Are Legs Out?

Things of paramount importance between the months of May and August: watermelon juice, sunglasses, swimming pools and denim shorts.

Denim shorts in particular are like a second domestic dwelling center (or, the artist formerly known as “a house”) in that we (we, right?) live in them. The vintage kind known to flourish behind much better-known brands at fast-fashion depots like Urban Outfitters are typically favored, though not unanimously accepted as The Best Shorts Ever.

Make no mistake though, the BSE exist. This is understood. Some of us have located them while others haven’t. If you haven’t, you know that the pursuit is often relentless, and if you have, the supposition is your life is perfect.

They’re just easy, you know? And as reliable as a good therapist. They’ll likely never fail you nor will they fight with you. They’ll watch you grow older and more mature and therefore less interested in the debauchery of denim underwear but they’ll also remain loyal and faithful, optimistic for their day of redemption.

Or that’s the hope at least, because something unusual is happening. As I sit here and type in black high waist jeans from H&M and a sparkly ass top from the same place, I look out the window at clear blue skies and hear from my left that it is “so hot outside.” This news is thrilling but it makes me wonder why in the good name of Levi Strauss I’m wearing long pants. Furthermore, I should ask why I’ve been wearing them, or long dresses or skirts or culottes — not short-shorts — almost everyday for the past two months. Does this just come to show that the perfect cut-offs also fall victim to the plague of Want What I Can’t Have Syndrome, or is there a larger mechanism about the way we’re currently experiencing fashion at play?

Are legs out of style?

Designers who have seen substantial success from their young brands such as Rosie Assoulin, Isa Arfen and Tome have all surreptitiously renounced the proliferation of minis in favor of larger-than-life balloon pants, skirts and dresses. Even those famous for their leggy threads — think Balmain or Anthony Vaccarrello — have spent the last few seasons testing the trouser waters, and if the resort presentations of June were an indication of anything to come from the imminent Spring season of September, the likelihood is high that the Best Shorts Ever might very well be on their way to a state of hiatus. Only festival season will tell.