Four months into 2012 and we can already determine which status symbols will dominate this summer at the T.F. The photo above is a routine slice of modern T.F. life, encompassing all of the styles relevant to a summer 2012 stint at Tompkins Square Park. Here are the five most heavily trending developments.
1) Camo: For the second year in a row, the consumer-base for camo continues to expand. Earlier this year, it was predicted that sweatpants would overtake camo’s New York-based marketshare, but their ascent has been slow to say the least. On the other hand, camo experienced nearly threefold growth. Discussions of whether or not camo “has gone too far” are rising, but not more rapidly than the adoption of new patterns and new customers (there are three different swatches in the picture above.)
2) Palace Shirts: With Autumn limited to an online operation (Autumn had dominated the graphic t-shirt market at the T.F. for the past 10 years), the London-based brand found itself a niche in an environment where the blank white tee is otherwise king. Though the triangle tee was sought after by insiders last summer, the brand’s expansion and thus a wider availability has made it one of 2012′s must-haves, even for those who are typically weary of the graphic t-shirt.
3) Cargoes: One of the more memorable door-guy moments in recent history was Big Rob from Lit denying someone by telling him, “Between the cargo pants and the laptop bag, it’s not happening tonight.” That was in 2008, when Lit was still somewhat relevant. Now that it is no longer relevant, perhaps it switched places with the previously frowned upon cargo pockets, which have crept their way back into relevancy and wardrobe rotations among the T.F. faithful.
