Summer Streetwear Staples You Need in Your Closet | P.E Nation

Summer Streetwear Staples You Need in Your Closet

Summer Streetwear Staples You Need in Your Closet

Streetwear fashion mixed with sportswear staples to disrupt the global athleisure market with verve. That’s P.E Nation.

If the bolder than ever runway shows and flashy streetwear seen flaunted throughout New York Fashion Week are our starting line for styles we should be embracing this Southern spring and summer, then post-traumatic growth, celebrating big, eschewing constraints and flaunting our individuality are big on the agenda. Colours will be loud. Silhouettes will be freeing and empowering. Our individual expression channelled through streetwear summer style will be larger than life. And we are here for it.

Coined in 2004 by clinical psychologists Richard Tedeschi and Lawrence Calhoun, post-traumatic growth refers to positive changes experienced following a struggle with life-altering events - pandemics included. “We’ve learned that negative experiences can spur positive change, including a recognition of personal strength, the exploration of new possibilities, improved relationships, a greater appreciation for life and spiritual growth,” Tedeschi shared in the Harvard Business Review.

In essence, our rebellious reaction to events that impacted our lives and were out of our control, is to celebrate, to explore, shine bright, be loud and authentic, to demonstrate acts of service, and to express ourselves as individually as possible. As Tedeschi puts it, “The challenges to core beliefs that we encounter in trauma often force people to … design a life worth continuing to live … The possibilities for personal and collective growth should not be squandered.”

The Best Colours to Wear in Summer

When we combine the phenomenon of post-traumatic growth with the natural inclination to swap out dark tones and safe neutrals of winter for everything and anything that’s bold, bright and larger than life, it’s little wonder the runway looks and street-style witnessed as the fashion weeks roll out from New York to London and beyond, bring everything shiny and electric, unexpected and uninhibited to the fore.

Let’s start with hot pink everything - or the Barbiecore trend - a look that came to light following the 2022 Valentino Fall runway show. The trend hasn’t stopped gaining momentum since then. Kim Kardashian flaunted the hue from head-to-toe for a Saturday Night Live after-party, impeccable summer streetwear for women’s favourite colour: pink. The boys enjoy it just as much. Lil Nas X and Jack Harlow wearing pink in the Industry Baby music video mean that traditionally women's summer streetwear is just as fashionable for the boys.

One of the best colours to wear in summer, hot pink is perfect for summer workout outfits. A symbol of punk rebellion since the 80s, hot pink is provocative, bold, vibrant and electric. “With many nostalgic for simpler, sunnier and more carefree times, it only makes sense that this ’80s-inspired, unapologetically pink aesthetic is taking centre stage as the ‘it’ style of the summer,” Etsy trend expert Dayna Isom Johnson shared in a statement.

Combine the hot pink colour code with exercise endorphins and you’ll secure an instant confident co-ord for your summer activewear wardrobe - whether you choose to wear it head to toe or matched back with black. Lighter shades of pink, white, yellow and light blue are great options to style your streetwear for summer.

Summer streetwear gym outfits don’t get much brighter than teaming the Intuitive Bike Short, Full Time Short or Amplify summer workout leggings with the Amplify Sports Bra. These pieces are cut from breathable fabrics for hot weather workout sessions, and you can mix and match them with other colours and styles in the Base Colour collection to create your own cute athletic outfits for summer.

Another fabric good for summer streetwear is the organic cotton and hemp blend used to create the vintage look and feel of some of our favourite tees and tanks. Take the Dondi Tee or Rogue Tank from the latest collections. Cut from 70% organic cotton, 30% hemp fabrication, they’re made from one of the best breathable fabrics for hot weather while giving an instant vintage tee vibe fresh off the rails. It's summer athletic wear done right.

Finding a Gym Jacket for Summer

Thanks to back-to-school inspired looks seen at Coach, and nostalgia driven varsity jackets seen at the Tommy Hilfiger Show at New York Fashion Week, it’s safe to say collegiate-wear will remain a firm streetwear fixture for the spring/summer sportswear season ahead.

During the transeasonal period when mornings and evenings still have a chill, and the mercury hasn’t peaked to mid-January levels, summer Pilates clothes that combine an elevated aesthetic with breathable fabrics for hot weather make a critical invenstment piece for both men's and women's summer streetwear.

Try the Man Down Jacket in Optic White or Kelp for a water-resistant option with a lightweight feel. Or try the retro athletics-style Running Track Jacket, which boasts a 70s-style colourway of tan, golden oak and black with a hit of the aforementioned hot pink, presented in signature P.E multi-stripe design detail, a favourite of our summer gym outfits.

As post-pandemic trends in fashion and culture continue to show, whatever summer gym wear and streetwear fashion you favour for the season, continue to experiment, explore, be bright, go bold, and design a life over the next few months that will be impossible to regret.

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