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The end of year is typically a time when people reflect on the past and look toward the year to come with hope and anticipation.

But things work a little differently in the fashion industry.

It’s a place where there’s no room for the ambiguity of words like “hope” and “anticipation” and nothing is left to chance.

The reality is that, by the time the New Year champagne corks start to pop, designers in fashion hubs like Paris, Milan and London have already been hard at work for months formulating the upcoming year’s next “it” trends.

“Fashion trends reflect changes in the way people think and interpret their world,” said Dini Midiani, head of the Indonesian Fashion Designer Association’s (APPMI) export division.

Recently, the association held their annual fashion show, Fashion Tendance, in the grand ballroom of Jakarta’s Hotel Mulia Senayan.

The show, which is put on collectively by the APPMI and the Indonesia Creative Center, is famous for giving fashionistas, designers and retailers a chance to see what will be the hottest trends in 2011 and beyond.

This year’s show, titled Surf-vival, featured sample pieces from 17 selected designers.

The pieces were divided into four style categories meant to represent the different lifestyles of Indonesian women in 2011: Tech Natura, Replay, Wanderlust and Hullabaloo.

Things kicked off with the Tech Natura category, with clothes that were clearly targeted at Indonesia’s ranks of smart, tech-savvy, environmentally conscious women.

“The designs are futuristic, yet comfortable to wear,” Dina said. “The whole idea is to present vintage materials blended into chic modern looks.”

Outfits from the Replay category followed, aimed at women who are eager to express their individuality in playful ways.

“Today’s women are through with uniformity and conformity,” Dina said.

“They want to be themselves and play around with what were once rigid conventions.”

The Hullabaloo category indicated to us that 2011 might have a bit of a dark, brooding streak.

The category seemed to be put together to reflect the worries and uncertainties of our times through the use of dark colors and some downright eerie designs.

“It has a bit of an ‘Alice in Wonderland’ feel” Dina said.

“The clothes are very unique and even a little bizarre.”

The Wanderlust category rounded out the show by offering designs based on the Earth’s natural elements.

According to Dina, the use of materials like wood and stone as accessories and embellishments will be a popular trend in the coming year. Earthy and vibrant colors should also be major trends.

Fashion designer Enny Ming, who opened the show, unveiled neatly tailored designs inspired by Japanese art and bamboo trees.

Her standout work featured simple white tops embellished with unexpected cutouts, bows and pleats paired with white, skinny and Palazzo pants.

The overall feel was elegantly classic with a modern touch.

“People are tired of complex styles,” said Susan Budiharjo, the woman behind the Bali-based Susan Budiharjo Fashion School.

“I think simple, streamlined clothes will take the day next year. The pieces, however, will likely be embellished, with intricate appliques as highlights.”

Jenny Ang’s Twilight Princess collection featured brightly colored mini balloon dresses in orange, indigo blue and yellow.

The dresses, made of chiffon, leather, silk and sheer organza, were enhanced with ornate floral appliques, semiprecious stones and polished seashells.

Sonny Muchlison, a lecturer at the Jakarta Institute of the Arts, welcomed the trend toward vibrant colors.

“It appears 2011 will be the year for fun, bright colors, such as fuchsia pink, turquoise, emerald green and bright orange,” he said.

Dina Midiani’s collection, titled Hari Pasar, featured ready-to-wear items such as shirts, jackets and blazers made of leftover batik material, wool and voile, stitched together in jagged, asymmetrical pieces.

“At a glance, they might look like defective clothes,” Dina said with a chuckle.

“But they represent female rebellion against convention. Women want to be free to be themselves.”

Freedom of expression was also amply on display in Oka Diputra’s fluid and flexible designs.

His dresses, inspired by water, employ soft circular lines that enhance the feminine figure.

“Each dress was cut and hand-stitched using moulage (a French casting and molding technique). Therefore each one is unique and impossible to replicate.”

Lenny Agustin’s Unconscious collection stood out by featuring models in white face paint wearing simple, black dresses embellished with colorful frills, beads and tribal patterns.

The show closed with Indonesian kebaya (traditional blouse-dress) designer Anne Avantie showcasing her latest collection titled Wayang Golek (Javanese puppets).

It is Javanese custom to dress wayang golek puppets in colorful batik designs for the show.

“I wanted to breathe life into the puppets by dressing them in my designs and using them in my show. Now I have the most fashionable puppets in the world,” she said with a laugh.

Her show featured models playing the role of traditional Javanese puppets and wearing beautiful, long, flowing skirts.

Paired with high-necked kebayas with flared sleeves, the models looked as elegant as Javanese royalty.

According to fashion designer Anne Avantie, in the end, the market will determine what is hot and what is not in the coming year.

“The people will choose what they like,” she said.

“In turn, the creations that are most sought after by the people will lead us to the fashion trends for the next year and so on.”

Whatever the future of fashion holds, there’s no doubt Indonesia’s fashion scene is on the cutting edge.