I've talked before about how beneficial it can be to pay at least passing attention to what's going on in mainstream fashion, even if you exclusively wear vintage. It can be a great source of inspiration for styling, and it's also really helpful if you, like me, buy at least some of your clothes from mainstream or fast fashion vendors, since fashion inevitably trickles down into those stores.

My breakdown of the trends is far from comprehensive, but it's the stuff that I really love that I hope we get to see more of. Please note that instead of just adding strings of photos, I'm now using slideshows! Let me know if what you think of the new feature.

Fairy Tale Romanticism

Maybe it's the new Beauty and the Beast movie coming out, or maybe it's just a general desire to escape into fantasy - reasonable, given what's going on in the wide world - but high romance infused a lot of collections. Some explored the Renaissance thing that's been going strong for a couple of seasons, spurred on by Valentino (and McQueen before that). Corsets, or corset detailing, has been a mini trend for a little while now, and it seems like that's ramping up. I'm also really loving all of the capes that I've seen, as well as the still hot trend for luxe fabrics like velvet and brocade.

Suit Up

All you Lilli Ann fans, look out - suits are really, really in right now. Some of the cuts are more modern, with 80s style jackets and wide leg pants, but others have a more 40s or 50s feel. I'm going to cheat and sneak a little couture in here, because Ralph & Russo absolutely KILLED it with their 50s style suits. Seriously, cue me frantically searching Etsy and eBay for a portrait collar blazer I can actually afford. I'm also loving the fur accents that a lot of designers added, so now is a great time to pull out those vintage blazers with the fur collars. If you want to get a little trendy, a gray suit, particularly with a pinstripe or small scale check, is a great way to add a little menswear to your life.

On the Waterfront

I'm never one to turn up my nose at a nautical influence, so I was really excited to see an interesting variation on it pop up. Part Venice, part Marseilles, I can't help but run through the various items in my wardrobe that I might be able to use to recreate some of these looks. I mean, if I already have a navy issue jacket, why wouldn't I pair it with a black and white stripe skirt or dress and a velvet ribbon, a la Alberta Ferretti?

Tulle Skirts

Not like anyone was ever going "ugh, tulle? For a skirt?" but I feel like they're really having a little moment right now. I had one for a while, and it was kind of terrible because I bought it off of eBay for about $8 and it looked like it too. I just bought a new one (this was after talking myself into and out of the purchase approximately 12 times), and I'm really excited about all of the different outfit possibilities.

Cozy and Monochromatic

It seems like people are really into just being comfortable right now, you know? Chunky sweaters and velvet and loose pants and low heels all seem to speak to a desire to just, you know, not suffer for fashion. Maybe you're not going to want to wear head to toe yellow, but keeping your color palette monochromatic is a great way to bring a little style to a look that might otherwise seem a little, shall we say, rumpled?

And They Were All Yellow

Blame this one on Beyonce - that iconic Lemonade dress is sending some serious reverberations through the new collections. Yellow has become one of my favorite colors in the past couple of years, so I'm DELIGHTED to see just how hot the hue is right now. It's already showing up in a lot of stores, and I think we're going to keep seeing it for a while.

So. Gucci.

Ok, honestly, I don't particularly like Gucci - there's something about their aesthetic now that's just so forced to me, and a lot of what they do is, well, ugly. They've become a real barometer for where fashion is and where it's heading, though, so it's worth paying attention to what they send down the runway. Everyone is doing their wackadoo bohemian mismatched pattern and random embellishment thing, so hopefully some of the ideas that I actually like pick up steam in the same way. I do really like the bold florals and creative color palettes, and there's also a hint of 1920s in the silhouettes and details that you just know I'm drooling over.

What do you guys think? Do you like any of these trends? Like I said, this is far from comprehensive in terms of what's out there (and there were some show that I really loved that had elements that I didn't see repeated elsewhere, so I couldn't really figure out how to include them - one in particular, Brock Collection, absolutely slayed me), but this is stuff that I think will either start popping up in stores soon or is already there. Maybe in a few months I'll check back and see how my predictions turned out!