It may be 2021, but the way the fashion winds are blowing these days, you’d never guess.
In a return to Regency times, the clamour is for corsets. Is that spoon-licking thirst-trap the Duke of Hastings to blame? No, this is bigger than Bridgerton. The look is enduring and evolving thanks to Bella Hadid, Hailey Bieber and Maya Jama.
Gen Z is making the underwear outerwear, layering crisp white tees under the lace and boning. The effect? Cool, confident, and a liberated break from lockdown loungewear.
Queen of the corset, though, is Billie Eilish. The multi award-winning artist is Vogue’s June cover, dark eyebrows smouldering under newly minted platinum locks, limbs in latex, and her slim frame — once swathed in grungy flowing tees — winched into a golden peach Gucci corset. The new look has been seismic.
The tremors were soon felt over at LYST, which reported a 74 per cent jump in searches for corsets within two days of Eilish’s posts, along with a 42 per cent spike in pink designs. The new power corset may have gathered more fans than a Regency ball, but few are willing to risk an indecent exposure charge wearing it à la Eilish.
Luckily, brands have revised them for post-lockdown pursuits: a blue and white floral number from Valle&Vik (£255) is ideal for long-awaited brunches; Khoeo’s white corset dress (£365) dances between saint and seductress; and SILKED London’s sapphire shirt dress (£350) with its nipped waist is office-appropriate.
Take a deep breath, corset tops aren’t going anywhere.
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