Denim, Trends and the Canadian Tuxedo

Denim is having its moment, and in a big way. It was everywhere on the runways this fall, giving us a sneak-peek into how explosive the trend will be looking ahead. From silhouette to style to wash, designers are pushing the boundaries on dungarees like never before. Fresh new looks include puddle and split-hems; cargo, two-tone and patchwork details; and ombré and distressed washes. Move over Levi’s, these aren’t your grandma’s jeans anymore.

A fun fact about fashion trends is that they originate from innovation, not street style. The development of new machinery, materials and methods drive trends, then it’s the early adopters, style icons and It Girls like Kendall Jenner and Emily Ratajkowski who introduce them to the street. For example, in recent years strides toward a more sustainable denim industry have yielded cleaner dyes, less water use and more natural fibers making new takes on ombré and distressed washes on-trend now.

Pop culture plays its role in influencing fashion trends too. Specifically, the current barrel leg, high-rise tapered jean is a nod to 1980s-inspired Stranger Things, while the western-style straight cut dungaree references Yellowstone. Both cases of life imitating art.

There’s also been a slow and steady shift away from corporate casual, which runs deeper than pop culture. COVID has had a profound affect on redefining workplace fashion and our collective reluctance to change out of work-from-home uniforms might very well be the new epidemic. And Gen-Zer’s are leading this movement with gusto. Emboldened by a pandemic-induced power shift from employer-to-employee, they are setting new cultural tones on how, where and when we work, which includes wardrobe. Lazy? Perhaps. But there’s always a way to make dressed-down fabulous. Case in point, the beloved Canadian tuxedo.

Culture shifters like the Kardashians have tremendous impact on trend-setting too. If they love it, buy it or wear it, the masses do too. All five sisters have parlayed this Superpower into billion dollar businesses which includes Khloé Kardashian’s Good American denim brand — making it no coincidence denim is currently red-hot. And the Kardashians certainly know how to promote their products. Last week Khloé unveiled Good American’s Canadian tuxedo to her 281 million IG followers as they, well, followed.

Double denim is a favorite look of style icons past and present. Dating back to 1951, Bing Crosby was famously turned away from an upscale Vancouver hotel for being too under dressed in head-to-toe denim. Dubbed a Canadian tuxedo ever since, Jane Birkin, Charlotte Rampling and Lauren Hutton later popularized it on the silver screen in the 1970s. More recently JLo sported the look in 2014, Gwyneth Paltrow in 2018 and Jennifer Aniston in 2019, proving double denim endures as an evergreen, stylish uniform through all eras and for all ages. Khloé, EmRata and Julia Fox recently put it back in the spotlight, each with their own spin on the classic look. Even former First Lady Michelle Obama has embraced the look with verve and flair.

So is denim here to stay? It’s looking that way. The pandemic transformed how we work which has, subsequently, transformed how we dress. Business casual was replaced with Zoom attire — a mishmash fashion style that’s both accepted and forgiven at once — leaving a white space for a new standard of dress. Enter denim, with its flood of options, de rigueur appeal and undeniable comfort. Its rapid rise in popularity indicates post-COVID dressing-down is the new normal. Moreover, denim styles for 2023 range from casual-to-dressy — e.g., classic trouser cut for weekday, denim maxi skirt for weekends — offering a something-for-everyone spectrum that lets us pick, choose and adapt denim to our ever-changing environments.

See New York Post press feature here.