That’s okay, isn’t it? Okay, great. I thought so, too.

Around this time last year, we were knee-deep in spring 2012 and now here we are at spring 2013. While there are a lot of simliar trends between the two seasons, there is one major difference that is kind of hard to over-look: hemlines.

Spring 2012 was all about the hot pant. Now, it’s the year of the bermuda short.

Peter Som, Rag & Bone, DKNY

The Birth of the Bermudas

Bermudas were traditionally worn by men in the British Army while in tropical or desert climates, specifically Bermuda (the namesake for these shorts). Bermuda shorts were also worn by the men of Bermuda post World War II  and soon became acceptable business attire in the region. Needless to say the trend caught on, found its way to the Americas and into 2013.

Bermudas in 2013

Bermuda shorts were traditionally worn by men, but today they are available to both men and women. And while we all know there have been several fashion fads and trends throughout the years, bermuda shorts can generally be found every season due to their practicality.

Most of us like to think we can wear the cheek-bearing cut offs and hot pants we all love to hate (PSA: most people can’t and shouldn’t wear short shorts), bermuda shorts are a flattering and family-friendly alternative. And, when paired with the right top and shoe, can be just as sexy as short shorts, if not sexier.

Major designers like Alexander Wang, Michael Kors, Vera Wang, and others all showcased bright, printed knee-length shorts for Spring 2013 and I don’t see them disappearing anytime soon.

Photo credits: Glamour

Designers like Preen, Charlotte Ronson, Dolce & Gabbana, Prada and many others all showed some version of the crop top in their Spring and Summer 2012 collections.

Crop tops first appeared on the fashion scene in the mid 80s thanks to Madonna and her Lucky Star video. Although the video was extremely controversial at the time, the confidence that comes with rocking a crop-top had millions of girls and women all over the world clamoring to emulate the pop princess.

These tops also quickly translated to the 80s aerobic craze. Women everywhere were cutting their t-shirts in half and pairing them with lycra leggings and high top sneakers. We can also thank the movie Flashdance for bringing more popularity to this once controversial top.

The crop top also made it’s way to the 90s with the help of pop stars like Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera. In fact, the only thing these two feuding pop stars of the 90s had in common was their love for midriff bearing tops.

Who can forget the infamous 'Hit me Baby One More Time' music video

Christina Aguilera on the Red Carpet

Other famous stars like The Spice Girls, Gwen Stefani and Drew Barrymore could be seen showing their toned tummies off in the 90s.

Crop tops have definitely evolved since the 80s and 90s though. This season crop tops come in an array of colors, fabrics and are definitely a little boxier than they were in the 80s and 90s. Also, instead of being worn with the lowest-rising bottoms available like they were in the 90s, they are now paired with high-waisted skirts, shorts, pants to contrast the top. Like the ones seen at Dolce and Gabbana and Prada.

Dolce & Gabbana S/S 2012

Prada S/S 2012

Marisa Meltzer said in a NY Times article, “…this isn’t the shrunken top, championed by pop stars of the late ‘90s and requiring taut abdominals; today’s crop tops are longer and boxier than in the past.”

Crop tops will come and go, but the boxier cut crop tops of 2012 will be a dominate spring and summer trend. So dare to bare your midriff this season, all the cool kids will be doing it.

Photo Credits: Stylist.Com/StyleBistro.Com

According to ehow.com, a drop wait dress is one with a longer bodice section and a shorter skirt. These dresses usually have the waist seam about one to two inches below the natural waist indentation. The skirt is normally full, although slender silhouettes are also available. Drop waist designs are available in both casual and evening fabrics.

This silhouette first emerged in the golden era of flappers and jazz. The drop-waist dress was appealing to women because it was a nice contrast to the corsets they had been wearing previously; it was also seen as sign of liberation as Women’s suffrage and equal rights also played a huge part of that decade. Whatever the reason for this silhouette, the fashion world took notice and it is continuously reinventing itself and appearing on the runways every so often.

The drop-waist reemerged  in the 60s Mod era, reappeared in the 80s to compliment the over-sized shoulder-pads, and lucky for us Great Gatsby lovers, the drop waist is back and better than ever for Spring 2012. Channel your inner flapper this spring with an updated drop-waist dress like these seen on the runways.

Chloé, Sonia Rykiel, Giambattista Valli, S/S 2012

Jil Stuart S/S 2012

Gucci S/S 2012

Roberto Cavalli S/S 2012

The drop-waist dresses seen on the Spring 2012 runways ranged from daytime looks to evening dresses. Some were detailed like the ones seen at Gucci and Roberto Cavalli while those seen at Chloe and Jil Stuart had a very fresh, minimalistic feel; illustrating just how versatile this silhouette can be.

