A new Spring Trend for 2018 that I am super excited about is the Western style and motifs that are creeping into the designer collections.

The first time I had an inkling this was going to be a new trend was when Danielle Bernstein of WeWoreWhat posted on her Instagram story about these amazing cowboy-inspired boots. When Fashion Week (otherwise known as Fashion Month if you are international) hit, the top style influencers hit the streets before shows, allowing us to get a glimpse of what spring trends are headed our way.

This Western-inspired spring trend is the perfect example of how street style and designer fashion can meet in the middle; thus, this post is divided into 2 sections. The first part will focus on the designer fashion pieces from recent collections that feature this Western-inspired trend, and the second part will focus on why I chose to wear this trend with traditional cowboy boots.

western motifs in designer fashion

There are designers such as Louis Vuitton, Versace, and Coach that added the Western motif into specific pieces of their Spring/Summer collections, and then there are designers such as Calvin Klein in which their Spring/Summer campaign rests almost entirely upon this Western-inspired trend.

There is a good reason why Calvin Klein’s 205w39nyc collection (described on their website as their new, revamped luxury ready-to-wear collection) so heavily features this Western trend. The line is described as being “representative of American pragmatism and playfulness [and] emphasizing the traditions of the brand”.

You may have seen Calvin Klein’s promotional pictures featuring a wooden barn and pieces from their new collection. These evocative images remind us of why this trend somehow keeps resurfacing every so often. Designer fashion, especially the American brands, use this trend in a way that is easily identifiable to those of us who may not live that country lifestyle where cowboy boots is actually a staple. Whether it be from the Wild West movies from Hollywood or from what we traditionally think of when we think of a “cowboy” (read: fringe, plaid, paisley, and denim), this trend pushes the boundaries for the city gals but feel comfortable to the country girls that grew up wearing cowboy boots.

how I wear this trend (featuring cowboy boots)

We typically think of Western-inspired clothing in 3 parts: cowboy boots, denim, and shirts that wouldn’t look out of place at a rodeo. The most wearable part of this trend is actually the cowboy boots, and it’s also my favorite part of this whole trend.

To explain a bit about why I love cowboy boots, I need to remind a bit and chat a little about myself. When I was in college, I lived in my cowboy boots. I was definitely not a “country girl” by the traditional definition, but I did love country music, horses (and horseback riding), and that simple lifestyle that you hear about on country music radio.

I grew up in a small town in the suburbs of Los Angeles county where people rode horses, had a big backyard, and lived in a bubble. When I went to college, some of my best friends when I was a freshmen are the ones that did grow up in the country (my big sister from my sorority and my best friend from freshman year in college are as country as you can get). We went to country music concerts and lived that simple lifestyle. My country boots are symbolic to me of my hometown where I knew everyone in the grocery store and the simple, laid-back life I led in college.

I may have grew up with kids whose parents worked white collar rather than blue collar, but there’s something inherently country in all of the small towns in the United States. Heck, I even begged my dad to buy me a pick up truck for my 16th birthday (he said no), and my friends thought that was a great idea.

The more I got into designer fashion, the more I realized that the world of the people who wore Louis Vuitton and Versace were quite different than my roots, but I was perfectly fine with this. I loved fashion, and the different styles of fashion with each coming season was so exciting to me. When I moved to New York City, I brought my cowboy boots with me, but I knew in the back of my mind that there were so many other exciting fashion trends I needed to try out.

Years come and go (I’m being dramatic; it is more like 2.5 years), and my cowboy boots finally got dusted off from the back of my closet when I saw Danielle Bernstein post about her western-inspired boots from Dior. I jumped at the opportunity to style my cowboy boots in a way that fits in with New York fashion because I realized just how much I missed wearing them.

They are still my favorite pair of shoes, the best investment I made, and the pair of shoes that give me the most memories (good and bad).

I decided to pair my boots with dresses because I have mentioned in a post I did about what I wore to the Simply NYC conference, I love the dresses and boots trend that has been circulating. I paired them with dresses that have a slight opening in order to showcase them more, and although I haven’t yet found the perfect floral dress for this Spring, I would also have loved to wear them with an above the knee or midi floral dress.

The best way I have found to wear boots inspired by the Western motifs this season as a new spring trend is to avoid wearing more than 1 aspect of what makes up this “Western” style. If you wear cowboy boots with denim, you’ll automatically look like you belong on a pickup truck instead of in the big city. The same thing goes with fringe with denim and cowboy boots with fringe.

I hope you enjoyed seeing how I have styled this trend; I had such a fantastic time putting these looks together because they brought me back to my roots. Sometimes, all we need in life is that one thing that brings you back to your roots in order to refocus and recenter yourself.

I really hope this post was helpful to some of you wanting to try out new trends! Be sure to tag me and let me know how you would or wouldn’t wear this trend!