You’ve probably seen it, as it is everywhere. Although, you may not have known it had a name. Workout apparel has transitioned from within the walls of the gymnasium and into the closet as a wardrobe staple. It’s no longer a fashion trend but a movement and an intentional choice to restyle activewear beyond the gym walls, fitness centers, and sports facilities into the high’s and low’s of dressing for everyday routines and social occasions. The fashion industry dubs this surge of comfy fitness apparel one wear’s to exercise or workout into modern, mainstream clothing — Athleisure.
Activewear has become chic and stylish while sportswear has become more blasé or ordinary. The fashion industry hasn’t always regarded activewear as fitting for designer collections. Activewear was deemed apparel of necessity rather than an expression of style and fashion.
Sportswear, the darling of American fashion, came into its own during the 1920’s. It was largely embraced by the American woman because of her need of clothing separates to wear for an increasingly busy lifestyle and recreational activities. Initially, sportswear was the moniker used by the fashion industry to describe the informal, interchangeable separates typically worn for spectator sports. In the 70’s and 80’s, sportswear would become mainstream as wardrobe staples and it came to embody a mode of dressing of varying degrees of formality for everyday style.
fashion takes shape by the fusion of
workout apparel and ready-to-wear separates
Activewear has ascended up the fashion chain. As recently as 2014, major designer collections have intermixed activewear in amongst their ready-to-wear fashions. Fashion is cozying up to “a come as you are” approach to style as their clients have busier lifestyles and want a more comfortable mode of dressing. Marshal Cohen, chief industry analyst of the NPD Group, a market research company, reports “There is a lifestyle shift in play. Consumers tell me they love the feel of being able to wear such comfortable clothes without the need to “fuss” over what to wear. Whether consumers are running errands or meeting friends, it is now all about doing it in casual style.” According to the experts, athleisure is trending to exceed or surpass sales of denim.
Perhaps it’s easier to describe atheisure for What it isn’t:
It isn’t about living in sweat pants or yoga pants. Or an individual just doesn’t want to comply with conventional dress standards. Or clothes go straight from the gym to the office.
What it is:
Athleisure is in part due to a culture and lifestyle shift of wellness and self-improvement. The integration of an athletic spirit into everyday sartorial dressing for comfort, practicality, and performance. It is also in part due to the extremely, busy lives of modern men and women. The need for comfortable, convenient garments to work together for more and more active schedules, but elevated in terms of design.
How to Wear:
While wearing activewear from head to toe beyond the workout may be somewhat sticky for the many, mixing an item of activewear with other clothing separates can be a fitting choice to incorporating athleisure into an everyday wardrobe. Mix activewear pieces with softly, tailored and/or fluid, draped separates for outfits that blend comfort and function whether for work, party, leisure or travel. When integrating athletic pieces into the everyday mix exchange contemporary activewear textile such as neoprene, triacetate, nylon, elastane, or poly/spandex for natural fibers of silk, cashmere, cotton, or eco fabrics such as bamboo, tencel, and model.
