From the trendiest belts to beautiful scarves, from Gucci to Givenchy, here’s our forecast for the upcoming accessory trends for 2020 that you gotta try!
Hey gorgeous! It’s the new season and we can’t wait to go shopping. Even if we don’t wanna buy anything, new collections in boutiques are always love at first sight! And 2020 is barely a couple of months away, meaning it’s the perfect time for me to analyze all the runway collections for Winter 2020 and round up the upcoming trends for the year.
Accessory Trends for 2020
Designers are putting a new spin on old things – belts, bags, shoes – everything’s going to be just a little bit extra in 2020. And they’re shiny. From crystal-embellished hair-pins to bejeweled body-chains to embellished scarves, bling is everywhere – including shoes and bags!
2020 is also gonna be the year of mixed opinions. While many of the looks had these extra, chunky and overloaded accessories, many other looks, sometimes even in the same collections, were so minimal. Boyish, androgynous clothing is the new trend of the season, and with it comes minimalist accessorizing.
So without wasting any more time, let’s take a look at all the accessory trends for 2020 in detail!
1. Belt Love
Belts are the top #1 among accessory trends for 2020. Not that they can every go out of fashion as an accessory, but it’s like these days, no outfit is complete without one. And you need a statement-maker too! When it comes to belts this season, every outfit seems to be so beautiful, bold, adventurous – as if it came straight out of Sex and the City.
We saw loads of metallic belts. Versace had a logo body chain with a belt that had the letter V as a pendant – extremely sexy. Moschino had pendants on belt too. One of the looks had a double-layered chain link belt worn with a necklace of similar design in gold-tone.
Balmain had a chunky chain-link belt in silver, which went perfectly with their studded dress look. Dolce & Gabbana had a couple of interesting ones, one of which was an embellished wide metallic belt with a big flower-buckle in the center.
We also saw belts in other materials – all very unique. Chanel had wide satin belts over many of their trouser looks, with round buckles that looked like they were made out of their signature Chanel handbag straps. Versace had another one with a “double” look and two crystal-embellished buckles. Elie Saab also had double-belts, but skinnier and more wearable. Zuhair Murad had a whole wide satin sash over their Oriental-style top.
2. Scarf Play
It’s not a winter collection without scarves and boots. And how can we have a list of accessory trends for 2020 without talking about what style of scarves to buy and how to wear them stylishly! This year will find newer ways to use this versatile accessory. Designers came up with such creative looks that had lovely scarf play going on.
We saw lots of unique scarf designs, like choker-style matchy-matchy scarves by Elie Saab. Moschino and Saint Laurent had so many fur boas. Moschino even had one that seemed like a puppy! Extremely cool, and I’m drooling over it! Chanel had studded and embellished scarves with many of their looks. They had grommets, crystals and delicate chain decorations.
Even the regular scarves were worn in unique ways. Oscar de la Renta had blouses and dresses that had a “built-in” scarf hanging in the front, going around the neck. Dior had a large scarf worn around the body with a belt, like a dress.
Max Mara took it so far – they had leather scarves that had large pockets on either side at the front! Louis Vuitton also had grommet-studded scarves, that were decorated at the borders and wrapped around to make a statement. And Chanel’s ruffled scarves were just tucked in on one side of the collar-bone. I could go on and on!
3. Statement Hats
Every fall/winter collection has cute hats, and this year was no different. From different materials to embellishments to shapes and sizes, hats can be the item to put your whole outfit together.
Lots of designers went for fun materials – like fur, feathers, net, satin, lace and velvet. Dior had tall fedoras with netting coming down at the front. Valentino had feather had lace hats.
Balmain had a studded leather Gatsby hat, which was very chic and is totally on my wishlist. Louis Vuitton had a leather beanie. Saint Laurent had satin homburg hats in some looks, and crystal-embellished mesh beanies in others.
We also saw odd shapes, tall hats and asymmetric ones in some collections. Go for tall bucket hats like we saw in Valentino. Or try a cloche-trapper-mix that we saw in Fendi. In fact, even Versace had a mix-style hat that was a baseball-trapper-mix. Hmm… new hat styles – we gotta update our SlubWords fashion dictionary.
4. Neck Bows
I wrote about neck bows and pussy bow tops in our Fall/Winter 2019-2020 fashion trends article. But neck bows work separately, as an accessory may become a huge trend in 2020, too. We saw them in so many designer collections, in so many different styles and they’re all over the place.
Oversized neck-bows are the top trend to go for. We saw scarves tied into huge bows. Saint Laurent had a polka-dotted scarf that had a giant bow tied at the neck, going beyond the shoulder. Valentino had a pink scarf with a bow tied over a black outfit. And D&G had a leopard-print bow-scarf worn over a navy velvet suit.
