The buzziest piece from the Prada catwalk for autumn isn’t one of the embellished coats or a jewel-coloured quilted bag. Instead, it’s a simple white singlet, distinguished with solely a classic Prada triangle front and centre, as worn on the runway by Euphoria’s Hunter Schaffer.
This wasn’t the only brand where a gym class-worthy white vest appeared: similar designs were seen at Chloe and Bottega Veneta, where this simplest of simple items was paired with an equally no-fuss pair of mid-blue straight leg jeans. It’s fair to say elevated basics like this are having a moment - even in the most glamorous of environs. See the Oscars red carpet, where both Uma Thurman and Zendaya spurned gowns for crisp white shirts. Keeping it simple suddenly seems very stylish indeed.
If these classics are always in fashion - so much so that the industry refers to them as ‘perennials’ - the move from everyday wear to spotlight piece is striking. Perhaps it’s down to the legacy of normcore, the 2010s fashion aesthetic that lionises the unremarkable. Or perhaps, after a few years of turmoil, we're looking for sure things in our wardrobes.
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'Our customer loves brands that are reliable and those that they can trust,' says Libby Page, senior market editor at Net-A-Porter. 'For the classics they’ll turn to Saint Laurent, Totême and Joseph [while] The Row designers, Mary-Kate and Ashley [Olsen] are the queens of luxe basic dressing.'
These labels have a cult-like fanbase, and this way of dressing also brings to mind the work of another cult designer - Phoebe Philo, whose female-friendly minimalism is set to return to the fashion fold this year. Whichever designer provides your chosen take, it’s essential to add your own stamp. 'If you want to update your existing basics then styling is key,' says Page. 'The small details are never to be underestimated.'
French stylist and influencer Sylvie Mus provides a masterclass in wearing elevated basics. Her Instagram feed is dominated by singlets, white shirts and much-loved Levis 501 jeans. Mus recommends adding a new colour or a different layer to make these pieces pop, but it’s a sparing attitude, one Philo might approve of, that is her secret. 'I’m very inspired by women with smaller wardrobes who always find new ways to rewear and style what they already have instead of re-inventing their style every season,' says Mus. 'Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy was a great example of this type of style philosophy.'
Mus could also look to the writer Joan Didion, and her famously minimal Packing List from 1979. With fewer than 10 items including 'two jerseys' and 'one pullover sweater', the capsule - designed to provide a 'deliberate anonymity of costume' - remains a lesson in the power of stylish simplicity more than 40 years on.
5 Ways To Style The White Tank
If you only invest in one piece this summer, welcome the plain white vest to your T-shirt drawer, which promises to only get bigger and better come autumn.
DO DENIM
The simple white tank and jeans combo opened the show at Bottega Veneta, setting the tone for the new easy, laid-back mood. Wear the jeans low-slung and baggy for maximum impact.
TOTAL WHITE OUT
Acne and Bevza kept things fresh by making white tanks the focal point of all-white ensembles. Did someone say Balearics?
TAILORED THAT WAY
Smarten up the tank with an oversized leather jacket and blazer à la Hailey Bieber and Bella Hadid. Try in leather ala Maryam Nassir runway for added oomph.
SKIRTING THE PARTY
Follow in the footsteps of Kaia Gerber and Hunter Schaffer at Prada, who made the tank party-ready with sequinned skirts and sheer dresses.
LEATHER LUXE
Look to Rosie Huntington-Whiteley for a lesson in elevating this basic to super-luxe levels. Paired with buttery leather trousers it takes on a life of its own.
