Hey everyone! For all those who were unable to read my article in the October issue of Femme Magazine, I decided to share it here for you to view. Remember you can read all my previous article for the magazine, as well as other things I've written, over on my Press Page here. Enjoy!
Whereas most of the people at my school would either despise going back to school after the Summer recess, or else look forward to it solely for the socialising-related reasons, I was always the little kid wanting to savour the smell of my new set of copybooks, waiting to try out my new everyday school hairstyle and, most of all, longing to wear that plaid uniform I so much loved sporting every morning. With designers like Marc Jacobs, Moschino and Givenchy choosing plaid as their pattern of choice for Autumn and Winter 2013, I now have the chance to recreate that'well plaid' feeling every day, and well, I plan to do it often.
It's very hard not to fall in love with the plaid coats sent out on the catwalk chezMarc Jacobs, 3.1 Philip Lim and Versace. Moschino's plaid blazers were out of this world, just like Saint Laurent's plaid dresses and cardigans. Iconic, I must say. The plaid trend is so varied in terms of pieces and structures, that it leaves us open to multiple interpretations. Yet when I was asked to identify the piece that would best suit the needs of my budget-conscious readers, I quickly retorted with 'a plaid shirt'.
Two main reasons crop up when I try to explain why a plaid shirt is the best way of hopping on the plaid bandwagon without breaking the bank. Firstly, you can easily spot checked shirts at traditional Maltese markets for around a fiver. In comparison, the average price of an almost identical garment on the high-street is €20 or €25. More than that, it's the incredible wearability and versatility of the item that makes it stand out as the ideal budget queen plaid piece. Even if you were to spend a bit more on it, you would get the most out of the cost per wear factor as it can be paired with an endless number of combinations.
Unless you were living in a hole during the ninties, you would know that plaid shirts were the 'it' item of the decade. People would either simply wear them with their jeans - mainly those of a distressed kind - and just head out to run their errands. You could also try to channel the nineties by tying your shirt to your waist: it adds that nonchalant feel and it works like a charm as an added detail.
A preppier way of walking down the plaid shirt route is to layer it under your favourite jumper and then maybe add a skater skirt of your choice. Some brogues maybe? Oh, and since we're talking layering, I just love putting a plaid shirt over a top and underneath a blazer or a trench as an extra layer. It adds warmth and interest to your overall look!
A natural tendency when we transition to Autumn is to carry a cardigan with us just in case the situation gets slightly too chilly to handle. I suggest swapping that for a flannel plaid shirt, not only because its equally as warm, but it's also trendier and more daring. Don't be afraid to pair with with other printed pieces, it will give your outfit that fresh, youthful twist we all appreciate and like to see. Checkmate.