2021 Spring Trends for the Body Types

A new year brings new trends, which means a new post on trends for the body types! Though the notion of following trends is often one that is looked down upon, experimenting with new trends can be a way to find something new that you enjoy wearing! And it’s so much easier to do effective experiments if you understand your innate body type lines.

New to the Kibbe body types? You can take my 2020 version of the body types test to better understand what complements your features!

Puffed Sleeves

If you’ve read my 2020 trends for the body types post, then you’ve probably already seen this mentioned, but the trend of puffed sleeves continues into 2021, adding a light, girlish, and whimsical touch to what has been a difficult time lately.

Because of the rounded shapes, puffed and balloon sleeves are generally best on the softer body types, like Romantics, Theatrical Romantics, Soft Dramatics, Soft Classics, Soft Naturals, and Soft Gamines.

Styling this trend is pretty simple, as long as you remember that the more ‘petite’ your body type is, the smaller you go with your puff. And vice versa! There are some strikingly huge puffed sleeves that would be perfect for a Soft Dramatic who wants a touch of 80s glam to their outfit.

Trench Coats

While not applicable to every area of the world, in some climates spring can still be fairly cool, so the perfect way to stay warm– but not too warm!- would be a trench coat. 

While there’s a coat for every body type, trench coats in general look best on members of the Classic family, Natural family, and Dramatic family.

It is possible to find a trench coat that looks good on a Gamine or a Romantic, but due to our body shapes and proportions, a lot of trench coats could make us look like we’re drowning in fabric, or just make us look “meh” and trust me, no one deserves to look “meh”.

Yoga Pants / Flared Leggings

Yoga pants, or flared leggings to the younger generations, are a comfy lounge-wear alternative to the skinny leggings that have been popular lately. With all the time spent wearing comfy clothing at home in the past year, is it any surprise that a different style of lounge-wear has come into trend?

Members of the Natural family: this one’s for you! Flared leggings will look great on you, whether you’re wearing them for your next workout, or just to chill out in. 

Flared leggings could also look cool on Soft Dramatics and Dramatics, however I feel like any body type could rock a flared legging depending on how they style it.

Prairie Dresses

While not on many trend lists for spring and summer of 2021, I have noticed prairie dresses becoming popular among certain groups, especially thanks to the cottagecore aesthetic. This ’70s revival may also stem from all the civil rights activism that is happening, as that decade’s style seems popular among the Gen Z crowd, the same generation that are entering the age where they can use their voices and their votes to affect change in the world. 

’70s fashion in general was pretty great for Naturals, but this trend could also look nice on Soft Classics, Romantics, Theatrical Romantics, and Soft Gamines, depending on the silhouette of the dress and how you style it.

Microskirts

This is something that people may not realize, but microskirts and miniskirts are slightly different! Miniskirts, the design of which have been credited to Mary Quant, generally cover half the thigh, or are slightly shorter. Microskirts, sometimes called micro miniskirts, are even shorter, and often are low-rise to cover as little area as possible.

This trend is a daring one, and a callback to the microskirts of the 2000s and the miniskirts of the 1960s! 

This trend, simply because of the amount of skin it shows in general, won’t be for everyone, but a member of the Gamine family might find this an interesting trend to play with.

Want the daring look of the microskirt without as much of the risk? Hotpants, which are super short shorts, can provide a similar amount of bare leg, without as much risk of accidentally showing too much, especially if you’re like me and may forget that you’re wearing such a short garment. 

Which trend are you thinking of trying out? Let me know in a comment!