Then vs. Now: The Next Big Things for 2006

Jan. 2, 2006 — -- The new year will bring rise to new trends. Low-rise jeans will creep up the waist, and gone will be the seemingly ubiquitous celebrity-Ts.

Remember "Team Aniston" and "Team Jolie?" Maybe you can recall Eva Longoria's controversial shirt which jolted Jennifer Aniston with a low blow: "I'll have your baby, Brad." Those are history.

Bye to cowboy boots, sayonara sudoku and peace out pomegranate juice. "GMA" has the latest on what will come to the forefront of pop culture and fashion this year.

Finally, after several seasons of hearsay that waistlines were on the rise, it's finally happening. Last year, jean brands like True Religion -- with their famously low rise and signature flap pockets -- ruled the fashion scene. Next year, we'll see a rise in the waistlines that will span the extreme (Jainesse retro high-waisted bell bottoms) to the more mild/functional (Hudson 170 higher-back rise). And we won't just be seeing this trend in jeans. It will be a fashion theme across the board, apparent in skirts, trouser pants, etcetera.

2005 was oversaturated with celebrity-centric T-shirts with shallow slogans that celebrities seemed to like being photographed in -- and fans liked to purchase to "feel" like they were living the life. In 2006, people are going to get over the frivolousness of the "team" and paparazzi tees -- finally. More down-to-earth, consumer-driven tees will be the rage. Threadless.com (an ongoing Web-based T-shirt design competition) is the perfect example of where this creativity-driven trend is going. Users are invited to submit their own T-shirt designs to the site. Each week, users vote for their favorite design, and five of the highest-scoring designs are printed and sold from the site (in limited supply -- so not too many people ever have the same shirt). The winning designers then receive $1,000 in cash and prizes. The concept behind the site is something we see continuing to grow, because it allows consumers to set the trends. There are also socially conscious slogan tees. Slogans bring awareness to serious and important issues like the environment, rather than to who's "team" people are on.

The popularity of this ubiquitous footwear was largely driven by pictures of celebs wearing them in US Weekly and by the movie, "Dukes of Hazard" in which Jessica Simpson donned a pair (with her Daisy Dukes) in almost every scene. This year, many fashionistas will be trading them in for the slouchy boot. These come in many styles and look great with skirts or with skinny jeans (tucked into them). Another take on the slouchy boot is the Livs crocheted sweater boot (think of them as the new "Ugg" for '06) They are super-comfy, cute and can be worn like slippers indoors, but are sturdy enough for wearing on the street.

Camera phones were what everyone wanted to have in '05. But in '06 it will be mp3 phones or music-on-demand phones. The Motorola ROKR was a bit of a disappointment -- supposedly it doesn't provide quality sound or service -- but the Samsung A900 Blade phone is sure to be a bigger hit. The phone (which went on the market Dec. 1), nicknamed the "Blade" for its incredible thinness, includes a 1.3 mp camera, Bluetooth capabilities, 320 x 240 screen, mp3 player, 128 MB flash memory, and 64 MB RAM. The camera boasts up to three hours of talk time before recharge.

IPods and MP3s have been the must-have tech gadgets for some time now. When Apple first released the Nano this year, they couldn't keep it in stock. But then they had to go and release the iPod video several weeks later, causing an epidemic of Nano-buyer's remorse … and giving the PSP a run for its money. Portable video will continue to be a growing trend in '06 and beyond -- especially now that users can download episodes of their favorite TV shows. It won't be long before they will be able to get movies on demand, as well.

Pomegranate (Pom Wonderful), the anti-oxidant rich fruit (juice), became wildly popular in 2005 both for it's health benefits (potent with antioxidants, which help the body guard against free radicals -- molecules that can cause premature aging, heart disease, Alzheimer's and cancer) and because bars across America started creating yummy specialty drinks with the sweet juice (pomegranate margaritas, monitors and martinis). Acai (ah-sigh-ee) is an all-natural energy fruit from Amazon palm berries. Wild harvested in the rainforests of Brazil, acai tastes like a blend of berries and chocolate. Acai is packed full of antioxidants, amino acids and essential omegas (the good-for-you fatty acids). The pulp also contains a concentration of antioxidants, to help combat premature aging, with 10-30 times the anthocyanins (purple colored antioxidants) of red wine. Acai has an almost-perfect essential amino acid complex in conjunction with valuable trace minerals vital to proper muscle contraction and regeneration.

Sudoku -- a Japanese puzzle game of logic played on a numbers grid -- hit big in the United States this past summer. A sudoku puzzle consists of a 9-by-9 grid subdivided into nine smaller grids of 3-by-3 squares. Some boxes have numbers. To solve the puzzle, each row, column and box must contain the numbers 1 through 9. Logic, not math, is needed to complete the puzzles. Kakuro actually originated in the United States. Dell magazines published the first kakuro-like puzzles under the name of cross sums in the early 1950s, but it wasn't until the brain teasers became popular in Japan several years ago that the craze took off -- eventually spreading to the United Kingdom (some say that the popularity of kakuro now has eclipsed that of sudoku in Japan and the United Kingdom). Now, it's coming back to the United States. The object of kakuro, which supposedly is more difficult than sudoku, is to place numbers 1 through 9 in blocks of two to nine squares running horizontally and vertically in a grid. The sum of each line or "entry" must match its associated "clue" -- the numbers already indicated in separate gray boxes. Each entry must contain numbers 1 to 9 without repetition.

Last year Jergen's came out with Natural Glow Daily Moisturizer, which literally flew off the shelves. It's an all-in-one product that delivers summer's natural glow while infusing your skin with the moisturizing properties you need year round. Now, Jergen's has come out with Natural Glow for your face. They call it "complexion perfection that glows." It's a lightweight, non-comedogenic, oil-free moisturizer that delivers the optimum amount of naturally glowing color to even out skin tone, and gives faces a subtle, luminous glow. Specially developed for delicate facial skin, Jergen's natural glow FACE Daily Moisturizer hydrates complexions without clogging pores. The formula is gently balanced to allow wearers to gradually develop a subtle, sun-kissed glow without having to worry about streaks or blotches. This product will not hit shelves until March or early April.

First there were hair extensions -- something that has definitely gained more mass appeal as of late (they used to be so expensive you had to be a celebrity to get them; now they have gone mainstream). Now, there are eyelash extensions. The process involves taking individual, synthetic hairs and bonding them to your natural lashes, one strand at a time. It can take up to an hour for a full set, but once on the extensions last up to a month (the average life-cycle of a natural lash).