Evolving Trends - Fashion | Trends in Japan

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DRESSING UP FOR SPRING
(March 30, 2007)
Dresses have appeared on the scene this spring with a new burst of energy after a year of continued popularity. Dresses have become a hot item among women from all walks of life, and the range of occasions on which they are worn is growing.

FULL CONTOURS FOR DENIMS
(March 30, 2007)
Baggy jeans have moved into the spotlight in the 2007 spring and summer lineups, replacing their snug-fitting skinny counterparts that were all the rage last winter.

GOLD RUSH
(March 15, 2007)
Gold is this year's trendy color. Gold buttons are being used on pea jackets and trench coats, gold chain bags and belt buckles are all the rage, and gold-toned clothes and other small items with a touch of gold are now prominent.

SPRING SKIRTS
(March 7, 2007)
Delicate, feminine skirts suggestive of spring are already appearing ahead of the full arrival of the season, perhaps due to the unusually mild winter Japan has experienced.

HOORAY FOR HOSIERY
(February 9, 2007)
Hidden underneath long boots until recently, tights and stockings are regaining popularity as fashion items. The favorites among young fashion aficionados are delicate lace tights in black and gray, which they often wear with tight or tiered miniskirts for a feminine finish.

FROM FUNCTIONAL TO FASHIONABLE
(February 7, 2007)
With winter in full swing, down jackets have taken over the streets. This season, however, they have taken on a more chic air and are showing up in an array of designs to suit all fashion tastes.

GOODBYE BLACK, HELLO GRAY
(January 22, 2007)
Until recently, black and white have reigned supreme as the base fashion colors. But now the popularity of gray is on the rise, and the list of fashion essentials is topped by feminine items, such as long knit cardigans and traditional pleated skirts.

A WINTER'S YARN
(December 18, 2006)
Now that the cold weather has really set in, knitted clothes, warming to look at as well as to wear, can be seen on the streets of Tokyo in large number and great variety.

GOODBYE TO POINTY TOES
(November 18, 2006)
Round-toed pumps and boots are the favored footwear among women in their twenties this winter. This marks a big change, given that pointy-toed shoes have more or less ruled since the mid-1990s.

CLASSY COATS
(December 14, 2006)
Winter, the season when no one leaves home without a coat, will soon be in full swing. In keeping with the current trend for traditional, conservative fashion, coats such as the windbreaker and the down jacket are giving way to more sophisticated styles of outerwear.

RIDING STYLE BELOW THE KNEE
(November 9, 2006)
The layered look has been experiencing a revival this year. This past spring and summer, the focal point of this trend was the upper body. Now the focus has shifted to the legs. Particularly notable is a craze for leggings.

RIDING THE AVANT-GARDE WAVE
(November 7, 2006)
The streets of Tokyo's trendy Harajuku and Daikanyama districts are awash in black, white, and shades of gray this season as young people affect an avant-garde style by combining monotones.

BIG IS BEAUTIFUL
(November 6, 2006)
Balloon skirts that circle back to a gathered hemline, blouses with puffy leg-of-mutton sleeves, and draping bolero jackets with three-quarter-length sleeves cut and sewn with copious frills are among the items now in favor as big-looking clothes take the spotlight.

SHOWING SOME SKIN
(September 13, 2006)
Young Japanese women are walking the streets in highly revealing styles, from bare-back dresses and tube tops to low-rise hot pants and super-mini skirts.

STRAW BAGS GO UPMARKET
(September 12, 2006)
Women all around town can be seen carrying straw bags, whose cool, light appearance is perfect for the summer. Though the bags have been in fashion for a number of years, their popularity this year is unprecedented.

POLOS APLENTY
(August 9, 2006)
Polo shirts are a longstanding staple of sporty-casual and everyday wear. But recently this basic style, worn mostly by men, has been given an elegant new twist that has garnered popularity among female office workers and other trend-conscious young women.

SWIMSUIT SEASON
(August 3, 2006)
With beach season approaching, summer clothing has taken over the store shelves. The predominant theme of this year's swimwear is bikini separates embellished with touches that reflect current fashion trends.

DRESSED TO IMPRESS
(July 12, 2006)
Young women in their early twenties are going ga-ga over pink babydoll dresses, white lace dresses, and other cute, feminine clothes. This cutesy style has become a favorite look for dates and parties alike.

