Family celebrations took me back to London last week. Despite a hectic schedule, I managed to peruse the High Street and my other favourite shopping districts. While fashion trends remain a worldwide phenomenon, regional, cultural and lifestyle differences tend to play a significant role when it comes to consumer trend adoption. In particular, what you find in British stores and American stores can be quite different. I love to compare fashion trends across the Atlantic, so here are some observations on the differences and similarities.

Differences:

  1. The strong skirt trend was wonderful. From A-line to pencil, maxi to mini, plain to check and soft to structured, the choice was abundant. Skirts were as popular as pants, while dresses took a backseat.
  2. The enormous selection of fabulous and comfortable 2-inch heeled shoes and boots was a breath of fresh air. While there were plenty of 3-inch plus peds around, stable heel heights were the order of the day.
  3. Wide-legged pants were absent. I’d expected this trend to be huge, but I was wrong. It’s still all about skinnies and straight legs in London at the moment, which makes me thrilled that we have a wider choice in the US.
  4. The small emphasis on hound’s-tooth and tartan also came as a surprise, since these patterns are very big in the US right now.

Similarities:

  1. Purple and Hot pink were the primary focus. Black, white, teal, emerald, yellow, cobalt and red followed soon after.
  2. Trapeze jackets continue to flood the market.
  3. Tunics, skinnies, voluminous sleeves and blouses, oxfords, slouchy ankle boots, ruched calf length boots, riding boots and patent remain rampant.
  4. The hottest fashion sneaker around is the All Star Converse in all it’s variations.

Clothing stores such as Zara, Marks & Spencer, Karen Millen, Mexx, Monsoon, Wallis, John Lewis, Reiss and Selfridges looked particularly good this time around; while footwear stores such as Berties, Office and Faith remain strong favourites. H&M, New Look, Jane Norman, Morgan and Topshop were a bit disappointing. I was inspired by London’s current skirt and slouchy ankle boot trend and came back with a few gems that I’m excited to wear.

Cotton Twill TrenchMoleskin TailoringMixed TweedLeather Biker Jacket

Some of my favourites from Karen Millen in London.