Now that spring fashion has officially sprung, you will be seeing more 20s inspired drop-waist dresses on the streets and in the stores. Think of the drop-waist dress as an alternative to your structured spring frock. Although the drop-waist isn’t for everyone, but for those who have long legs and minimal curves (I got the no curves part down, but because I am 5’1″ this silhouette tends to cut me off, making my legs look already shorter than they are eeeeek! Although I love this silhouette, I tend to avoid it for that reason.) this is one dress that you will not regret adding into your spring 2012 wardrobe. This silhouette has stood the test of time, several different times now and I am sure we will see the no-frills silhouette back on the runways again in another 20 or so years.

Hot Pants are technically defined  by Dictionary.Com as a very brief and usually tight-fitting shorts for women andgirls, first popularized in the early 1970s. But, Hot Pants were, and still are so much more than that.

Hot pants were a symbol of the changing times and the social movements brought on by the 70’s. Hot pants are also to blame for the very first extreme dieting fads. (Although you can’t blame the women who dieted to fit into the shorts, when you are virtually pant-less, you want to look your best.)

Hot Pants were introduced to the fashion scene by Mary Quant, a welsh fashion designer who also popularized the mini skirt during the mod movement. Women felt that although the inseam was short, it was still an inseam and gave them more coverage than a mini skirt.

For a brief time, hot pants were even acceptable to wear to the office, weddings, and even as a SouthWest Flight Attendant.

SouthWest Uniforms in 1970

Hot pants soon dissappeared from the mainstream fashion scene but were still worn on the street and were most commonly associated with disco.

But, because hot pants were considered empowering to women back in the day, they have come full circle. Now more commonly called “short shorts”, or thanks to The Dukes of Hazzard, “Daisy Dukes” these shorts can be seen on college campuses, out on the streets, and on the Runway’s once again.

Spring 2012 designers like Dolce and Gabanna showed a plethora of short shorts mixed in with silhouettes from the 1950s. The  patterns of the shorts, along with the cuts gave these hot pants a fresh, fun facelift for spring.

Dolce and Gabanna S/S 2012

Dolce and Gabanna S/S 2012

Even big name bloggers like Leandra Medine of The Man Repeller was seen wandering around the streets of New York City virtually pant-less in preparation for Spring’s short short trend.

Other designers, like Jason Wu who have been considered more “prim”, “reserved” and “propper” by the fashion industry also jumped on the bareley-there shorts for spring.

Jason Wu S/S 2012

So, for all of you who just don’t like to wear pants, consider this a gift from the fashion God’s.

Although the average women would not be caught dead in public in these micro-mini shorts, they are back for spring and as temperatures start rising so will the hemlines on most shorts. These iconic short shorts were a 70’s staple and have been revived and brought back to life once again.

And, as summer is fast approaching, most of us are making sure to get ourselves in shape to slip into the midriff-bearing, two-piece swimwear we love to hate. But, have you ever wondered when this summer staple first appeared in the fashion industry? It turns out the bikini wasn’t always as popular as it is today.

Historians believe that two-piece clothing first debuted in ancient Italy as “athletic” clothing for women, but the bikini was first made popular by French designer, Louis Réard.

According to a Time Magazine article, Réard designed a garment he called “smaller than the world’s smallest baithing suit” on July 5, 1946. Just four days earlier, the U.S. military had conducted nuclear tests at Bikini Atoll and Réard hoped that his invention would be as explosive as that, and therefore the name “the bikini” was born.

The bikini received its first official induction into swimwear fashion on July 11, 1946 when 19-year-old French model, Micheline Bernardini braved the poolside runway in Paris.

After the first public bikini display, many countries banned this form of swimwear and the Vatican even declared it as sinful.

Americans also still believed that the bikini was far too scandalous for a virtuous, American woman, but nonetheless the midriff-bearing swimwear made it’s debut into American fashion just one year later and the rest is history.

The original bikinis the 1940s and 1950s brought us are considered fairly conservative for today’s standards. Bikini bottoms still covered the navel and tops completely covered the bust.

The 1960s and 1970s brought with it a sexual revolution to the United States and fashion designers jumped on this trend by making bikinis even more revealing. The 70s debuted the string bikini, which exposed the navel for the first time and also fit on the hips, making the bottoms low-rise. The newly designed bikini tops left little to the imagination by providing only bra-like coverage.

The 1980s brought the Brazillian style bikini, the thong bikini into American fashion. And, as you can assume it no longer left anything to the imagination.

The bikini continued to grow in popularity and become mainstream. This was made apparent when the 1997 Miss America Pageant allowed contestants to wear a two-piece swim suit instead of the mandatory one-piece. This marked a huge turning point in the pageant and I am sure, in the ratings. Now days, you will rarely see a one-piece swim suit on a contestant during the Miss America swim suit portion.