YEAR OF THE YUKATA
(July 7, 2006)
Unlined cotton kimono called yukata have long been worn by people attending traditional summer events held around Japan. But men and women have also begun dressing up in yukata to attend soccer and baseball matches, club events, and outdoor parties.

SHIBUYA MEN CHANGE STYLE
(June 16, 2006)
Until recently, trendy young men with brown dyed hair and tanned skin were a prominent fixture on the streets of Shibuya. But now many of these men have graduated to a new style that has been dubbed onii-kei (literally "elder brother style").

THRILLED WITH FRILLS
(May 30, 2006)
The fresh breezes of early summer have brought with them a vogue for feminine styles. As part of this trend, clothes embellished with lace have become popular.

SPRING FLOWERS
(April 28, 2006)
This spring, cute, romantic dresses are the favored fashion items among the young women in their teens and twenties who populate the boutique-lined streets of Tokyo's Harajuku and Daikanyama neighborhoods.

HATS OFF TO HARADA
(April 27, 2006)
When it comes to the design of high-fashion hats, few names are better known these days than Misa Harada.

MARITIME CHIC
(March 31, 2006)
Nautical fashion is gathering force as a spring and summer fashion trend. At department stores and boutiques, classic navy-blue pea jackets and sailor shirts are displayed beside lineups of roped belts, accessories shaped like anchors and seashells, and other maritime-inspired items.

WHITE IS THE NEW BLACK
(March 31, 2006)
White garments currently abound at boutiques and women's apparel departments. White blouses and dresses with frills and lace, full skirts, and other clothes with a feminine touch are particularly popular.

CHIC YET CASUAL
(March 6, 2006)
All around town women can be seen sporting a velour jacket with knee-length shorts. The outfit is perfect for the office as well as after-hour and weekend outings.

RETURN OF THE TIGER
(March 2, 2006)
Onitsuka Tiger, Japan's first sports shoe brand, has been revived after almost 30 years and is enjoying immense popularity in Europe and elsewhere.

BLACK IS BACK
(January 30, 2006)
For nearly a decade now, trendy Japanese women (and a considerable number of men, too) have been coloring their hair various shades of brown or blonde. But this winter, black hair is back in style.

KNEE-LENGTH CARDIGANS
(January 25, 2006)
This winter, many fashionable women have been sporting knee-length cardigans. The long button-front sweaters are finding favor among a wide range of ages, from teenagers to women in their forties.

THE FELINE LOOK
(December 26, 2005)
More and more Japanese women are sporting a makeup look popularly known as nekome (cat's eyes). Sultry, feline-looking eyes complement the Victorian fashions and the fur and other luxurious materials that define this winter's fashion.

GLOBAL SUCCESS? IT'S IN THE BAG
(December 22, 2005)
The designer label Samantha Thavasa sounds American or European, but it was actually born in Japan, where young women who cannot resist the brand's handbags have carried it to success.

WILD YET REFINED
(December 22, 2005)
Until last year, long boots with simple designs that gave the legs a sleek silhouette were all the rage, but this year lavishly ornamented or Wild West-inspired boots are flying off the shelves. The new must-have footwear is being adopted in different ways by women in different age groups.

FUR VESTS COMPLETE THE WINTER LOOK
(December 6, 2005)
Fur vests are an ideal way to complete the layered look that is currently in vogue. The vests can complement a range of styles from dressy to casual, and this versatility has made them so popular that stores are having trouble keeping them in stock.

HARKING BACK TO VICTORIAN TIMES
(November 9, 2005)
Victorian-inspired fashions trimmed with lace and frills are all the rage this fall and winter as Japanese women look to achieve a classic, feminine look.

EMPIRE BABYDOLLS
(August 2, 2005)
Just in time for the hottest days of summer, a new style of skin-baring camisole known as the empire babydoll has caught the imagination of Japanese women.

A SUMMER OF JUICY COLORS
(June 6, 2005)
From the orange hues of mango and apricot to the yellow-green of kiwi fruit, this year the watchword dominating summer fashion and consumer items is "juicy."

STEPPING OUT IN WEDGE-SOLED SHOES
(May 31, 2005)
The wedge-soled shoes that were popular among Japanese women in the early 1980s are making a comeback in the summer of 2005.

COLORFUL CASUAL
(April 13, 2004)
As spring has finally arrived in Tokyo, people are putting away their winter coats and showing off the new spring styles. In such trendy areas as Harajuku and Daikanyama, women are sporting colorful street fashion. Well-worn, loose-fitting clothes worn in layers appear set to become popular this year.

