Global Trend Report '08 - Copenhagen

People in Denmark like to refer to themselves as “laid-back” and “mellow.” They act like they don’t give a hoot about fashion, or anything else for that matter, but they mix up as many styles as possible in order to acquire absolute nonstyle, and that seems to take a pretty good amount of forethought. Anyway, the desired look is messy, slightly sexy clothes, preferably picked right out of a dirty laundry pile on your floor.

Vintage (otherwise known as the “I-watched-

Lost-Boys

-and-I- don’t-own- an-iron” look) combined with Bernard Wilhelm and Jeremy Scott is big here. Last year, everyone burned out on baby fashion (aka new rave), so men and women in Copenhagen are backlashing by getting into lumberjacks, anarchism, and Islam. We hereby predict that those will be the three latent fashion highlights of ’08.

Bright colors are still here, but in a subtler way than last year’s neon vomit launch. People combine a couple of neutral, strong primaries or complementaries without creating complete psychedelic chaos. The most popular hues are purple, gray, and red.

For girls, high-waisted pants abound, despite the protestations of every man who sees them. Another major trend with girls that is bumming out the menfolk is the sexually ambiguous look—lots of oversize, layered clothes. Girls are like, “Why wear a boring old dress when I can be comfy?” But boys are like, “Um, where are all the teats and arses?”

The only thing not oversize on girls are the jeans, which continue to keep vaginas moist and yeasty. For boys, deformed sweatpants are a big hit, and slacks are gaining prominence because they make you look like a real man.

A must-have for every girl and gay guy is a cloth shopping bag, preferably with a nice print from Hvass & Hannibal or Danish vintage store Times Up. Brand stores like Wood Wood, Stine Goya, and Vibskov are still making waves, although the more fashion-conscious Danes are getting pretty sick of their oh-so-cool hoodies, printed t-shirts, and mirror pendants.

And finally, this is important to note: DANISH PEOPLE HAVE A HUGE BONER FOR SCARVES. They might just use large pieces of cloth—sometimes socks or dirty underwear, even—as long as they can cover most of their face with it. Is it shyness? Germ-phobia? We’re not sure, but good luck seeing a Danish neck for at least a year. Too bad, because Danish necks are simply lovely.

Photos: Camilla Stephan, text: Olivia Nergaard-Holm