How to Wear Leopard Print

It doesn’t take a scholar flicking through fashion’s history books to know that leopard print has been worn by almost every self-identifying ‘glamour puss’ – excuse the clichéd turn of phrase – under the sun. From Josephine Baker and Eartha Kitt, to Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and her daughter-in-law Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, and the models walking in Azzedine Alaïa’s A/W91 collection, the big cat print reigned supreme in many a 20th-century wardrobe. Lest we forget Scary Spice, who practically turned out nothing other than big cat-inspired ensembles. 

But sporting head-to-toe leopard print needn’t always be a sartorial throwback – after all, just last week Another Man creative director Alister Mackie’s launched a new project titled The Leopard featuring many contemporary iterations of the fabric. Here, as first seen in AnOther Magazine’s A/W18 issue and photographed by Sam Rock, fashion editors Agata Belcen and Nell Kalonji demonstrate six ways you too can modernise the look. 

1. Onesie (above)

This faux-fur jumper dress by Junya Watanabe will keep you just as warm and cosy as a onesie would, but without looking like you’re going to an 18th birthday party at Camp Bestival. 

1. Cowboy boots

Tuck your trousers into a pair of cowboy boots, mount the saddle and off you go. A leopard riding a horse... Now there’s a thought. 

3. 1980 meets 2018

The huge shoulders on this A/W18 Gareth Pugh coat do just the trick for up-to-date 80s glamour. 

4. Costume 

At the risk of looking too costumey, we’d usually say avoid a leopard print jumpsuit at all costs. Unless it’s one of the many high-fashion iterations around, like this one by Roberto Cavalli, paired with a silk shirt. 

5. High-waisted

A high-waisted woollen trouser can never go amiss, even in leopard print. 

6. Sharp suiting

Ah, the Tom Ford suit. What could possibly be more a desirable piece to own? Oh wait, a velvet leopard version worn with a matching roll-neck, that’s what. 

Hair: Kiyoko Odo at Bryant Artists. Make-up: Nami Yoshida at Bryant Artists using Le Mat de Chanel Apotheosis and Le Lift by Chanel. Model: Veronika Kunz at The Squad Management. Casting: Noah Shelley at AM Casting. Set design: Janina Pedan at The Magnet Agency. Photographic assistants: Jack Symes and Alessandro Tranchini. Styling assistants: Rebecca Perlmutar, Chloe Grace Press, Camila Paiva, Joseph Ecorchard and Kristina Bagdonaite. Set-design assistant: Ksenia Pedan. Production: Carmel Dione Reeves.

This story originally featured in the Autumn/Winter 2018 issue of AnOther Magazine which is on sale internationally now.