Since its vintage heyday in the seventies and eighties, suede has completed its cycle and become fashionable once again cropping up everywhere. Suede, in every form, now features in every high street shop and on the designer catwalk, with Chanel and Derek Lam even daring to do double suede for their spring shows. It is official; suede is on its comeback tour!
Despite the fast growing trend and popularity in 2015, I could never get over how seventies suede really did look. I can’t tell you why, but suede is just a fabric that I couldn’t make myself like – it seemed difficult to piece together in outfits and its stiffness made it uncomfortable to wear. Whenever I saw anyone wearing the ‘classic’ suede skirt I thought they had borrowed it from their mums old wardrobe of clothes, along with the fringed handbag, ready for festival season. But suede has become so readily available it isn’t even a novelty throwback piece anymore, just a brown skirt you have to be careful about wearing anywhere you go.
My stubbornness against suede had prevented me from realising how much suede had changed. It is no longer just associated with the toffee colour your parents remember, suede has demonstrated its seasonal versatility: the warm weather saw pastels, neutrals and bright suede accessories and as we move back towards the North West’s permanent state of wet and windy weather (despite Lancaster’s weather trying to trick freshers otherwise with a surprising week packed with sunshine) the autumnal and burnt colours translate well to suede jackets and skirts.
And really, suede can be fairly easy to wear. It doesn’t need to be a vintage look, keep it simple and make it modern. Suede can be an easy-to-wear statement piece, you don’t need to have a bright colour or an out-there pattern to liven up your outfit; the different texture will make the piece stand out. I have always thought I would struggle to make suede suit my more casual style but it can create a good contrast, it’s unexpected and therefore interesting. On Monday mornings when you really just want to be comfy, a knitted jumper paired with a suede skirt will dress up your look with no hard work. And if you have decided to dress up, an oversized suede jacket can give you a relaxed look. Suede works for almost every occasion, so why did I struggle with it?
So I finally bit the bullet and bought myself some suede shoes to ease myself into the trend, and I honestly love them! I am able to transform casual looks into being more dressed up with a change of shoes. However, in Lancaster’s wet weather, I think I’m going to have to keep them hidden away until next summer unfortunately.
Make the most of this throwback piece, pack it with colour and experiment with how you can incorporate it into any of your looks!
