The Guardian | 30.04.22 | SATURDAY | 85LIFESTYLE
There are
winter
clothes, and
summer
clothes, and
then there are
jeans. They
work for all
temperatures
Jess Cartner-Morley
On trends
M
arilyn Monroe
once said clothes
should be tight
enough to show
you are a woman
but loose enough
to show you are a lady. I know this
sounds borderline problematic in 2022
but I don’t have time get into that here- and anyway, please don’t even think
about trying to cancel Marilyn, kiddos,
because for those of us who remember
the 20th century, that is a red line.
The point is, she was right – at least
when it comes to jeans. Just because it
is time to leave the spray-on skinnies
behind (and it is), you don’t have to
embrace exaggerated wide-legged
denim. Do you want to look like Justin
Bieber? I didn’t think so. You want to
look like Marilyn in The Misfi ts.
(Google it and you’ll see what I mean.)
Jeans are the most useful item in a
British summer. It is lovely to imagine
a summer wardrobe of gauzy shirts
and sundresses the size of hankies, but
it’s also pointless. T hat wardrobe isn’t
for summer; it’s for one or two brief
spells of heatwave bliss. Your actual
summer wardrobe – the clothes you
will be mostly wearing between May
and when Strictly starts – is a diff erent
kettle of fi sh.
There are winter clothes, and
summer clothes, and then there are
jeans. One of their superpowers – as
well as never really looking dirty and
having plenty of pockets – is that they
work for almost any temperature – if
they are the right jeans. This is most
important now for two reasons: if you
wear jeans with a plain white T-shirt ,
the denim has more heavy lifting to
do, style-wise, than with a statement
knit and big coat; and skinny jeans will
make you sticky and uncomfortable on
warm days, while a looser pair would
be much cooler. In both senses.
Jeans used to be all about how they
made your bum look. But to get jeans
right now you need to focus on how
they look at the waist and leg. The top
button should sit on your natural waist
and fasten snugly, so you can tuck (or
French tuck) a top into the front of the
waistband and have a defi ned
silhouette without wearing a belt. But
the jeans should “release from the
thigh and knee”, which is fashion
speak for being a bit loose almost all
the way down. The ankle can taper for
a more feminine silhouette – a balloon
shape – or be straight-legged, which
looks more menswear- ish. It’s really
not that complicated.
Specialist jeans boutiques make it
feel complicated. Jeans are folded into
rectangles on shelves, which looks
neat and minimalist but makes it
impossible to see, without messing up
the display and antagonising the s taff ,
what shape they are or whether they
might vaguely fi t. There are grandiose
explanations about selvedge and
heritage. (Guys, you sell trousers.
You’re not the British Museum.)
Vintage is a brilliant way to shop for
jeans. If you spy a rail of old Levi’s in a
thrift store ( Beyond Retro is a treasure
trove), look for the blue-sky washes of
1980s and 1990s denim, the sweet spot
between fl ares and skinnies.
T here are also great brands on the
high street now. Good American
is becoming many women’s
favourite brand – its Classic Jeans
are £150 at John Lewis,
in sizes 2-24. To go a tiny bit
Bieber in a wearable wide-
legged jean, Nobody’s
Child’s High-Waisted
W i d e - L e g a r e £ 5 5 a t M a r k s
& Spencer. Raey Organic
Cotton Straight-Leg jeans
are a perfect shape (£140 )
That’s your summer
wardrobe off to a fl yer.
The only accessory
you need is your fi rst
glass of ros é.A sundress or
fl oaty top
won’t make a
summer. The
right jeans
just might
HAIR AND MAKE UP: SOPHIE HIGGINSON USING TOM FORD BEAUTY. POLO NECK: JIGSAW-ONLINE. CARDIGAN: WHISTLES.COM JEANS: VERONICABEARD
: SC ARF: TOA ST
STYLESTYLE
Photography: Suki Dhanda. Styling: Melanie Wilkinson