What will be the SS24 material trends according to Première Vision?

Back in February, the international materials sourcing show, Première
Vision 2023, revealed to professionals the first major trends in
spring/summer 2024 fashion, through three themes: Decoration, Essentials
and Leather. FashionUnited reported on the event.

The Decoration Forum: the influence of plants on spring/summer 2024
fabrics

’Naturality’, the character of what is in the state of nature, is the
word most used by the materials experts FashionUnited met at Première
Vision February 2023. A warm welcome, then, to a spring/summer 2024 season
that gives pride of place to natural materials (linen, silk, cold wool,
etcetera). But as there would be no fashion without the intervention of
human fantasy, this “naturalness” is translated by textures with flamed
thread effects, canvassing on jacquards or other references to artisanal
know-how. This botanical strength is also expressed in the patterns. If the
summer season is very often rustic or rural, the plant expression of summer
2024 revolves around foliage and sometimes even trees.

But ‘naturalness’ also means ‘earthiness’, or the influence of the earth
on societal customs. In terms of weaves and prints, this results in effects
such as the earth’s crust, seismic waves, bark… Even for outdoor use,
high-performance fabrics are dressed in mineral fantasies and volcanic
textures. What about animal motifs in the jungle of the fashion world? For
spring/summer 2024, “the amount of animal motifs is lower when you compare
it to other seasons,” Ariane Bigot, assistant fashion director at Première
Vision, said. But what is interesting in the representation of zebra,
panther or snake skins is the emergence of shifted colours or enlarged
motifs.

“In the overall offer, we were struck by the disproportionate proportion
of designs, with scales equivalent to those usually used in furniture.”
According to the expert, the influence of the home sweet home in certain
designs can be linked to “the desire to capture other people’s attention on
social networking sites”. The bigger the image, the more visible you are. A
classic flower, if you change the scale or generate a unique placement in
the cut of the garment, makes you stand out.

An edition of Première Vision with the theme of the Garden of Eden in a
digital dream

The current trend in digital aesthetics is influencing the visuals of
the designs in terms of colour, brilliance and undulations. The codes are
evolving towards even more pastelised, vibrant colours, with contemporary
pearlescence and unreal undulations. Vectorised foliage and flowers take
flight towards new imaginary worlds. More or less enlarged, these motifs
are juxtaposed in a random way. Emerging from a generally metallic
preciousness (gold, copper, silver), lace and embroidery jacquards are
covered with coloured, iridescent and transparent shimmer.

Spring Summer 2024: genderfluid tailoring in soft tones

This trend towards naturalness is reflected in a range of natural,
light, neutral and even slightly lacklustre tones… This is clearly the
first impression that Forum Essentials gives. This colour chart corresponds
to the classic offer dedicated to dresses, trousers, jackets. However, in
parallel, one can observe a touch of freshness and vitality with slightly
acidic, luminous colours and even pastels with character. “Beige has taken
over from grey, and we see a little less black,” Ariane Bigot explained.
“But the surprise comes from the draperies, in real flowing wool, mauves,
pale pinks… Since I’ve been working at Première Vision, I’ve never had
the opportunity to exhibit fifteen beautiful classic draperies in such a
colourful array of softness.”

This trend corresponds to the emergence of a genderless fluid tailoring,
which was previously identified during last season’s menswear shows. It is
accompanied by a revival of blue, a colour traditionally associated with
the male gender, symbolised by the banker’s shirt or the sailor’s suit.
Blue is becoming a real chromatic power: Klein blue, turquoise, sky blue,
royal blue… . “For several seasons now, classic blues have been
challenged by browns and khakis,” the expert said.

Lace, a newcomer at the Essentials Forum

This new sophistication goes hand in hand with the arrival of lace at
the Essentials Forum. “Our visitors come to Vision for their ready-to-wear
or couture, but they also have specific needs related to the lingerie
present in their collections,” Bigot explained. “We therefore wanted to
highlight lace, which is an oddity, but is in line with the forum section
dedicated to sports, swimwear and lingerie.”

Wild feline and opulent seduction; a new field is opening up for a
sector that has experienced confinement in pyjama mode and now wishes to
drape itself in more seduction and sophistication with fluid, flowing,
spinning knits, cosy cotton fleeces on the inside, soft and supple on the
outside, or even more subtle ornamentations, interfering between the worlds
of swimsuits and lingerie.

A shift is taking place: the notion of comfort is now accompanied by
chic and seduction. Poplins and satins are moulded into weaved, complicated
structures that break their flatness. The vegetal flames of linen or hemp
make the plains vibrate. In this quest for added value, the iconic
structures of silk are adorned with horizontal stripes in ottoman or
fault.

Forum leather: the return to grace of leather after greenbashing

This notion of naturalness obviously legitimises the use of leather, in
the face of synthetic alternatives. “Visitors ask the tanners a lot of
questions about traceability, sustainability, animal welfare, but no longer
question the material as such,” noted Carine Montarras, leather product
manager at Première Vision. “Not only has there been no slowdown in the
development of leather accessories (shoes and leather goods), but there has
been demand for leather clothing, both in winter and in summer.”

It must be said that the leather industry has refined its methods:
metal-free tanning thanks to vegetable tanning agents from mimosas,
chestnut trees or quebrachos (trees native to Latin America); nubuck and
embossed leather made from biosourced polymers derived from hemp oil;
tumbled skins dyed naturally thanks to waste from wine…

The art of playing with contrasts

“The most obvious thing is the dichotomy that there can be in fashion
trends, which surprises (again and again),” said the expert. “There is a
huge inspiration towards more naturalness with products that leave the
texture of the skin visible, diffuse colours that will acquire a patina to
enhance the living side of the material. On the other hand, there is this
digital light that we find in nail art or in the polychrome painting of
cars.”

Exit the classic smooth or even tense varnish and instead welcome
varnishes with a wet, translucent and acidulous aspect, to create softly
coloured and blurred contrasts, artificial pastel colours impregnated with
milky whites, lacquer effects in transparency, glazed leathers,
micro-glittery and changing reflections, hologram style…

The leathers are enriched with extremely precise finishings, such as a
skin, exhibited at the entrance to Forum Leather, embroidered with a
leopard’s head and sequins. Conversely, this famous “naturalness” gives way
to natural grained leathers, dyed fuller, without pigmented finish to
better reveal the textures. Here, the colour is full and absorbing. It
ranges from indigo to terracotta via violet or the famous Klein blue –
named after the painter Yves Klein who makes it the emblem of a quest for
immateriality and infinity – which could turn out to be the queen colour of
the spring summer 2024 season.

This article was originally published on FashionUnited.FR.
Translation and editing from French into English: Veerle Versteeg.