Seeing this image reminds me of seeing images from the 1970s where the infamous ‘Granny Square’ had taken over everywhere and everything – home furnishings, decor, accessories and attire. Indeed, the crocheted granny square became a head to toe staple, but would you be surprised to find this cute mod dress is not from that decade, but rather just a few seasons ago in 2019’s London’s Fashion Week? Perhaps you’re so on trend, you already knew that Ashish Gupta’s annual collections almost always graces us with the craft of crocheted wear. However, have you noticed that many other designers have been incorporating crochet more frequently over the past few years?
Crochet has surprisingly taken very few breaks from being a popular fashion technique and trend since World War II. While it took a back seat during the war, the craft didn’t completely disappear. Women helping the war effort would collectively make ear warmers and trench caps to send to soldiers overseas as well as use it to embellish the very simple and plain fashion of the time without making extravagant expenditures. After the war, crochet didn’t take long to be molded into the familiar silhouettes of the 1950s, followed by a huge global trend in the 1960s. This is when the granny square made its debut, and crochet was deeply integrated into nearly every part of the home and everyone’s wardrobe. It was common to be seen on both men’s and women’s styles. In the decades that followed, the trend diminished as other styles emerged but it has yet to fully disappear from fashion completely. Oddly enough, while crochet is not gender specific, it is more common to be seen worn by women.
Crochet is an exclusively handmade craft. There are no machines that can produce it and for the time being, only one model that can create a knit that mimics the look of crochet. It’s pretty obvious why machine-made knitwear is the go-to knit fabrics of choice for most designers given that it’s a time and volume problem. But crochet gives a unique handmade essence that cannot be replaced nor replicated. It emits a special aura to appreciate its artistry. It’s nuances and differences from actual knit that make it unique visually are only limited by the human imagination. And creatives thrive to blossom their creativity more.
So, you’ve been seeing crochet pop up in a few places from a handful of collections year after year. While it varies, you’ll find it in collections of both garments and accessories. It trickles between well-established labels like Dolce & Gabbana and Dior, down to independent labels, like Lou de Bètoly. These last few years, there has been steady increase in the number of crochet sightings amongst designer collections. The Spring & Summer 2022 collections were no different.
To give an idea of just how much crochet fashion has been trending lately, check out Pinterest’s latest stats. Every year, Pinterest makes predictions based on their user activity and promulgates a trend report for the upcoming year in various categories. Can you guess what fashion term has been taking the lead lately? Yup, it’s crochet – ‘crocheted tops’ specifically. It is mentioned in over 316k pins. Maybe that doesn’t sound like much when you consider that Pinterest has over 431M active monthly users. However, when you compare it to the second most popular pinned term of ‘cut-out dresses’ mentioned in just over 88k pins, it’s pretty mind blowing. Other terms that could add to crochet’s popularity involves variations of the terms ‘lace’ or ‘airy crochet’ that would give off that quintessential summer vibe. Pinterest didn’t post those specific numbers though. But note that all the latest runway collections seem to fit their predictions quite nicely.
It will be interesting to see how long the crochet fashion trend is sticking around in the main public eye this time. Plenty of celebrities have taken a liking to showing off something crocheted this year, such as Bella Hadid, Dua Lipa, and Rhianna. However, there is bit of concern that its bump in popularity is due to the lingering effects of the COVID-19 global pandemic. Many took up new hobbies while quarantining at home and learning how to crochet was a top contender.
Once you see a style hit mass box retailers like WalMart or Target, it’s pretty clear the trend has been growing in popularity. However, this hits a whole new issue of ethical and fair trade based on prices seen at these retailers compared to the amount of labor a crocheted garment is expected to take. Either ways, for now, it seems crochet fashion is undoubtedly here to stay but whether it is sticking around for a passing season, or long-term for several seasons, is yet to be determined. So either go support a local crochet artisan, or pick up a hook and some yarn, and let your imagination run wild.
References
- Halliday, S. (2022, February 23). https://ww.fashionnetwork.com/news/Crochet-tops-are-key-2022-trend-says-pinterest-data,1380928.html
- AFPRELAXNEWS (2022, February 2). https://www.forbesindia.com/article/lifes/from-grandmas-doilies-to-the-runway-crochet-has-found-its-cool/73359/1
- Spellings, S. (2022, January 24). https://www.vogue.com/fashion-shows/pre-fall-2022/diotima