Sweet! It’s top-to-toe ice cream
Treat yourself to sorbetsuits and bubblegum brights this summer
CAST your mind back to last autumn (I know, it seems another world, doesn’t it?). You may recall that co- ords — as in ‘coordinated outfits’ — were everywhere.
From Eighties- style pantsuits, to Fifties-inspired houndstooth midis with coordinating blazers, matchymatchy was most definitely a ‘thing’. by Anna Pursglove
Then came the lockdown style hiatus, which saw spring 2020’ s trends eclipsed by various permutations of denim and jersey.
Not much point in coordinating a trouser when trousers of any kind were completely superfluous to requirements. Now, however, we’re
going through a fashion rebirth of sorts and the co-ord has marched confidently back on to the style scene.
Floor- sweeping trousers have become Bermuda shorts, crops and culottes, while hemlines have migrated to the knee or above.
Velvet, wool and corduroy, meanwhile, have given way to linen and cotton.
As though to mirror this summer’s renewed sense of optimism, the look has been reborn in a rainbow palette of zingy brights and uplifting pastels. Anything from sage to bubblegum pink goes.
The first thing to know about the summer 2020 co-ord is that it is unapologetic. We are not talking in-the-same-ballpark, we are talking exactly the same colour and fabric, top and bottom. It’s extremely sloane-ranger, very Princess Di.
The second thing to know is that matching beyond the suiting is fine. Good, in fact. If there’s a waistcoat to go with the outfit, buy that waistcoat. This is not to say that the look has to be block colour (although it usually is). Checks and stripes are also great, though often harder to wear.
Prints are fine, too, although be careful with exuberant patterns and oversized suiting. Bermuda shorts, in particular, don’t mix well with abstract swirls.
But, if you’re after a post-lockdown style reboot or returning to the office, do consider the co-ord. It’s the perfect headto-toe — or, at the very least, mid-thighto-shoulder — solution.