I Just Got Back From New York—5 Real-Life Trends I Saw Everywhere

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(Image credit: @elisajohnson)

Every trip back to New York is a treat. Simply put, New Yorkers' sartorial instincts are unrivalled. They're usually some of the first to adopt emerging trends, so any outing to a restaurant or Duane Reade is like interacting with a living mood board.

Recently, I went back to the city and couldn't help but notice how put-together everyone looked. Among the various pieces I observed on its dwellers, there seemed to be five standout staples that consistently popped up among the most stylish women. Of course, upon returning home, I immediately began looking for these to add to my very own wardrobe. The items in question range from fresh runway trends to edgier streetwear staples to tried-and-true foundational pieces. Essentially, they reveal how New York fashion is a grab bag of eclectic styles and tastes. For a full list of the real-life trends New Yorkers can't stop wearing, keep scrolling. 

1. Leather Bomber Jackets

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(Image credit: @maggie_mccormack)

Leave it to New Yorkers to embrace one of the season's emerging trends before anyone else. If you think about it, the fascination makes sense. A leather bomber can toe the line between polished and casual, so it's the perfect topper to navigate a day out and about. The idea here is to go for a roomier fit, so think about sizing up to capture the NYC essence.

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2. Eye-Catching Sneakers

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(Image credit: @ellorenzi)

Walking is a necessity when you live in the city, so having shoes that are up for the task is essential. Trainers are the obvious suspect, but true to NYC style, its inhabitants don't just wear any type of sneakers. They're sneakers with cool colourways and designs that elicit a double take.

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3. Technical Maxi Skirts

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(Image credit: @champagnemani)

Here's where I saw things get really interesting. A lot of the cool people I observed wore long skirts in technical materials like nylon ripstop and rigid poplin. It's a different take on the maxi-skirt trend that feels decidedly edgy and right on point for the city's chilly (and sometimes gloomy) weather.

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4. Carry-It-All Totes

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(Image credit: @veneti.a)

New Yorkers are busy people, which partly explains why there's a cluster of people wearing backpacks and schlepping around bags on every block. The most stylish way to carry it all is in a big tote. Bottega Veneta's Intrecciato tote was a popular choice, but I also noticed plenty of minimal totes in a variety of leather finishes.

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5. Sophisticated Neutral Trousers

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(Image credit: @thecarolinelin)

While people in the UK love their denim, New Yorkers love their polished trousers. The piece can easily be dressed up or down depending on the coordinating accessories, and they maintain an elevated air without trying too hard.

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Next up: We Went Street-Style Spotting in London - These 9 Outfits Impressed Us

This piece originally appeared on Who What Wear U.S. and has since been updated.

Fashion Market Editor

Indya Brown is a fashion editor, stylist, and writer living in Los Angeles. While going to school at Columbia University in New York City, she got her feet wet in the fashion industry interning at Elle magazine, Harper's Bazaar, and New York magazine's The Cut. After graduating in 2016, she joined The Cut as a fashion assistant, eventually working her way up to fashion editor. There, she worked on a multitude of projects, including styling inbook feature stories for New York magazine's print issue, writing and pitching market stories for The Cut, and serving as fashion lead for The Cut's branded content. While New York has been her home for over 10 years, she moved to Los Angeles in the midst of the pandemic in 2020 for a new chapter. Now she is a fashion market editor for Who What Wear, focusing on emerging designers, rising trends on and off the internet, interior design, and BIPOC creatives and brands. Aside from her duties as a fashion market editor, Brown is also a freelance stylist and writer, working on national print and video commercial campaigns for Sephora, The Independent, and Cadillac. Her bylines also include Harper's Bazaar, Vox, and The New York Times. But once the computer goes down and the emails turn off, she's likely eating her way through Koreatown, hunting down vintage furniture, scoping out new outrageous nail designs to try, or taking a hot cycling class.