Over the holidays one of the primary thoughts that came to mind was an old adage that I’m sure was whispered by many a concerned parent, mentor or friend in an attempt to assist in preventing social faux pas or even something worse: there is a time and a place for everything . This old adage is as multi-functional as a wrap dress and perhaps should be given more thought. The importance of our economy has overtaken our ability for balance, a thought further cemented as pre-fall collections were being released in the media just days before Christmas.   

Never before has such competitiveness reached such a pace as the strengthening of pre-fall. The promise of being a platform for releasing new ideas ahead of the more established Fall/Winter season, however, seems a bit lost as does the pre-fall season itself on consumers who have voiced more confusion than anything else over this new output.  And some designers, such as Michael Kors, don’t favor this new emerging “season” either.

We will hear this phrase more often as we proceed further into this century: there is no real precedent to compare anything to what we are witnessing today. Our information age has given us a new democratic platform of accessibility which is influencing the marketing of concepts and ideas in such a way that is affecting patterns we once established. Will pre-fall go away? Hardly. The platform is still a possibility for companies to demonstrate their creativity. The problem isn’t willingness on designers’ part. Well, kinda….sorta. The issue is more really about common sense and the bottom line.

When looking at times of economic “tightening” designs initially respond with an explosion of creativity. We see this on the cusp of major economic regressions such as in the late 20s/early 30s, the pre-war years, the late 60s, and the mid 80s. However, what follows is simplicity. The rush to captivate the public succumbs to a public that can’t support the market because they don’t have the capital. As a result, designers give the public what they need. Of course then we get a glut of designers offering minimal variations of the same thing. And it pains me to say that this is one of those times.

The pre-fall collections carried more or less fall versions of trends that were present in SS2012. We saw stripes (Band of Outsiders, Herve Leger by Max Azria, Opening Ceremony, Rachel Zoe and Yigel Azrouel), deco-ish geometric print (Missoni) and glenn plaids (D Squared, Emporio Armani)  and blocking with different textiles (Alice + Olivia, Band of Outsiders,  Yigal Azrouel). There was the usual retro in drop waists (Emporio and Georgio Armani, Erin Featherston, Giles), 30s pin dots and floral print (Band of Outsiders, Caroline Herrera), 40s center ruching, peplumbs and epaulettes  (Bagdley Michka, Band of Outsiders, Caroline Herrera, D Squared, Giles, Melandrino, Reem Acra ), 50s courture silhouettes and beat looks (D Squared, Erdem, Giles) and 70s/ 90s blurring (Alice + Olivia, Elie Tahari, Missoni , Opening Ceremony, Rachel Zoe not to mention much minimalism, solids and sheer interspersed through the majority of the collections.

There was some 90s return of interesting details such as laser cutting (D Squared and Reem Acra)  and, in one case, some iridescence(Herve Leger by Max Azria) and atheltica (Proenza Schoeler). Edwardian flavor was delicately executed at Temperly of London while a few designers clung to that sensibility in use of tweed (Caroline Herrera and Proenza Schoeler; the latter juxtaposing athetica with tweed in a fresh manner).

Overall, though, the surprises were minimal. It’s not to fault anyone in this industry as it’s a difficult one to be in. It is an industry where one has to temper the urge to express one’s point of view with more pragmatic concerns where survival and longevity matter. That it comes so close to the actual Fall/Winter collections, though, tells that they are holding back or worse that there will be a conservative expression until more economic stability presents itself and the consumer can get more engaged.  We’ll need more economic stability and promise of better times as insurance in that case. Well, kinda…sorta.