Something I love about the 2020s fashion trends is that skinny jeans and jeggings are slowly being phased out. While some people still cling to their skinny jeans (and the jeans cling right back), I’m so pleased to see a return to boot-cut jeans, wide-leg jeans and more ‘90s/retro cuts. It’s a welcome reprieve from years of skinny jeans being the only option. Still, the Princess of Wales loves her jeggings and skinny jeans. Or she would love them if she had been seen at all in the past four months. In Kate’s absence, the Mail is doing business-as-usual with their weird “everything Kate wears is perfect, because she’s Kate” coverage. These are placeholder articles with a dark twist these days. Like, even if Kate was out and doing events, they would have run this article. But because we’re talking about an MIA princess, it feels a bit sinister. Still, everyone loves talking about jeans, right?
Skinny jeans have divided opinion for some years now, with Gen Z and a number of fashion insiders declaring skin-tight denim to be officially over. Yet, today, the noughties throwback – which was first made famous by Kate Moss in 2005 – is clinging to the calves of celebrities and models on the catwalk and making a polarising resurgence.
After a decade of loose-legged comfort, where the dominant jean styles have been both wearable and comfortable, skinny silhouettes are trickling into all the new-season collections, from Miu Miu to Saint Laurent and Alexander McQueen. There may be sceptics, but the Princess of Wales is certainly not one of them. She’s famous for her pristine dress coats and pointed pumps, but Kate Middleton is also a pro when it comes to something you might not necessarily expect from a future queen: jeans.
Remaining loyal to the skinny jean throughout her royal life, she has demonstrated the value of staying true to your own personal style, keeping them as a staple in her wardrobe. Never turning her back on the slim silhouette, she has toyed with straight-legs and flirted with flares but with her 5ft 9in frame the skinny jean gives her body shape, structure and form in a way that other denim styles do not.
‘The Princess of Wales has a timeless, beautiful style,’ says Donna Ida who has been hailed as a jeans genius and is the creator of her eponymous denim brand. ‘She has great legs and skinny jeans fit so well and accentuate her shape. It’s always great to celebrate amazing features.’
This is so dumb – Kate has worn jeggings for years because she honestly believes they’re appropriate work-wear and because she (wrongly) thinks they’re flattering. With her long-waisted frame, she should actually go a high-waisted straight-leg-cut. Kate has never gotten “pants” right – remember when she tried to copy Meghan but Kate was just suddenly wandering around in capri pants constantly for several months? But I digress. If and when Kate comes back, I hope she ditches the skinny jeans and jeggings.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Backgrid, Cover Images, Instar.