The ‘trendy’ fleece you wear to school drop off is just a hideous 90s throwback – I’m horrified they’re back in style
ONCE the enemy of fashion, fleeces have made a shock comeback – but not everyone’s a fan.
Here our fashion experts debate whether they are a style crime or a must-have.
HOT
Says Abby McHale, Deputy Fashion Editor
I HATE to say it, but I’m a sucker for a trend and have fallen hook, line and sinker for the fleece.
An item that was once reserved for walking your dog, pottering in the garden and worn by geography teachers, they were certainly never considered “on trend”.
But, after being embraced by celebrities such as Katie Holmes and Vogue Williams, they have made a comeback. Not only that, they have officially been made cool.
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And what’s not to love about them? They are comfy, practical and, most importantly, warm.
Plus, they don’t have to cost a fortune. You can pick one up from Primark for as little as £7.
Marks & Spencer’s latest Goodmove collection features some great patterned varieties, and I love Irish brand 4th Arq’s half-zip fleeces so much that I already have them in multiple colours.
While they may be the answer to all my problems during the winter months, not everyone in my house is a fan.
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“How can you get away with wearing something like that?” my boyfriend exclaimed when he saw my teal patterned Columbia fleece. “It looks like the Nineties threw up on it.”
He had a point. This particular fleece does look only one step away from having the dreaded wolf on it.
Sales boost
“It’s fashion,” I clapped back as he shook his head, bemoaning the fact he would never get away with wearing one.
But he is wrong. Fleeces are just as fashionable these days for men as they are for women.
Yes, I am a total cliche. I wear mine mainly at the weekend for pottering around the house, doing my weekly food shop and heading out for a walk.
But so what? They keep me warm, they are easy to throw on and go, and are so comfortable.
I have started to wear them with jeans, for when I need something a bit more “dressed-up” than loungewear.
I may even be tempted to wear one to the office
Abby McHale
I may even be tempted to wear one to the office.
And I’m not alone, because 4th Arq had a 102 per cent boost in revenue year on year thanks to its best-selling half-zip fleeces, which have consistently been selling out since the launch two years ago.
So while some people may not be a fan, I think I look good in a fleece.
And if I remember rightly, my geography teacher was a pretty stylish lady too.
NOT
Says Clemmie Fieldsend, Fashion Editor
WHEN I think of fleeces, a standout style comes to mind: The wolf.
You know the type — plastered with one of the fearsome beasts howling from a mountainous snowscape, or silhouetted against a moonlit skyline. Hardly screams fashion, does it?
While fleeces might be practical and have come a long, long way (even designer brand Miu Miu has a £1,750 sold-out style) I can’t shake the image of those market-stall designs that littered the high street of my hometown.
Last year, the soft pile came back into the fashion fold when modern-day It Girls Kendall Jenner, Kaia Gerber, Gigi Hadid and the like all started wearing them.
Actress Florence Pugh was spotted, main picture, left dashing between Paris fashion shows in a cream-coloured, Borg style made by French brand Patou, with a £890 price tag.
But while Florence looked good in the deep-piled jacket with matching separates, I couldn’t help thinking: “Sure, in a £900 outfit, skipping through Parisian streets, we’d all look good.’
But unfortunately that is not the reality. Canine fleeces aside, other styles don’t have a fashionable reputation either.
I remember dads and tweens wearing garish, brightly coloured patchwork versions in the 1990s. Or they would be worn by uncool teachers on school trips — and be mocked mercilessly.
Sad attempt
They are also frequently found on the backs of National Trust park rangers and camping enthusiasts. Essential wear for them, of course, but for looking good? Not so much.
To my horror, fleeces are now pitching up on the high street again
Clemmie Fieldsend, Fashion Editor
To my horror, fleeces are now pitching up on the high street again.
Once, only trendy types embraced gorpcore — wearing outdoorsy clothing in urban settings.
But now everyone from M&S to H&M is jumping on the bandwagon.
It has reached its peak, and the cool types have been replaced by the average Joe making it untrendy and over-saturated.
Gen-Zers wear theirs for the 20-step skincare routine, overpriced coffee dates and to the office.
Meanwhile, yummy mummies are slipping them on in a sad attempt to look “cool” on the school run.
Without knowing it, the masses jumping on board what once was a novel trend have reached peak Borg-dom.
Even Jenner and Hadid have stopped wearing them, now that us normal folk have adopted the look in our droves.
Be it from Patagonia or Primark, my advice is this: Give the fleece a miss.
COSY UP TO HIGH STREET FAB FLEECES
WANT to stay cosy in the cold? Pick up one of Deputy Fashion Editor Abby McHale's picks for the top fleeces on the high street.
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