Leopard print over 50? Yes, just follow these rules
SOMETHING happens when fashion gets very cool and sensible and stealth-wealthy: in a trice, the definition of ‘status dressing’ becomes a luxe navy polo-neck with grey tailored trousers.
It creates an opening for a really good disruptor — something you can throw on that gives your tasteful minimal separates some teeth and claws.
It could be embellishment (but let’s not volunteer to pay the dry cleaning bill). It could be some high-impact jewellery (but after the great pearls and gold rush, we might pause for a bit).
Or it could be — in fact, it’s crying out to be — a lick of leopard print.
We’ve been bludgeoned with the ‘leopard equals chic not cheap’ message for a while now, so we know how it goes: leopard print can work like a neutral and will blend in nicely with most plain clothes.
Leopard looks classy, so long as the item in question is well cut and not a sheer, flammable barmaid’s blouse with a matching, drum-tight satin skirt. And, last but not least, a bit of leopard goes a long way.
In a nutshell, we’ve learned to tread carefully with leopard for fear of looking too much, too mob wife, or just messy.
Now, though, the message is slightly different. Spring 2024, when calm, collectable everyday separates are the order of the day, has become the perfect moment to unleash the leopard and let it do what it does best: glam up what you’re wearing and add a bit of edginess at the same time.
THE kind of print is allimportant. Too blurry and abstract and it loses its chic potential; if the background is too brown or too yellow it flatters no one; and if, God forbid, the print is in a colour, it becomes funky and something completely different. Don’t go there.
I like a more gingery background colour, because it looks best against my skin, but pale creamy backgrounds are flattering, too, and they go particularly well with the beige and stone shades that are around at the moment.
You can’t go wrong with leopard print when you’re over 50, so long as it’s not too sexy and slinky, nor tight, and so long as you pick tailored pieces. Just remember to wear leopard the way you would, say, navy wool.
A good place to start is a tailored pencil skirt in a pale background leopard print cotton twill (€360, cefinn.com). This will work with a black or camel sweater until it warms up, and then with white, beige or cream blouses or a cropped block colour jacket.
Danish brand Ganni has lots of leopard every season and its print is a good bet, so head there for a longer line skirt (€295, ganni.com).
Still, for my money the best leopard investment is a jacket or short coat, and Sezane’s Noah jacket in a wool jacquard knit with a teddy ribbed collar (€175, sezane.com) is one of those perfect smart-casual pieces. A little bit jacket, a little bit cardigan, it’s just the thing to make your off-white trousers or denim sing.
It’s also worth noting that Dior’s autumn collection (shown in February at Paris Fashion Week) featured short panelled trench coats and car coats in a rich brown leopard print that had the front row drooling — a taste of what’s to come this winter.
If you want to get ahead of the game, Sezane has a thighlength wool and acrylic mix coat le (€330) — the French swear by the glow-up effect of leopard — and H &M has a good short faux fur, also on sale (€53, hm.com).
The bolder the print the better it works as an accent. Belts are a good way to introduce some ‘strong’ leopard (€25.95, zara.com) and Zara also does some faux fur twostrap sliders (€55.95) which will look chic.
MEANWHILE, Sezane has a good range of leopard sandals. But the shoe that really takes my fancy is a chunky high-heeled ponyskin pump with an almond toe (€165), ideal for snazzing up trousers or skirts — and it won’t ever really date.
While I’m not generally a fan of ballet pumps on older women, I’d make an exception for a flash of leopard under some wide trousers. Boden’s Kitty ballerina pumps (€135, boden.eu) are in a good print, or try Hobbs’s in the sale (€69, hobbs.com).
And bear in mind we’re just getting into our leopard stride. Autumn has lots more wild cat prints, on everything from bags to skirt suits.