Late spring and early summer come with a plethora of changes to fashion and accessories. With the culmination of awards season with The Oscars, new movie press tours like Challengers and of course the Met Gala have us adjusting the clothes, accessories, and makeup to fit the trend which isn’t always easy. But, I spent a lot of time looking at styles and brands that have the most variety so you can get in style without too much running around because after finals we all need easy wins!
Let’s address the pleated skirt in the room: you can call it prepcore, tennis core, old money aesthetic, or all three, but the fact is, pleated skirts and polos work. Victoria’s Secret has a variety of looks.
Pink has a variety of polo items available that are good for a lot more than just play. Their Tennis Pique Dress is one that stood out to me. The top is a standard polo shirt neck design, nothing too low or too high. The dress itself stood out to me because it isn’t straight in shape like t-shirt dresses can be, but I found it to hug curves without being too tight. In my opinion, because polo neckline and the fit of the dress it stood out to me as a dress that could be worn at some internships or summer jobs depending on the place. They do come in three colors black, navy blue, and spring orchid which is a pink shade. Midnight and Royal blue is right in line with navy blue which has been popular this spring; Zendaya even wore it to the Mat Gala as a major part of one of her two dresses.
While peach is the color of the year it does seem like lavender and peachy pinks with pink piggybacking and taupe are taking over fashion when it comes to the light colors for the season.
PINK and Victoria’s Secret do have a variety of skorts many of which can be categorized as hardcore tenniscore. The color of these products fits right in, including the Ultimate Athletic Skort. What I like about this product is how it’s a little flirty with the thigh-high slit, but you get the added comfort of knowing you’re completely covered- which is a huge pro for me. Something else that stood out to me about this skort is that it not only has purple, but navy, and an army/olive green that’s also been standing out in fashion this spring.
A taupe look is going to be one of the biggest color looks this season, if the Met Gala has any impact on fashion.
Taupe can be hard to find. I found that shade, called Candle Rose on their website, with the Lux Glossy Sport Wide-Leg. It’s not just comfortable and lightweight but it has a gloss that will make it work for a variety of occasions. When I first saw these pants, the gloss was so shiny that I thought they were made as dress pants. They do have other colors, including black as well as a matching jacket.
If you’re more into blues than taupe, Lascana has a beautiful off-the-shoulder rouche dress. What caught my eye about this dress wasn’t just the color it’s in, it is the versatility of the dress. The dress is more or less a seasonless look- i.e.it always fits in regardless of what is in the current fashion. On Google you’ll see there are rouched styles in every decade for the last 30 at least. Another thing that stood out to me is the sleeves- they are about ¾ but loose so they are comfortable for summer as well as fall.
Stila Cosmetics has come out with a Limited Edition Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner. This release contains Marine, which is described as a green-blue but I see it as a rich, bold, and bright Navy, Violet Haze, which comes off as a bold lavender. The last shade in the limited edition line is Cosmic Pink, a magenta shade. Last spring, Stila also released a line of pastels called Stay All Day Muted-Neon Liquid Eyeliner. There are six shades in that line, but the two that I think impact this season are Lavender Fields, a pastel purple, and Peach Party, a peach shade. What stood out to me about Marine is that the navy shade is bright. However, they mixed green into it and it stood out to me more than other navy liners I’ve seen. When it comes to purple and Lavender what I love about Violet Haze and Lavender Fields was that the two colors coordinate very well. I thought the two would make it. I also noticed that all 5 liners are truly bold colors and dried fairly fast.
If you are into pencil liners, I found some wonderful Kajal ones from Haus Labs in their Optic Intensity Eco Eyeliner line. They have a beige matt color called Sandy Nude, a navy blue called Navy Matt, and a deep purple called Amethyst Matt. What stood out about these pencils is that they glide on smoothly and stay where you put them. I have tried the Navy and Sand, and what prompted me to include it is how easily it blends out. Each eyeliner comes with a brush on one end of the pencil that I found made blending easy. They say online you have about 10 seconds to play with it before it sets, which doesn’t seem like a lot, but I found it was more than enough time.
Nail trends are a mix of a few things. Many people love the clear nails Lil NasX and Jennifer Lopez sported at the Met Gala. Le Mini Macaroon recently came out with Gel Tips. That can easily give you a clear nail look at home. What stood out to me about that product is that you just need to apply some gel glue, and cure it for 30 seconds to a minute depending on the type of lamp. I find that these tips stay better than press-ons do navy/deep blue nails have been creeping into the market for a bit but with all the rich Navy, emerald, and purples, seen at the Oscars and the Met Gala those colors are getting to be very popular.
