Trendscope: Death of the Dress Code, Infrared, Boxer Pants & Boutique Hotels
A holistic lens on the trends shaping fashion, wellness, and hospitality around the world, curated by trend forecaster and editor Kendall Becker.
Your monthly forecast outlining what the “trend stars” have in store for us.
Trend: Barre-to-Bar Dressing––Blurred Lines Lead to the Death of the Dress Code
Look, it’s 2024 and I won’t bore you with the lasting effects COVID and work-from-home culture has had on the way we dress––just know that “stealth comfort” (i.e. prioritizing comfort while still looking at least semi-put together) has been at work in your subconscious when it comes to your styling choices ever since. As the lines between work and home blurred, so have the lines between workout, work, play, errands, and so on; case in point, dress codes are out the window and this finally manifested in a major way on the runways for Fall/Winter 2024. We can tap the likes of Marine Serre, Lapointe, and Longchamp who channeled unlikely pairings (think sweatshirts back to sequin skirts or onesies that could equally be worn to a club or to Club Pilates) for their shows. Plus, we can also note the rise in success of true lifestyle brands––to no one’s surprise, we can all guess that my favorite example of this is Alo. Their assortment includes tops that I’ve quite literally worn to take pilates, teach pilates, and then worn out to after-hours activities, or cargos that could be worn over shorts that you’d rather not wear solo on the subway en route to your workout class, to “work-from-home” at your favorite coffee shop or dressed up with heels for a dinner out. Essentially, it’s not about styling your look from day-to-night anymore (sorry, early 2000s magazine articles), but it’s about finding do-it-all pieces that help you view your life and personal style as one continuous storyline. At the end of the day, consumers want products that work––when times are scary (hello, 2024!), meaningless purchases aren’t priority. That’s not to say it’s a matter of saving money; consumers don’t necessarily care if your product is $20 or $200––what they care about is that it works, will be consistently utilized, and feels well worth their dollar. With that, let’s cheers to the death of the dress code!
If you’re looking for more on activewear, download my forecast for Trendalytics on the trending aesthetics and key items, colors + fabrications.
Trend: Meet the New Cargo Pants
I think that I might explode if I have to put cargo pants in one more trend report––and that’s saying a lot, I genuinely love them. With that being said, aside from denim, there’s always one key pant style that works as the “fashion” option in our closets. Bonus points if it provides comfort, too––hence why cargos have stuck around for so long. I’m not saying that they’re making their departure altogether ahead of fall, but boxer shorts + pants have been making their case as the next all-star. Something I love to watch in the “trend world” is those trends that start on TikTok resonating with a younger set of consumers and are then able to be adapted in a more elevated manner, per se, by a more mature set of consumers. They went from being styled with baby tees and bows to slowly joining more sophisticated pairings like silk button-downs, soft-line blazers, and shell tops. Coming into the year ahead, I believe we’ll see them show up in cold-weather friendly fabrications rather than just a thin poplin or silk––think corduroy, twill, and even blurring the lines with featherweight denim that’s on the rise, too (more on that next time). When I forecast the longevity of a trend, I have a trifecta of factors that I look at (again, more on that later so make sure to subscribe!) and this one checks every box.
