Do you follow clothing trends? Instead of jumping on a trend, I watch the trends to find the ones that are most "me"--the ones perhaps I've been waiting for all my life, the styles I would have designed if I had any skill in that area. It's more like hopping on your train home rather than hopping on the first train that comes in no matter where it's going.
Tie-neck blouses in The Lady's Newspaper in the 1880s Most trends are typically not so new, only "new to thee" (as Prospero says to Miranda). The style has likely appeared somewhere first--on a runway, on a style icon, in an era ages ago.
Here's a case in point: I thought tie-neck blouses were a fairly new trend. I thought they'd come out about two years ago. But I just found someone talking about them in 2008. And I think this type of top actually has its roots in a much more distant past. I could see royalty wearing a version of them or perhaps musketeers! And I can imagine Audrey Hepburn, hip '60s chicks, and schoolteachers on the prairie wearing them.
Here's a case in point: I thought tie-neck blouses were a fairly new trend. I thought they'd come out about two years ago. But I just found someone talking about them in 2008. And I think this type of top actually has its roots in a much more distant past. I could see royalty wearing a version of them or perhaps musketeers! And I can imagine Audrey Hepburn, hip '60s chicks, and schoolteachers on the prairie wearing them.
Still, for some reason, these blouses call to me. I think they just feel like me, whether they're popular now or not. When I bought my first tie-front top two years ago, I thought I was one of the only ones wearing it. Of course, since I bought it at The GAP, probably millions of others women were thinking the same thing :-).
Most trends last through several years. You often think a trend is brand new and fleeting. But truth is, most return the following year and for several thereafter. Sometimes it's just easier to find in stores, sometimes it's subtly changed or amplified, but pretty much it's just the same trend as last year. Like skinny jeans, for example.
I thought I was wearing one of the only tie-neck blouses available when I bought this one at The GAP two years ago. It hasn't been the easiest item to wear. It seems supremely conservative even while it's trendy.
Lots more tie-neck blouses are in stores now...
 Nordstrom Sleeveless Tie Neck Knit Shirt, 5 colors, 5 sizes, $49 |  Nordstrom Halogen Tie Neck Sleeveless Top, 4 colors, 5 sizes, $69 |  Nordstrom Halogen Tie Neck Sleeveless Top, 4 colors, 5 sizes, $69 |
 Anthropologie Tilda Tie-Neck Blouse, $148 |  Urban Outfitters Coincidence & Chance Tie-Neck Secretary Blouse, 5 colors, 4 sizes, $39.99  Forever 21 Buttoned Tie Neck Bodysuit, $15.80 |
 L.L. Bean Signature Tie-Neck Blouse, Mallard Print, $95 This blouse is from L.L. Bean Signature. The same blouse is pictured to the right. |  L.L. Bean Signature Tie-Neck Blouse, Mallard Print, $95 |
A couple last thoughts on trends...
Sometimes the trend serves a purpose. I've become a new fan of high-low maxi skirts because I like to walk and walk pretty fast. I've sometimes steered away from long tube-like skirts because they restrict your stride: you have to take fairly small steps or lift up one side. High-low skirts, on the other hand, are missing the front panel so you can run to the bus without having to hold your skirt.
Wearing something trendy can take years off. Wearing something trendy (even if it's not as new as you thought) can make you feel young and up-to-date.
So basically there's no hurry. I'm pretty sure the new trend will be around next year and the year after. You have plenty of time to see if it suits you, if it calls to you.
For me, I just keep an eye on the trends, waiting for my train to come in.
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