It takes quite a lot to coax my legs out of flippy dresses and into an actual pair of trousers, but slowly, slowly pale denim seems to have seduced me like a sneaky little fox. First came the cropped denim jacket which made love to my floral dresses like a rugged lynx in a field of snowdrops. Next came the button-through apron mini-skirt which let my legs frolic wild and free in the manner of Serge Gainsbourg and Michelle Philip's love-child drinking whisky in a dusky meadow. And then, before my sleepy eyes had even blinked their feathered lashes twice, I found my legs encased (for the first time in months and months) in a *gasp* pair of tight, ankle-skimming, high-waisted, pale, pale JEANS.

Usually, I feel very ordinary in jeans, but the evocative associations of this washed-out hue override any lingering conservatism with countless worlds of beguiling imagery. In my newly trouser-clad mind there are three main pale denim camps to choose from. Firstly, there is the California girl emerging from a 70s record cover; all centre partings, wide-legged jeans, paisley chiffon and beaded charms. Lead her into the present with Alexander Wang denim, dirty Erin Wasson hair, and feathered head-dresses.

Secondly, for those of a more shredded disposition, take an 80s road trip through the dusty backstreets of small-town America adorned in Christopher Kane's creations that walk a feathered tightrope of tacky chic. Let the rattle of your rusty car chime with an old guitar as you dance your washed-out denim jacket and old white blouses into the too-hot sunset.

And lastly, there's the French allure of a gamine pixie that will tempt you into the pale painted realm of new wave films and Chanel. Team high-waisted short shorts with Breton stripes, silver chains, a battered moleskin and an air of petulant nonchalance. Ever indecisive, I will be drifting through summer in the manner of a topless Jane Birkin emerging from a battered van to the hazy sunset of a folk festival strewn with daisy chains...persuasive, non?

Story by Katy Smail.
Lead photo: Alexander Wang

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