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Spring 2009 Trends: Give Me Liberty or Ship Me Out It's funny the way fashion - even kids' fashion - reflects the country's political climate. As a nation, we're collectively holding our breaths for the outcome of the upcoming presidential election. As I walked the aisles of the recent ENK Children's Club and Bubble - The Kids Trade Show (New York City, August 3-5, 2008), I could sense designers' leanings in the collections they presented. On one hand, manufacturers worked the undeniably traditional pairing of navy and white into classic girls' and boys' pieces. Others took the duo and shook things up a little - or a lot. Skulls, popular for several seasons in edgy sportswear lines, appeared where one would most often find an innocuous anchor or starfish. A pirate reference? Maybe, maybe not. Some designers refused to fashion plaid into a one-dimensional preppy theme. Yes, there were straight eagle madras shorts and shirts and plenty of collegiate looking patchwork dresses and skirts. A few rebels though, hit the style out of the golf course by employing dusty, offbeat color combinations and subversive adornments (those skulls again) that took the aesthetic somewhere a whole lot trendier.
THEMES: Give Me Liberty. For Spring 2009, designers have embraced Liberty prints. The satiny cotton appeared in carefully drawn, classic florals, delicate botanical renderings and paisleys. The latter was most often colored in tones of blue on a white ground. Manufacturers used the versatile cloth in dress and sportswear as well as swimsuit cover-ups.
Left to right: Papa d'Anjo and Flora & Henri.
Out To Sea. Nautical themes - whether they're classic anchors and stripes, or funkier skull and plaid combinations - captivate landlocked designers.
Left to right: Bognar & Piccolini and Little Joule.
New Age Preppy. These clean-cut kids like their polo shirts and patchworks playful and take their plaids straight up or in unusual dusty tones. They'll pair the tops with dark-washed jeans, or, when that gets old, they'll mix their prints with a stripe or neutral plaid bottom. Why not?
Isn't the Eiffel Tower in Las Vegas? The freewheeling party girl likes her dresses with lots of sparkle, saturated color and, when in doubt, she'll bare less chest and more arm.
Left to right: Blush by US Angels and Single Girls.
Pool Party. If I told you I wore something like this in high school would you still read my columns? Newcomer Floatimini mixes three trends: the vintage-style skirted two-piece, patchwork print and ruffled detail. It doesn't get more fashion-forward than that.
SILHOUETTE: -Fitted bodices with full skirts for sundresses and shirtwaists.
-Skinny jeans. -Full but not exaggerated A-line skirts without embellishment or in tiers and ruffles. Tutus are big.
-70's-style jumpers with snap fronts in denim as well as short denim skirts.
-Halter necklines for casual as well as dresswear. -Hoodies for boys and girls. -Swimsuits with flouncy skirts.
COLOR: Sweet Sailing. Think clean navy and white combinations in classic dots and stripes for an updated, funkier take on nautical.
-Designers replaced the traditional coupling of bright yellow, red and navy, with navy, white and peach.
-Navy teams up with a washed-down jade (perfect for the madras plaids that are so popular). The duo is sometimes paired with yellow.
Two gorgeous palettes from Hartford: Fresh greens
and Agean blues.
Ink That. Sportswear and swimwear manufacturers continued Spring 2008's love affair with inky blue and sky combinations, throwing in a not-too-pink-toned periwinkle for sparkle. It's Electric. Warmer than teal, greener than periwinkle, electric blue gives a jolt to dress and swimwear - and what it does for any complexion - Wow! Teal times Two. A medium weight teal takes the color into spring with rose and cream. The tone looks sophisticated paired with mustard. Orange Aide. Just when you thought you'd seen the last of it, bright orange makes a comeback as an accent in neutral combinations. Voted for McGovern. Forget navy. For the kid who wouldn't be caught dead in anything traditional, there are saturated tones of rose, sky and jade.
Cocoa-Lite. Soft gray continues to be popular, but light cocoa mixed with a large dollop of cream, is a welcome alternative. The tone is especially fresh teamed with pale yellow, sky, and white, or, partnered with cream, tan and navy.
Feather Forever Organics by Feather Baby
Vintage Value: Red, in combination with white, pale pink or bright pink, is a natural to color vintage-style swimwear.
PATTERNS: -Madras plaids -Liberty flowers and paisleys -Patchworks -African prints
-Peace symbols -Dots of all size often paired with coordinating stripes -Funky Seventies inspired patterns with the colors washed down for boyswear -Playful cherry prints look delicious on girls' swimwear -Animal prints with metallic details
-Sequin and nail head designs
BOYS: Polo Anyone? The latest take on the perennial favorite is colored in surprising tones, sewn in soft Jersey, and looks as if it's endured numerous trips to the laundry.
To Camp or the Okay Corral. Boys will be wearing their shirts buttoned up the front in campy prints or Western style with snaps. The funkiest looks feature snap-fronts and wild Sixty-style prints in faded tones.
FABRICS: -Ticking stripes in seersucker -Washed ginghams -Pieced patchworks -Lace that looks vintage -White cotton with cutouts that resemble fine antique table clothes -Dark or medium denim
SWIMSUITS: Beach Beauties. Two-piece suits with boy-leg bottoms or skirts, and sometimes ruffled details, add a vintage twist to girls' swimwear.
The Short Story. Boys' swim shorts, often with drawstring waist details and cargo pockets, are popular in geometric, plaid and hibiscus prints. Skin Savers. Jeweled or sequined tunics do double-duty as chic tops with shorts and sun-protective cover-ups over a bathing suit.
TRIMS: -Heavy, crocheted lace -Jeweled necklines -Ruffled, tuxedo like fronts -Nail heads worked into 70's-style skulls, peace symbols, and rainbows
Originally published September 3, 2008
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