Own the wild side, everything you need to know about animal print

Animal print is a classic trend that has made its come back in the fashion scene in a big way. From international runways to fashion e-commerce sites and flea markets, one thing that is emerging as this season’s most-wanted is animal print. However, one thing that made news this season was dethroning of the classic leopard print. It has been given a strong competition by snakeskin, tiger, zebra and cow print.

Talking about the same, designer Rina Dhaka, said, “Animal print is the biggest story or the biggest thing in the fashion industry for the next six months. Most designers are planning to incorporate it in their collection. My Spring 19 collection will be about animal prints in pure chiffon, easy flowing re-arranged with smudge effect for variation in classic . It is one of those classics that will see major evolution with silhouettes.”

So one must own it, either dig out your old stuff or buy something new, it is one must have for this season, she quipped. However, donning this trend can be a little tricky as one wrong move and you would walk around looking like a complete faux-pas. Designer Nachiket Barve, said, “ It is damn tricky as it can either look really classy or extremely tacky. So the important thing to do while you are wearing animal print is that it shouldn’t overwhelm your personality. Precisely why animal print looks best in natural colours like a grey and a black, like a camel and black. One thing to keep in mind is to avoid it in red or pink. Another thing to keep in mind is not to layer it with too much of bling. Also wearing and mixing different prints together looks tacky, for example, don’t wear a zebra print pants and lepoard print top.”

This trend is considered intimidating and can haunt most of us while styling it. It is more of a risque trend says, celebrity stylist Mohit Rai, “ It is extremely loud and jarring print but it has evolved over the years. This time, if you look at high- street runway there is all sorts of animal print, like leopard, snakeskin, zebra but all of them are extremely busy prints. If you are looking to make a statement which a lot of people are at this point which is why you see a a lot of people wearing head to toe animal print.”

He adds, “Recently we saw Cardi-B rock this trend. As a stylist, I fully endorse it . It looks quite cool on runways and red carpets, but obviously in day to day life, for women it’ll be hard to walk around looking like a leopard. And that’s why it is always safe to balance it out with neutral solid colour. Wear an animal print shirt with solid colours, one could also pair it with nude and beiges with it. Or just keep a neutral outfit and add an animal print scarf or shoes with it. One must avoid animal print belts as it looks hideous. Don’t do a solid outfit and break it with an animal print belt, it will look trashy.”

Fashion lovers are looking forward to seeing what new heights the timeless design can soar to in 2019.

Styling Tips by Designer Nachiket Barve

Styling it casually

Casually it looks very chic if you put it the French way, like leopard print short jacket so just do simple black jeans and ballet flats which is just putting one strong element in your look, or shirt dress in animal print so just pair it with chunky neck piece which goes like an African Chic vibe.

For evening

If you wear animal print dress, pair it with oversized gold hoops. Make sure it’s minimal and clean. One can’t do print with busy detail cause that looks horrible.