Desire and Anxiety are the Heart of following Trends

Canan, Fashion and Textile Management Graduate

Headphones: AKG

Necklace: Bershka, Dubai

Shirt: Adidas for New York Yankees, LA

Leather Jacket: Zara

Trousers: Bebe, Dubai

Boots: Zara

Backpack: Fjällräven

I met Canan at the airport in Istanbul. We started talking while we were waiting for the luggage. I liked her cheerful and smart spirit. It turned out that Canan just quit her job in Hamburg as a store manager to start a new life and to try something new in Istanbul. Grown up in a tailor's family and with the background of fashion and textile management, Canan knows a lot about clothing and trends. We talked about her style and Canan brought up an interesting thought: "Is it possible to dress individual if you follow trends?" Steve Martin's joke occurs to me. He made all his audience stand up together and recite simultaneously the Nonconformists Pledge: I will be my own person! I will think my own thoughts! I will make my own decisions! Then he would tell the entire audience to sit down. And of course they did it, as a group, in union. This joke illustrates a truth that has existed for as long as people have. People follow trends. This is not a new thing. Desire and anxiety are the heart of this. We are drawn to the new and novel, to things that provide a feeling of change and progress. We also want to belong, to be part of something recognizable. There is no more obvious way to demonstrate this than through your clothes. The reverse side of these desires is anxiety - about not fitting in, not being up to date and being an outsider. I am always excited about trends because they tell me a lot about the world and the people. There are also many trends I like on others, but I am not interested in trying them myself. And there are trends I dislike, but I would not be the judge of what other people choose to wear. In the end I think the answer to Canan's question is that you don't adopt a trend because it's a trend. You try to see if it enriches your personal style. If it doesn't work for you  - you let it go. 

For my first day at school in 1985 my mother bought a light grey Fjällräven backpack. I loved it. Fjällräven is Swedish and means Arctic Fox. I am pleased to see that the Fjällräven backpacks are back. Take a look at their every day bag collection.