Spotted on the catwalk: Future Snoops' colour trends for AW28/29
While the fashion industry is currently focused on the commercial finalisation of the SS27 collections and simultaneously preparing collections, trends and buying for AW27/28, trend forecasting agency Future Snoops (FS) is already looking further ahead in this second week of October. The company is sharing information on the must-have trend colours for the AW28/29 season.
As you have come to expect from FashionUnited, we show how designers and fashion brands have incorporated the colours and their derivative shades into their latest collections.
Blocked brights
“Bold colour becomes an act of defiance, a refusal to disappear into the algorithmic mass,” is how Future Snoops describes this colour trend. Blue plays a leading role, with red and purple on the rise.
The colour palette consists of ‘blueberry’ blue; dark blue; powder blue; red; Valentino purple and mint green (like the checked sequin jumper from the Italian fashion house's SS27 collection).
Cornflower will become a new ‘anchor colour’, according to the colour institute. The bright mid-blue is reminiscent of powder, cloud or denim blue and combines well with red and ochre, aubergine and lime, or with brown and neutrals.
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Pink standard
Ten years after the emergence of the trend colour Millennial Pink, the shade has grown up along with its generation. Pink has now become a neutral base colour, according to Future Snoops in its colour forecast for FW28/29. Millennial Pink is no longer a single specific shade of pink: the range varies from soft blush (powder pink) to a greyish dusty rose, FS emphasises. The colour is also no longer limited to womenswear.
According to designers, the colour lends itself to formal garments such as blazers and skirt suits, as well as romantic, feminine dresses in voile with ruffles or lace.
Rosehip is a standout pink shade for FW28, according to FS: this is the colour used by Isabel Marant in a lace dress (see homepage picture, ed.). The colour combines well with retro green, blue and purple; with beige and mud brown; or with shades of blue.
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Marinated midtones
This trend builds on earthy and retro-inspired shades. Inspiration comes from slow craft, an aversion to mass production and the rediscovery of archives and heritage, FS shares. The colours are ‘marinated’, as it were, giving them more depth, richness and sometimes a lived-in look. The palette includes honey brown; mustard yellow; turquoise; lime; retro orange and a shade between brown and burgundy.
Pickled Fennel is a key colour within this trend: a gherkin-like shade with a hint of yellow. According to FS, this ‘anchor colour’ combines well with turquoise and brown, olive green and brown, or plum purple.
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And as a bonus
In the week before the FW28 webinar, FS shared another key trend colour – brown! – and three combinations.
Brown
“The most radical thing you can do is nothing.” According to Future Snoops, for FW28/29 brown symbolises the growing need to slow down and rest. In a world where we are online 24/7, constantly processing stimuli and asking our watches for our sleep score, rest is increasingly becoming a fundamental right rather than a luxury.
The colour is best described as a deep, classic brown shade: earthy, warm and understated. It can also be mixed with hints of darker or light brown, copper or orange.
In the latest catwalk collections, brown is used in leather jackets or other ‘leather-look’ garments by Elie Saab, Diesel, Tod’s, Ferragamo, Celine and Bottega Veneta. We also see brown as a trend colour in sporty fashion from Lacoste and tailoring from Mugler and Stella McCartney. Hermès shows how the colour lends itself perfectly to suede (see the panelled dress) or canvas-like fabrics (see the cape coat).
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Cobalt blue with a violet undertone and white, wine red combined with cream and black, and matcha green with ecru and citrus details
According to Future Snoops, colours ‘need company’, the company teases in one of its other FW28 newsletters.
The colour institute shows vibrant cobalt blue with a bright violet undertone, combined with white – seen in the recently presented Celine, Comme des Garçons, Akris and Mossi SS27 ready-to-wear collections, among others.
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FS also foresees an application of deep wine red, in combination with cream and black details – spotted on the catwalk at Sportmax, Dries Van Noten and Margaret Howell.
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Bright matcha green mixed with yellow-green chartreuse shades and ecru is also on the rise for autumn 2028, FS believes. We see the colour applied in menswear by Junya Watanabe, Kolor and Casablanca, among others. For womenswear, Valentino, Loewe, Aje and Chanel show how to apply matcha green – or its derivative shades.