HOUNDSTOOTH CHECKS
(March 9, 2004)
There is no better illustration of the cyclical nature of fashion trends than the 1960s revival that started last fall in Japan. The most conspicuous trend associated with this revival is the return of houndstooth checks.

SHORT SKIRT, LONG BOOTS
(January 23, 2004)
The city is full of young women walking the streets in miniskirts, despite the cold. Tweeds and checks are the top choices in fabric, and the skirt length averages about 40 centimeters. The favorite footwear to go with these skirts is over-knee boots.

HATS ON
(November 14, 2003)
More and more people are wearing hats of distinctive designs that, unlike in past hat booms, are not constrained by fashion trends. Rather than famous brand boutiques, it is specialty shops stocking hats created by daring young designers that are at the forefront of the current craze.

SHORT AND SWEET
(June 18, 2003)
For some years now, skirt lengths have been hovering in the midi-to-long range, but recently there have been signs of a miniskirt revival.

KIMONOS ARE HOT
(March 24, 2003)
A kimono boom is spreading among young women in Japan. Antique kimonos that are available at affordable prices have arrived on the market, and women are enjoying wearing them in casual, nontraditional ways.

WINTER WEAVES
(March 7, 2003)
Scanning the scene on the streets of Japan, one is struck by the many shapes and colors of knits being worn by young people these days. From knit caps of various designs to coarsely woven cardigans, mufflers, and stoles, knit trappings are definitely in fashion this winter.

HOT THIS WINTER
(January 15, 2003)
Boots have long been a staple item on the winter fashion scene. But today accessorizing boots is all the rage among people who want to wear something stylish on their legs.

SKIRT ON PANTS
(November 25, 2002)
The "skirt on pants" style of wearing a skirt or one-piece dress over a pair of pants is in.

YOU GOTTA HAVE A YUKATA!
(August 29, 2002)
The popularity of yukata (lightweight cotton summer kimono) continues unabated. This summer has seen the emergence of a more mature style reminiscent of Taisho era romanticism.

LACE AND FRILLS
(June 5, 2002)
This spring, women's clothing embellished with frills and lace are gracing the streets of Japan. Not only clothes but also accessories, such as bags and belts, have taken on a soft, feminine note, and floral designs are particularly popular.

ALL BUNDLED UP
(January 16, 2002)
This winter, young women are wearing bulky, long knit mufflers and leg warmers. One explanation for the popularity of mufflers and leg warmers is that they solve women's winter fashion dilemma by being both warm and fashionable.

COZY CAPS KEEP OUT THE COLD
(November 2, 2001)
The latest headwear this fall and winter is the "casket," a visored cap with a somewhat retro, boyish rounded dome that fully covers the head. Even people who have never heard the word "casket" used in a fashion context before will probably become well-accustomed to it before the season is out.

BLACK PARASOLS
(August 29, 2001)
This summer, one of the hottest-selling items is the parasol. Japanese women have long used umbrellas for sun protection. Once upon a time, parasols were typically made of white or pink lacy fabric that gave an appearance of coolness; By contrast, the "in" color for parasols this year is jet black.

BACK TO THE EIGHTIES
(July 25, 2001)
Styles from the 1980s are in. The fads in colors, patterns, and designs are said to revolve in a 20-year cycle, and sure enough, the fashion world at the start of the new century seems to have time traveled backward by two decades. This retrospective tendency is particularly apparent in footwear and belts.

BROOCHES ARE BACK
(March 2, 2001)
For the first time in a long while, brooches are a hit, and those featuring cut glass on metal are selling particularly well at department stores, as are flower-shaped brooches of fabric or leather.

HOT WINTER FASHION
(February 6, 2001)
Up until last winter, women had two major fashion choices for their legs: brave the cold with bare legs or wear platform boots that make it difficult to walk. But now, classic trends and 1980s fashion have returned with a vengeance, fueling a boom in tights that can only be described as explosive.

NOT WRAPPING UP WARM
(January 23, 2001)
Short-sleeved winter fashion is not just a passing fad; it has been popular for several years now. There are various reasons for this, and the majority of fashion-industry experts believe that short-sleeved and sleeveless winter garments, which are both fashionable and functional, are destined to become a permanent fixture.

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