Farewell to the prime ministerial power dresser
Theresa May was never one to show her feelings, but as she hands over the keys of No 10 to Boris Johnson, Caroline Leaper looks back at what she was trying to say with her wardrobe
THE BOLD NECKLACES
May’s jewellery statements have provided plenty of material for Twitter memes and broadsheet sketches; did that “strong and stable” Amanda Wakeley silver necklace look a bit like a ball and chain? Does she keep her huge collection of Mirta Bijoux’s wonderfully named “Ballsmania” styles in a colourful sweetie jar? May used her necklaces to add punch to otherwise safe outfits, allowing the faintest flicker of her taste to shine through. May has given fashion editors plenty of fodder and, on many occasions, her political wranglings have been inseparable from her image.
In the final year of her premiership, May has toned it down considerably, aiming to banish chatter about her dress sense by wearing the same red, black and blue suits. She might have
THE POWER SUITS
When her Brexit negotiations began, May was having fun with suiting. From the “lucky” Vivienne Westwood tartan suit that she wore to deliver her initial Brexit plans in January 2017, to the modern pinstripe skirt suit by Daniel Blake which she chose to announce the snap general election that April, she was out to play around with the notion of power dressing. It all got more sober but then she resigned in a tangerine two-piece by Blake. Could optimism be back on the agenda? hoped that this would prove boring to write about, however delivering a groundhog day approach to her clothing only served as a parallel plotline to her Brexit negotiations.
If May’s personality and her style have been worn down lately, we can remember that once, a little “fashion fun”
THE ARRIVAL JACKET
Theresa May entered Downing Street on July 13 2016 with optimism. How do we know? Her jacket told us; a limebordered navy coat by British designer Amanda Wakeley, costing £695. It was symbolic of a fresh start, with Twitter fans reacting positively to the fluro choice and praising the new PM for wearing British on her first big day on the global stage. was something that she was quite into. This is a woman who famously chose a Vogue subscription as her luxury item on Desert Island Discs. Now will she be able to freely enjoy shopping at her favourite Henley boutique Fluidity again?
The leopard-print heels, graphic
THE LEOPARD-PRINT KITTEN HEELS
May’s obsession with leopardprint shoes throws back to the Tory party conference in 2002; her “kinky” kitten heels made headlines and, thus, a not-thatnew narrative about liking fashion and having political brains was forever attached to her. Understanding the potential of having a recognisable style signature, May stuck with them all the way to the top, wearing a pair of LK Bennett heels as she took office, and debuting styles by Beverly Feldman, Charlotte Olympia and Russell & Bromley thereafter. jewellery and wacky print coats that punctuated her early tenure have become to May’s caricature what pussy-bow blouses, royal blue skirt suits and outre pearls were for Margaret Thatcher. Thatcher’s style has now become museum-worthy. The power suit she wore to accept leadership of the Conservative Party
THE ‘I QUIT’ SHOPPING SPREE
Since stepping down, the PM’S fashion mojo has been refreshed. She’s debuted a powder blue trouser suit and a zingy yellow blouse. Mirta Bijoux has made her an electric blue necklace that looks more like a children’s game of Kerplunk than a shackle. Just as she’s quickly pushed through a few legacy policies, so too is she scrambling for some last minute entries to her PM style file. Better late than never, right?
THE FRIDA KAHLO BRACELET
In November 2018, it was all about a cuff that the PM was wearing, bearing the image of Mexican artist Frida
Kahlo. In the wake of cabinet resignations and a letter of no confidence from
Jacob Rees-mogg, the press viewed it as a symbol of feminism, strength and a steely determination to carry on.
THE £26 NEXT DRESS
Theresa May has tended to favour expensive suits and designer classics. But, on holiday in July 2017, the PM revealed a secret passion for the high street store Next when she wore a £26 linen shirt-dress with a sandal-version of her favourite leopard-print shoes. May’s love for Next had been first rumbled that January after items she had bought online were left at the wrong address, prompting the recipient to post on social media asking if anyone knew a “Mrs T. May”.