It’s a new year, and it can be an “up-leveled you” for your clients, with five key fashion trends for the first half of 2022. These trends, from color blocking to unisex styles to gingham patterns, have something in common: They’re twists on trends that we’ve seen around but are modernized and updated for everyone to look and feel great. I drew inspiration from the runways, fashion blogs, and social media influencers to compile the top trends that we’ll be seeing everywhere this winter.

Color Blocking

color-blocking

This season, you’ll see all types of garments with the two-tone look. | Credit: S&S Activewear

Look no further than collections from PatBO, Christian Siriano, Proenza Schouler, Anna Sui, and Coach for fabulous color blocking: two-toned basics that once again feel fresh and electric, due to the vibrant and saturated color combos that get a second glance. Of course, you can choose color-blocked styles in core colors like black and white or gray and white, but up the ante with unique blocked looks.

MV Sport offers a color-blocked hooded sweatshirt with a bold horizontal slash of the opposite color on both sleeves and across the center body of the hoodie. This season, you’ll see all types of garments with the two-tone look, so you can find a look, style, and color palette for any brand.

Saturated Tie-Dye

Yes, it’s possible to reinvent tie-dye season after season, year after year. Just take a look at the 2022 runways — from Louis Vuitton’s tailored men’s blazers with pink and white tie-dye, to Prabal Gurung’s blinged-up saturated tie-dyes, accented by sequins.

This winter and spring’s tie-dye isn’t the vibrant ‘70s swirls. Instead, you’ll see a retro Y2K fade with an ombré effect and a smoother transition from saturated tie-dye shade to shade. You’ll see lots of upscale streetwear styles, like sweatshirts from Independent Trading Co., with these saturated designs, along with other styles that you can dress up or down.

Gender-Neutral Styles

If you checked out New York Fashion Week, you probably noticed a plethora of designers, from Private Policy to Eckhaus Latta to Thom Browne, who cast aside gender constructs and replaced their binary collections with gender-fluid styles. Both Private Policy and Thom Browne pushed the boundaries with genderless fashion collections that included traditional masculine and feminine styles (like boxy suits and satin top-and-pencil skirt ensembles) meant to be worn by all.

In the decorated apparel industry, more brands are including more gender-neutral styles, making it easier to outfit larger groups of people. Outerwear is a great place to start with in your sales pitches, with styles for all from adidas and BELLA+CANVAS.

Western-Inspired Details

Like the happy nostalgia that tie-dye inspires in us, the idea of “Go West” also resonates with people who’ve got wanderlust after being locked down and working from home. However, this season’s Western influence isn’t over the top. For 2022, Western styles at Balmain, Gabriela Hearst, and Burberry included fringes and desert-toned fabrications with some tactile appeal. Tap into this trend easily with workwear jacket styles in neutral hues from DRI DUCK and easy-to-tote-everywhere Western-inspired duffels from Independent Trading Co.

Patterns: Checks, Gingham, and Houndstooth

Fun prints, meant to be worn by all genders, are available in different colors and wardrobe pieces, from hoodies to socks. | Credit: S&S Activewear

This season’s patterns favor checks, gingham, and houndstooth, with designers like Brandon Maxwell and Michael Kors Collection giving them a sporty, rather than sweet, vibe. These fun prints, meant to be worn by all genders, are available in different colors and wardrobe pieces, from hoodies to socks.

You can wear these looks on the street and at the office. Show your more adventurous clients these styles and match their logo to the print color for a tone-on-tone look, or use a contrasting or complementary color to make their brand really pop.

These five must-wear trends are ones to watch and pitch to your clients starting now, for the winter/spring 2022 season.