Why we should be going trouser-free in 2024, according to Vogue’s fashion expert

British Vogue’s acting European fashion features director Julia Hobbs says embellished knickers in place of trousers will be making their way off the catwalk in 2024

With the year coming to an end and trend predictions for 2024 emerging, one fashion expert suggests that we’ll be opting for a certain look that’s not for the faint-hearted (or cold-legged).

According to Julia Hobbs, British Vogue’s acting European fashion features director, underwear-as-outerwear is going to be one of the biggest fashion trends next year – no matter your gender.

Rather than lingerie or shapewear, however, it’s knickers worn in place of trousers, as inspired by Italian fashion house Miu Miu, that the uber-stylish will apparently be favouring.

Appearing on Woman’s Hour on BBC Radio 4 on Thursday (28 December), Hobbs explained: “I think what we’re seeing now is a sort of return to very elemental dressing and we’re seeing this revival of a very 1960s look, which is wearing a pair of simple black briefs over a pair of tights.”

The fashion journalist said that the trend – which has already been sported by the likes of Emma Corrin, Kendall Jenner and Dua Lipa – has stemmed from “people wanting to be themselves in how they dress”, and was meant to be “very casual” rather than sexy.

The look represents a “shedding and people wanting to be themselves in how they dress”, she said, adding: “We should feel confident to embrace this… I think it does lean into this attitude of ‘take me as I am’ and feeling great in their own skin and owning it.”

Corrin rocked the look in Venice in September (Getty Images)

The Crown actor Corrin was one of the first stars to popularise the trend, after sporting various trouser-free looks from Miu Miu both on the catwalk at Paris Fashion Week and at surrounding events. They wore a green pair of knitted knickers with a matching cardigan at the Venice Internationla Film Festival.

Hobbs said that “barely a week goes by where we don’t get the celebrity notifications or see on Instagram celebrities wearing a jumper just with a pair of tights or a jacket with a bare leg”.

Jenner went trouser-less at the Met Gala (Getty Images for Karl Lagerfeld)

The look nods to the 1960s when it was popularised by model and Andy Warhol muse Edie Sedgwick. The style also takes inspiration from the sportier outfits of the 1980s, as worn by Lipa in the promotional images for her latest single “Houdini”.

The British singer also opted for a pair of Miu Miu knitted knickers on the cover of The New York Times’ Style magazine in August.

Miuccia Prada’s fashion house has been leading the way when it comes to the trouser-less trend, with Corrin sporting a heavily embellished gold pair on the fall-winter 2023 catwalk. The models following her wore similar get-ups paired with a range of colourful opaque tights.

Commenting on the catwalk, creative director Prada told Vogue at the time: “I love it! If I were younger, I would go out in panties!”