Belts are back!
Photo: Who What Wear
As a fan of Casual Glamour with a predominantly pared-down wardrobe, I’m always looking for an accessory or eye-catching detail to boost the basics. Perk things up a bit. My everyday (meaning I wear it practically everyday) khaki jumpsuit is big, baggy and a bit breezy now we’ve finally moved into autumn. I’ve been meaning to have a rummage through my belt drawer for an old khaki leather belt from Jigsaw – one that I usually wear with a military jacket – to get a grip on the gusty-ness. This shoot in the latest issue of Gentlewoman magazine is a belter. Um.
Emmanuelle Alt is a noteworthy belt-wearer. Always effortless, always the epitome of Parisian cool, always a chic, narrow black leather belt:
Photo: Who What Wear
Photo: eonline
Not forgetting Michelle ‘When they go low we go high’ Obama. Strange political times, all round. Most unsettling. When terms ends, please come over here and sort things out. Time to belt up:
Discussion (25 Comments)
P says:
Love belts but this waisted cinched look makes me look like a balloon tied in the middle. I am curvy enough without the belt ( ie breasts, waist hips – not fat)
Always been a fan of tying a belt in a knot around my waist. Don’t know why, just like it.
Marilyn says:
Sigh! When I was a ‘skinny minnie’, I loved a belt. Alas those days are past… so to avoid the ‘sack of potatoes tied around the middle’ effect, I’m with Anna and Susan B, I’ll let this trend pass me by.
vanessa arran says:
Great for those who are not short waisted or a little rotund around the middle. Surely carrying a little extra weight around the middle is something that older women often mention as an unpleasant and unwanted side effect of menopause. I would have thought tying a belt around it only adds to the sack of spuds look. Just saying!
Pat says:
Happy to say that I have lost enough weight that I am excited by my ages old belt collection once again! Dumped an entire basket of them on the floor yesterday to find a favorite !! They are truly a great outfit changing accessory-
I’m very short waisted, but I do like the look. Emmanuelle Alt looks absolutely perfect in hers. The only thing I am against are conspicuous logo belts (Gucci, Hermes, Fendi, etc). I’m just a little bit bored of everything being BRANDED to death.
Camilla Gray says:
I short-waisted, busty (36DDD), & full-hipped. Not overweight, but not tall & slender.
I wear narrow belts with trousers & jeans, but can’t wear belted coats, etc.
Alas.
Me + belts = Sack of spuds tied in the middle!Zanna says:
It’s a tricky one to get right, I don’t think Emmanuelle Alt is looking her best in the quilted jacket and belt.
But the speckly black coat is a different matter, just up my street !
Where can I find a coat as nice as that for a sensible price please ?I find a lot of tops ad jumpers too long and have taken to belting them ,my fluffy wool Humanoid coat came with a belt but it looks like a sack of potatoes belted.
Jennifer says:
What a coincidence! I was looking at myself in an oversized tunic this morning and thinking, “Would this be better with a belt?” and fighting my resistance to wearing one (my being short ~ sack/potatoes syndrome) when my iPad barked at me and there was this article. Am I now forced to go and find one and try it on? I think so.
Jannike says:
thankfully I still have a waist so I love a good belt on a dress to give things some definition. As my father always said, “emphasize the positive.”
Rosamund says:
Love this style, especially the coats. I prefer a bit of shape/tailoring to loose and drapey.
Another short-waisted voice here, wearing belts, but very cautiously. , , These are all great looks, but dangerous to copy without serious consultation with a mirror. . .
Jane says:
I used to love a belt when I still had a waist. Sadly, age has stolen it so my belts are now redundant.
Anna K says:
I’m the wrong shape now to wear a belt as a ‘top layer’ but I often wear one under an overshirt, a sleeveless cardigan or some other top layer. People see the front of the belt under the top layer and assume there’s a waist there!
And well said The Sequinist about over-branding. Belts with a high-end logo – and a break-out-in-a-sweat price tag – a total rip off! There are wonderful, high quality, well-made, interesting non-logo belts for a fraction of the price.
Yvonne says:
I am long waisted so really enjoying the comeback of high waisted trousers and skirts. Great selection of belts and especially like the blue suede belt.
Kathy says:
I’ve been looking for the “right” belt for a few seasons. I’d heard the top belt that you see so often on EA is actually a men’s St. Laurent?
Mrs Tonia says:
I’m inclined to agree with the majority of these comments. I too suffer from looking a bit like a sack of potatoes in certain belted outfits. When I do wear them it’s the narrow sort in trouser belt loops or on a waisted fitted dress they look okay. Sometimes I tie a dress with a soft black silk sash from another outfit. Working to keep waist fat down at an advanced age is an uphill struggle. I do sit-ups and aquaerobics which help somewhat. For your new book Alison please don’t just feature styles which look good on the slim with waists. Getting chunkier around the middle happens to many as they get older. How not to look dumpy and matronly poses a real problem.
Joanna says:
I never stopped wearing belts with trousers or jeans. I have a couple of long sweaters without buttons and on a chilly day it would be nice to have them belted together to keep me warmer while still stylish. I’m all over this trend.
Hello Again,
I sympathize with Mrs Tonia and other short waisted middle age women which is why I started my dress line. Tall slender women can belt them, but shorter curvier women wear them untied. The above the knee length prevents them from looking matronly. My website currently shows the dresses a little too short, but my new collection, available to wholesalers now, shows the length correctly.
I really hope you will allow me to send my new line sheet as the lament of the short waisted middle aged woman (who is otherwise fit and with it) not able to find fresh, chic and youthful clothing is a constant refrain, rarely addressed.
maudie says:
I am relieved to learn that most of us appear to lose our waists as we get older. Mine is way bigger than it used to be but I still manage a general hourglass type shape (just a bigger hourglass!!). In the colder months I love wide leg long woollen/tweed trousers and cropped cashmere cardigans worn with a nice belt. It makes my long torso look shorter and relatively shorter legs appear longer. Gives that lovely 1940’s vibe without looking ‘vintage-y’.
ShoeQueen61 
Nancy 
Lynda 
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Fine if you’re slim!