The 2022 Fashion Trends I Can’t Wait to Wear (And The Ones I’ll Pass On)

Ahh don’t we all love the promise that a new year brings? This January I will, like so many others, not set hard expectations but rather accept the unpredictable nature of the world right now. However, fashion trends is one thing we can always expect to divide people. Here are the fashion trends of 2022 that I am the most excited about. And of course, the ones that should go back to where they came from.

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WEAR: Platforms

As the chunky sneaker has been asked to leave more times than I can count, it seems the fashion gods have accepted its enduring popularity and rather bestowed a more dressy chunky shoe option upon us. For those occasions and clothing pieces that refuse to allow sneakers as part of the assemble, the multitude of platform shoe options seem far more exciting than I thought they could.

I have personally fallen head over heels for the platform loafer, which still has the surprising ability to slim the ankle and leg while obviously giving a bit of extra height without the pain of a heel. The platform is a heavier shoe still, of course, so take that into consideration.

Other popular versions seem to include combat boots, sandals, seemingly all of the Doc Martens range and of course the viral Versace heels. I love that this round of platform heels at tend to have the chunky heel to match, as opposed to the 2010s platform with a stiletto heel.

click images to shop the styles

PASS: Built-in Thongs / Whale Tails

I genuinely cannot believe I just typed those words. This is such an odd one. Is this sexy? Is this meant to be sexy? I don’t think I know a single human (or animal) who would wear this. And I cannot understand where you would wear it.

I don’t get it at all, is it an attempt at having hip bones on display? Can we just do some nice cutouts instead? And if not, why? I have questions, but I fear I will not get any answers.

WEAR: Sparkle & Shine

After spending so much time in loungewear and starved for our normal events to dress up, there is a sharp trend towards embracing much more festive and over the top clothing. I just call this shiny (or sparkly. Or both), I’ve seen a lot of sequin but also metallic pieces, so I mashed it into one section. I love the idea of small accessories of shiny rhinestones, making a very wearable way to embrace shiny outfits. Otherwise, I am more excited for metallics, rather than sequin, because I feel like it’s a lot more versatile and easier to style for actual real life and not just special events. I also love that there are so many shades of metallic, not just the standard silver or gold.

PASS: Low Rise (Anything)

I would say this is for the young ones (and it does seem to be more popular with the younger crowd) but honestly, who needs to go back to the pressure of having the flattest stomach you have ever seen a good 24 hours out of the day, just to make your jeans look good and not like they have sagged down because you had lunch… If you can naturally pull this off yourself, I am sure you love it and GO FOR IT! I can’t, I can honestly think of very few cuts or items that look worse on me than a pair of low waist jeans or mini skirt.. Especially when you are on the shorter side, aside from really highlighting your lower stomach area, it just massively elongates your torso and makes your legs appear so much shorter. Not a fan, but I can see how this can be great on tall people with short torsos.

WEAR: Mini skirt

Okay, I already love and wear mini skirts, so this won’t exactly change my wardrobe much, but I do really like it and it has come back in a big way. Personally I feel like some of these skirts are more on the micro skirt trend, especially when coupled with the low waist and that is not something I will be wearing. Especially like this Caronlina Herrera version.. So I am going to pass on those, but the mini skirt I will keep wearing all year long.

PASS: Fringe

I’ll admit that I actually love the look of this on other people and how it creates so much fun movement. Personally it absolutely doesn’t work with my style and I find it aggressively inconvenient to wear. It gets stuck in things (my car door even, a deal breaker for me!) and is a nightmare to try to clean. So I will enjoy looking at it, but absolutely not wearing fringe. Wearing very short fringe is a lot more wearable, though, and I have a dress with a tiny little bit of fringe and it’s not a full time occupation trying to wear it. If you still want the very long fringe, perhaps an accessory like a handbag could be the solution, so you at least won’t get yourself stuck in a revolving door, only your handbag.

WEAR: Bra tops

So I put this in the wear category, purely because I have been loving the bralette trend that has been going strong the past few years. However, some of these bra tops are so incredibly micro, they just will not suit my life or my lifestyle. I definitely feel like even though this is a trend I like the look of and will wear, it’s not the easiest or most versatile of trends. I love styling them under a blazer with a high waist pair of trousers, and I definitely prefer the ones that look more like a sports bra or a bralette, that still featured without being the most stand out piece.

