Page 44
femail FASHION
(^) Daily Mail, Thursday, March 5, 2020
<<
by Jess Wood
Floral dress, £285,
rixo.co.uk; earrings,
£95, thehoopstation.
co.uk; necklace, £22,
orelia.co.uk (same
jewellery throughout)
Green dress,
£49.99,
zara.com;
flats, £195,
russelland
bromley.
co.uk
Top, £18, warehouse.
co.uk; jeans, £49.95,
massimodutti.com;
belt, £65, baukjen.
com; bag, £95, Iris &
Ink at theoutnet.com
Top, £7, Red
Herring at
debenhams.
com; skirt,
£46, topshop.
com
Dress, £28,
Warehouse
at johnlewis.
com; shoes,
£245, russell
andbromley.
co.uk
<<
W
e know of
t h e h e m -
line index
t h e o r y —
hems go up
if the economy does.
But I hereby introduce
another philosophy: the
neckline connection.
As the news gets grimmer,
o u r t h i r s t f o r v a g u e l y
historical silhouettes gets
more extreme.
The revival of the square
neck is a case in point.
Previously the least cool cut
imaginable, they haven’t
been in since, ooh, about two
centuries ago (if you don’t
count a brief 1960s moment).
But they’ve been making a
surprise comeback of late.
T h e y l o o k p a r t i c u l a r l y
fetching on the Little women-
inspired prairie dresses that
w e c a n n o t s e e m t o g e t
enough of.
They’ve even hit the red
carpet, with stars including
Renee Zellweger and Helen
Mirren sporting them at
recent events.
The big selling point is the
way this shape elegantly
exposes the collarbone and
elongates the neck. It’s a
neckline that can whisper
‘softly feminine’. But it can
also shout ‘buxom milkmaid’,
if you’re not careful.
How to pull it off? The easi-
est way to try the trend is to
invest in a square-necked
top to update your jeans, like
this classic striped Breton
from warehouse (top left).
If you have a bigger bust,
choose a higher, narrower
cut — more of a rectangle
than a square, if you will. If
you’re in the market for
exposing a little more skin,
wearing a balconette bra
underneath is a must to give
you the right shape.
opt for block colours and
simple silhouettes — as seen
with most of the pieces here
— for a more grown-up way
to wear it.
Personally, I’ll be pushing
the envelope with a piece
that gets double points for
historical referencing — this
balloon- sleeved polka dot
blouse by Ganni (top right).
I t m a y n o t m a k e t h e
ne w s h e a d l i n e s a n y l e s s
awful, but at least it will give
my look (and me) a gentle,
Austen-esque lift.
It’s spring’s tricky new neckline. Here’s the way to wear it — and how to smooth your chest before you do
it’s
hip
to be
square!
<<
Styling: E
MI
ly Monck
Ton Photographs:
Sylv
ESTER
Ray Fashion assistant:
alEx
an
DRI
a Dal
E