BUYER’S GUIDE WOMEN’S FW26

While most people are dreaming of warm spring breezes and lightweight outfits, fashion professionals are already busy gazing into the crystal ball in search of next autumn’s trends. With a fully booked trade show calendar ahead, the question is: what signature pieces and styles should buyers look for that will resonate with the Norwegian market next autumn? As always, our trend curator Marianne Jemtegård has the answer.

Autumn brings exciting colour choices at the more acidic end of the spectrum, the return of a loved and hated skirt length, and a strong focus on shoulders in the form of capes, shoulder pads and draping. These are some of the strongest trend directions for the coming autumn and winter, curated for Norwegian fashion retailers by Marianne Jemtegård.

MS. GREY

Grey is the new brown. At least if we are to believe international trend reports and colour specialists, all of whom are speaking a very clear language: next autumn will be grey. But grey certainly does not have to mean boring. Contrasting textures such as wool and silk, along with different shades in play, like pale dove grey paired with deep charcoal and asphalt tones, create endless styling possibilities.

Look especially for full suits in lighter shades of grey, cropped jackets, coats with defined shoulders, and skirts in midi or longer lengths.

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Two-piece grey tailoring will experience a real comeback this autumn. Look for straight or wide-leg trousers with subtle pleating in wool blends. Midi and long skirts are also a safe winner in grey, and easy to style with leather and knitwear in autumn’s other signature colours. Grey jackets often feature exciting details such as decorative buttons, belted waists or asymmetric closures.

GOTHIC WINTER FLORALS

“Florals for winter? Groundbreaking!” Fashion’s love affair with florals never seems to cool down. It almost feels as though flowers never truly lose their petals on the runway, even during the coldest months. The days when floral prints were reserved exclusively for bright summer dressing are long gone. And as a result, they often feel about as groundbreaking as… pastels and lace on a warm summer day.

Still, I have to admit there is something deeply alluring about the gothic, almost baroque florals blooming in the darkness of winter nights across dresses and skirts in the coming season. Perhaps it is the company they keep that makes these abstract, artistic and seductive winter florals feel so captivating?

Combined with leather, black sequins, brocade, gold and dramatic lace details, all surrounded by darkness and mystery, winter florals suddenly appear to be the most beautiful and exciting of them all?

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Black, plum and burgundy dresses and skirts in long lengths with artistic floral prints, preferably styled with tops and jackets featuring black lace, fur, brocade and leather. Combine them with black tights, as seen at Lanvin, or with leather ankle boots and a structured blazer with lace-up detailing at the waist.

CITRUS SHADES

Although recent seasons have been heavily dominated by deep browns and rich burgundy tones, brighter colour accents have gradually made their way into the spotlight. This became especially clear this winter, as more and more fashion houses embraced iridescent greens and yellows on details such as handbags, jewellery and glossy tops.

Among the fashion houses’ pre-fall collections, we are now seeing a further evolution of this trend. Matthieu Blazy at Chanel chose shades of mustard, ochre and khaki in vibrant tweed symphonies, while the street-smart Khaite opted for an acidic shade of khaki balanced somewhere between green and yellow across leather looks, silk dresses and accessories.

Victoria Beckham continued her love affair with lime green tones, and across more and more runways and campaign imagery I am spotting citrus shades on everything from long evening gowns to tailored wool and silk suits.

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Citrus shades on dresses and tops breathe new life into last autumn’s chocolate-brown purchases, making this an easy way to inspire a wardrobe refresh. These colours are especially flattering in glossy fabrics, preferably with draping that enhances the play of colour in the light.

CAPE TOWN

Capes have already been introduced this spring, partly through Pinterest’s key trend “Poetcore”, where the goal is to dress like a romantic artistic soul from another era, preferably wrapped in flowing capes and oversized scarves. This autumn, however, capes become less romantic and retro-inspired, and more ladylike. Which makes this the perfect moment to reintroduce the cape as part of a polished everyday wardrobe.

There is no doubt that shoulders will be in focus next autumn. We are seeing the return of the cape both as decorative, draped extensions on eveningwear and as more structured outerwear layered over everyday looks. These capes are the perfect transitional piece between summer and autumn.

For winter, the trend continues with oversized detachable scarves on wool and tweed coats.

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Short capes have seen a massive rise this year and can be found both as full garments and as cape-like shoulder details layered over more traditional coats. Draped, often detachable scarves on oversized coats create the same cape-inspired effect throughout winter and represent a unisex trend with broad appeal. Wide wool scarves are fastened with brooches or pins for a similar look. Coats are often extra long in order to balance the top-heavy silhouette.

LADYLIKE LAYERING

Summer’s major Y2K-inspired trend of silk and lace dresses casually layered over wide-leg denim, or matching skirts and trousers worn together, evolves as colder temperatures begin to return. Here too, I believe we will see the trend develop in a more elegant direction, where denim and lace are replaced with glossy flowing fabrics and sophisticated draping.

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Loose trousers with straight, wide legs form the foundation of much of this look, usually in black, beige, white or soft grey tones. Longline tops and dresses with draping, either tone-on-tone or in contrasting colours, create an instantly polished effect. Also look for silk kaftans, capes and trains for the same sophisticated fluidity in eveningwear.

THE NEW SKIRT LENGTH IS MIDI

Every season has its skirt length, and after summer’s floor-grazing maxi skirts, autumn marks the return of the both loved and hated midi skirt. Practical with leather boots and preferably styled with cropped jackets.

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Midi skirts are at their best with some structure and an A-line shape that creates an interesting silhouette. We will see a lot of heavier fabrics such as dyed denim, wool and tweed, but also softer and glossier materials, often with pleating for extra movement. A safe winner for the Norwegian winter climate when paired with shorter knit sweaters.