The trends to expect and embrace in 2013

We can be philosophical about it. New years are all about clean slates and fresh opportunities, a revitalized set of choices and another chance to makeover our lives. Or we can just take it as it is. A whole set of 12 months that will detail what to love, what to wear and what trends to pursue just to inject a bit more fun into life.

Here, a list of trends for 2013. Take it as a guide or a primer. But, as with anything in fashion, never take it too seriously.

Pointy shoes

After years of round-toe monopoly, the sharper, more sculpted pointy pump is making an impressive reappearance. Offering more toe cleavage and dominatrix possibilities, the triangular shape is undeniably sexier than its blunted counterparts. Hone killer-shoe instincts with a pair from Karimadon’s new stiletto collection.

More Kate Moss

Thirty-eight years old, almost 25 years in the biz and earning nearly half a million dollars a day, Kate Moss has long since shed her heroin chic reputation and has gained heroine status in an industry that doesn’t really accredit longevity.  The enduring supermodel recently bagged contracts with Versace and Stuart Weitzman and released an autobiography where she talks about her supposed drug use and legendary breasts.

Instagram marketing

Traditional PR and advertising take a backseat as both big-name and micro businesses turn to online applications, particularly Instagram, to market their wares. Fashion retailers, in particular, such as bag seller Culebra, benefit greatly from this creative form of “thumbs-on” selling. Filters help enhance dilettante photography, while rampant self-promotion  greatly complements word-of-mouth marketing.

Long shorts

Horrified protesters of butt curve-baring shorties can now quit the mental picketing as summer sees the trend taking a longer route for bottoms. Many designers including Nicole Miller, Alexander Wang and Rachel Roy borrow from the school boys uniform and each introduce a version of their own version of the bermuda shorts, pairs that drop a couple of inches shy of the knee. These slouchy pairs introduce an aesthetic that looks to lazy androgyny; unless you intentionally want to look unsexy, wear with a fierce pair of high heels.

The rise (or return) of girl power

Maybe it’s time we say it: nobody understands the wardrobe needs of a woman better than another woman. 2013 is set to promote a kind of fashion lesbianism, with female designers poised to give women, and their figures, exactly what they want: clothes that both look and feel good. Young designers such as Boom Sason, Maureen Disini and Vania Romoff (as seen above) lead the pack.

Elaborate nails

These days, a manicure is not just a simple polish swipe. Each nail has become a canvas for detailed, minuscule artwork featuring abstracted prints, recreations of famous artwork and textured finishes. Nail art designer Eight Nails a Week has depictions of Van Gogh’s most renowned works and lacquer homages to Beatles’ album covers.

Sweet pastels

A palette that looks more to sorbets rather than pallid baby nursery shades, this season’s lighter colors give a refreshing feel to combat hot summer months. There are no better pick-me-ups than a parade of corals, lavenders, dandelion yellows and sea greens. Prada and, on the local front, Jian Lasala, give a preview.

Greenhouse effect

As if to celebrate the world not self-combusting last December, the fashion scene burst out with bouquets and bunches of blooms for summer of 2013. Floral patterns — abstracted, hazy impressionist, graphic — are this season’s antithesis to the minimalist trend at the other end of the fashion spectrum. In the recent Philippine Fashion Week shows, designers such asTina Daniac, Enrico Carado and Dave Ocampo showed their own interpretations. 

The new minimalism

Amid all the lace, beading and printed patterns, minimalist silhouettes and styles are welcome reprieves. Minimal does not translate to minimum, however; local designers, most noticeably Noel Crisostomo, Xernan Orticio and Ronaldo Arnaldo, recently maximized on the trend by sending out sleek, volumized tailoring, frill-free white pieces and stark black and white designs. 

Statement eyewear

It takes more than just an “it” bag to make an impression. As designers like Prada, Kris Van Assche, Jason Wu and Tommy Hilfiger reveal, an outfit benefits much from a pair of unconventional sunglasses. Running the gamut of shapes and sizes from donut-sized rounds to razor-edged cat-eyes, and manifesting elaborate frames (filigree and long-tailed serpents at Cavalli), these statement pairs put a new sparkle into the eyes.