After last week’s foray into the tricksy world of velvet, this week I’m back to a fabric that I’m a lot more happy with; leather. Ever since Angelina Jolie wore that leather shift on the red carpet, the world seems to have woken up to the idea that leather isn’t just for bikers and perverts.
Leather dresses, skirts and accessories are everywhere for winter and whether you do head-to-toe leather (probably unadvisable) or wear it with lace and velvet for a very on-trend texture overload, it’s time to get squeaky and embrace leather.
Fitted Leather Biker Jacket
$75, luckyvintageseattle @ Etsy
The search for the perfect vintage leather jacket is an arduous one. It’s really hard to sift through the leatherette nastiness, over-tassled 80s disasters and boxy men’s sizes to find something that works for you. This slightly fitted example looks just about perfect to me. It has a decent amount of detailing (zips, tassles, buckles) but hasn’t crossed over into Cher territory.
Leather Headband
$24, maybel5 @ Etsy
If you ignore all the Wiccan stuff in the advert, this leather headband is pretty cool. Going down the old ‘tough/gentle contrast’ route with pretty little pink flowers and leaves made out of grr aggressive leather, this neato garland can be worn tied around the head or anyone else that takes your fancy.
Stud Leather Dress
£100, Topshop
This Topshop best-seller ticks all the boxes. Body-con, studded, leather… oh my! I guess you’d have to be pretty confident to carry this off but the less brave could easily wear it with woolly tights or some kind of sheer top to make it a little less overtly sexy. I don’t really think I need to say it, but heels are obviously a must with this number.
Plain Leather Gloves
£15, Marks & Spencer
I got this gloves for Christmas last year from a surprisingly stylish in-law and can officially give them a thumbs up. I’m all for studded biker gloves and the like but sometimes a lady needs some tasteful driving gloves, even if she doesn’t drive. These are warm, stylish and go with absolutely everything. Also, when you’re carrying loads of bags home from the supermarket, they stop your hands hurting.
Black Noir Organic Leather Pencil Skirt
£230, ASOS
If a leather dress is a little too dominatrix, how about a leather skirt? I love the fact that this style has stretchy side panels too – having squeezed myself into a few leather skirts over the years I reckon this can only be a good thing in terms of comfort. FYI, Bllack Noir (sic) is the diffusion line of Noir, the uber-glam ethical clothing line.
Fringe Waistcoat
£75, Miss Selfridge
Leather and fringing go together like tea and crumpets or jelly and ice-cream… or something more rock ‘n’ roll maybe, like Jack and coke. Anyway, they’re meant for each other and this jacket has zoomed straight to the top of my want list for the new season. I’d wear this with anything. The only thing I probably would avoid would be leather trousers, but even then I’d still be tempted.