What is it about pencil skirts that make them the queen of all skirts?
- Their tight fit?
- Their sensual appeal?
- Their eye-catching allure?
- All of the above.
If you answered number 4, congratulations! The pencil skirt works for all women, in many different ways.
A pencil skirt is a slim-fitting skirt with a straight, narrow cut. Generally the hem falls to, or just below the knee, and is tailored for a close fit. It is named for its shape: long and slim like a pencil.
A true pencil skirt will hug the waist, fit tight around the hips and thighs, and stay sung at the knee or below. Straight cut skirts or a flared hem doesn’t fit the definition of a true pencil skirt.
The pencil skirt may be worn either as a separate piece of clothing or as part of a suit. The slim, narrow shape of a pencil skirt can restrict the movement of the wearer, so pencil skirts often have a slit at the back, or less commonly, at the sides. Sometimes a pleat, which exposes less skin, is used instead of a slit.
Pencil Skirt Fashion Tip: Types of shoes that look great and wear well with a pencil skirt are pumps, stilettos with a thin, feminine heel, platform stilettos or tight fitted knee length boots. For off the charts glamour and sexiness? Opaque stockings or fishnets! Meow!
“I believe in miracles, oh where’re you from, you sexy thing, you sexy thing, you?”
Aiming for a preppy, youthful look? Flat shoes or loafers will add a more casual, “prep” vibe to your outfit. But hey, this is me, Nancy Mangano, writing this post, and I am always a lover of high-heels first and foremost.
Pencil Skirt Fun Fact: Narrow-fitting skirts have a long history in western fashion. The predecessor to the pencil skirt is the hobble skirt, a pre World War 1 fad inspired by the Ballets Russes. This full-length skirt with a narrow hem seriously impedes walking.
Pencil Skirt Fashion Warning: If dressed in a truly tight pencil skirt with no slit at the hem, you will be forced to walk in baby steps, taking tiny, delicate steps. If not, you will either rip your skirt or fall forward. However, the looks of the skirt and the buzz from wearing the pencil skirt is well worth slowing down for wherever it is that you are going.
Fashion is never practical…but fashion is always fun! And well worth it!
Pencil Skirt Fun Fact: The French designer Christian Dior introduced the classic modern pencil skirt in his 1954 Autumn Winter collection. (I tip my hat off to you, Christian Dior, as I am a huge fan of the pencil skirt)!
Are you going to a party? A pencil skirt and a crop top is an ideal way to go. Are you going to the office? A pencil skirt with a sensible blouse and blazer is a perfect way to stand out in style yet blend in with business.
The pencil skirt is very popular, particularly for office wear. The beginning of this success was due to women’s desire for new fashions in the wake of the Second World War and Cold War rationing, coupled with the austere economic climate, when fabrics were expensive. Fashion done write in a pencil skirt.
Pencil skirts are sexy and slinky, form-fitting and fabulous, pretty and perfect.
Tips When Wearing a Pencil Skirt: When on the body, the pencil skirt feels different from looser skirts, and impacts the wearer’s movements and posture. So, if you dare to wear this stunning skirt:
- Walking needs to be done in shorter strides.
- Getting into and out of a car gracefully may take practice.
- When sitting, the tightness of the skirt at the knees will force you to keep your legs together.
- Activities such as climbing ladders and riding bicycles will be difficult to pull off in a pencil skirt. But this may be fun and challenging for the adventurous type.
- The skirt is less likely to be blown up by a wind gust.
- The pencil skirt will keep your thighs warm due to reduced ventilation.
All of the potential calamities when donned in a pencil skirt are well worth the effort, as the pencil skirt is by far the most adorable skirt on the market!
Be a long, lean, pencil skirt wearing machine. A true fashion queen!
Pencil Skirt Fun Fact: A vent or kick pleat in the center back seam of the skirt makes it easier to walk with a normal stride, while preserving the slim line and cut of the skirt.
Flirt silently in a pencil skirt: let your clothes do the talking as you swagger while you’re walking.
Pencil Skirt: Long, tight and a fit that’s just right!
Nancy Mangano is an American fashion journalist, screenwriter and author of the Natalie North murder mystery book series. Visit Nancy on her global online fashion/style/beauty magazine Nancy Marie Mangano Style at https://nancymariemangano.com, her Facebook page Nancy Mangano at https://www.facebook.com/nancymmangano/ Twitter @https://twitter.com/nancymangano and her author website http://nancymangano.com
