How to dress like a grown up with Shane Watson

Maxi style in summer’s swish new skirt length

Sometimes you don’t quite know if something you have a yen for — fashion wise — is a good idea, until you see it on a woman who a) looks stylish, b) is older than 46. So, imagine my delight when a woman whose age I’d put at roughly 50, glided past me wearing the item of clothing I’ve been weighing up for months, wondering if it’s nostalgia, or good fashion antennae that’s got me hankering for a maxi skirt.

I’m well aware that not everyone loves a long skirt. For many women they’re too patchouli oil and joss sticks, and better left behind in the mud of their first pop festival.

People think they’re unflattering and impractical; they drag in the dirt and soak up puddles and, even when they don’t, they’re hard to walk in. None of this has to be true, but even so, I get it: the case for long skirts on people old enough to have worn them first time around needs making.

So here goes: First of all let’s deal with the flattery issue. For a long skirt to be flattering it must be hip-skimming, narrow A-line, and not too full. I would say no to gipsy tiers — which add volume and girlishness, neither of which is good for us — but sometimes, in the right cut and fabric, they can work, so keep an open mind. The simpler the skirt the better is the rule, so no wraps or ruffles; these are fine on a hot holiday, but not for a skirt you’re wearing every day, whenever you want and (useful forward planning alert) in the winter with boots.

And no to splits. Splits are the midlife woman’s curse; you try on a perfectly nice dress and yikes! Turns out it’s a full leg flasher or even a double leg revealer and about as much use to you as a boob tube.

A wrap skirt that is split to the waistband to aid movement —and not an open seam — is just OK for the real world.

Now to the question of the nostalgia trip. You can avoid looking like you’re wearing Woodstock fancy dress by avoiding all retro references: no waistcoats, or bellsleeved T-shirts or cork wedges and no floral coronets (just kidding). For everyday Summer 2020 a crisp fitted plain shirt is the best accompaniment to a maxi skirt along with trainers or slides. The effect we’re after is ‘Ah that looks fresh and different, and quite Danish’. That said, don’t be tempted by white, that’s too Timotei ad.

As for the slanderous idea that maxis are impractical, they’re really not, provided the fabric is light and flowy (steer well clear of denim) and you wear them an inch or two off the ground, which is the way to go this time around. A glimpse of foot keeps the mood light and youthful and stops it from looking like evening dress.

For everyday Summer 2020 a crisp fitted plain shirt is the best accompaniment to a maxi skirt along with trainers or slides. The effect we’re after is ‘Ah that looks fresh and different, and quite Danish’. That said, don’t be tempted by white, that’s too Timotei ad