we look to juxtapose ways that express ourselves authentically and with originality, alongside leaning into our longing for meaning in tradition and comforting familiarity. The fashion trends of 2024 speak to the moment where all at once we want to make waves while still not rocking the boat too much, and the competition between bold and original versus quiet elegance will be one to keep an eye on.
Picking up on 2024’s dualities, the most trending fashion designs for 2024 reflect a strong interest in versatility, both for pragmatic reasons as well as for more financial ones. The avant-garde fashion world this year looks to update classic styles with geometrically stunning cuts, playful but simple accessories, and a nod to the cynical yet prosperous 1990s: even more, we see this when grand designs are transformed from the runway into daily wear. Here are a few of the top features that we see to summarize today’s fashion beat:
Versatility and Sustainability
Even avant-garde trendsetters are both leading and taking cues from the greater public in the demand for eco-conscience goods.
Eco-consciousness with fashion-forwardness can take many different forms, but it all comes down to how we make do with less and make new from the old while reinventing ourselves in the process. 2024 trends buck past fashion designs in versatility, as people look to layering and finding multiple ways to wear and dress up or down a few central pieces both out of necessity and out of a reduction to consume less.
Fun and functional outer layers add basic function to elegant form, as they can complement edgy dresses and shirts with deep cuts or filmy mesh-like or porous fabric. Even more, quirky but refined jackets and sweaters help resolve the 2024 war of “maxi” versus “mini” and pair well with the other 2024 trend of skirt sets.
More specifically, 2024 is all about upgrades to traditional attire, such as shackets with pockets. Accessorizing the clothing in functional ways means that no matter the occasion, clothing can have built-in usefulness as well as more opportunities for further customization: do the pockets serve a purpose, such as portability for a phone or wallet, or are they opportunities to complete a cozy grunge look, or maybe conversely, ones of “quiet luxury?”
Similarly, the focus on sustainability matters just as much. As many 2020s trends have gotten their start in a renewed appreciation for grunge and other 90s attire frequently relegated to second-hand stores, we see a similarly renewed zeal for giving old clothes a new purpose, and with it, accessories that also show a commitment to environmental awareness. Sustainable jewelry continues to redefine conventional beauty as ethical considerations for gemstones and other materials continue to gain ground.
#Girlboss, (Re)Defined
A lot of 2024’s avant-garde fashion trends speak to greater social trends far outside aesthetic designs, and this is especially true with how we’re seeing more twists on how conventional social norms are also creating twists on conventional beauty.
Look to see more of the same as “Girlcore” and “alt bride” attire continues to break boundaries with flowing floral patterns and lace juxtaposing itself along bold designs that are all thrills and literally no frills – or, conversely, all frills and thrills, and unapologetically so! These kinds of trends seek a form of empowered and broader form of femininity that demands to be seen by turning heads and sparking conversation.
Also, can we give another round of applause to the shacket and the cloth ceiling of fashion who dare fight for equal rights to pockets? Yes, please!
Uniquely Chic
Similar to goals for sustainability or how we view femininity in 2024, more fashionistas are looking to more diverse and often underrepresented fashion traditions from around the world. This is even more exciting as we see increasingly strong enthusiasm both on the runways and among consumers for ways to integrate fashion designs from their cultures of origin into everything from leisure attire to business wear, to formal attire.
In terms of formal attire, evening dresses, such as from up-and-coming South Asian, Mexican, South American, and Indigenous models and designers, give especially thrilling ways to take already-timeless formal-wear into chic expressions. Suddenly, that “classic cocktail dress” gets elevated to even more timeless levels of sophistication, as avant-garde designers find sparks of inspiration from traditional embroidered patterns, bright floral patterns, and rich textiles that are staples to formal occasions and expressions of opulence outside of Europe and North America.
In essence, perhaps as a reflection of our own unease at global upheaval and strife, turning to expressions of our shared humanity can be both simple and artistic ways to hope that 2024 ends more peacefully than it began.
Find Your Own Paradox
2024 is a year to find order in chaos. With so many fashion trends that seem at odds with one another, there’s no time like the present to find your opportunity to take the parts that delight you the most in a few different trends and create your own uniquely original, one-of-a-kind statement.
For a decade that started by grounding everything to a halt, and forcing everyone to rethink what “normal” means, marked by constant personalization from our viewing history to our predictive texts, we can continue to see this as a decade that continues to flirt but maybe never commit to any set of conventions. After all, embracing the unconventional is now our new normal.
The best part? Bracing unconventional means everyone has the opportunity to shine. Whether you love wearing bold tees and sweaters with patterned skirts or traditional button-down shirts with a clean pair of jeans, you’re welcome to simply be you. Stay true to yourself and your sense of style, and enjoy dressing in clothing items that make you feel beautiful inside and out.