The global denim industry is due for a fresh start—literally.
All roads point to a Fall/Winter 22-23 season filled with refreshing cool blues, icy surfaces and atmospheric finishes, according to Manon Mangin, Première Vision’s head of fashion products. In a webinar for Denim Première Vision’s Digital Denim Week, Mangin outlined the essential fabric and fit trends for the season, naming otherworldly northern landscapes as a key source of inspiration for five categories.
Despite the pressures of the pandemic, Mangin said the supply chain is plying clients with more advanced eco-friendly developments and products that are both appealing and sustainable. “[It is a] season strongly marked by renewal with more fantasies than in past seasons,” she said. “A high-impact season rich in color and decoration choices.”
Here’s a look at Denim Première Vision’s five themes to know for F/W 22-23 fabrics and the key fits to watch.
Blue Ice
A palette of seasonless blues serves as the foundation to Blue Ice, a trend story based on visual effects and washes that convey a delicate and soft look in denim.
The cool colors, Mangin noted, work together with ecru denims, which add a dash of icy whiteness or “cloudy condensations” to fabric surfaces. Laser is used to emulate a “vaporous” appearance on fabrics and labels, while marbled denim and other treatments like paint “dabbed on the surface” enhance the appearance of 100 percent cotton fabrics. The fabrics are contrasted with smooth and matte metal hardware.
“Contrasts continue with light and shadow,” Mangin said. Light eco-friendly and aniline-free washes create calm color transitions on fabrics made with linen and BCI cotton blends. Lightness, she added, is contrasted with darker shadows on pockets, seams and belt loops.
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Bolder contrasts, meanwhile, are used to create a “deceptively cutout look,” which Mangin said is achieved by piecing deep indigo fabrics with washed-down blues.
Polar Lights
The “natural side of denim” is revealed in Polar Lights, a theme that Magnin said focuses on natural fibers, 3×1 constructions and colors inspired by Earth’s elements. Recycled fabrics overdyed in shades of brown, ochre, scorched Earth and golden yellow lend themselves well to the premium market. The colors are achieved with traceable biosynthetic dyes made from natural waste.
Orange, she added, is an “absolute must-have” to work with shades of indigo. The warm color combination is carried into accessories like copper zippers and rivets. In general, accessories brighten up dark surfaces, she said. Labels made out of recycled synthetic materials, white and matte leather labels with eco-friendly finishes, and components that play with reflective properties live here.
Fabric compositions take cues from natural elements as well. Linen and lyocell blends result in a dense yet supple handle with antibacterial properties. “Hemp is a dominant material this season, widely used in compositions with blends of up to 30 percent fibers that combine easily with post-industrial recycled cotton, recycled polyester and BCI cotton,” Mangin said.
Icy Scenery
Fantasy sums up the premise of Icy Scenery, a theme that Mangin said provides “bold visibility, confident colors and patterns inspired by the great North.”
Washes that blur together, intense shades of blue, fluid color effects with certified organic dyes and ’80s-inspired sustainable bleach effects replicate arial views of glaciers. These techniques add a unique type of personalization to garments, she said.
Laser printing is used to mimic the appearance of cracked ice and the etching of ice skates on jeans, while jacquards bring graphic organic patterns to life. Laser-printed florals are also used to add a botanical vibe to the theme.
Northern Furs
Northern Furs emphasizes the comfort factor of denim.
Fabrics are double-faced with velvety colorful backs visible through the twill construction. Lyocell blends with brushed backs have a “melty” soft handle. Viscose and cashmere deliver sophistication to denim, while wool blends and corduroy create tactile surfaces. Dense and soft fabrics offer a “cocooning spirit,” Mangin said.
Other fabrics take a more literal approach to fur with shaggy hair, 100 percent cotton constructions, and needle punching that add irregularities to surfaces.
Color also enhances this cozy feeling. Grayish shades of white merge with deep indigo and gray denim contrasts with pale blues.
Starry Night
Inky denims made with cotton, lyocell and polyester blends live in Starry Night, a theme that relies on dark shades to create dramatic effects.
Dark blue and black overdyes that reveal a hint of indigo add depth to fabrics.The fabrics are enlivened by accessories with paper or rubber labels in bright shades of red and yellow.
The theme is also home to most of the season’s stretch denims. “Elasticity is back,” Mangin said, as eco-friendly recycled elastane blended with organic cotton. Fluid lyocell-blended fabrics that “envelope the body” are another way to offer freedom of movement. This allows denim to be “free of any and all constraints,” she added.
Fits and styles
The glacial fabrics and winterized constructions come together in a collection of fits and silhouettes that lean heavily on functionality.
F/W 22-23 workwear jackets and pants in “more fanciful colors” give the staples a modern look, Mangin said. Straight cuts, high waists, patch pockets and seams that structure jackets through the torso are key designs elements. These are especially important for rigid 3×1 constructions built for durability.
Color also updates utilitarian silhouettes, which Mangin said stand out for F/W 22-23, thanks to “meticulous” details like triple overstitching, corozo buttons and whisker effects located on the back of legs.
This inspiration, she said, continues with various placed quilting and fake inserts on fitted shirts that are more about aesthetics than providing a technical benefit.
“Comfort is the real goal,” Mangin said of finished fabrics. “High waists, legs that are wider, and longer garments that move away from the body provide breathability and ease,” she said.
Expect to see these fluid pieces paired with short and straight jackets with personality. The jackets are a canvas for the season’s shaggy or striped fabrics.