Animal prints: Are they for the WOACA?
Beryl and Jane it has to be confessed bring a certain amount of emotional baggage to this autumn's animal prints. They have often fought shy of them with their overtones of Bet of The Rover's Return and latterly Teresa May not to mention their reputation as a signifier of loose morals in fifties B movies. Jane can only find a trusty faux fur winter coat and a pair of brogues in her wardrobe, while Beryl has shoes in every animal print from antelope to zebra but very few actual clothes. Can our WOACAs conquer their fear of beastly animal prints? Are there really some options out there which make them feel good? Read on...
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| Class? |
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| Or brass? |
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| Jane: Edina Ronay coat £60 (sale) Beryl Top Shop £45 (sale) |
Jane and Beryl are here auditioning for Cats - neither of them got a part, astonishingly - but these coats are the only bits of leopard in which they feel glamorous, warm and aren't black Puffa jackets.
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| Lilly and Lionel maxi dress £100 in sale |
Beryl isn't really planning to ride this bicycle in her Lily and Lionel dress, the acres of polyester would get caught in the chain and she would end up arse over tit in the first hedge. This works on our Beryl because those clever people at Lily and Lionel have combined great shape and styling with an up to the moment print. Result? Beryl feels elegant but not frumpy.
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| Dress £49, bag 29 , both Top Shop, shoes Uterque 80 euros |
Beryl is dabbling with three snake prints here. This, the assistant assured her, is the dress of the season. Beryl thinks that the snake is a tad more sophisticated and easier to wear than the leopard. Do you think leopards are sick of feeling tartier than snakes?
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| Pretty Ballerinas £60 (sale), jeans DL 1960 £180 |
Key stage one of animal print wearing is the accessory - Teresa May is a case in point. Leopard has a reputation as only really being wearable with black, but Beryl also lobs it on with brown, gold, orange or cream, and especially red...
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| Bag Whistles £165, shoes LK Bennett £265 |
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| Beryl's burgeoning animal shoe collection |
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| Wrap around top Whistles £59, shoes LK Bennett £265 |
Jane was reluctant to heave her post holiday (for which read 'fat') physique into anything body hugging, especially something covered in leopard spots: after all, why would you? And oh, how right she was to be cautious - this wrap around number from Whistles was nice quality but emphasised her bazoongas in a most unpleasant fashion. Nil points, from Jane. However, those nice ladies at the LK Bennett concession in Camp Hobson in Newbury, found Jane these fab-u-lous mules - comfortable, with a heel, stylish...what more could she want?
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| Wallis dress £32 |
Lets face it, the animal thing can look a bit cheap and what Beryl's mother might have referred to as 'common'. This dress £40 minus 20% discount is sadly proof of her wisdom. Jane and Beryl are discovering that the way to combat any hint of the tacky
is to spend more money to get a classier looking fabric and better cut.
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| Top Wallis £33 |
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| Top, Oasis £24 |
Apropos of the above, guess which group these fall into? Budget or expensive? Not too hard to tell, eh? The large abstracted pattern is a bit of a giveaway, (left) as is the thin clingy fabric (right).
This Whistles' outfit is proof of the 'pay more pudding'. The shirt at £99 is expensive, but gives Beryl that glamorous grown up vibe which she seeks.
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| Coat Red Herring £69 |
What Jane really, really wants is a replacement for her leopard fun fur coat (which is falling to bits). Although she liked this one from Red Herring, she feels that this is not The One. However, in VFM terms, it's not a bad buy at £69, with its red under collar detail.
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| Shirt Mint Velvet £69, necklace £29 |
Jane and Beryl's Star Buy
Jane is just beginning to despair that she will ever find anything that she can bear to put on her back in an animal print, when this shirt hoves into view. Again, its subtler print attracts her along with the back detailing. She tries it on in a size bigger than normal (16) which takes away any hint of the too tight - always a sure fire way to make a garment look tartier than it needs to be.
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