Pastels and Their Surprising Appeal

And then there are pastels. They used to be for nurseries or Easter, right? Suddenly they’re everywhere—denim, outerwear, you name it. Wispy pink isn’t shy anymore; it’s almost aggressive. Lavender foam skirts, mint suits, butter yellow bucket hats—pastels are all-ages now, not just for kids.

Pantone’s data says pastel-led collections jumped 20% for SS25. I asked a merchandiser: pastels sell out fastest when mixed with “unexpected” navy or red. That combo made zero sense last year. Now it’s driving layered looks. Even Chanel’s teasing pale blues with concrete greys—nostalgia and modern together, weirdly effective.

Shoes? Someone’s always launching a banana yellow loafer. There’s no logic, but they keep selling anyway.

The Rise of Color-Blocking Techniques

Trying to color-block, my closet looks like a circus. Burning red with navy, teal sleeves, lemon cuffs—every piece louder than the last. Looka’s design experts say color-blocking “injects energy.” Sure, but I’ve got a pile of unworn shirts from my last attempt at “bold.”

This year, color-blocking is everywhere—patriotic combos (apple red, navy, white) are back after European runways. “We used to use blocks to fix bad silhouettes,” a colleague told me. Now it’s intentional: dresses split into lemon and navy, trousers with wild gradients, shoppers chasing the buzz even if it’s borderline cartoon.

Stylists always say it’s about “confidence,” but honestly, it’s math—half bold, half neutral, or you risk looking like a thrift store reject. Color-blocking keeps growing in 2025, but I keep hiding the failed experiments behind my plain tees, telling myself I’ll wear them “next year.”

From Runway to Real Life: Key Influences

Here’s what really gets me: high fashion spits out wild color combos your grandma would’ve called “hideous,” and suddenly everyone wants those shades for their classic trench or that “never on sale” blazer. Designers push these weird hues, Pantone names the year after some unpronounceable color, and next thing you know, everyone’s fighting for egg yolk yellow cardigans. Coincidence? Please.

Iconic Looks from Bottega Veneta

It’s 2 a.m., I’m doom-scrolling Instagram—Bottega Veneta again. Kermit-green slouch bags, obnoxious orange leather jackets, and somehow every so-called minimalist is reposting them. Daniel Lee (he left in 2021, but his shockwaves are still everywhere) dropped color-blocking that’s still echoing in street style. There’s always a lag—one runway show and suddenly you’re double-checking if your white tee is “boring enough.”

GQ called that green “the color that broke the internet.” Editors still act like it wasn’t a calculated risk. Bottega’s Fall/Winter 2024 show spat out four colorways—eggplant, citrus, gunmetal, dusty teal—that are now all over everyday fashion. Good luck finding those colors anywhere else before Bottega did them.

Everything cycles—mostly so they can convince us next season’s colored boots are essential. Nobody actually counted the green handbag spike, but Fashion Monitor says “kelly green” searches tripled after that show. So now I watch which runway colors actually trickle down and which ones just disappear.

Pantone’s Impact on Seasonal Colors

Pantone’s “color of the year” circus—am I supposed to believe it’s just vibes? No, it’s a full-on ritual. Committees, spreadsheets, psychological climate, whatever that means. Leatrice Eiseman (Pantone boss, apparently) told Vogue it’s all about the mood in the air, not just what’s stomping down the runways. Sure. Suddenly everything is “Peach Fuzz” or some hyper-specific blue, and brands trip over themselves to rename stuff. Designers act like they’ve always been obsessed with that color, but come on. Every panel, someone’s ranting about color psychology or FOMO shopping, but who actually plans their life around a Pantone drop? I’ve literally never met that person.

Remember when they declared “Moss Green” the hot thing? Not army, not forest, but that weirdly precise mossy shade. Buyers at the big stores—full panic. Suddenly every t-shirt, suit, wallet, whatever, gets the moss memo. Even Zara, even Uniqlo, like clockwork. These guides swear Pantone sets the tone, but honestly, half the time brands do their own thing and the press just invents a connection after the fact.

If you want to know who really cares, it’s not shoppers—it’s the people in the supply chain. I’ve sat through meetings where sales reps literally recite Pantone numbers. Designers claim it’s all “intuition,” but please. Look at your new arrivals, all those weirdly similar muted colors? That’s Pantone’s memo, not the universe telling you to buy socks that match your mood.

Unexpected Closet Staples Gaining Traction

Everybody’s obsessed with color-matching apps and wardrobe spreadsheets, but the real surprise? Boring basics are mutating thanks to these new colors. Capsule wardrobes, supposedly all about “timelessness,” now look like someone spilled a Pantone deck on them—dusty olive, digital lavender, you name it. Wild, but also kind of hilarious.

Essential Pieces in Trending Hues

So I’m staring at my own closet and, out of nowhere, my jeans (the ones I don’t even like) suddenly feel out of date. Now it’s all about digital lavender and something called warm taupe. Denim? Apparently too basic. These unexpected neutrals are everywhere, and yeah, Vogue’s right for once.

Pinterest stylists—who are right more than I want to admit—say brown handbags are the new must for 2025. Not beige, not tan, actual brown. Like, the color of a dog treat. I keep reaching for my olive tank, which, according to a WGSN audit, is up 47% in sales. Guess I’m basic. Odds are, your next t-shirt’s going to be some version of lavender. I don’t pretend to understand color theory, but mixing these “planet” shades with classics does make my closet look less tragic. Unless the dog gets to it first, which, yeah, happened last week.

Capsule Wardrobe Transformations

Capsule wardrobes make me yawn, unless someone’s panicking over how one pastel trench coat ruins their whole system. I tried it—ditched navy, forced in blush, and suddenly nothing matched. There’s this Paris influencer (posts at ungodly hours) who claims her six core pieces, all in 2025’s colors, save her five minutes every morning. Good for her, I guess. Not my reality.

I thought taupe was a snooze, but adding these weird colors is the only wardrobe hack that hasn’t backfired yet. Even the “essentials only” crowd starts twitching when they see a colorful staple shake up their lineup. My linen favorite stains if you look at it wrong, but I still won’t swap it for gray. Maybe I’m stubborn.