Trends are a little funny, aren’t they? Just as you clean out your closet of things you feel like will never come back in style they do. It’s a vicious cycle of waiting the 20 or so years for trends to cycle back around, and who knows where we’ll be in 20 years?
20 years ago I was a mere tween, wearing the bold print loud and proud, and even DIYing some pieces at summer camp. Youch, it’s been that long. Now that it’s back around, though, I’m digging through my vintage bins and old DIY projects and pulling out some pieces to pair alongside some new cuts. After all, every trend resurgence comes with a little bit of an upgrade.
While I believe style doesn’t know gender or age, there’s certain ways to make tie dye look cool and cohesive with your current wardrobe. I’ll break these down by age, sharing some styling tips and tricks to make you look your best when riding the colorful waves.
Your 20s are all about being bold and embracing trends to in a maximalist sense. Go for the brightest and boldest colors while you can, embracing head to toe tie dye or bold casual pieces like oversized sweaters and skateboard sneakers. I love a tie dye bike short with a cropped or oversized sweatshirt and some colorful sandals or slides. Even better if you can DIY yourself some tie dye pieces in your favorite colors.
Once you’re in your 30s you want to be taken a little bit more seriously; you’re established in your career and interested in flexing your style skills, showing that you can seamlessly work trends into your closet of curates staples mixed with quick trends. You can still have some fun with color, but I’d tame it down ever so slightly to something a little less loud. The tie dye should be more linear, almost intentional in your pieces, and less like the splotchy DIYaesthetic. Pair your swirly dyed piece with a matching or complimentary colored basic to bring the whole thing to a trendy monochromatic.
As we mature, our style must mature with us. In your 40s we’re going to bring trends a bit more tailored and polished. Take the classic tie dye trend and imprint it on unexpected fabrics and silhouettes and then wear it stylishly. For color, I would stick with one to two color tie dyes, forgoing (for the most part) the ubiquitous bold and brights that scream “young and wild and free”. Unless that's your vibe; like I said these are just some guidelines based on age but in the end, you are the master of how old you FEEL.
If you’re in your 50s and above you’ve probably seen the tie dye trend come and go a number of times (the flower power child of the 70s, the grunge vibes of the 90s, and again now). You’re over having fun with the bright and bold, and you may be done with the corporate world, or close to it, and you still want to have fun with style and trends. At this age, we’re going to take some pieces from what the 40year olds are wearing, but bring it casual and drapey - comfort is absolute key. I love keeping it classic in a shibori dyed (blue indigo, a concept done mostly in Japan) and bringing it into your favorite silhouettes and then wearing them with classic and simple basics that are on the same level of casual.
What do you think of the tie dye trend? Would love to know how YOU would feel confident wearing these pieces!