Triumphant return of the leopard print
WE CONSIDER THE TRENDS FROM PODIUM, which can be adapted for your wardrobe for the next six months. In this issue we understand how the leopard print has become the main trend of the pre-fall collections, has lost all its connotations with a bad taste and is ready to easily fit into a modern wardrobe.
How it all began
Perhaps you would never want to know, but in the period from the early 20s and up to the 60s of the last century, fur coats, hats and other accessories with leopard prints were not a skillful imitation - the designers of that time used quite real skins for themselves . Today it is impossible to imagine that the first lady can wear wild animal fur. But in 1961, cult Hollywood designer of Russian origin, Oleg Cassini, developed a leopard skin coat model for Jacqueline Kennedy. And it only caused delight - women tried to copy her images, which almost resulted in an environmental disaster. Leopard print can be seen on all the divas of the time: from Audrey Hepburn and her hats in the movie “Charade” to singer and actress Carmen Miranda and her stage costumes and, of course, Marilyn Monroe.
The first signs of social responsibility consisted in the refusal to wear fur of rare species - and the development of technology gradually made it possible to switch to artificial fur, which became more and more pleasant to look and feel. Due to this, an exotic print on outerwear in 2016 is associated exclusively with faux fur, and the thing from the real skin of a wild and rare animal can be found only in antiques dealers or in rare vintage stores. But even if moral dilemmas are set aside, it is extremely difficult to take care of and preserve such items.
Leopard print has become so common that it turned out to be a whole topic for research. Joe Weldon, a writer and author of a book about burlesque, came to the conclusion that people have worn an animalistic print for several centuries, both to create eccentric, deliberately luxurious and impractical images, and to demonstrate power and strength - for which one should thank the cliches about cavemen wrapped in skins. This pattern has other connotations - defiant sensuality and sexuality on the verge of (or beyond) debauchery. We can recall how the graduate’s costume designers used it to create the image of the seductress Mrs. Robinson (by the way, this role has tarnished the reputation of print for several years).
However, this did not prevent aggressive stripes and stains from returning to fashion once every five years, and in the 90s the print became part of the DNA of some brands like Roberto Cavalli, Alaïa or Dolce & Gabbana, appealing to underlined conventional sexuality and emancipation. But besides them, other designers regularly recall the leopard print, showing it on the catwalk: from Burberry to Michael Kors, from Gucci to Acne Studios. The last loud insanity on the pattern could be seen in the 2000s - as an element of a luxurious and redundant style, not knowing half measures.
How leopard print back to fashion
Over the course of a century, the leopard print threw itself from one extreme to another: from couture and aristocracy to associations with the nouveau riche and vulgarity. The massive return of the leopard print is coming right now: its abundance in the pre-autumn and autumn-winter collections is a sign of fatigue from the dominance of minimalism. Coats with leopard prints - both light, which can be worn even on a cool summer day, as well as warm, solid - can become a relevant purchase now.
In the lookbook of the Stella McCartney Collection, leopard print is the basis of the basics. The theme is supported by live cats, participating in the shooting on equal roles with models. For example, the brand should try to combine the leopard print with other fashionable things that designers have shown for several seasons in a row, including olympic sweatshirts, cropped flared pants, silk pajama shorts.
Rochas are betting on the elements of the traditional “girlish” style: leopard print on midi skirts and voluminous jackets were packed into the company with sharp-nosed shoes and neat bows. This collection gives a positive answer to the question that Forbes magazine once asked: "Can I wear a leopard print for work?"
If any dress code in your life is completely absent, you can use the combinations spied on by Alexander Wang. With a leopard print there is still the same coat, but with it belt bags and bombers. Outerwear with a characteristic pattern also released Sonia Rykiel and Maison Margiela.
What to wear
Despite the fact that by 2016 the leopard print lost bad associations, it is still better to handle it. If you go all-in and dress up in a "leopard" from head to toe you are not ready (although why not), choose small accessories: a hat, a belt bag, socks, and backpacks. And on the beach - a swimsuit of an unusual color or a chic towel.
All trendy things c leopard print, like shoes with stable heels, bombers, pajamas, culottes, do not require complicated styling and will not cause rejection. Combining them with other prints is difficult, but with simple monochrome things - the very thing.
Be careful with hypersexual things: netted tights, high heels, corsets and other signs of the dashing 2000s. If the mod for velor costumes Juicy Couture in a modified form returns, it does not mean that you should find in the closet your old one, which you last wore at school. The same with the leopard print: the original Roberto Cavalli blouses should be left until they can be considered as "vintage". There are some fifteen years left.
Photo: Alexander Wang, Calvin Klein, Universal Pictures
