Athflow Fashion : What is it and how to wear it?

As a self-proclaimed fashion lover, I love drama on my clothes. Give me all the ball gowns, ruffled sleeves, and balloon dresses and I can carry them like it is nobody’s business. However, in 2020 we all got hit by the biggest lightning bolt of our lives. Yes, I am talking about the one that shall not be named: COVID. A year back what started as a 2-week work from home has become the new normal of our lives. Now you would ask me what has Athflow got to do with work from home? The answer is that more than a year of work from home has pushed the fashion world to mutate and create a new form called Athflow Fashion. As per fashion pandits, we can kiss bye to our skinny jeans, bandage dresses, and glamorous dresses for the next few years.

What is Athflow Fashion?

As per Pinterest Editors, “When athleisure meets elegance—that’s Athflow. Flowy pants, casual jumpsuits, and oversized outfits will replace athletic clothes as the new go-to loungewear. Athflow is professional enough for the “office,” stretchy enough for the yoga mat, and comfy enough for the couch”

It means that all the cute loungewear sets you ordered last year are getting a trendier upgrade. Albeit, this one is going to be easy to transition from your zoom meetings to dinner runs.

Why this new Trend?

The fashion world is always ready to recalibrate itself with the changing times. For instance, last year was all about Athleisure followed by a frenzy of cute tie and dye loungewear sets everywhere. Since people were scared to step out of the house, sticking to the sweats and loungewear was a more practical choice. But, now the new year has brought itself with a new hope. We have begun to witness the opening of restaurants, theatres, and bars in most of the cities with certain restrictions in place. Moreover, as people are getting vaccinated, the confidence to step out has increased

What the above means is that people are more comfortable going out for walks and grocery runs between zoom calls and plan meetups with a limited group of friends. This has given rise to a new category of clothing that is not in your face for office calls, trendy enough to step out of the house, and comfortable at the same time.

How to wear it?

Athflow Fashion is basically comfortable and loose clothing without being a drab. It can be styled in the following ways:

• Oversized shirts with flowy pants

In the above outfit, I have styled an oversized shirt jacket with loose and flowy pants and a crop top underneath it. You can easily button up the shirt for your zoom calls and unbutton it when heading out for your coffee run. Also, this look can be easily dressed down with a pair of sneakers or dressed up with heels as I have done above. Below are my favorite picks of oversized shirts and loose pants.

My Picks for Oversized Shirts and Flowy Pants

1. Oversized cotton shirt with 3/4 volume sleeves in blue This shirt is pretty comfortable to wear with a versatile color. Also, the gathered sleeves make it look luxurious.
2. Airy Lyocell-blend Shirt I love this shirt because of its simple and straight lines. It has the perfect light beige color that can be paired with both dark and white pants for summer. Also, the fact that Lyocell takes half as much water in production as cotton makes it my favorite pick.
3. Blue Brushed Plaid Longline Shacket A shacket is a crossbreed between a shirt and a jacket. It makes for a perfect layering piece for chilly weather.
4. Striped Mid-Rise Linen Cropped Wide Leg Pants Linen is the perfect fabric for summers. Update your comfortable summertime wear with these Striped Linen Cropped Wide-Leg Pants.
5. Lightweight Wide Leg Crop Chino Pants I like the nautical feel of these pants. Personally, I would love to pair the pants with a blue or white shirt.
6. Cropped wide-legged pants A white pant is a staple for your wardrobe. It can be worn across seasons with boots and sandals.

Shop my picks

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• Casual Jumpsuits with Long Cardigans

I recently took my son to the park wearing the above jumpsuit with an oversized cardigan and the outfit couldn’t have been more Athflow. The jumpsuit is perfectly loose, comfortable and yet amps up your style quotient immediately. Layering is always suggested for New York’s dubious spring weather. So I layered my jumpsuit with a brown-toned long cardigan. If you live in warmer weather and don’t necessarily need to layer, then the below jumpsuit would be perfect for you.

My Picks for Casual Jumpsuits and Long Cardigans

1. Striped Seersucker Jumpsuit This is the same brand as the one I am wearing above in the picture at the playground. The design is pretty similar as well. The jumpsuit is very comfortable to wear and run around in.
2. Cozy Knit Duster Cardigan I personally own quite a few dusters from Gap and they hold pretty well. This one has a belt around the waist which can easily be tied up in case the weather gets breezy.
3. Sleeveless Woven Jumpsuit When in doubt wear Linen. Linen is the most breathable fabric out there. The slouchy shape of this linen jumpsuit makes it the ultimate comfort wear. Easy to wear with a cardigan or a shirt underneath, it’s perfect for all the seasons.
4. What’s The Stitch Cardigan This one is definitely on my wishlist. I fell in love with this cardigan the moment I saw it. Its weave has a very rich look to it and the neutral color makes it versatile.
5. Better Than Before Olive Green Denim Boiler Jumpsuit A boiler suit also known as coveralls, is a loose-fitting garment covering the whole body except for the head, hands, and feet. Created as workwear for people maintaining coal fields, they now make for an edgy fashion statement.
6. Minimal boiler jumpsuit with a detachable fanny pack in navy This sustainable jumpsuit made with beech-tree pulp is perfect for your casual outfits. You can have your essentials in the fanny pack keeping your hands free or just have it around for the coolness factor.
7. Stone Cable Oversized Knit Maxi Cardigan This oversized maxi length cardigan in a chunky cable knit with patch pockets has a very classy feel to it. This looks very to the one I am wearing in the above pic and would make for a regular staple in your wardrobe.

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• Oversized Sweatshirts with Long skirts

I recently did a blog post on how the pandemic literally changed my point of view towards sweatshirts. I have moved from being a non-sweatshirt person to give me all the sweatshirts phase. However, styling sweatshirts can get really tricky. You can easily fall into the athleisure category if not styled properly. To achieve a casual, yet outgoing look, I have styled the sweatshirt with a coordinating skirt. It can also be styled with a stretchy metallic skirt like this one if you are heading out for dinner.

1. Embossed Design Sweatshirt I am a big fan of Mango as a brand and this embossed sweatshirt by them is actually quite exquisite. You can style this in multiple ways. Personally, I would love to throw in some silver jewelry with a long flowy skirt.
2. Ruffle sweatshirt in sage green I love to add a little bit of drama or glam to simple outfits. This sweatshirt fits the bill perfectly for me. The design is clean and simple and the ruffles add just the right amount of glam.
3. Lilac crewneck sweatshirt I absolutely love the color of this sweatshirt. The lilac color perfectly breaks the monotony of the white and blue sweatshirts.
4. Brown knitted skirt This skirt will perfectly go with both an oversized sweatshirt as well as a cropped one. It treads perfectly between formal and casual wear.
5. Flocked Dot Tulle Midi Skirt There is something about the informality of a sweatshirt and the formality of a tulle skirt that makes it a perfect combination. This black tulle would look gorgeous with a lilac sweatshirt pictured above.
6. Stretchy Shine Skirt This skirt is perfect to transition from your meetings to dinner. Also, the shine is muted enough to not overpower the entire outfit, thus providing the right amount of oomph factor.

Shop My Picks for Athflow Fashion

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Overall, I personally think that Athflow fashion is here to stay because changing times ask for a change of habits. As much as I would love to go back to ball gowns and being dolled up, the truth of the hour is that we have nowhere to glam up for now. Consequently, when we would get back to normal, we would have become too comfortable with the loose clothing. Hence, I don’t think this trend is going anywhere soon.

If you liked reading about Athflow Fashion, then do check out my latest blog post on Faux Leather Pieces for Winter.