Barbara Fields at the Barbara Fields Buying Office Fall '14 trend presentation.
BARBARA FIELDS
Fall 2014 Forecast: Marled Yarns, Houndstooth and Ugly Xmas Sweaters
The ugly Christmas sweater will finally be in fashion.
The grimace- and grin-inducing sweaters have been the bane of family gatherings for decades, but trend forecaster Barbara Fields of the Barbara Fields Buying Office found more than 20 retailers in London selling ugly Christmas sweaters bearing humorous graphics, some even coming with gift card–like hangtags.
With so many London retailers getting behind the trend, Fields forecast that the unlikely trend will hit America by fall 2014, so it was fair game for a mention in her Fields Fall 2014 Trend Presentation. It took place in Suite 855 at the California Market Center during the juniors- and department store–focused Los Angeles Majors Market. Fields led delegations of buyers from retailers such as Zappos, Gordmans, JCPenney, Bealls, Rue 21, Wet Seal and Gabriel Brothers through the series of trend presentations, which ran April 7–10. She has been producing biannual trend presentations since 1981 and bases her forecasts on what is trending in fashion capitals such as London, Tokyo, New York and Los Angeles.
The ugly Christmas sweater merited only a mention during the trend presentation, but Fields spoke at length on other trends such as garments made with marled yarns (yarns made with different colors twisted together). “Marled yarns will be one of the rent payers of the season,” she told buyers.
Other important trends include skirts and pants with a tie front or drawstring. One of the major trends for the upcoming season will be anything styled with athletic-style graphics.
A burgeoning trend hailing from Tokyo are garments in houndstooth print, Fields forecast. “It’s just the beginning of checks. Checks will be important,” she said.
During the presentation, she noted that the Aztec and Navajo prints, which were so important more than a year ago, have been replaced in popularity by floral prints. Leggings, skirts and dresses made out of jersey material will be popular for F
all. Clothes featuring details such as quilted cloth and zippers will be embraced. Bomber and flight jackets also will skyrocket in popularity. “One of the million-dollar items of the year will be a fur vest,” she said. In London, the popular jeans are in black, blue and acid, she said. Boot-cut and super-skinny fits will be popular, as well as those jeans tailored to lift the wearer’s bottom. In a preview of Spring 2015, Fields said that denim overalls will be popular along with distressed jeans.
