Twiggy may have hung up her mini skirt but I am not ready to give up my mini at 53
SIXTIES model Twiggy may be hanging up her miniskirt at the age of 75, but Fabulous Fashion Director Tracey Lea Sayer says she’s not ready to put her pins away just yet . . .
Every Christmas I wonder if this is the year I should ditch my favourite metallic miniskirt and relegate it to the charity pile.
At 53, I know a lot of people who probably think I should — mainly opinionated keyboard warriors who aren’t afraid of telling me I am too old to get my knees out.
Well, tough. I always ignore the negative Nancys who think women of a certain age should go quietly into fashion’s Room 101.
Because, frankly, what fun would that be?
M&S has predicted that sales of its minis will skyrocket this season.
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Made famous in the Sixties by British fashion designer Mary Quant and her poster girl Twiggy, the miniskirt was a huge hit among fashion’s It crowd.
Singer and actress Jane Birkin, French cinema icon Brigitte Bardot and feminist writer Germaine Greer were all fans of this cute — but at the time, controversial — new design.
And its popularity has seldom flagged since.
Post-war, the Sixties were a time for pushing the boundaries of, well, pretty much everything, but especially fashion.
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Women liberating their legs and their hemlines, among other things, was all the rage.
As the spirit of sex, drugs and rock ’n’ roll swept the nation, boundary-pushing bands and fearless fashion pioneers were changing the face of culture.
And most of them did it with miniskirts on — or with mini-skirted women strutting their stuff alongside them.
So who are we to undo all their good work and deny our knees their freedom?
I fell hard for the mini in the Nineties.
Fresh-faced and just out of art college, I managed to land a job as Vivienne Westwood’s receptionist.
Young and free
Her designer micro minis were already next-level short, but then Kate Moss made headlines after wearing a teeny-tiny, bum-skimming variation.
Topless and eating a Magnum ice cream, Kate slinked down the catwalk at Vivienne’s SS94 show in a crotch mini — so-called because it barely covered your bottom.
Bum-scraping minis suddenly fell into the mainstream, with everyone from the Spice Girls and Eternal to the “cooler”, more rebellious idols of Britpop’s heyday, such as Louise Wener from Sleeper and Kenickie’s Lauren Laverne, rocking seriously short hemlines.
It didn’t matter if you were into squeaky-clean pop or grunge, minis were everywhere.
I was sold — and ordered a Vivienne one there and then. I felt like a supermodel every time I went clubbing in it.
I still have that miniskirt and although I can barely get one thigh into it now, it is a reminder of a time when I was young and free and loving my look.
This may all sound as though I’m super confident and have always loved my legs.
Actually, the opposite is true — it has taken me years to embrace my pins.
I was bullied relentlessly in school over how skinny they were, which made me hate them, hide them in baggy trousers and even wear five pairs of leggings at once to bulk them out.
But whether it was the attitude of my mentor, Ms Westwood, or the fact it was such a key trend — or maybe a combination of both — I thought: “Screw it, I’m getting my skinny legs out and I’m embracing them.”
Then, during my thirties, when the kids came along, I ditched my designer minis because I barely had time to look in the mirror for a whole decade.
It’s amazing what later-in-life self-awareness, a gym membership and not giving two hoots what people think about you can do for your self-esteem
Tracey
I only rediscovered how much I love miniskirts when I hit my mid-forties.
Maybe it was the menopause, or because I needed to feel like I wasn’t dead yet.
Or perhaps it was the fact that, without realising, I’d finally learned to love my legs after all.
And why not? Considering they’ve carried two kids, trekked across the desert in Oman, can deadlift 40 kilos in the gym and clock around 15,000 steps a day in my busy full-time job, it’s fair to say they’ve been good to me.
It’s amazing what later-in-life self-awareness, a gym membership and not giving two hoots what people think about you can do for your self-esteem.
Now, while I love seeing all the young celebs, influencers and my gorgeous 21-year-old daughter rocking the Miu Miu-style mini this season, I’m more inspired by the likes of Davina McCall, 57, and Jo Whiley, 59, whose fabulous fashion choices and excellent taste in miniskirts have come with age and experience.
Ultimately, it’s what they feel great in.
Still look amazing
In September, Twiggy said: “When it comes to fashion, I don’t like all these age labels.”
But she added that her days of swanning about in “miniskirts and hot pants” are over, saying: “The only time I wear shorts is when I’m on holiday — and they’re proper shorts not hot pants.”
I think Twiggy would still look amazing in a mini but totally respect that she wants to bow out.
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Maybe one day I will too, but that will be my choice and I am not ready yet!
A smidgen of self-love and a splash of self-esteem are all you need to wear your miniskirt loud and proud this Christmas — whatever your age.
