1. Tangerine Tango
I'm enamored by the color orange and publicly display my affection with a bright leather purse I purchased a couple years ago. Tangerine Tango has a decidedly redder hue but can be incorporated easily with accessories. You can also find inexpensive tees or blouses to embrace the official color of 2012 without going overboard. If you want to balance the brightness, pair with white or gray. If you're more daring, go for hot pink or teal.
2. Metallic
Shiny dresses are great for the red carpet -- Jennifer Lawrence is clearly a fan -- but avoid this trend during the nine-to-five. Depending on your workplace environment, you might pull off metallic pants with a white blouse and black blazer. Alternatively, embrace the trend with footwear and find shiny heels for work and metallic, strappy espadrilles for weekends. Endless.com offers a great selection of well-priced foot candy, and free shipping both ways allows you to return whatever doesn't fit.
3. Pastels
Just in time for Easter, pastels are making a name for themselves on New York runways. Embracing this trend requires the purchase of one versatile piece - like a blazer or pencil skirt - to be paired with other basics already available in your wardrobe. Channel your inner Chanel and pair pastel pink with black accessories, or keep it light with nude accents.
4. Color Blocking
Color blocking is one of the easier trends to embrace and offers an opportunity to incorporate other trends. For example, you can pair bright denim pants with a neon shirt or blouse to easily achieve the look. Bisect the top from the bottom with a neutral belt -- think black, navy or white -- and accessorize with equally neutral jewelry.
5. Colorful Denim
Leftover from fall, the colorful denim trend is spreading faster than wildfire and offers a refreshing pop of color to any outfit. Since this look is definitely a fad, avoid spending too much on your first (or third) pair by shopping inexpensive retailers like Kohl's. Shop online for even more inventory and savings, and look for Kohl's free shipping codes from FreeShipping.org to dodge delivery costs.
6. Bold Prints
As if neon and color-blocking weren't bold enough this season, runways everywhere featured bold prints with nods to art deco and the great outdoors. Since this look will likely go the way of last season's Navajo-inspired patterns, opt for one or two pieces that you can pair with basics from your closet. Shop discount retailers like TJMaxx and Ross to find this trend on the cheap.
7. Sporty
You might say Sporty Spice was ahead of her time in her choice of athletic-inspired ensembles. Or not. Regardless of your attitude about the "Wannabe" star, active wear and sports-inspired looks are definitely in. That means you can enjoy your off-the-shoulder fleece for at least one more season, and incorporate your gym go-tos into everyday outfits.
_______
