Ella Dipold, a fourth-year in painting and drawing studio art who also studies fashion and retail studies, dresses in 2025’s upcoming fashion trends. Credit: Courtesy of Ella Dipold
As 2025 unfolds, new fashion trends are sure to burst at the seams.
For many, 2025 remains a vast unknown; one certainty, however, is that fashion will reflect a distinct blend of sustainability and technology. According to Ohio State fashion students and professors, social media and AI-driven designs are shaping innovative textiles that will redefine the industry’s future.
Kristin Paulus, a senior lecturer in fashion and retail studies, said as part of her fashion forecasting course, she and her students examine the reasons why society gravitates toward certain clothing styles during particular time periods.
For instance, Pantone’s Color of the Year program — which “selects a color each year that captures the global zeitgeist”, according to its website — has identified 2025’s defining shade as “Mocha Mousse.” This “warming, brown hue” brings buyers a sense of comfort, the website states.
“We will be seeing this softer mocha color palette where mocha is kind of a dull hue,” Paulus said.
Other key trends Paulus has predicted include an increase in prints, the continued resurgence of plaid in spring and a strong emphasis on sustainability through thrifting. She also anticipates a return of “the ladylike movement,” which blurs the lines between home and office attire.
“We’re seeing, basically, your grandmother’s wallpaper with a whole new interpretation of plaid,” Paulus said. “Then it’s the tailoring — done soft with very wide trousers — to the sports luxe look of a cute little athletic tank top pairing with those trousers that you could wear in the office.”
Sasha Gurevich, a third-year in marketing with a minor in fashion and retail studies, said as Generation Z continues to take its place in the workforce, it will also bring a fresh perspective to evolving workwear trends.
“Whether it be adding in more color, maybe adding a shoulder pad or a poppy sleeve or some ruching, we’re gonna see some more workwear, but elevated workwear,” Gurevich said.
Ella Dipold — a fourth-year in painting and studio art and editor-in-chief of Ohio State’s student-led fashion magazine Scarlette Magazine — said though these trends offer an opportunity for experimentation, not everyone needs to participate in them.
Dipold said for those who do subscribe to the ever-changing world of trends, secondhand shopping is the way forward.
“Gen Z is so geared towards being mindful of the environment, which will affect some of the materials we will see — maybe less of an investment towards nylon and more of 100% cotton or linen with this boho chic coming through,” Dipold said.
Paulus said she feels excited to see younger generations embrace circular fashion — the act of thrifting an reusing garments for as long as possible — and highlighted its crucial role in sustainability.
“The latest statistics said the average consumer buys 68-70 pounds of clothing a year,” Paulus said. “Today, a strong 80% of the class says they thrift. We are more mindful that the garment still has life.”
Notably, both Gurevich and Dipold said AI will have a huge impact on the fashion industry’s future.
“This AI platform will essentially create a model wearing the clothes you want it to make,” Gurevich said. “I don’t know if I’m excited to see this, but I’m interested to see its evolution.”
Dipold said when thinking about AI technology’s influence on the fashion industry, she sees it targeting the dressing room process for consumers. This opinion stems from her personal shopping experience of being able to scan an item’s barcode and see a complete outfit on a tablet before even trying it on.
“It’s making things more accessible, right?” Dipold said. “So, we’re buying more, and even without TikTok, I could see that causing trends to move more quickly.”
Gurevich and Dipold also said animal prints will stick around, with safer prints like cheetah eventually giving way to bolder prints like zebra or cow. The bohemian chic aesthetic popularized around 2015, characterized by frilly layers and lace details, is also slated to make a comeback.
All in all, Gurevich said fashion will always be an impactful tool that people can use to feel empowered in their daily lives, as well as an indicator of social changes in the modern world..
“It’s amazing how much fashion can influence the operation of society through trends,” Gurevich said.
In addition, Paulus said anyone who wants to know more about trend forecasting can visit WGSN, a trend forecasting and analytics website that predicts consumer behavior(s) across the globe.
