Minimalism and muted tones are in this season.
Story and photos by Kara E. Henderson
During South By Southwest, Esby Apparel hosted EsbyFest—a stylish celebration of fashion, culture and quality-crafted clothing—at Big Red Sun on Caesar Chavez Street. Stephanie Beard founded Esby Apparel in 2014 to be a high-end women and men’s clothing line.
The event boasted interactive workshops and panel discussions while dually serving as a celebration of the boutique’s five-year anniversary and a spring/summer collection debut inspired by Todos Santos, Mexico, a city on the Pacific coast of Mexico’s Baja Peninsulalauded for its diverse landscape, history and art.
In addition to providing great ambiance, libation and food, the event also provided proof that Beard’s handcrafted threads are on point with seasonal trends. Check out four spring trends spotted at EsbyFest.
Minimalism and Sustainability
“Minimalism” has been a trendy term for several years now, especially in association with millennials. Though not a new concept, the idea has become even more conventional thanks, in part, to Netflix’s Marie Kondo series, which prompted a nationwide rise in decluttering. Esby appears to seamlessly, yet stylishly, capture minimalism by combining fashion and function. There’s a soft yet polished understated-utility aesthetic to Beard’s collection, including a few crocheted pieces. According to the Esby website, Beard aims to create clothes with a “menswear mentality—and by ‘menswear mentality,’ we mean we like to buy well-made clothes and wear them often.” Bonus points go to Esby for its implementation of a no-waste program, a partnership with factories that enables company designers to utilize leftover yardage to create specialized items.
Jumpers and Dresses
Let’s be honest: Are jumpers ever out of style? Effortless and easy to dress up or down, they’ll likely remain a go-to selection through all seasons. The Esby standout in this department is known simply as Savannah. She’s light-weight, chic and gorgeous. The other featured Esby dresses were equally enticing with breathability and comfort.
Muted Tones
While pops of color and tie-dye are popular this fashion season, Esby is sticking with its preferred earth tones. A forever classic, earth palettes ensure pieces will outlive trends. Given that neutral colors are easy to layer and combine with brighter colors and patterns, they remain a closet staple regardless of the season. In fact, amid the excitement about the color yellow, earth tones were heavily showcased on the runways of Burberry, Chloé, Marni, Jil Sander and Dior, to name a few.
Shorts and Sets
On trend for both the boss babes and men on the go, shorts and sets are simple and comfortable. While biker shorts seem to have made a big splash on runways, shorts of various styles, colors and lengths are also making waves. Layering and combining is big this season. To spice things up, select one piece from a set and try pairing it with something entirely different. In short, both coordinating and coloring outside of the lines are in.