Print'-a-porter for sweet 2017

The world’s your oyster. You love to look your fashionable best at all times, don’t you? Well, then cheers, you managed to pull off your preppy best in 2016. Now brace yourself to ring in the new.  Be brave and go all out. You’ve rocked that standout one-shouldered gown that falls just at your ankle, looked like a rocker chic in those torn denims and hogged the limelight with the floral trend, raised the fashion bar with colour blocking, graphic prints and thigh high slits. While some of the fashion trends died hard, most of them promise to rule the roost in 2017. What stands on top of all the fashion charts is the “comfort factor” that every designer and fashionistas will swear by in 2017.

Fashion forward:

We love all things fashionable. Designer Reshma Kunhi says, "The major trend was the cape trend. Short capes, long capes, floor length capes are a rage and had made a huge comeback in fashion history. But in 2016, we paired them with a twist – over dresses, gowns and teamed them with skirts and even on Indian lehengas and sarees. Celebrities like Deepika Padukone, Jacqueline Fernandez and everyone sported the trend atleast once. The dresses with cape tops might see a setback, but what will continue to be in vogue is the capes with ethnic wear. Also, the shoulder trend with off shoulder and cold shoulder tops over denims, skirts, lehengas has been spotted on stars like Shraddha Kapoor, Prachi Desai and many college girls. In 2017, exposing the shoulder trend will continue to exude a nonchalant, sexy vibe. Another huge style that will rock in the New Year is sheer outfits. Blush pink and rose quartz that everyone is in love with already will steer to a brighter hue now. In 2016, we have seen a lot of twists with the sleeve. There were long floor length sleeves, mid-length sleeves seen at parties, runways and red carpet evenings. Watch out for sleeves with a slit in 2017. Come summer, we will see a lot of Indian handloom fabrics in vogue. Whites in various hues will be the new black for 2017. Other colours include pink, sea green, yellow, grey and various hues of purple.”

Psychedelic pop:

Anu Nagappa adds, “This year, 2016 favoured the ethnic look with lots of block prints, tie and dye and kalamkari. Apparently the textiles of 2017 are all about ethnic weaves such as stripes, checks and tweeds. Madras checks will be in and we look forward to that because we can use it well in cotton, linen and silk dresses. African prints with a psychedelic twist are going to be in too. As far as the silhouette goes, the trend is towards the 70s and 80s. Midis will be in as well as trench coats and big shoulders.” Ravina Belani adds, “Vibrant colours and a lot of velvet and brocade fabrics are in style. Fabrics are getting light in weight with mul-muls and chiffons for long length kurtas.” Sounak Sen Barat, mentor, LIVA Protege says, “2016 saw silhouettes getting simpler, easier and more comfortable. Normcore swept the trends single handedly across menswear and womenswear, with dusters and cocoon shapes making a huge comeback. Cold shoulders was another trend to look out for. 2017 should belong to organic natural fabrics. Organic cottons, linens, bamboo, hemp and cellulosic viscose would rule the rooster across mill made and organic handloom or khadi, natural dyes, organic bases would be huge with eco-friendly, minimum carbon imprint production. 2017 would also see a resurgence of khadi as a day to day fabric base. Norm core would continue to be in trend.”

Dapper dudes:

Talking of men’s fashion, designer Bassam Osman says, “Men’s fashion saw a return to the classics. The fits were comfortable and lines clean. We saw the double breast make a comeback in Western wear and the traditional sherwanis in Indian wear. Checks were the pattern that was seen on most suits, trousers and shirts. Bright colours were out making way for some green, deep reds and rust. Trends, fits, styles and colours were all an outcome of the general sentiment around the world. 2017 looks promising for men’s fashion. We’re most likely to see the return of paisleys and prints on shirts and jackets, box like cuts on suits, trousers and jackets. We have seen the trend emerging with bomber jackets and double breast suits. Lapels remain sleek. Bling for men is out and raw, rustic and micro-textures will be the flavour for the year ahead.”

Style remix:

Mix and match various trends and styles to create countless new looks. Designer Michelle Salins shares, “Nail art is a huge trend. Metallics emerged the winners, besides florals and ombre. Then, the fall cape came as a big hit on the streets of New York and Los Angeles and undoubtedly reached the shoulders of the Indian women. This one is here to stay in 2017. Wedding gowns with ornamented chantilly lace and bare backs were bad and sleeves got shorter, keeping away from the earlier Kate Middleton gown! The off-shoulder dress again was huge and continues to be so for the festive party goer.” On the jewellery front, Michelle adds, “Chokers simply took over almost every neckline you saw. Bigger than life florals on skirts and hand bags made its way into many closets and it’s here to spill over to the next year.” Talking of trends to look forward to in 2017, Michelle says, “Eye-catching sleeves like the flared bell sleeve shape, the bow ties on blouses. I heard from my LA colleague that white footwear is going be a big thing teamed with metallic trims and yes, patent oxford style shoes! Corset belting - the very vintage feel and look is coming back and will see us through the next year. So play around with the criss cross tie ups, from satin sash looks to shoe lace tie ups, you can experiment with whole lot of looks to cinch waistline! Stripes - We saw a lot of stripes in multi coloured shades and finishes. So, keep an eye out. My favourite is the shimmered maxi dress in colours by Rosie Assoulin.”