Oversized or Mini? Fashion Is Obsessed with Extremes

The colourful pages of fashion glossies this season are full of mighty oversized and micro-tiny accessories.

The Case for Micro

Sisters Gigi and Bella Hadid just happen to be the biggest champions of the micro-handbag trend. It’s as if the teeny tiny belt bags – we’re looking at you Wandler! – made us realise we could trim our everyday essentials, and move away from hold-all totes. In response, we’ve now got a slew of micro bags from Fendi, Valentino and Hermes. Labels are happy to shrink their ‘It’ bags over seasons too. If Balenciaga shrunk the City and Ville bag for Fall ’18, then Celine shrunk its Trio bag.

Tiny sunglasses swooped in to replace your frames too. Kanye West ensured everyone including Kim Kardashian and The Cut got the memo about the return of these ’90s era sunglasses. But Mindy Kaling has concerns. “I think we will regret this tiny sunglasses look,” she warns in a tweet.

Bella Hadid wearing micro-sunglasses

The Case for Oversized

Is bigger really better? Jacquemus seems to think so. If the straw hat seems ubiquitous in holiday photos, you can trace it back to his (sold out!) Le Chapeau Bomba. Missoni joined the chorus too. Come summer, you can look forward to XXL straw bags courtesy Jacquemus. (PS: Summer is also when Jacquemus makes its India debut via Le Mill!)

Have you been seeing a lot more chunky, dad sneakers flooding your Instagram feed? Balenciaga really paved the way, with the Triple S. Stella McCartney upgraded sneakers with a holographic sheen. Designers Raf Simons and Virgil Abloh collaborated teamed up with Adidas and Nike to give us their takes on the trend. And together they conquered the world of sneakerheads for the very first time. The rise of these ugly-cool sneakers can be seen as a response to the fraught political climate; a return to basics as it were. There’s something reassuringly stable about those thick soles, clashing colours and running seams.

Winter armor is bolstered by oversized jackets. Oversized sweatshirts from Phoebe-era Celine get our vote. As do Sacai’s ultra-cool hybrid jackets that marry function with avant garde design – mashing up formal formal coats with shearling, or denims with bomber jackets. Balenciaga leads the charge with layers upon layers of utilitarian jackets. And Marc Jacobs plays with exaggerated shoulders. One way or another, winter is looking cosy.

Sacai

So what’s it going to be? Are you team Micro or Oversized?