Fluoro Fashion

"I'm sorry, when did fluoro supposedly become fashionable?" I recently read this text message from one of my gay friends and laughed. Not because it was particularly funny, but because it was sadly true. Fluoro is definitely everywhere, and despite all odds it has definitely become trendy. AskBronny takes a peek (with sunglasses firmly on) at this recent fashion phase.

Similarly to the ugg boot and mini-skirt trend, fluoro hans’t been taken from the catwalks of Paris and Milan. That said, the likes of Christian Lacroix, Kenzo and Alexander McQueen embraced a melting pot of cultures across their recent Spring/Summer 08 Paris collections, resulting in a distinct ethnic mood. With inspirations drawn from India and the Amazon, colours and patters were definitely in, but fluorescent pinks and yellows didn’t feature for some reason. It seems that we have decided that bit for ourselves.

You only need look at recent events like Parklife to see a sea of colour, and I don’t mean the warm fuzzy colours of the world. I mean the where-are-my-sunglasses type of colours, and interestingly it seems to be the guys that are following this phase the most devotedly. The likes of industrie are doing nothing to help the trend, with busbacks all over town promoting that it’s okay for otherwise goodlooking men to be seen in irridescent pink singlets. It’s scarily like the late 80s when hypercolour t-shirts in any imaginable colour, so long as it was bright enough to hurt your eyes, were everywhere. I know the 80s made a comeback earlier this year, but seriously, we don’t need the bad fashion of the entire decade rehashing!

Fluoro is also a fairly limiting fashion choice. Firstly to pull it off, you have to have a pretty amazing tan. And when we're constantly being told that tans aren't cool (even if we really still think they are) how can you ever really get away with colours this loud if not naturally blessed with bronzed skin? Secondly, what does fluoro actually even go with? Certainly not another fluoro, and you can’t exactly couple it with plaid. And still we see it everywhere!

At least it has become a bit of a joke. If even the hosts of Australian Idol are mocking the fluoro trend, you have to know it's a serious fashion faux pas. If you, or worse, your boyfriend, insist on wearing an eye-hurtingly loud colour as we in the southern hemisphere head into summer, at least try to be doing something summery to justify it.