While the fashion world has been bombarded with a flirty 1950s and 60s silhouette (think of Louis Vuitton, Prada, and Dolce & Gabbana), it seems that an altogether sleeker style has shimmied its way up the fashion popularity ladder. Say hello to the suit. While minimalism was certainly making a comeback through Phoebe Philo‘s Celine, Calvin Klein, and Alexander Wang, the suit hasn’t been as popular since its powerful reign in the 80s.
Today’s suits are better tailored to a woman’s silhouette than their predecessors. Cropped pants, jacket sleeves, nipped-in jacket waists, and higher armholes make the suit a piece of clothing that works just as beautifully in the workplace as it does at a cocktail party, evening dinner, or red carpet event. A suit can be broken into pants and a floaty blouse; the blazer thrown on over a dress. And worn together, it’s a look to be reckoned with.
3.1 Phillip Lim Resort 2011 (left) and Stella McCartney Resort 2011 (right)
A myriad of designers have sent spectacular versions down the runway: Stella McCartney, Alexander Wang, Celine, Givenchy and Phillip Lim, to name a few. All of these designers are delivering suits which are designed to show off a woman’s assets and embrace femininity, rather than the 80s version of masculine power-dressing. With a love for androgyny born from Coco Chanel‘s wide-leg pants and sailors’ breton tops, and Yves Saint Laurent‘s Le Smoking, women have returned to the suit, and this time we have a new twist on tailoring to take us into a new trouser era.
