Individual, urban, and authentic, street style has been at the forefront of fashion culture since the 90s. With its easy yet edgy wear that thrives on personality and uniqueness, there’s no sign of the creative appetite for this fashion trend abating.
Coming out of the pandemic, street style has been dominating the catwalks, making it the look to embrace this season. To inspire you to get your urban on, here’s our guide to what street style you should be wearing in 2022.
What is street style?
Born out of grassroots youth culture, street style aims to turn general perceptions of accessible fashion on its head by blurring boundaries and encouraging individuality. It is a fluid style that enables the wearer to make their own statement and embrace the subcultures that influence their everyday lives. It has also been described as an ‘intersection’ of various styles and trends to reflect past and current cultural conversations.
This all keeps street style fresh, relevant, and continually surprising. No wonder the top fashion houses are continually inspired by this ‘from the streets’ style movement webtoon.
2022 street style trends
Street style is adept at combining various influences, with new trends joining the old school themes that have stood the test of time.
For 2022, the urban sports look that has informed street style since the early 90s continues to influence, with gender-fluid shapes and styles leading the way. Power shapes, interpretation of personal space, tactile fabrics and textiles, and nods to 80s counterculture are also key street style trends that have filtered down from the catwalk.
With these influences in mind, here are just some of the key 2022 street style trends to look out for this summer and fall:
Celebrating the sneaker
No street style collection would be complete without the retro sneaker and, for 2022, crisp white, retro, colour block, and platform are the ones to choose. Key sneaker brands to look for this season include Chloe, Off-White, Balenciaga, and Swedish brand Axel Arigato (you’ll love the vegan leather Clean 90 design!).
Fabulous worn with knitted dresses, full, feminine skirts, or tailored and oversized styles,
the wear-with-anything sneaker will undoubtedly become the street style staple in your 2022 wardrobe.
Oversized tailoring
Androgynous tailoring goes to the next level, with oversized suits and boxy jackets dominating the 2022 street style look. Think wide legged trousers, large shoulders, unconstructed jacket shapes and sharp summer brights. Easy to wear, oversized street style tailoring can also be dialled up or down by layering over form-fitting tops, ultra-feminine bras, or untucked shirts with a generous cut. Or, for a simple street style addition to your everyday summer wardrobe, a tailored waistcoat worn as a vest with combats or wide-legged jeans is the way to keep your cool.
Futuristic shapes are also big for 2022, taking angular shoulders, off-kilter dimensions, and asymmetrical hemlines to a whole new level.
Texture
After two years of limited contact and physical connections due to Covid, street style 2022 has embraced the touchy-feely, with beautiful fabrics and tactile textures taking centre stage.
Plush, warm, and reassuring, faux fur is having a street style revival while soft knitted dresses as a counter to the loungewear of the past two years are everywhere.
Lux is also a street style 2022 trend, with soft, glossy leather a key look, while vegan leather alternatives are also driving demand for sustainable fashion. And finally, a throwback to the punk street style days, plaid is making a welcome return. This classic fabric can be seen in a host of street styles, from buttoned up Burberry preppy to layered suits and body confident kilted miniskirts.
Colour blocking and neon
Street style can never be described as ‘quiet’ and with this 2022 trend, the look is being taken up a whole new notch. Street style colour is everywhere this season, from neon acids and clashing prints to bold colour block designs. And mix and match is thoroughly encouraged.
If we are to go out on a limb and pin one key street style colour down this season then it must be green. And, to do it right, it needs to be on your accessories. Across all the Spring/Summer 2022 fashion weeks, green was the must-have accent colour, from shoes and handbags to scarves and hats. Worn in one of the on-trend knit or leather fabrics, and this is a street style trend that will also see you into winter and 2023.
Final notes
Street style is all about expressing your personal style and feeling confident in what you’re wearing. The trends we’ve highlighted should help give you some inspiration for how to put together outfits that reflect who you are. We hope you’ll experiment with these looks and find new ways to express yourself through fashion. What’s your favourite street style trend?
