T he 2016 Resort collections offer some new experimentation that this blog has been relaying to you. Much of it has to do with our growing apart form the retro inspiration that many designers are still adhering to. This is not thier fault. Rather, they are merely reacting to our connections to the past that we the consumers are hesitant to outgrow as the imminent and unknown that is the future comes upon us.

Our culture admits our place in the winds of change and have put a lot of focus on the future and, in particular, the youth that will carry the torch we pass to them. This attention has resulted in two directions: the nod to the past in the form of reinforcing retro inspiration when youth was king before, and in inspiration of how youth wears fashion now. The last article in this blog saw how the new generation's ramshackle mixing and layering was helping to shape design collections as they guide us towards a new 21st century aesthetic. But our obsession with everything youthful can sometimes take another turn.

For some designers, youthful cuts can be the literal expression, such as in the proliferation of babydoll and super short hemlines or in baby-light pastels. Another lighter turn is in the use of animation graphics. I'm Isola Marras incorporated some in their collection, while Preen's nautical touches almost seemed comic-inspired. This childlike graphic use was combined with pastels in Peter Jensen's collection as well.

Just as the youthful cuts met the ageist concerns during the Boomer years, our current insecurity reflects two-fold: our regression as we have no choice but to brave the future and our desire to reverse the clock to fit. Someday, we may learn to educate our public so we don't have these sentiments. Until then, fashion just tells it like it is.