The question mark over pink is no longer about whether real men can wear it; it’s about whether real women can. Being relaxed about gender norms is terrifically 2015, after all. A man in pink is smart and modern, as is a woman in a navy double-breasted jacket. Pink-for-little-girls is at best a cliche, at worst a societal evil to be campaigned against. Pink for big girls, meanwhile, suggests you are either immature (as in, a bit old to dress like Barbie) or out-of-date (as in, a bit young to dress like the Queen Mother).
Fashion has dodged this question by whitewashing pink to a rosy neutral and rebranding it “blush”. Blush has become the acceptable face of pink, a pink to save your blushes. If bright pink is the commercialised, commodified colour of femininity – think of Marilyn Monroe singing Diamonds Are A Girl’s Best Friend in her high-shine fuchsia frock – then a dusty, plaster-of-Paris off-pink is the acceptable arthouse alternative.
In To Catch A Thief, Grace Kelly wears a pale pink sleeveless top and matching full skirt, with a silk scarf at the throat and white gloves. In an ideal world, that is how I would like to look in pink. The effect isn’t sugary, because the lines are sharp and the outline crisp and simple.
So, yeah, look like Grace Kelly: that’s my helpful advice. Failing that, try this: pink – any shade, from Schiaparelli’s trademark Shocking to sensible salmon – works best when styled without fuss. The colour stands for prettiness and decoration, so ribbons and bows are overkill. Buy pink in stores you wouldn’t associate with pink. Cos does great pinks, not just because the shades are soft, but because the minimal, cool aesthetic works well. Pink looks more modern in boxy or draped shapes than in tight or tailored ones. And while it works well with all the of-the-moment neutrals – with grey, with black and with olive – it can also be chic worn from head to toe, so long as you follow the draped-or-boxy rule. Marilyn was singing about a girl, remember; and this is pink for grown-ups.
• Jess wears top, £30, riverisland.com. Skirt, from a selection, jcrew.com. Fringe heels, £68, topshop.com.
Styling: Melanie Wilkinson. Hair and makeup: Laurence Close at Carol Hayes Management.
