I don’t claim to know your favourite designer, or even celebrity icon, but what I do know is that over half the people reading this will be wearing jeans.
Now this is not some great insight; jeans are worn by everyone – fat, thin, young, old, male, female.
The denim industry is worth £50bn, with Topshop selling seven denim items a second. Ever since the 1870’s when Levi Strauss introduced the world to this sturdy, resilient material it has stood for the symbol of hard graft, unlike materials such as silk wore by the upper classes.
Although through the eras this has changed, representing a blue flag for teenager in the 50’s war against parents, a practical attire to escape danger in 70’s cult TV series Charlie’s Angles with the Jordache-clad Farrah Fawcett, the perfect match to day-glow sweat bands and tie-dye t-shirts.
Not to mention Mariah Carey’s 1999 “Heartbreaker” video encouraging more than dancing-it got people cutting up their designer denim in imitation of the diva. Let’s be honest – it’s never really gone away.
And this time it’s posh! Expensive denim has of course been around for a while, you can visit Primark and purchase a pair of jeans for £10, or Prada for £300, but the difference this year is context.
The catwalk has witnessed some of the biggest names reincarnate dresses, shirts, trousers and skirts mixing nostalgia with style (in particular 70s) in this spring revival.
And with the centuries icon figures such as Andy Warhol declaring he wanted ‘to die with his blue jeans on’ it’s not surprising that despite the deeply rooted skinny jeans culture it appears it’s now the time for flamboyant flares.
A piece of clothing women have avoided at the risk of being frumpy. The key, proportion. Structured tee’s (particularly leather, suede and if you dare to double up, denim), along with crop tops are ideal in displaying shape and teamed with flared jeans celebrate curves.
If however, you prefer a more modest approach elongated tunics are the perfect duo.
This wonderfully downbeat style started earlier in the year with Prada’s collection for men, full of 70s style jeans with stitching highlighting pockets and boot-cut, teamed with bobbly jumpers and sandals.
Gucci incorporated shirt wasters with giant pockets for women, whilst Dolce & Gabbana embellished their female collection with rhinestones. Cynics amongst us would just see this as the fashion world zoning in on this billion pound market.
But, it also shows how such a familiar fabric can be fashionable. No longer aspiring to a life filled with cosmopolitans and mid-morning lunch dates, far from most people’s reality. It’s now about casual and comfort.