Why This Season's Leggings are Too Glamorous to Save For The Gym
Published in The Daily Telegraph, 8th December 2018
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/fashion/style/seasons-leggings-glamorous-save-gym/
It's the garment that you can wear to the gym, meet a friend for a coffee in and, according to this season’s runways, party in too. Initially made from leather or chain mail and worn by men under their cotehardies during the Renaissance, leggings have been around for centuries but it wasn’t until that Fifties that women began wearing iterations of their own.
Audrey Hepburn started a style revolution when she wore a pair of slim, cropped black trousers in 1954’s Sabrina, encouraging a string of women to follow suit. But it wasn’t until the invention of spandex that the first Lycra leggings were created in 1959; designers including Mary Quant and Emilio Pucci quickly paired them with mod-style shift dresses.
When Olivia Newton-John wore a pair of skin-tight shiny black leggings in Grease in 1978, they transformed her character from girl-next-door to “bad Sandy” – a bona fide member of the Pink Ladies. In the Eighties, Madonna was cavorting both on stage and in her video for Like a Virgin in leggings underneath tulle dresses. Meanwhile, Jane Fonda teamed neon-hued versions with slouchy leg warmers for her aerobics videos.
On the catwalks, Jean Paul Gaultier chose futuristic silver, while at Kenzo scarlet leggings were worn with sheer plaid printed skirts. During the Nineties with the emergence of grunge, leggings were shunned as ripped tights and denim took over.
Then came the 2000s It Girls and suddenly capri leggings – as worn by the Olsen twins and Sienna Miller – were trending. American Apparel created thicker, disco-style shiny leggings, while jeggings (jean leggings) were worn by everyone from Kate Bosworth to Beyoncé in 2009.
For 2018 designers are giving them a glam makeover. Tom Ford showed wet-look, animal print and sequinned leggings, while Victoria Beckham paired stirrup versions with oversized parkas.
At Balenciaga, Richard Quinn and Marine Serre they came with feet attached (akin to tights). And they are showing no sign of disappearing next season, with Karl Lagerfeld pairing cropped leggings with neat jackets at Chanel. In real life, team with slightly oversized knitwear and slingbacks to avoid workout connotations.
