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journalism → support → readers
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we → purchase → commission
Recently, I met some friends for Sunday lunch.
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I → meet → lunch
All of us were wearing oversized shirts.
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All → wear → shirts
In truth, I almost hadn’t changed out of my dog-walking clothes for the occasion.
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I → change → occasion
So I was mollified to see that all four of us had dressed as though we were about to paint a bathroom, in an assortment of clothes that a Surrey banker might label as “man-repelling”, despite never having heard of Leandra Medine.
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banker → mollify → Medine
The following weekend, I went to a couple of fashion shows.
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I → follow → shows
I looked along the front row.
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I → look → row
All of us were wearing oversized shirts.
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All → wear → shirts
That is, those of us who weren’t were wearing oversized coats, boxy T-shirts, baggy knits or tops so shapeless that no adjective exists to describe them.
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adjective → wear → them
While no fashion editor is going to rock up to a show in Look 15 from Dilara Findikoglu, the wilful slouch of it all was something to behold.
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editor → go → it
We didn’t know them.
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We → know → them
Lockdown ended years ago, but its baggy nonchalance remains.
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nonchalance → end → ?
Body-conscious dresses, cantilevered cleavages, high heels, thigh splits and naked shoulders seem to belong to a bygone era whose figureheads were Elizabeth Taylor and Sofia Loren.
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figureheads → seem → era
Now, clothes swallow the body instead of tracing it, and if you turned up at the office dressed like Loren you’d stick out like a very sore (albeit very sexy) thumb.
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you → swallow → thumb
Somewhere along the way, “sexy” has become a dirty word — and not in the smutty sense.
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sexy → become → sense
Instead, it’s become the worst of all things: passé.
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it → become → things
To dress in a traditionally sexy manner is to try too hard, as if your low-cut top is spritzed with Eau de Desperation.
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top → dress → Desperation
How did we get here?
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we → get → ?
Let’s start with Phoebe Philo, whose XXL aesthetic — giant blazers, slouchy trousers — relishes concealment and has been hugely influential since its 2023 launch.
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aesthetic → let → launch
Labels like Philo, Toteme and The Row (and more affordable brands like Aligne, Jigsaw and Cos) do a stellar job in wardrobing women who want to look smart and office-appropriate, but in a way that also signals their fashion credentials.
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that → do → credentials
Whatever happens on the catwalk, I don’t think women will ever go back to the “sexy secretary” look.
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women → happen → look
We now prize comfort and ease, two qualities that were previously only allowed to be enjoyed by men.
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that → prize → men
What’s perhaps more seismic is how this message has trickled down to Gen Z.
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message → ’ → Z.
teens and early twenties are traditionally when you reach the giddy heights of sexy dressing: you’re young, confident and blissfully unaware of cause and effect.
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you → reach → cause
It’s why, as an 18-year-old, I was often asked, “How much?” when I waited for my friends on a street corner en route to the club.
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I → ’ → club
But today’s teens are all-too fully versed in the dire consequences of baring too much flesh, thanks to constant messaging that being a woman who “flaunts” her body is less of a vibe and more of a danger.
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who → verse → danger
Even the word “flaunt” is negative, as though a pencil skirt or bodycon knit comes with an inherent invitation.
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skirt → come → invitation
It doesn’t, of course — except it’s all too often interpreted that way, sadly.
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it → interpret → course
They might not yet work in an office, but my own teenage daughters have already adopted a baggy uniform of their own.
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daughters → work → own
Jeans and sweatshirts worn several sizes too big are the best way of avoiding hassle on the street.
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Jeans → wear → street
Given that said hassle started when they were 12, you can see why dressing to look desirable feels more risky than risqué.
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dressing → give → risqué
No wonder Gen Z cycles through character-led microtrends like Tomato Girl and Coastal Grandma.
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Z → cycle → Girl
Looking interesting feels safer than looking hot.
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Looking → look → ?
The backlash against sexy
That is also partly why lingerie has changed on the catwalk.
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lingerie → change → catwalk
The most progressive designers play with the tension between underwear and outerwear, pairing a bandeau bra with a tailored jacket, or a stocking with a sensible shoe, as at Prada.
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designers → play → Prada
Any potential sexiness becomes diluted and deliberately jarring.
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sexiness → become → ?
Read More
To dress in a traditionally sexy manner is to try too hard, as if your low-cut top is spritzed with Eau de Desperation
It’s yet to be confirmed whether Anthony Vaccarello, creative director of Yves Saint Laurent since 2016, is leaving, as the rumour mill would have us believe.
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us → read → 2016
If true, it’s another death knell for sexy.
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it → ’ → sexy
Regardless of what was in fashion, Vaccarello could always be relied upon to serve up a slutty little number or three, be it a leather pencil skirt, satin cami shorts or a lace bodysuit slashed to the navel.
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it → rely → navel
…and 9 more, not listed.
The Aporia
