Prints, Charming?

The explosion of prints over the past few months has infiltrated every area of the stylish woman’s wardrobe, from accessories to tops, shoes, and even—that last frontier—pants. Ask Suno’s Erin Beatty, whose African-inspired collections pile print on print, and the explanation’s obvious: It’s an antidote to all the dull stuff out there.

“I think that every time the economy goes sour, what people try to do is go back to basics,” Beatty told Style.com. “It’s because that’s safe and they know it’s going to sell and yada yada yada. But I don’t think that’s necessarily what people want, or how people truly want to express themselves, regardless of the economy. So many people turned back to basics that prints started to feel new and fresh again. That’s what we saw—working with these African fabrics, everything felt so new and original. And that’s exactly how women want to portray themselves.”

It’s certainly how designers from Dries Van Noten to Isabel Marant have been portraying the women on their runways. They’ve styled bold, brilliant pants with sheer tops, slick moto jackets, eye-popping lamé blazers, and, yes, even more prints. Cuts range from cropped, peg-legged jeans to billowing, carrot-shaped harem pants, but whatever the shape, the style isn’t for the shrinking violet. “Printed pants, especially, are so confident,” Beatty continued. “I think the reason printed pants are scary is that women are always very protective of the way our legs look—it’s the ongoing lifetime search, finding the perfect pant. But the printed pant that actually fits well and flatters your figure can even enhance your figure.”

Do you agree? Click here for a slideshow of some of our favorite options from the runways (and a few stylish girls trying the trend), and let us know if you’ll be rocking the look this fall.