Preppy

How to wear spring's preppy look

  Spring's perfect preppy look at Paul SmithFresh as a February breeze, this month's favourite trend is brilliantly easy to wear. The preppy look - shorthand for boyish, clean-cut, collegiate-inspired style - is balm to all those tantalised by, but unable to successfully pull-off, the body-con trend of skin-tight dresses, and who want to mark the new season with a new outfit or three.

Three piece sweet
At the top end, the triumvirate spearheading spring's revisit of this classic Anglo-American look is formed by designers Paul Smith, Margaret Howell, and newcomer Richard Nicoll. All three are turned on by traditional fabrics and pronounced tailoring, and (in the case of veterans Smith and Howell) never seem to tire of something nice to do with a pinstripe. All three can teach us how to wear the girl-meets-boy-and-steals-his-clothes look, with aplomb.

A two piece suit can be your starting point. If you have the legs, skip the trousers and occasional pencil skirt on the rails, and go straight to the tailored shorts. Choose a pair with turn-ups and team with a crisp white cap-sleeved blouse. Add a shrink-fit striped blazer (as at Paul Smith Women) and hey presto, you are officially working the school boy look, which always look cute and sexy. Depending on age, destination, and time of day, you could plump for some ankle socks and winkle pickers (Luella is all over this iconic flattie this season) to inject a bit of a mod edge, white gym pumps or one of the updated heeled versions on offer, or some stacked tan-coloured heels. Loafers are a traditional part of the preppy look but can be a little too 'real' on most women, rendering them the equivalent of a chastity belt.

One trend fits all
If your tummy is a bit yummy (as in full of cakes rather than a defiantly flat post-pregnancy stomach), wear the jacket or blazer loose and boxy in a tribute to Woody Allen's perma-tousled Annie Hall. Do similar with the shirt - bigger, looser, unbuttoned - and wear out. Rolled up sleeves also work well in this riff on the masculine-feminine dynamic. Shorts for the blessed, as discussed. Or neat, narrow trousers work very well with an anti-fit top half, but if you don't have the rear for those, take Howell's trademark swishy pants (or this season's culottes) as your cue. As you would expect from a look that originates from uniforms, fitted tank tops and pullovers abound, but give them a wide berth unless you're streamlined; a man-sized cardigan will do the same job.

If you're dressing up, take a tip from Richard Nicoll and look for a dress that's actually a jacket (his version has jaunty, giant buttons) and skims all your fault-lines, or pump up the volume with a pair of ultra comfortable, triple-pleated MC Hammer pants that are nipped in at the ankle and therefore perfect for showing off your best and highest shoes. Simple.