Welcome to Reality Check: a new regular franchise from the ELLE fashion editors that asks: how well do the season's biggest trends really work in the wild? This week, we’re unpacking the idea of the polo shirt being this summer's It-item.
On a school trip in 2008, my friends and I stumbled into a department store to be greeted by a two-for-one offer on Ralph Lauren Polo polo shirts. While my friends picked up his-and-hers sets for their boyfriends back home, I opted to instead purchase two for myself. One was turquoise, the other bright pink and for a short while I layered and loved them. But then, like most, I was over the preppy mood and so these polo shirts have remained in the back of a drawer unworn but not forgotten for over 15 years. Until last week.
It was then that I decided it was time I pulled them out and put them on again. Yet a random act of sartorial spontaneity this was not. Instead, it was a read of hints and influences that have each been in praise of the polo shirt's return this summer. I'd love to say that I'd kept them knowing that this moment would soon come, but it's more likely that they took up space for proving that always being the single one has ulterior rewards for perhaps the first time.
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Anyway, back to my point: the polo shirt is back. Yes, really. And it's an instant way to swiftly upgrade your wardrobe to feel right now, right now. Think of it in the same vein as last year's obsession with ballet pumps or frilly hair accessories. Sure, the polo shirt doesn't have the wear-everywhere ease of a pair of trainers or a statement hair tie but it has the same ability to instantly upgrade an outfit with a fresh 2024 sensibility.
The return of the polo shirt as a veritable fashion piece — rather than something worn for golf or as a part of a uniform — started on the catwalk at the spring/summer 2024 shows. Here, a legion of designers pitched for their convincing return with Loewe, Celine and Gucci amongst the big-name brands sending out their own sporty-ish pieces for the season ahead.
But it was Mrs Prada at Miu Miu who truly cemented their spring/summer 2024 return. Of her collection's 62 looks, over 35 included a polo shirt. Here, they were worn largely shrunken, layered under and over shirts and with beach board shorts and shoelace-tied frou-frou mini skirts.
Next season, the trend is set to continue with Simone Rocha, Emilia Wickstead and Stella McCartney showing them amongst their autumn/winter 2024 collections, each elevating the top with a fresh sense of elegance.
When it comes to the polo shirt, the catwalk gives good influence but it's how it's been worn by the style set that has convinced me further. Like the eternally well-dressed Paloma Elsesser. She swapped the catwalk to sit front row at Miu Miu's show, proving exemplar in how to wear the button-up style right now. For her — and soon for me — it's about pairing the look with ladylike staples that bring it easy polish. A Miu Miu pleated skirt and kitten heels, perhaps. The polo is best worn slightly shrunken with that ladylike skirt slung across the hips, rather than at the waist, for a more modern approach that stays clear of appearing too retro, too twee.
Another way to wear the polo shirt is sure to be pulled into focus with the arrival of the Amy Winehouse biopic, Back to Black, hitting cinemas on April 12. The late musician was perhaps the polo shirt's most famous contemporary wearer, loyal to Fred Perry and wearing hers with ballet pumps and skinny jeans or worn-out denim hot pants. This approach also has legs today but leave the beehive behind for it all appearing too costumey. We're paying homage, not playing Stars In Their Eyes.
The polo shirt might appear humble, but this season it picks up a fresh power that's easy-to-wear, accessible to purchase and rare in being undeniably comfortable. I'm in! Join me.
Polo Ralph Lauren Knitted Polo Shirt
Tommy Hilfiger Curve Flag Embroidery Polo
DKNY Short Sleeve Cropped Polo
Burberry Cotton Polo
Benetton Polo Shirt
Fred Perry Classic Polo Shirt
Saks Potts Serena Polo Shirt
Tory Sport Cotton Pointelle Polo
Miu Miu Cotton Polo Shirt
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