Your attention, please: One of the easiest ways to spruce up your wardrobe this spring is with a splash of color. It doesn’t have to go on your lips or over your shoulder — and not across your chest, either. This season, the place for bold color is on the bottom.
Colored denim and, by extension, every other kind of pants and trousers in hues as bright as the rainbow are a key look in stores at every end of the shopping spectrum. Part of the pervasiveness is that it’s pretty democratic: You find the shape and silhouette that you like best and find the shade that best complements your skin tone.
Swap out blue or khaki and, voila, you’re on trend. Think of it as you would a fresh coat of paint.
Reverse whatever outfit you would have worn before, suggests Tana Ward, American Eagle’s chief merchandising officer: Instead of jeans and a bold pink or red top, put the color on the bottom and pair it with a denim chambray shirt — maybe even a Western style — or go for a little femininity with a white lace tank top peeking out the top of a crisp white or blue button-down.
You’re also likely to find an easy transition into crocheted or other loose-weave sweaters in natural, neutral colors, too, Ward says. “Wear the unexpected,” she says, “a red bottom, tangerine tank and cobalt blue cardigan.”
Stylist George Kotsiopoulos says it’s not for shrinking violets. “I don’t know that you could do too much color — OK, maybe yellow jeans, a fuchsia top and orange jacket. You can absolutely run the risk of looking like a clown in all of this, but it can also be very chic. You can be a very chic clown.”
Color is giving a jolt to the jeans business, which only has so many options for growth. Over the past few years, skinny jeans have been the top silhouette and women haven’t been eager to part with them, says Dylan George’s Guez, and then there are the committed fans of other cuts.
Once they know what they like, there’s often no urgency to try something new.
The bright hues have been on the bottoms of models, editors and fashion insiders for a year or so. There was a “fashion moment” last September during New York Fashion Week where every top retailer, editor and stylist seemed to get the memo to wear yellow jeans in the front row.
The one place not to put color if it’s everywhere else is on the feet. A neutral ballet flat or wedge sandal can wisely keep bright bottoms grounded, Ward says.
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