Fashion trends have been something important to society since the 14th century. Even at North, trends seem to always find their way to our students and staff. With the rise of social media over the past decade, trends have been cycling faster than ever before.

“Looking back a decade, the runways dictated all; while they’re still the foundation for forecasting, we have to be sure to watch social media to understand how consumers are actually wearing items,” says Kendall Becker, a trend forecaster and freelance writer out of New York City. While not everyone at North may have the ability to attend a runway show to find new pieces for their wardrobe, the vast majority are on social media. With social media, anyone can stay up to date with fashion trends, faster than ever before. 

A trend that has taken over the hallways of North would undoubtedly be flare leggings. Some may think they just bought them because they are cute and different from the typical black legging, but in reality, the flare pant has so much more history than that. 

The flare pant started over 150 years ago, with American sailors. Sofrep.com, a website dedicated to the history of the military tells us that flared pants were the uniform for the navy because it was easier to roll up the pants while cleaning the deck, as well as for safety reasons in the event of them falling overboard. Function, not fashion in this case. Fast forward 100 years, in the 60s-70s, the flared pant (more commonly known as the bell-bottom) was back in, and a staple piece in the wardrobes of many influential celebrities like Elvis. By the ’80s, bell bottoms were out and the mom jean was in. In the early to mid-2000s, we saw another uprise of the flared pant, now as yoga pants. This was early athleisure which we still see a ton of today. After only ~ 15 years, flared leggings have become popular again, and North is no exception to this trend. This trend has cycled four times, each time getting a little bit closer together. 

“Social media sparks the feeling to jump on a bandwagon per se––and even though younger generations crave individuality, that urge to be different ends up looking the same when inspiration is all coming from the same place,” says Becker. 

Ugg boots are another trend starting to really pick up at North. They started out in the ‘60s and were only popular in Australia for practical use in the winter.  When they really started to gain traction in America, it was in the mid-2000s, and we saw celebrities like Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie, Kim Kardashian, and Britney Spears wearing them in paparazzi photos. 

While they were never officially “out” due to their practicality in winter weather, Uggs definitely saw a decline in the ‘10s. Now, Ugg has released their Mini and Ultra Mini which have taken over social media. Both styles are sold out in most sizes and colors on Ugg.com, Nordstroms and Bloomingdales. 

Fifteen years later, today’s it-girls like Kendall Jenner, Emily Ratajkowski and Bella Hadid are constantly wearing Ugg minis.  It is ironic how the older sister-younger sister duo of Kim and Kendall have taken turns with the Ugg trend. 

There’s much more to trend forecasting than just scrolling on social media all day long. Kendall Becker describes her day as, “At its core, my day always consists of research––sometimes that may be going through runway images, scrolling social media, or attending market appointments or runway shows to see product firsthand.” She continues, “After that, the output varies––my responsibilities include producing trend reports, consulting with clients, and writing articles. Sharing information in a variety of ways is the highlight of my job!”

Even though most of us don’t notice it, we all participate in the cycling of fashion trends every time we go on social media, go shopping, or even take notice of what someone is wearing at school because we immerse ourselves in different styles and they influence our personal tastes and overall wardrobes.