You know this ongoing theory that when short skirts are trendy, the economy booms, and vice versa? Which doesn’t hold water anymore (if it ever did) because hemlines haven’t remained a single length in well over a decade? Well anyway, Business Insider decided to peer into the crystal ball that is this season’s runways and make some vague economic predictions based on their findings:
For the first time, Business Insider conducted a full analysis of hemlines at New York fashion week, measuring some 2,092 images from 25 designers, comparing year-on-year changes in the length of skirts and dresses.
The BI Hemline Index is calculated by measuring hem length as a percentage of the length from floor to waistline. The shorter the hemline, the higher the index.
Overall, average hemlines in 2012 registered a 44.38 on the index, up from 35.04 for the Fall/Winter 2011 collections.
So if the hemline theory is right, we should all have more money to shop for said skirts by the time they hit stores!
