Copenhagen lived up to its reputation for putting colorful and ultra-feminine fashion front and center last month during Copenhagen Fashion Week. There, the street style was an IRL catwalk of 2020’s buzziest trends.
Oversized collars—a signature of Copenhagen-based brand Ganni—framed the faces of fashion week goers. The exaggerated design detail was balanced by granny-like knits and on silhouettes that mimicked workwear.
Dresses and tops were punctuated the details culled from traditional milkmaid looks. Puff sleeves, square necklines, ruching and lace-up ties—details that gained traction with online shoppers throughout spring and summer 2020—added a girlish look to ensembles and were in keeping with an overall saccharine aesthetic.
Natural materials like white linen made for easy maxi dresses and summer suiting, while sheer lace dresses and quilted satin sets alluded to bedroom vibes. It was a look fully realized by several fashion week goers who donned silky printed tops and matching drawstring trousers and brightly hued house dresses, or muumuus, in a nod to the mainstreaming of at-home fashion. Even slouchy sweat suits were elevated with pumps and designer bags.
Quirky prints, in general, added a summery feel to the city’s street style. Large checks, gingham, fruit prints and painterly florals enlivened tops and bottoms. Fashion week goers also incorporated abstract stripes and geometric prints softened by blurred edges or emboldened by contrasting colors.
Color, and the absence of color, also made an impression. Monochromatic looks in lavender, mint green, teal, pink and yellow—often in textural fabrications like satin and taffeta—popped against an abundance of all-white or off-white outfits. Two-tone garments, like a tiered button-down dress with one half white and the other tan, were a playful twist on classic color combinations.
Fashion week goers also experimented with proportions. Mini bags were outsized by extra-tall cowboy boots, while pillow-like clutches eclipsed minimal flip flops. Others opted for an oversized T-shirt with a slim midi skirt, and for airy button-down shirt dresses and boxy blazers inspired by men’s wear. Gray suiting checks also updated dresses, cropped jackets, blazers and pleated skirts.
Leather, another key trend for 2020, got a seasonal update as culottes and mini button-front dresses—some of which were worn open as a long shirt. Leather complemented some of the bold ’70s looks that filtered into the scene, including disco shirts with long collars and sharply creased bell-bottom trousers.
