SA fashion trends 2022: From dopamine dressing to low-impact luxury wear

Who doesn’t remember the excitement of the annual trip to a department store to buy one-off Christmas outfit and matching shoes with all the frills and bows? Now consumer savvy shoppers are looking for more durable, locally made alternatives and the SA fashion landscape is rising to the challenge. New labels for kids like Lima Kwande (@lima_kwande) by Mathahle Stofile, which offers parents a break from character clothing and uses natural fabrics such as linens and muslin on unisex items you can mix and match, are entering the playing field.

While SA fashion has long been influenced by the past season’s trends and international runways, the global gaze is now fixed on our local designers. Among some of our celebrated local fashion exports, most recently, four young SA designers Jacques Bam, Fikile Zamagcino Sokhulu, Sipho Mbuto, and Michael Peter Reid paired with four Polimoda designers for Fashion Bridges, to work together on sustainable capsule collections for Milan and SA Fashion Week.

You only need to look at some of the upcoming trends and looks to see how far the local fashion influence reaches.

LOW-IMPACT LUXURY WEAR

The environmental crisis has made it impossible for luxury fashion houses to reconsider resources and processes to limit their environmental impact – from the forehead to the feet. And consumers want to support brands whose values align with theirs. Fikile Sokhulu’s designs are moving towards trans-seasonal collections in an effort to limit collections to one or two rather than four. Her fabrics, mostly made from biodegradable cotton are sourced and sewed locally, operating on a slow fashion model, so that worker welfare and sustainability are not lost as the business scales. In the same vein, quality fabrics and craftsmanship need to be well looked after, but it doesn’t limit you to dry-clean-only care. With recent advancements in washing technology and laundry detergents, you can use gentler washing cycles, lower temperatures, and drying settings for some of your “dry clean only” items, avoiding the harmful chemical-heavy process. Read more about AEG’s Care Label Project, which aims to inspire, educate, and update the way we care for our clothes.

AFRICAN STORYTELLING

Launched in 2017, Papama Mtshiwa’s Africa Your Time is Now campaign signalled the start of the international gaze on African fashion. Available in Kenya, the US, France, Australia and in SA, the monochromatic T-shirts emblazoned are worn as political and fashion statements across the African diaspora. Thebe Magugu’s presented his SS22 collection in Paris, as an installation instead of a runway show, screening a film of him hosting a discussion with his mother and aunt as they opened a box of family photos, sharing stories about what they wore and when, and then how he’d translated them into the collection. “I want to express my thoughts and politics and talk about history and culture through my collections,” he told Wall Street Journal.

CASUALISATION OF PARTYWEAR

After a severely restricted 2020 and an equally dull 2021, fashion is ready to be released from the wardrobe. Fashion lovers are no longer saving outfits for special occasions, and instead are experimenting with cutouts, volume and pattern play, and defying dress codes. Whether functional or occasional, Crystal Birch’s head-turning hats add a whimsy, playfulness and fashion credibility to any outfit. Why not wear a hot pink silk dress with balloon sleeves to brunch or sweatpants and heels, to a swanky dinner? And do treat yourself to that bling pair of gold boots you’ve had your eye on!

LUXURY NORMCORE

From monogrammed sports shirts to bomber jackets, knitted vests and slacks, Lukhanyo Mdingi describes the spirit of his collections: “Season after season we’re constantly looking at the essentials and refining each style, creating a timeless sensibility that is rooted by ease and discretion.” The designer takes a minimalist approach to his mostly genderless designs where the everyday comfort is key but fabrics are not compromised on.

DOPAMINE DRESSING

Mood-enhancing properties of colour and dopamine dressing bright colours, screaming prints are in! SA Menswear SS22 sizzled with saturated summer colours, screaming prints and even bolder accessories. Masa Mara, Eli Nyambo’s pan-African-inspired brand set the catwalks ablaze with clashing print separates and Imprint ZA, Mzukisi Mbane’s Afrouturistic collection named “Africa is not a Trend” stood out with matching suits in neon prints.

LOUD LOGOS

One name: Rich Mnisi. The prolific designer is giving brands such a Fendi, Chanel and Louis Vuitton by emblazoning his eponymous brand name across many of his garments. The once-tacky gimmick has now become a fashion craze – and who wouldn’t want pledge their allegiance to the House of Mnisi?

HYBRIDISATION OF THE WARDROBE
Chosen as a WGSN Future Designer for 2021 Maklele understood the assignment. With work and home and leisure lines blurred, what we needed was a brand that offered a more flexible approach to dressing up while dressing down. It’s the hybridisation of the wardrobe, often referred to as athleisure. The look that makes you look and feel put together whether you’re on a Zoom, meeting friends for drinks or relaxing at home.