8 Dress Styles We Predict Every NYC Girl Will Be Wearing This Spring

There's an unspoken rule that it's perfectly acceptable to start expecting spring-like weather once March hits. The fact that the season technically doesn't start until the end of the month is mere semantics. So despite the fact that my weather app is warning me that it's not quite yet time to hang up my coat, I'm busy daydreaming about all of the spring dresses we're about to see. 

Living in New York, it's not uncommon to witness the entire city in leg-bearing looks the minute the weather starts to turn. With hopes of manifesting that time to come sooner rather than later, I'm calling out the eight spring dress trends I'm predicting will be rampant within the new few weeks. With spring arrivals just hitting stores, we're finally starting to see the trickle-down effect from the prints and silhouettes we spotted during the S/S 20 fashion month in the flesh. Without further ado, ahead are the spring dresses you can expect to see every New Yorker wearing by next month. Note that the style-setters below aren't all New Yorkers, but they're showcasing the dress styles NYC girls will most likely wear.

The Return of the Baby-Doll Dress

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(Image credit: The Style Stalker)

I've never been much of a fan of the term "baby-doll" dress, but I can't deny that the silhouette tends to resemble its moniker's origin. The dress's comeback, though, is it a bit more grown-up than its predecessors. The new iterations are made up of tiered skirts, satin finishes, and other novel details that keep the A-line dress from appearing too juvenile

Polka-Dot Prints

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(Image credit: The Style Stalker)

If you're on the hunt for a trend that was near-ubiquitous across the S/S 20 shows, you've found in. Polka dots were a collection staple. Unsurprisingly, it's one we're already seeing on the rise.

Cutouts

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(Image credit: The Style Stalker)

Tasteful cutouts are key this spring. As opposed to the open-back trend we've seen throughout the last few summers, these cutouts can be found in unexpected areas like your hips or along your entire side profile. It may be time to start investing in a few nontraditional bra and underwear cuts to pull these styles off.

Vintage Wallpaper Prints

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(Image credit: The Style Stalker)

We wouldn't be surprised if this trend starts to permeate the homeware space, too. It's about time we start to re-embrace the late '60s/early '70s trends we've long been averse to. Okay, the questionable wood-paneled walls can go, but the psychedelic wallpaper-like prints can definitely stay. 

Striped Knits

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(Image credit: The Style Stalker)

The Jacquemus effect is going strong. Long, striped knit dresses were a runway favorite this season. The sweaterdress style has already proven itself to be a universally beloved favorite. I'm just happy to know there will now be even more knit dress options to buy.

Tropical Graphics

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(Image credit: The Style Stalker)

Vivid-exotic florals, larger-than-life monstera leaves, even bananas—tropical flora and fauna make up one of this season's most prevalent prints. No need to save a tropical printed dress for your next vacation. This resort-casual look is now street style approved.

Highlighter Hues

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(Image credit: The Style Stalker)

Nowadays you'd be hard-pressed to find a single "color" of the season. There's rarely just one. But one common denominator some of this season's most prominent colors do share is their luminosity. Expect to see plenty of attention-grabbing neons in every color of the rainbow.

Colored Leather

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(Image credit: The Style Stalker)

A black leather dress will work in a pinch, but try to expand your style horizon with spring's more playful takes on the material. Leather dresses are now available in a range of shades from earthy tones to bold and bright colors.

Up next, 12 "trendy" spring items that are easy to find at a low price.

Contributing Editor

Ray Lowe is a contributing editor for Who What Wear. She's spent the last decade living in New York, but now that she professionally works from home, she's slowly been going back to her roots by splitting time between NYC and L.A. A year ago, she left a four-year stint as a fashion editor for Refinery29 to explore the freelance life. Nowadays, she does just about everything from penning online articles (for Who What Wear, Refinery29, Elle, Cosmo, and many more) to writing scripts, styling, and finding ways to fuse her love for both Disney and fashion. Her main beat is fashion (trends, emerging brands, affordable finds, you name it), but you may find her dropping in with a beauty story every now and then. As for her personal style, she'd best describe it as a balanced blend of basics and contemporary trends, often with a dash of Mickey Mouse thrown in for good measure. In her spare time, she can be found coddling my pets (a French bulldog and a rescue cat), curating travel itineraries for her friends, scrolling through Instagram for up-and-coming brands, and watching so-bad-they're-good films.