Beat the winter blues by wowing in white
OF ALL the months of the year, January is the one when fashion is bottom of the priority list.
Most of us are staying in, hibernating with a Slimfast soup, and the last thing we’re thinking about is new clothes. That said, there isn’t a woman alive who would say no to a fashion fillip if it were as simple as this: wear cream, off-white or white.
You’ll notice I’m resisting referring to this January Blues antidote as ‘winter white’. Although that’s exactly what we’re talking about here — clothes the colour of unsalted butter in the season when we’ve been trained to expect browns and blues — winter white is a concept as off-putting to the average woman as quilted clothing; an insanely impractical fashion suitable only for the super rich who have teams of staff and a dry cleaner in their basement.
But get past this hurdle, accept that you will have to watch the ketchup and use the washing machine a bit more, and you’ve got yourself an instant wardrobe upgrade.
This is partly because you’ll automatically look more expensive. If black in summer is sophisticated, white in winter is chic and confident (it’s not the easy blend-in choice or the most practical, but that’s what scores you style points) and it has impact without any effort.
JUST before Christmas I walked into a party full of fiftysomethings dressed in every type of party finery, and there was one woman who stood out from the crowd wearing the softest cream roll-neck sweater. She looked like an arum lily in a sea of pansies (love pansies, but striking beats common-or-garden pretty at our age). She won the prize for best dressed in the room and all because of her polo neck. Easy or what?
The surprise factor is the other reason. White in dark months is literally a head turner. Three times in recent weeks I’ve had my head turned: once by the party polo-neck; once by a long faux fur Zara coat; and once by an M&S ad for some snow white track pants with a black stripe down the leg (both, sadly, now out of stock). Everything looks more special in white, so something fairly ordinary in the colour can polish up your look like the fashion equivalent of a car wax.
Anything goes so long as it’s simple separates — a sweater, a coat, trousers, or all three together if you’re really planning on making an entrance — though my vote is two-thirds cream or white, rather than head to toe.
What you’re not wearing is a blouse and cream skirt with tights and court shoes, or a puff-sleeved dress. There’s nothing pretty or dressy about this look; it’s sporty, chic, minimal with a hint of fivestar apres ski. Bear in mind you don’t have to match your creams — in fact, it’s better if they’re very slightly different. And don’t bother adding extras like belts and jewellery — they’ll only detract from the creamy luxury.
What’s also important is the quality of the fabric. Avoid sloppy stretchy stuff as a rule, and keep it plain, but take each case as it comes: I had my eye on those smart-looking M&S elasticated viscose pants, which would have looked terrific with a cream sweater and a smart black coat. And if you think all-white is just too much, then a black stripe or trim does help make it more wintery. There’s a Cos ivory polo neck with black stripes from the ribs down (€89, cos.com) which would look great with white jeans.
That party polo-neck was probably made from the rarest cashmere, but M&S’s soft ivory ribbed polo-neck (€32, marksandspencer.com) will do the job or its ribbed funnelneck vest (€23 in the sale).
For me a cream sweater is a no-brainer short cut to smartening up any trousers or jeans — I wore an old Me+Em one over the Christmas break to look like I was making an extra effort — and the less chunky roll-necks make a navy jacket or black coat instantly more contemporary.
Zara has cream coats in all textures and styles — Puffa, sheepskin or elegant wrap. Best of the bunch is an ecru faux fur, double-breasted coat (€79.99 in the sale, zara.com), and I love the faux fur, hooded jacket (€29.99 in the sale), and the smart, wool, wrap coat (€79.99). It also does a highnecked sweater (€19.99) and wide-leg cropped trousers (€12.99) to go with it. I’d go for one or the other.