Trends have been around for a long time. They are always changing, coming back, and some have been around for a while. Overalls, yoga pants (or flare leggings), bell bottoms, these are just a few examples of current trends that have come back. Why do we think trends keep evolving? Is it because of social media? I talked to Hannah and Alan Gibeley, an IHS senior and her father who both have an interest in fashion, and they seemed to agree. 

Hannah Gibeley is a senior at Ipswich High School. Fashion has been a constant in her family her whole life, so I decided I wanted to ask her a series of questions about some of the trends we see right now. She started by saying, “I would say the biggest trends right now are flare jeans, and flare leggings, as well as puffer jackets/vests.” If you go into any high school, middle school, or even elementary school, you will find a countless number of girls wearing those things. This led to the question of, how do trends evolve, what impacts them? I asked Hannah her opinion, and she said, “I think from a lot of famous Tik Tok influencers, because that’s the most popular form of social media right now.” Everyone knows what Tik Tok is. Tik Tok is arguably the most popular app/social media platform of our generation. The app started off with trends of mostly dances, to now “Get ready with me”, people lip syncing to songs, and people creating short videos no longer than three minutes, about pretty much anything. Along with this app, came so many new trends. Lastly, I asked Hannah about some of her favorite trends, and I was not surprised by her answer, “I like wearing mid- high waisted flare jeans and leggings because they give a curvy flattering fit. They aren’t skinny jeans which are very out of style right now, but they give the same feeling as skinny jeans and highlight the good parts of the legs, but still have the baggy wide leg part that people like.” 

Alan Gibeley is the owner of the popular and well known menswear store, Giblees. I thought it would be really interesting to get his professional take on current trends. I started by asking him the same question of what he thinks to be the biggest trends right now. He answered with “The biggest trends are athleisure and stretch/ comfort items in all categories.” When I asked Alan what he thinks has the biggest influence on trends in this generation, he responded with a similar answer to Hannah saying, “social media and television are the biggest trend influencers right now.” Both of these platforms are strategies that Giblees uses to buy inventory. They advertise on social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram and advertise on local television stations. To end my interview with Alan, I asked him if he is into any trends at the moment and he said, ” Yes, trim stretch dress pants, and tighter sport coats!” 

It doesn’t take an interview with a fashion expert to realize that fashion is alway evolving. Athleisure wear and flare legged pants are everywhere at Ipswich High School.  However, my advice is to not worry so much about the trends because they are clearly always changing, but one should wear what makes him or her feel comfortable and good.Nothing looks better on a person than confidence!