Hailey Bieber just wore an outfit that took me straight back to my indie sleaze days, and boyyy am I here for it. The ever-cool Rhode skincare founder brought back a style staple that's been chilling in the corner of my wardrobe, nearly forgotten about, but now I'm running to go dig it back out as we speak. I'm talking about the XXL, too-big vintage leather biker jacket, aka everyone's favourite going-out coat from their uni days.
You know the one: you got it for a tenner at a charity shop during freshers week, and the more beaten up it got, the better it somehow looked. F*ck paying for coat check, this was the jacket you could just shove behind a speaker while you danced all night. Beer spills and scuff marks only added to its coolness. It was the perfect pillow for naps home on the night bus. And it went with every single outfit, so it eventually became a sort of year-round fashionable security blanket after you left home.
Hailey's jacket one million percent has that feel: it's got the *perfect* crimson red contrast lining, which we can see because the too-long sleeves require rolling up, obv. The hemline falls mid-hip (crucial), and the soft shoulder seams spill over to her upper arms. It's the jacket every indie front-man wore, and the exact one we were always hoping to thrift. Still are, TBH.
One eagle-eyed commenter thinks the jacket might actually be from Balenciaga's Pre-Fall '22 collection, and if that's true, we wouldn't even trust coat check with it, we'd be guarding it with our lives all night TBH. To bring the look from 2012 into 2022, Hailey styled it with a modern centre parting, her go-to socks and loafers combo, and tiny rectangular sunnies.
What do you think, is this jacket bringing back the mems for you?
This is one HB outfit we'll definitely be recreating.
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Maddy Alford is the Fashion Editor at Cosmopolitan UK and Women's Health UK, covering fashion content online and in print. Maddy specialises in shopping galleries and first-person reviews of the best fashion buys, from jeans and jewellery to wedding dresses, gymwear, and winter coats. She also writes op-eds on on pop culture, viral fashion moments, travel journalism, fitness, and the LGBTQ+ community's relationship with style. Maddy is also a fashion stylist who has worked on over 100 photoshoots at Hearst, including those starring Raye, Niall Horan, and Lena Dunham. Previously, she has worked in fashion PR and e-commerce, including stints at ELLE US and UK, Net-a-Porter, InStyle, and Time Out New York. Maddy has ten years of experience in the fashion industry in both London and New York City, after graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism. She is passionate about second-hand shopping, inclusive fashion, running on Regent's Canal, and finding London's cosiest pubs.