As fashion continues to innovate and reinvent itself, you will see a little bit of history repeating itself from time to time in the swimwear department. The vintage, swimwear silhouettes that forever changed the fashion industry will never really go out of style and the sexy, string bikini will always look good on a beach.

The full-skirts and highlighted waists became a symbol of the 1950’s style and femininity.

The look first debuted in 1947 at the hands of French designer, Christian Dior and was referred to as none other than the “New Look.”

This “new look” showcased full skirts, tiny waists and rounded shoulders. Dior’s collections ultimately led to the revival of the corset and led to women embracing femininity again.

Dior believed that women were fed up with the military like  uniforms that were adopted in the the war years and according Beth Duncuff Charleston from The Metropolitan Museum of Art, “After years of military and civillian uniforms, sartorial restrictions and shortages, Dior offered not merely a new look, but a new outlook.”

While Dior’s designs were more intricate and detailed, the concept behind it all was feminine fabrics, details, highlighted waists and fuller skirts creating a look we all refer to now as 50s fashion.

Although the 50s silhouettes disappeared for awhile, they are bouncing back this season and are being accepted with open arms.

The January issue of American Elle showcased Lucille Ball and her television style, which the magazine encouraged women to translate into work wear.

The fashion house of Dior paid homage to Christian Dior’s “New Look” by recreating those famous silhouettes in their Spring 2012 Haute Couture show in Paris. The fashion house added a modern touch to their original look with see-through fabrics and snake skin accessories. All of Dior’ frocks this season were full-skirted and nipped in the waist, just as they had been in the past.

Many other major designers such as Jil Sander, Prada and Dolce & Gabbana and are all revisiting the feminine, dainty era of the 50s,  with nipped waists, flirty fabrics and fuller skirts.

Keep in mind that just because something is high fashion and shown on a runway doesn’t mean that you can’t encorporate the look into your own wardrobe. Just remember that whenever wearing a full skirt be sure to keep the top fitted and you will be channeling your favorite 50s icon and looking ultra feminine.

This silhouette can be something worn to the office, a dinner party, and of course just around the house. Just because bringing the 50s style back is considered retro, doesn’t mean it is outdated or can’t be worn today.

Some might say that fashion is stagnant, but as designers keep creatively interpreting the past, fashion will continue to evolve. And iconic eras in fashion will continually come back to life.

The hemlines will differ and so will the cuts, but the classic black color and generally more conservative silhouette (a-line, sheath, knee-length) will stand the test of time and continually be a go-to piece because of its versatility. But, where did this classic dress get its start?

The Birth of the Little Black Dress

Fashion historians credit the designs of Coco Chanel in the 1920’s for popularizing the LBD.

The color black was once only considered a mourning color, but when Chanel debuted the simple, short, slashed-neckline dress in 1926, black soon became a sought after color.

1920’s fashion was considered a modern era in many aspects and women all over the country were ditching their corsets and embracing menswear inspired designs, which Chanel credits as inspiration for her designs.

Chanel soon became a style icon and was praised for her elegant and effortlessly luxurious designs.

Chanel has also been credited for helping in the modernization, freedom and emancipation of female fashion in the 1920’s.

American Vogue called Chanel’s LBD the “Ford” of dresses, in reference to Henry Ford’s Model-T car which was also a huge success. Soon, fashion was thought to be functional as well as chic, a concept not previously recognized. Women all over suddenly needed a little black dress of their own and the rest is history.

LBD’s popularity rises

The 1930’s saw the Great Depression and with that came longer hemlines and more feminine cuts, but black was still the dominant color. It was affordable and all women of social classes could wear a black dress and look chic. It became a sort of uniform for women and was seen all over the 30’s.

The war years came upon the United States and effected many industries, especially the textile industry. Rations were in effect, but black fabric was easily accessible and soon more black dresses were in high demand. Silhouettes were minimalistic, boxy and paid homage to military uniforms.

Post-war fashion was a lot more daring than it had been in the past and Christian Dior was suddenly the new designer on the block.

Dior debuted his version of the little black dress in 1948 which had a sense of elegance with wasp waists and full skirts. The next year he debuted slimmer skirts and leaner silhouettes, hinting to what the future of the little black dress would look like.

Hollywood also jumped on this trend creating more buzz and an increased popularity.

Audrey Hepburn as Holly Golightly in the classic fim, Breakfast at Tiffany’s showed just how  classic and elegant a little black dress can be. Her slim sheath dress, dressed up with a strand of pearls, a tiara and oversized sun glasses is still an iconic symbol today.

The little black dress today

The little black dress has evolved and grown over the years, but it has and will never disappear from fashion.

Today you can see celebrities wearing black dresses on the red carpet, as well as businesswomen wearing them to the office.

Fashion is fast paced and ever-changing but you can always count on a black dress to be a staple item because of it’s versatility. No matter the hemline or cut, a little black dress will never go out of style and can be something to revisit for many years to come.