With shorts and tank top weather officially behind us, we can formally welcome autumn fashion with open arms. The 2022 fall fashion trends offer us the ability to play with layers as temperatures drop, and go back to our roots with many old fashion trends making a comeback.

   Sheer clothing, a prominent trend this fall season, does not just have to be for summer as this lightweight fabric can be great for layering. The material allows for an individual to show a bit more skin while still being covered for the cooler months. I personally love sheer clothing because it comes in every silhouette, proving just how easy it can be to style. 

    Jessica Richards, a trend forecaster, says that the spike in sheer clothing is due to the desire to be seen in our current political climate post-Roe. “These silhouettes, created in sheers that emulate ‘nakedness,’ strip down the volume of their co-trend and instead promote a presence that a woman’s body is her own and not to be ignored,” said Richards.

   Another common layering fabric this season is leather, which has recently become a popular street-style item. While using some leather in an outfit isn’t new, head-to-toe leather is becoming more and more of a thing than it was in recent years. In the New York, London, Milan, and Paris fashion weeks, head-to-toe leather looks continued to dominate across New York’s MAGIC and Coterie contemporary trade shows.

   Leather is so effortless to wear, making it the perfect base to experiment with, while still keeping things sleek and sophisticated. Although I love a small leather jacket to spice up my outfits this fall, I don’t know how I feel about the full leather head-to-toe look for casual everyday fashion. I loved looking at the full leather outfits designers styled during fashion week. 

   One of my favorite trends that have been popular this fall is vintage clothing. Luxury is no longer defined by a price tag in today’s fashion world. We live in an era where it’s possible to mass-produce clothing to easily live up to all our fast fashion needs. But the true luxury lies in unique and handmade clothing items, the clothes that tell a story. Although vintage clothing has always been popular among fashionistas, in recent years, they have exploded in popularity amongst the general public. 

   Vintage clothes are not only better quality, but they are better for the environment. It’s no secret that fast fashion is slowly taking over the fashion industry, but these cheaply made clothes are terrible for the environment as most of them end up in a landfill within a few months. “People will always want to have new looks but they’re becoming more and more aware of the impact of their choices on the environment, and that possibly the best thing all of us can do in this climate crisis is limit the resources we take out of the planet,” said designer Ivan Dauriz. 

   This fall season we are seeing a lot of clothes that make a statement. Whether it’s for freedom in women’s bodies or helping our planet’s environment. Ultimately, I am interested to see how these new changes will develop into the next season of fashion.