o paraphrase a film title from a few years ago: “this is no fashion for the old”. But neither is it for the middle-aged and perhaps not even for people in their forties. We all know that the fashion world has long been in love with young, thin, often too thin, bodies, but the focus this season is squarely on an audience born no later than the late ‘90s, early 2000s. These are the years referenced by many of the collections. After all, fashion is an industry and, as such, it must please its customers, in this case the generations brought up on social media, the metaverse, pouty selfies, on images of shapes and skin held up against the forces of gravity by cosmetic procedures often used well before the need arises. The risk is that if trends pursue this unbridled ambition for youth, good taste loses out and the main focus becomes individualism – a word many designers were using at the shows in statements such as “I do what I want”,, i.e. showing off the body, leaving the house in a slip dress topped with a few thin layers, plunging necklines and sky high splits, belts and chains over the midriff and waistline. Alongside teen touches and accessories like love-hearts, little bubble-gum bags, big costume jewellery or dark emo-girl style. This individualist trend is also clear to see in , which looks to mental and physical escapes in a bid to flee the all-too-brutal reality of life. Here too, the body is rather exposed, using sinuous shapes, tactical cuts, lace and transparency together with ethnic elements, laces and ruffles. Others are much less fanciful, preferring to focus on the everyday reality and seeking out one main thing: comfort. And here is where the over-40s find a little more on offer; proposes relaxed lines, sporty details, pieces borrowed from menswear and utility-wear – in short, it’s OK to cover up a little more here. Finally.
