(10/2018) It was one of our final nights in Barcelona: as my sister and I walked from dinner in the Gothic Quarter to our Airbnb lofted apartment we passed by a Zara that displayed a mannequin dressed in a bohemian peasant styled cheetah printed dress. In the storefront window it gleamed with electricity: bellowing long and free flowing, the dress stopped us in our path home. But it was a time of night where dreaming of the dress was the only solution to curving a fashion appetite. And as the street posts, dimly lite stores and their neon signs guided us home, we started to talk trend forecasting and then decided to come back to the store and return for that dress at another time.

Even before this experience there were indications of her fashion forward taste. It started with the Naked Wolfe platform shoe. A delivery to our desks at work brought excitement all over my sister’s face. She quickly opened the box and walked around the office with her new shoes, showing off the vegan leather custom-made platforms with pride. My initial response believed the fashion to be a premature purchase, way before season appropriate. But now, after personal reflection, I am found wrong. As we enter into this fall fashion season I see more of her fashion favorites anchored in this season’s trends.

While my mom speaks fashion to me through the colors of the season — this time of the year the Macy’s and Lord & Taylor in the malls glistens with emerald green — and my youngest sister communicates by means of the up-in-coming yoga labels to engage my curiosity for alethic wear, in no way does my recent fashion considerations reflect that which captivates my identical twin’s fashionable taste. But rather the more apparent my plant-based dietary habits weave within my lifestyle, my interest for leather alternatives and sustainable clothing design fascinate me. Beside the notorious Stella McCartney, or the recent, Everlane, there are few brands with grand attention.

Entirely vegan, and leading with passion for cruelty free products, since 2007 handbag and footwear label Matt and Nat created their presence through their shop-able website and multi-brand boutiques in the United States, aside from their independent stores in Canada. Two bags ready for check–out in my online shopping cart I find myself gradually committing to like-minded brands who adhere to values that push for the protection of animal communities and practices that leave our Earth unharmed. For what feels like forever vegan brands remained in the accessories of fashion: handbags and footwear. However, times are changing and the need for ethically charged fashion designs are in demand. In response, Stella McCartney launched a menswear line and Rooney Mara partners with Sara Schloat and Chrys Wong to create Hiraeth, an all-American, made in Los Angeles brand that crafts loafers, moto jackets and dresses without silk, leather and wool materials. Such brands that address topics of sustainability and alternative resources are building the future of fashion.

However, my sister and I do not share an identical perspective on fashion. Recent moments spent conversing over fashion with my sister has brought a revelation to how progressively political my perspective on clothing design is entirely opposite to how my identical sister accepts fashion. Her approach to dressing delivers a foundation of a Nike sneaker collection, bangle earrings, trousers and dresses discovered from her Rent the Runway membership. Despite our similarities, she embraces current trends of the season: curiosity for for animal printed dresses, obsessions over platform shoes and the pursuit for the coziest shearling jacket all indicate a fashion forward force, although polar opposite, still dear to me.

Animal prints

There is something undeniably classic about an animal printed fashion. In the visual history of fashion the design rarely changes: a dress shirt, pencil skirt or full-length dress, or even a peacoat made for the colder season. However, the formality of such designs silences polite gestures when paired to a cheetah print. In the world of womenswear the pattern screams with flirtation – the perfect party piece, especially when worn as a dress demands attention. When worn for athletic wear the print gives an energetic look to high performance leggings and screams confidence. This season, the cheetah print communicates loudly – boldly seeking attention, causing fashion fanatics to draw close, just as we responded that night in Spain’s fashion plaza.

Sky-high shoes

Recent fancies for the fall platform shoes involves two options: a knee-high leather boot with corked heel or the cowboy boot paired to a country paisley printed maxi dress. Magazine advertisement and fashion advise columns fill visual examples with such outfits. On the other side of the spectrum of interest is a street culture of sneaker heads obsessed with platform sneakers reminiscent to space boots. These sneakers and boots create a dramatic illusion legendary to definitions of cool fashion explained by Instagram celebrities, models and musicians. The space shoes rocketing sky-high levels of height create a cool girl, sleek and sporty style.

Grizzly bear jackets

More casual than the full faux fur winter coat, or the shearling accented collar of the a motorcycle jacket , a full shearling fleece simulates the coziness of wearing a blanket or resting in a bear hug. The relief of comfort felt when wearing this style is not only easy to pair along with different fall trends but is an easy fix to completing a fall outfit. Simple to incorporate into everyday fashion, the shearling jacket is the most approachable high fashion trend of the season.

As we move into a new season this October, I find myself considering a fresh perspective on fashion, and that is how one seeks fashion determines how they receive fashion. In some discovery one may find favor with styles in vain for the season’s current trends, while others find admiration for a brand’s political agenda. Wherever you find yourself, the important lesson learned about fashion is its power to inspire personal expression.

In personal reflection over moments from conversations with my sister – spent searching the racks at Rent the Runway for a dress to work the next day, or seeing her smile cheek-to-cheek when wearing her platform shoes — her relationship to fashion is completely different than my relationship to clothing. This season she has found resonance with the fall trends: cheetah prints, platform shoes and a shearling jacket and I realize that conversations leading me into fashion week brought me to see that my sister has a trend setting hold on fashion. She caught sight of the trends before they were advised as fall fashion in October’s chilly weather. My lingering response has caused me to enjoy how others approach fashion differently than my own personal expression. And although my sister has not fashioned each trend into an outfit together, I imagine the look would create the sight of an overstyled fashion blogger – the three pieces: cheetah printed dress, platform sneakers and a shearling fleece cohesively express who she is.