You can also go for just a bow without the scarf. Fendi FW19/20 collection opened with a suit worn with a larger-than life bow-tie. Dolce also had a suit look with a silk-embellished bow. Marc Jacobs paired a velvet bow tie with a skirt-shirt combo. And Chanel used satin-bow to tie a floor-length Goth style cape.
5. Women’s Tie
If bows are too feminine for your taste, neck-ties are also something to lay your hands on in 2020. We saw them in quite a few collections – more than I could believe! This trend is tying into our observation about the overarching power-fashion trend of late-2010s-early-2020s decade. Read about it here: Androgynous Clothing & Power Dressing are Runway’s Latest Obsession.
D&G had a model sport a broad retro-style polka dotted tie over a button-up shirt and silk pants. And then Givenchy had a broad silk tie worn with a mini skirt and oversized white shirt outfit. I loved this one because it wasn’t looking like you’re wearing your boyfriend’s (or worse, dad’s) tie. It looked powerfully work-friendly yet chic and feminine. All going down well below the navel.
Gucci had multiple ties – all in absurd outfits! One had a peplum skirt suit paired with a black tie, a Batman-style mask and suspenders that had crazy-ass spikes on them. Louis Vuitton had the most unwearable and also meh-look. A skinny tie (which in itself was great) was paired with a collared mini-dress that had a wide leather belt. Okay.
6. Statement Pantyhose
This is a trend that’s still around from FW 18/19. Statement tights and pantyhose are a great idea to make a plain sweater-dress seem interesting, or to make an all-black outfit seem colorful in the winter.
Try prints, lace or sheer panels. I loved the tights in Versace show. They were opaque with large cur-outs that had lace designs on them. Extremely chic, iconic and I predict this’ll become a timeless style.
Dolce had their usual leopard print tights. Tom ford had dotted ones and Gucci had bright lace ones. Balenciaga had interesting pantyhose that had text written all over one leg -“Balenciaga, Paris.” Moschino had printed tights that had the dollar-symbol all over them in gold, going in with the currency theme they had!
7. Belt Bags
Belt bags are fashion’s latest obsession and for good reason. Let’s be honest, the modern woman is a busy girl. We hate carrying extremely heavy, chunky handbags all the time, and our hands gotta be free for more important things, like networking, handing out business cards, texting and holding a drink.
Plus who has the time and energy to look through clutter to find a wallet, keys or phone in one’s purse? Belt bags have everything right at your literal fingertips. Sign me up!
We saw belt bags and fanny packs in different materials and designs. Fendi had contrast-colored flap-belt bag in silk, to go with evening-wear. I’m in love with the fanny pack by Givenchy, which seemed to be made out of a tie – in men’s fabric and all! Very cool and modern.
Alexander McQueen had a cross body chain contraption and double belt thing going on with the small metallic purse on the side. And Dior had a belt-version of their saddle bag, with logo and made out of black leather. Great for street style or work-wear. Versace has also introduced convertible belt bags that can become regular handbags or belt-bags.
8. Choker
Chokers aren’t going anywhere and I knew it! They’re an elegant, although sorely uncomfortable accessory trend. We love wearing them, even though they have their inspiration in BDSM. Ugh, fashion – our love-hate relationship with you continues!
Anyhoo, in 2020, we’ll be seeing all sorts of chokers – slim pearl ones, broad metallic ones, fabric chokers and embellished ones. Versace and Dolce-Gabbana had double-layered chokers in gold-tone. Gucci had the craziest leather chokers with extremely large spikes all over them! Very Jenny Humphry. No, it’s like Jenny Humphry style on steroids! Bring it on, I say!
9. Hair Accessories & Hair Pins
Last but not the least, we saw so many looks that had gorgeous extravagant hair accessories. Hair pins and head bands are the two things to try in 2020. We saw chunky chain headbands, which look like a great idea for street style. Also, we saw embellished crown-style headbands and bands with metallic fascinators, which I’m dying to try! Anything princessy on my head – and I’m down for it! These would be perfect ideas for weddings.
For hair pins, try fur or velvet designs, or metallic crystal-embellished pins. Match ’em with your earrings and/or dress for a great put-together look!
Shilpa Ahuja the editor-in-chief of ShilpaAhuja.com, which she founded with the goal of inspiring confidence in the modern working woman through fashion. Other than defining the direction of the magazine, she also writes about fashion & beauty trend forecasts, industry analysis, and opinions.
Shilpa’s work has been published in the University of Fashion blog and Jet Airways magazine. She is also an artist, illustrator and cartoonist. She is also the creator of Audrey O., a comic series that represents the lifestyle of millennial women. She enjoys creative writing and world travel. Her art has been exhibited at Harvard Graduate School of Design and the Aroma Hotel, Chandigarh and been published in Chandigarh Times.
Originally from Chandigarh, Shilpa also has a degree in architecture and has worked in interior project management. She is also the author of the book “Designing a Chinese Cultural Center in India”. Shilpa has a Masters in Design Studies degree from Harvard University.
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