Short & Sweet Singapore>>

Judging by the latest fashion trends in this hip city, you have to sweat it out if you want to look cool.

A growing army of youth here are donning long-sleeved jerseys, black leggings and jackets — all for the sake of keeping up with the indie and emo trends that are getting popular with teens in the West.

Emo kids are loving stripey long-sleeved tops, while indie followers going for the preppy look are wearing woollen argyle vests.

The boys are keeping their hair long, blanketing their forehead and ears with artfully mussed-up locks a la Singapore Idol finalist Paul Twohill.

Meanwhile, girls are pulling on black tight leggings and pulling off the would-be ballerina look.

Never mind that those fashion items are meant for cooler climes.

They may seem a bit impractical for the heat and humidity here. But for the sake of fashion, it’s all cool.

“I don’t care what the weather’s like, I just wear what I want,” said 15-year-old Wang Huiqi. The Secondary 3 student from Holy Innocents’ High School was wearing a long-sleeved pink jersey.

When it comes to what they wear, hip teens will endure anything.  

“For them, it’s more important to get the correct look for the fashion season than to be comfortable,” observed Ms Debbie Chng, 24, shop manager for the Topshop outlet at Wisma Atria mall.

She estimated that at least five items from the British brand’s fall/winter collection are sold each day, usually to young people.

The most popular items include black leggings and oversize sweaters made out of a wool acrylic blend.

But most trendy teens are opting for clothes made out of thinner and “cooling” materials, as part of a strategy to beat the heat while wearing trendy fall season clothes.

Secondary 3 student Masturah Rosman, for instance, loves wearing her fitted denim jackets. The 15-year-old from Greenview Secondary School has five of them, all in heat-attracting colours such as black or dark blue.

She makes sure they are made of thin denim. “Or else it’ll be too hot for me to wear them!” she said.

Also, she only wears them when she is in an air-conditioned area such as a cinema, shopping centre or an ice-skating rink.

But this fashion trend is certainly not for everyone.

Gideon Wong, 16, pointed out: “Even though you look nice, what’s the point of wearing clothes like that if you’re feeling uncomfortable all the time?”

“Singapore is hot,” emphasised the Secondary 4 student from Anglo-Chinese School (Barker Road). “And you don’t need to wear stuff like that often.” 


THE BURNING QUESTION

Do teenagers need to wear fall/winter fashion to look cool in Singapore?

 
MS GINETTE CHITTICK SAYS:

You can if you want, I think it's fine. We should cut teens some slack! After all, it's a way of expressing yourself, and it always feels nice to dress up.  

I think it's fine if you embellish your look with a few fall/winter items, such as pairing a jeans and tank top ensemble with boots. Even scarves are okay sometimes, as long as they're not made out of thick wool.  

But if you walk around wearing a woollen coat, that's just really stupid because it's so hot and it doesn't make sense.  
 
This week’s expert is Ms Ginette Chittick, who is one of the founders of local fashion labels Frufru & Tigerlily and Murder. She is also a communication design lecturer at Lasalle-SIA College of the Arts, and fronts the local band Astreal.

Dress warm to look cool in Singapore – fun or dumb? You be the judge in Stink & Spill