They say a cheetah never changes its spots and this year's biggest trend, the polka dot, is no different.
That might seem like a weird way to start this Dispatch, but I found myself wondering where the polka dot came from and how it became one of fashion’s most revisited prints. A pattern endlessly reimagined by major fashion houses, trickling down through department stores, and inevitably landing in some tragic Casual Corner. If you don’t catch the Devil Wears Prada reference, we might need to revisit some early 2000s classics. If you do, you’re in exactly the right spot, no pun intended.
Ever since finding the fabric for our Ivory Spots Slip Dress and with a new collection on the way, I have been a little obsessed with tracing the history of the polka dot. The term first appeared in the 1840s, when the lively polka dance was sweeping across Europe and the United States. Its popularity spilled beyond the dance floor, with manufacturers eager to cash in by stamping the polka name on everything from hats to jackets, and eventually, our beloved dots.
Quickly linked to notions of fun and femininity, polka dots were soon embraced by designers like Coco Chanel and made their way onto Hollywood screens, most famously on Marilyn Monroe’s dress in The Seven Year Itch. They also found a playful home in characters like Minnie Mouse, forever keeping the print youthful and a little bit cheeky.
By the 1950s, polka dots were everywhere. Adored by pin-up icons like Elizabeth Taylor, they became a symbol of flirtatious, all-American style and secured their place in the pop culture of the decade. Whenever I see them, I can’t help but think of Julia Roberts in that iconic brown and white dress from Pretty Woman, or Naomi Campbell gliding down Patrick Kelly’s Spring 1989 runway in a head to toe floral and dot ensemble. Though they had a serious heyday in the eighties and nineties, this season the pattern is back in the spotlight and once again turning heads.
Polka dots are twirling across the runways at Carolina Herrera, Jacquemus, and Moschino, appearing on everything from crochet minis to playful frocks, but they are just as charming in the hands of cult labels. Think Belle The Label’s oversized jackets, Sun Diaries and Cami Citrine’s dotty little bags, or Posse’s breezy holiday sets. From high fashion to your favourite boutique finds, polka dots prove they are timeless, playful, and always ready to pop up wherever a bit of mischief meets good taste.
And so, while trends may come and go and inevitably circle back again, there is something endlessly captivating about a spot. At 7th & York, we love how polka dots balance the line between vintage and modern, classic and playful, always effortlessly chic. Maybe that is why we keep returning to them, season after season. After all, who wouldn’t want to be just a little bit dotty?