PASS: Pumped up volume

Another one that I’m in two minds by. On the one hand, the silhouettes created through this trend are so fabulous and just a dream for someone who loves anything over the top. I especially love the puffy shoulder that looks like it just took over and the entire top is just a large puff. But the skirt that gives me serious cupcake vibes is so beautiful and perhaps more wearable, especially in a toned down version. I, however, will not invest much into this trend. While I do love a puff sleeve, it is very limited in its wear for me, because it’s impossible to layer under jackets without cutting off circulation to my arms. It’s also something that just so easily looks wrinkled and crumpled, depending a lot on the fabric of course, throughout the day. Putting on a seat belt? Squishing it. Sitting in a meeting? Blocking your co-workers’ view. Okay, that last one may be a bit of an exaggeration. But overall, I like the more toned down versions that have led up to this years’ OTT puffy moment, and I think this version may be reserved for special occasions..

WEAR: Oversized blazers

There is a continuation of the oversized theme, beyond the puffy XL volume trend, that I do love, and especially when it comes to the loose fitting and oversized blazer. I love this casual spin on the men’s wear items that allow so well for a blend of more masculine and feminine styles to be blended in an outfit. Of course, this does not just apply to blazers (I just picked that because I love it), there will be a wide array of oversized shirts and trousers available in the shops for this year as well. I personally prefer picking one oversized item and not piling them all on in one outfit, but that is entirely up to your own personal style.

WEAR(ish): Cutouts

I absolutely love cutouts. They have been in style for a while now and this season they are bigger than ever. I think the asymmetric ones create very interesting shapes, in addition to being more on the skin-baring side. I still love and prefer the more simple ones, my favorite being a beautiful cut out in the waist of a blazer (although finding the right top under is sometimes tricky, a bra top here works well) or a dash of keyhole cutouts on a high neck top. I don’t find it likely I will buy a lot of the very skin tight dresses that are half cutout and half fabric, but I find it interesting to look at on others and it’s certainly a great way to wear basics without feeling like your outfit is anywhere near boring!

WEAR: Barely there cardigans

Again, a lot of trends tend to spill over onto each other – for a lack of a better explanation – and the tiny cardigan of 2022 seems to almost take inspiration from the cutout trend (as well as the trend for showing off abs that some people have worked hard for during lockdown). In 2021 we saw the over night IT-cardigan from Jacquemus that featured one very lonely button at the top, exposing a lot of skin underneath. I love that look, even if I could never wear it, and it seems that this year we will see a lot of those much more minimal cardigans that are great for having a bit of coverage on the shoulders. I think this is super feminine and sweet and I’ve seen them styled a lot with one or more buttons undone, almost creating a bit of a cutout effect again.

Bright & Adventurous

Reflecting the desire to go out and experience life to its fullest, the runway has been filled with bright colors and I personally love it. I can’t wait to see more colorful and daring outfits out and about. I’ve seen some say there’s orange this season, or green (which was definitely hot in 2021), but overall it seems to be just a trend towards really bright and fun colors in general. Personally I have fallen for the fuchsia pieces, and will probably not go ham for buying a ton of colors for my own wardrobe, but stick to the palette I have and know that I will keep wearing for years to come. But I already have a soft spot for pink and fuchsia is such a stunning shade that I think works really well for basics – it helps tone down that you’re wearing pink and the pink helps make basics a little less boring. I think going for a structured blazer or a pair of tailored slacks in a brighter color is a great way of looking very sophisticated still, especially if you’re trying to ease into wearing more brighter colors when you have relied on neutrals for a long time.

Y2K, Trend cycles and the 60s-vibe coming through

I absolutely grew up with the Y2K trend and wish I was more nostalgic for it, but I am just not. But it is obviously a running theme throughout a lot of these trends and as it was absolutely strong last year, it seems to continue into 2022. The low waist, especially combined with wide and low slung jeans or cargo pants, lots of brightly colored accessories and skin baring, not to mention all the butterfly tops. It’s here. Fashion trends tend to run in 20 year cycles, so we were on schedule to hit Y2K now. What I really enjoy, though, is the slight input of the 60s fashion into the coming trends as well, both with the mod print and the A-line mini skirts. I love the silhouette and quirkiness of it and really hope we see more of it. I absolutely loved the Dior show that really embodied this 60s silhouette with the optimism of today through the bright and poppy shades, all in a widely monochromatic color scheme. I just love and will be continually fascinated by how the cyclic nature of fashion still comes through with a different expression of merging influences every decade. It’s like the most wonderful game of fashion whisper telephone.

What do you think about the trends coming up in 2022? What will or will you not be wearing?