Trend: Infrared’s Next Chapter
Okay, by now you’ve obviously heard about the benefits of infrared––and last year, the boom of infrared skincare tools like the Solawave wand or CurrentBody face mask brought spa days into our own homes. While some are more legit than others… this has familiarized the public outside of the in-the-know wellness community about the benefits which range from acne prevention, rapid cell healing, fighting inflammation, and reducing signs of aging. This coincides with the growing interest in contrast therapy––utilizing an (usually) infrared sauna punctuated by a cold plunge. To be fair, this practice has globally been around for ages (without the high-tech infrared saunas, obviously). Nonetheless, the addition of infrared in the mix has sparked reservations to your local wellness spa as a recurrent part of a new-age health regimen. So, what’s next for infrared? My bet is on haircare. Over the past couple of years, alternatives to tried-and-true heat tools have been on the rise–-think the viral blow dry brushes like the Dyson and Revlon options, the comeback of curlers for a moment there, and even the girlies on TikTok were putting leggings in their hair to find a natural-looking curl (to each their own lol). I’m sure many of us have realized by now how harmful those blow dry brushes actually are… and infrared styling tools have made their claim as the next “it” item in hair tools with safer approach to effective styling. From personal experience, I’ll support their stance on these being a much better alternative for maintaining hair health––you can even ask my hairstylist who had to chop too many inches off of my hair last year thanks to a certain styling brush. There are a couple of brands playing in this space (I use Sutra but have been hearing good things about BondiBoost, too), but there’s still plenty of marketshare to go around. Beauty brands, now’s the time to tap in!
For more in beauty + wellness, you can download my Beauty + Wellness 2025 Forecast on Trendalytics.
Trend: Boutique Hotels are Bringing the Outside In
If I had it my way, I’d live in boutique hotels around the world for the rest of forever––and quite frankly, nothing gives me the ick more than people who rave about bland hotel chains as their go-to for travel (that’s a bad date story for another time). I mean, why fly around the world to sit inside of an all-white cookie-cutter hotel room and never leave your resort? And look, I grew up staying at hotels like that and I’m grateful to even have had travel experiences–-with that being said, you can imagine how much my mind was blown when I discovered the curated experiences of boutique hotels. My first? Villa Bokéh and Casa Palopó in Guatemala. I happened to be backpacking (okay, glampacking) through Central America when I hit my wits end of minimalistic living and decided to splurge hotels to wrap up my trip. Funny enough, a friend-of-a-friend’s mom was managing Casa Palopó at the Lake who then introduced me to the team at Villa Bokéh back in Antigua, and they both kindly made sure my experiences were insightful and executed to perfection with every detail from start to finish––and they altered how I look at travel for the rest of my life. So, what makes them so special? They bring the outside in, so every moment of your trip feels like you’re immersed in local culture and most importantly, it helps guide a traveler through the story of a location to truly travel with respect, curiosity, and appreciation. For example, every art piece is made by a local artist, the bookshelves are filled with work from local authors, the food upholds the country’s cuisine, spas offer one-of-a-kind treatments and utilize native ingredients in their formulas, gift shops showcase the work of local creatives, and excursions are meant to immerse you their culture in a respectful manner. Plus, there are no more than 100 rooms (some even cap the requirement for a boutique hotel at 40 whereas “chains” averagely have 500)–this allows for a personal experience and relationship building with a caring staff. As conversations continue to grow around the harmful effects of tourism, boutique hotels help answer how to travel with intention.
What I’m currently manifesting on my vision board––from bucket list trips to skincare.
Alo Accolade Sweats – I know it’s summer but these really are the softest in the game.
Mexico Trip - Next on my bucket list? A trip around Mexico. I’m dying to check out the food scene in Mexico City and Oaxaca and get off-the-grid in Sayulita.
Senself Rich But Light Moisturizer - This just reached my empties bin and I’m sad to see it go–it’s quite literally rich but light which is perfect for summertime. Bonus points because it’s an emerging natural skincare brand that uses powerful botanicals for sensitive skin.
Salt + Stone Deodorant - This actually works, has natural ingredients, and smells so good.
111Skin Cryo De-Puffing Eye Mask - Speaking of Alo, I was at their preview which has mini facials and it reminded me of
how much I love 111Skin’s eye masks. They’re an investment but a good one.
The Surrender Experiment – A lot of mindfulness books read like a textbook which is great but sometimes you really need a good story––and this memoir of Michael Singer’s life offers both insights and an entertaining storyline.
Ready for more? Or, rather listen than read? Tune into the Curated podcast on your desired streaming platform.