Essie has a few that would fit this trend well. One of their shades, Dark Blue Glam, was featured on an episode of Southern Charm when Craig Conover used it on his ring finger. While I’m not sure what shade he used, Caviar Bar looks like it to be a great close match. What I love about dark blue is that it goes with a lot of colors, including deep red/burgundy and deep purple.
If you want to do a colorful verson of a French manicure, a base that would work well for that would be a color in Essie’s gel couture line called Bodice Goddess as well as OPI’s Bubble Bath, is a great light/neutral pinkish nude to use as a base for a French manicure. If you are looking for a more beige than pink, check out High Maintenance. For all three, they are fairly sheer but provide a nice coverage for an even and shiny look. One layer is very light, two layers you see more of a color. In their Gel Couture line, Jewels and Jacquard are a great deep teal. What appealed to me about it is that it is a great transition color between spring and summer shades as it works for deep-shade nails as well as beachy-themed nails. I also am a huge fan of turquoise, regardless.
There was a lot of sparkle and sheen on nails at the Met Gala. What attracted me to Essie’s Feel the Fizzle is that it works great as a topper to add sparkle as it is buildable.
Lips are always evolving and changing. Earlier in the year it was very peach oriented but with looks from the Oscars, the constant look this season is deep rich but not dark lipsticks. SheGlam’s Mirror Kiss High-Shine Lipstick stood out to me for one big reason. The deepest, richest shade didn’t wash my fair skin out. I have fair skin naturally, but recently my skin tone can rival that of Snow White. But this girl still wants to rock deep and rich reds and bright pinks, not just a rosy mauve. The colors in this line allowed me to get the rich shades without looking more pale than I am, so that was the first thing that stood out. The second thing that stood out to me is how smooth and shiny it is. There weren’t any tugs, just a smooth glide. It lived up to the mirror high shine name as the lipstick looked like I applied lip gloss. The third thing that stood out to me is that it stayed on very well. Many high-shine colors come off right away, but these lipsticks stayed fairly well, and they didn’t come off after one sip of water. Lastly, I found the lipsticks to be very lightweight. With the amount of shine these have you typically get a heavy or sticky feeling, but it didn’t feel like I was wearing anything.
Accessories
I love accessories. they can be layered and worn alone for hair jewelry, etc.
If you are into prepcore or Old Money aesthetic, which often includes a coin necklace, you can combine that look with the paperclip chain trend with Electric Pick’s Big Spender Necklace. This necklace stood out to me for a few reasons. The chain is a paperclip chain that isn’t thick and, while it looks dainty, it felt very sturdy to me. The second thing that stood out to me is the cast vintage coin. Coin necklaces like this are often seen in the old money aesthetics and can accessories even prepcore looks. Another classic look is pearls. Pearls go with just about everything and any look. Electric Picks combine coins and pearls in their Gemma necklace.
Another option is semi-precious gemstones. BaubleBar has multiple lines of semi-precious gemstone jewelry. One that stood out to me is the Cameron necklace. This is because it includes a variety of stones, including mother-of-pearl, sodalite, which is a deep navy color, rose quartz, etc. The second thing that stood out to me about the necklace is long, a total of 20”, including the extender, which means you may be able to wear it like a double necklace. The third thing that stood out to me about this is that there are matching bracelets! I love matching items. There is a variety of bracelets as well as individual precious stone bracelets like rose quartz and a mother-of-pearl, which reminded me of Arianna Grande’s Met Gala Dress.
If you are into paperclip chains, BaubleBar has a few items within their Hera designs. However, what stood out to me was Heidi. These links are slightly smaller in width but bigger in height and thickness. However, what prompted me to include it in this piece was the nine pave stones in the center of the necklace. Why? wearing gold and silver designs in one is back. The pave stones bring a silver look to the necklace. I, of course, love pave; but in person, it is noticeable to be commented upon but doesn’t take over your entire look. It also is appropriate to wear at work or on the weekends.
The ring that matches Hera’s necklaces and bracelet has a ring as well. The ring itself looks like a mini version of Heidi. What prompted me to include this piece is I love matching items, and it is an item that can be worn at any time because it is a gold ring that is chain- you can’t get any more classic than that. It works in any situation.
Florals have been in style for a while this season but the Met Gala took it up a notch with many having 3D applique on their clothes. Finding styles like that are always easy, especially since the gala just happened. But I found these Floral Flower Pins for your hair from Beachwaver that are light pink and come in three to a pack. They remind me a bit of Anna Wintour’s outfit at the Met Gala. They’re great to put in for braid bins and even where the hairline of your cap is, if you’re graduating.
I hope you were able to find some inspiration for your fashion this early spring!