Flip through the latest issue of Gulf Weekly.
According to fashion magazine Vogue, uptown New Yorkers are sporting boucle suits for school runs. But what exactly is a boucle suit and how can we make sure to have this in our closet?
First up, ‘boucle’ is a fabric made of uneven yarn with a looped or curly ply which gives its unique look.
In 1954, Coco Chanel first created the iconic ‘boucle jacket’ made from this yarn and paired it with knee-length wrap-around skirts for this Parisian sophisticated look.
The style was inspired by menswear but was made straight, fluid and boxy. It provided freedom of movement and was constructed with four real pockets and matching braiding. House buttons were then added and then sewn with silk lining and a delicate chain to ensure the jacket fell correctly. This became the essence of the Chanel boucle.
Since its inception it has been reinvented and redesigned every season by Karl Lagerfeld at Chanel and many other designers. Perhaps, you may remember Jackie Kennedy’s pink boucle suit with her pill box hat? It became a part of history because it was what she wore the day her husband, US President John F Kennedy, was assassinated. She refused to take the suit off after it was stained with her husband’s blood, saying: “Let them see what they’ve done.” It is now preserved in a vault in Maryland for public display.
This mysterious and iconic jacket gives a symbol of feminine elegance and will bring confidence to any woman wielding its power.
British Royal Kate Middleton even splashed her royal cash on a Topshop blue boucle jacket with a velvet trim that had many follow her lead with this fashion mantra.
When I started my search I found a ton on these sites: www.asos.com and www.polyvore.com as well as in-store at Topshop.
