It’s getting warmer! The forecast says temperatures in the teens this week! That means lollies, sunburn and getting drunk on Pimm’s on a Monday are only a millisecond away. The joy that this news brings is combined with something else: blind panic. What on earth are you going to wear? Don’t worry – here are some things that will update your look with new trends while keeping your bandwidth for more concerning things, such as staying away from S-Town spoiler alerts or planning how to celebrate Doris Day’s 95th birthday. You’re welcome.
Ballet flats
Ballet flats are back. Kate Moss has been wearing ViBi Venezia shoes – half ballet flat, half plimsoll – with black skinny jeans, as if the past 10 years never happened. Alexa Chung and the Olsen twins are also keen to bring 2007 back. The new ballet flat – first seen on the catwalk at Miu Miu and Valentino – comes with a ribbon tied around the ankle, worthy of Francesca Hayward and friends. Note: spring weather is essential here.
Fishnet socks
Backless mules, probably made by Gucci and possibly with shearling, were the only shoes worth wearing in the front row at the latest round of fashion shows. But to really one-up your seatmates, you wore them with fishnet socks. And a gamechanger that costs £4 is something everybody can get behind. In a year where the sock threatens to become the status symbol of style (also note Gucci’s striped ones) and fishnets are back, this is the pocket-friendly win-win.
The Birkin basket
OK, so Jane Birkin might be way too referenced far too often as style inspo on Instagram, but she’s not done yet. The latest Birkin-approved item? The straw basket, which is set to become the bag to carry this spring and summer. In the 1970s, Birkin used hers on the city streets, the beach and – our favourite – as carry-on luggage. You can do the same.
Dorothy gingham
The dress that Judy Garland wore in Wizard of Oz sold for $1.56m (£1.25m) in 2015 . It has taken brands two years to realise that blue gingham is in demand. The £15 Primark dress that goes into stores this week is set to sell out, but to make things more grownup, go for separates. An off-the-shoulder top or deconstructed shirt, perhaps. And unless you’re attending World Book Day, no ruby red slippers.
The red wrap dress
Sometimes the high street doesn’t bother about the catwalk – it invents trends all by itself. Such is the case with the red wrap dress – now at Kitri and Warehouse, our current I’ll-just-pop-in, oops-now-have-three-shopping-bags destination. La La Land yellow is one thing, but a red dress – like a red lip - is, happily, the route one road to glamour.
A denim jacket
Before you ask, no this is not one to wear with jeans. Instead, it’s 2017’s parka, the tough layer to wear over a dress or, if you’re Bella Hadid, with OTK boots and a cut-off skirt (hey, whatever works). Go oversized – Fiorucci’s bleached denim jacket is a shopping goal – or shrunken, Gap’s cropped denim jacket has Madonna in Alphabet City in 1982 all over it. That’s a good thing.
Mom shorts
So, we’ve had mom jeans – now we’ve got mom shorts. It’s the high-waisted detail that makes them a fashion thing rather than any old pair of cut-offs. Well, that and the fact there are no pockets poking out from the hem. Mom shorts are oddly respectable – short, yes, but not so short that any of your bum is on display. For that we can all be thankful.
The George Michael blazer
A sartorial tribute to the Wham! frontman can go beyond a leather jacket and the white vest worn in the Faith video. George loved a brightly coloured blazer and similar designs are all over the high street this summer. Roll the sleeves up to the elbows and wear one size too big. And, it goes without saying, this is womenswear only. A double-breasted blazer on a man is a scarily close look to Rupert Murdoch’s at Evgeny Lebedev’s garden party last year. Shudder.
Alexander Calder earrings
Sure, not everyone has major abstract sculptors on speed dial like Peggy Guggenheim did. The curator had Alexander Calder earrings – miniature versions of his abstract mobiles – in the 30s. Earrings are the accessory of choice this year, so Guggenheim’s fine work is worth studying. To really embrace the trend go asymmetric – Guggenheim did this by wearing one by Calder and another by surrealist Yves Tanguy in 1942, to indicate her interest in both abstraction and surrealism. Your choice to go wonky may not have quite such important art world issues at stake, but still.
The choker top
Finally, the death knell of the cold-shoulder top is beginning to sound. Meet its replacement: the choker top. Seen on Solange Knowles, Gigi Hadid and Selena Gomez, a blue-tick Instagram account isn’t necessary to wear one. It’s basically a top with a V-neck and the band of a poloneck. Think of it as a way to continue your polo neck obsession into the summer and wean yourself off cold shoulders simultaneously. We love it when a plan comes together.
