NEW YORK, Dec 2 — After a year of fluctuations between comfort and elegance, albeit restrained, a wind of freedom may be blowing through fashion in 2022 with the return of punk style. While it may be unexpected, it’s a style that seems fitting with the spirit of the times; its 2022 comeback looks to be characterised by eccentric and bold pieces, like leather jackets, studded accessories, or the quintessentially punk plaid pieces.
A feeling of revolution, a craving for freedom, or a simple desire to put extravagance in their lives (in the absence of glitter), men and women are celebrating self-expression through a range of punk-inspired looks. It’s a trend that’s starting to take shape and which could reach a peak in 2022. And the return of the punk and grunge genres to the forefront of the music scene, with the re-release of Nirvana’s Nevermind for instance, is very likely related. Punk — with all its off-shoots — is set to be the style storming into your closet within a few months’ time.
Goodbye to boring looks
There’s no need to wait for the stroke of midnight on December 31, to rush into your closet and pull out your punkiest pieces. Cautious glimpses of the trend are already showing up in various places. Etsy* looked at which fashion pieces are getting an increasing number of searches on its platform over the past three months to determine the styles that users are gradually embracing, and the results are clear: fishnet, studs and checks are clearly the rage. And while they may not totally define punk style in themselves, they are definitely key elements of it.
In greater detail, Etsy reports an 879 per cent jump in searches for spiked collars in the past three months compared to the same period last year, as well as a more measured 34 per cent increase in demand for studded belts. Another essential element of the punk style, that of vintage plaid clothing, is also gaining more fans in recent months with searches up 48 per cent. But make sure you choose your checks carefully, and wear them with leather, faded or ripped denim, and boots, so that your punk look isn’t mistaken for a lumberjack one — not that there’s anything wrong with a lumberjack look of course.
Leather jackets are not left out either, as they have seen a 21 per cent increase in demand. And to complete the array, the only thing missing are fishnet accessories — a basic — for which searches are also up by 37 per cent. The craze for punk fashion has crossed the virtual borders with countless looks to discover on various social networks. On TikTok, the hashtag #punkstyle has tallied more than 12 million views.
Emerald green reigns
Given the punk trend, red and black could have been the star colours of the year 2022. But of course fashion being fashion, it’s full of contradictions and surprises ... And so, it is emerald green that is grabbing attention from internet users at the end of the year. Etsy reports a 64% increase in searches for this hue symbolizing nature, of course, but also freedom, hope, and especially renewal. — ETX Studio
*To determine the fashion trends of 2022, the Etsy platform used the searches made by its 96 million buyers, and listed the searches that have increased significantly on its platform over the past three months.
