In the world of fashion, it's second nature to talk about next spring in autumn. Such a forward-thinking attitude is the inevitable result of studying hundreds of catwalk looks from the inexhaustible phenomenon that is fashion week. There are subtle complications that come with the job of fashion editing. There's the aforementioned 'no man's land' that comes with trend forecasting ahead of the natural calendar (we want to wear summer dresses now but, in reality, it's a crisp six degrees outside), and then there's the ever-growing shopping lists we amass (OK, I appreciate that you're not feeling much sympathy here.) This results in a growing impatience amongst the fashion ranks to wear certain trends and pieces now, regardless of whether or not they are actually available. Thankfully, S/S 16's romantic ruffle trend is something that we can all experiment with now because there are some key pieces available in stores that are like a wintry interpretation of next spring's look.
The vitals from the catwalk are as follows: Sarah Burton's latest offering for the house of Alexander McQueen was widely regarded to be one of her best yet. Burton kept the signature McQueen reinterpretation of British heritage clothing firmly in place (deconstructed military blazers and haunting floor-sweeping gowns) and added more evocative ruffles to sheer skirts. New York Fashion Week saw Proenza Schouler conjure up monochrome dresses featuring dreamlike ruffles and well-placed bows. Three makes it a trend, so a quick look at Chloé's sporty summer girls revealed tracksuit tops (yes, really) and tiered skirts. It's confirmed—the ruffle is officially in for spring 2016.
Layering will make this look work in winter, so slip a ribbed knit underneath a ruffled blouse and put on your statement coat to complete the look. The devil is always in the details though, so choose monochrome pieces over colour (accents of red in your outfit are good) and reach for vertical waterfall ruffles in silk. See the look on the catwalk and check out our ruffle shopping edit below!
Would you wear this trend now or will you wait until next spring? Let us know in the comments below.