Harry Styles’ Influence on Fashion
Harry Styles. His influence in the fashion industry is undeniable.
From suits, to skirts and dresses, sweaters, and flare pants. He has worn it all, breaking down gender roles and toxic male stereotypes along the way.
I should start off by mentioning that his style wasn’t always so bold and daring.
As a die hard Directioner back in 2010, and still to this day, one of the first outfits I remember seeing Harry wear was a purple Jack Wills hoodie and khaki pants with a panda bear beanie.
This outfit might not be high fashion, but did I want a Jack Wills hoodie when I was nine years old even though I had no idea who or what Jack Wills was? Yes.
Now that I’ve addressed one of the most iconic outfits of 2010 worn by Harry himself, let’s move on to some of the outfits that have turned the fashion industry upside down.
We saw Harry on the cover of Vogue in December of 2020, the first solo male cover the magazine has ever printed, wearing a light blue dress with ruffles and a black blazer over top, and his iconic "H" and "S" rings.
Harry received tons of backlash over this cover shoot because he was pictured wearing multiple dresses and a skirt in the pages of Vogue.
Although he is known for stepping outside of the box when it comes to fashion, this photoshoot disregarded any and all male stereotypes that have long prevailed in the fashion industry.
Some readers of Vogue and members of the general public had an issue with what Harry wore for the shoot. Many of these remarks stemmed from the idea that dresses are meant for women, and people were offended that a man would wear a dress or skirt. The phrase “bring back manly men” circled around for a while, demonstrating just how angry people were at Harry Styles for wearing a dress.
I just have to say, it’s not that deep. Anyone should wear whatever they feel comfortable in despite what people may think or say about it. Wearing a dress does not determine one’s gender or sexuality and at the end of the day, they are just clothes.
By being on the cover of Vogue wearing a dress, Harry Styles helped in opening up a whole new world of fashion and leveled the playing field by bridging the gap between ‘men’ and ‘women’s’ fashion.
Since his solo career began, Styles has been seen at red carpets and performances wearing suits in all different colors and styles (no pun intended).
We’re all thinking it, so I’ll just say it. Harry can pull off any suit in any pattern or color. I’m usually not a fan of floral or checkered patterns but these ones just work.
Pre-solo career some of his outfits included black jeans with a patterned shirt or t-shirt. It is safe to say he has stepped out of his comfort zone and for that, I’d like to thank his stylist, Harry Lambert.
In some of the photos we see Harry wearing a tie neck blouse peeking out underneath the suit. Usually we see these blouses worn by women, but pairing them with a suit adds an element of interest. Once again demonstrating that clothes are just that, clothes.
Breaking the stereotype that certain clothes are ‘meant for women’ is important, and not many celebrities have shown this in the past. Harry, however, embraces it.