How much we like men in skirts

Damiano of Maneskin said he feels twice as manly when he wears makeup or a skirt. For Harry Styles, on the other hand, the skirt is a new form of masculinity, and he does not hide his love of it by wearing it on magazine covers or on stage. But a new wave of men has elevated it to the cult garment of the season, from Robert Pattinson and Lucien Laviscount at the Paris fashion show or Oscar Isaac and Ismael Cruz Córdova on the red carpets. All, perhaps, thanks to Brad Pitt, who wore it for the cover of Rolling Stone in 1999 and who, surprisingly, during the promotional tour of the film Bullet Train had chosen to wear a skirt, abandoning the classic Hollywood big star outfits to which he had accustomed us for years.

Yet if we think about it, Greeks and Romans have always worn pleated fustans as a sign of virility, and the Scots have made the kilt their symbol of pride since the 16th century. Sean Connery every day, Russell Crowe in The Gladiator, Sex and the City's Trail MacDougall, and the more current Halbrand (Charlie Vickers) in the TV series The Lord of the Rings-The Rings of Power have certainly made it visually very sexy in women's eyes. But it doesn't take the small or big screen to confirm the theory. After all, Samantha Jones herself taught us in the SATC era: women like a man in a skirt because it ignites the imagination that, even according to Coco Chanel in the 1920s, makes a relationship start more intriguing. AKA it's the rule of attraction: the more chaste the look appears, the more freeing it makes one to imagine what lies underneath. And so, in short, we are back to talking about the man and his intricate relationship with the skirt. Only, unlike two years ago, when Harry Styles was flooded with criticism from haters for his light blue dress, today everyone is in favor of the skirt boys. Only question: will we see as many boys and men in skirts as happened with the woman in suits, or will it be a passing trend? But before coming to a conclusion, let's go in order.

History and customs of the first men's skirts

Perhaps not everyone knows that in 2003-practically 20 years ago-at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, in New York, the exhibition Bravehearts: Men in Skirts was starting. An exibition that addressed the theme of how women drew from men's wardrobes and the difficulty in implementing the opposite. Yet the skirt seems to be the exception. After all, designers such as Jean Paul Gaultier, Vivienne Westwood, Dries Van Noten, and Alexander McQueen were among the first to use it as a means of introducing a novelty within men's fashion. And that, in order to break the monotony, they had presented it precisely as a means from the end of transgressing social codes, wanting to redefine masculinity and approaching what today is the theme of genderlessness. But the skirt, men, simply gave it up as progress progressed, somewhat like what happened with the color pink, initially masculine then "swapped" for blue. Except for the hippies who, in the 1970s, associated the skirt with the utopian society in which they wanted to live, where there was no gender distinction or even a symbol of masculinity, as was the case in Ancient Greece. But what about the kilt? Here is the most enduring, powerful and versatile garment exception that has remained unchanged over the years. Indeed, it is even a rock and roll sign. See, for example under Boy George, Adrian Young of No Doubt and Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

The latest sightings we loved: Robert Pattinson and Lucien Laviscount

At Dior, the Batman actor stunned by wearing, we might say surprisingly, a gray pleated tweed skirt paired with his ever-present amphibians and a faux fur jacket. More pop, on the other hand, was the choice of Emily in Paris' Alfie, all dressed in turquoise for the Louis Vuitton show, wearing a pleated maxi shirt paired with a wool sweater and casual sneakers, again in candy crush colors. But the two boys were not the first: Brad Pitt, at the premiere of Bullet Train last July, was elevated to fashion icon status thanks to a candy-colored linen skirt. But as we told you, this was not his first time: back in 1999, for Rolling Stone magazine, he had stunned with sequined skirts and sheath dresses. Also beautiful was the red carpet version of Oscar Isaac, at the premiere of Moon Knight, and Ismael Cruz Córdova, among the protagonists of the TV series The Power Rings, both dressed Thom Browne in a tailored skirt paired with an equally elegant jacket. The strange case of the skirt also struck Italy: Mamhood wears it often, Maneskin as well. And even Sangiovanni had succumbed to the allure of this garment at the Sanremo Festival. 

Will femboys will legalize the skirt as a garment for men as well?

A trend, that of the skirt, which inevitably could not fail to land on TikTok as well. With the hashtag #boysinskirts, find guys with their looks in which the mainly college-inspired skirt is the key element. A model of masculinity that goes beyond the idea of stereotypical wardrobe or gender identity. This doesn't surprise us: the Zs just like to be that way, free even to wear a skirt and conquer boys and girls indiscriminately. So to the question, will the men's skirt become a new street style element? Posterity will be the judge of that.