an inVESTigation

Why are vests everywhere right now and how do you wear them??

Last week, Ayo Edebiri once again wore an outfit that made me go: Do I need that??

The look, which consisted of Loewe balloony cargo pants and a suit vest, reminded me of a text my friend Kimya sent me about a month ago on the subject of vests, specifically...

“They’re everywhere,” she said. WHY??

At this point, it’s a trend so ubiquitous that I almost forgot to question it. (See: Rectangular hair clips.) But once Kimya said this, I couldn’t un-see them.

The suit vest started to pop up again a few years ago when the Kardashians and the Hadids of the world decided to wear them out regularly. Brands like Saint Laurent and Celine sent them down the runway, Kallmeyer and Attersee made them a cult staple, and Frankie Shop, COS, Staud, Posse, J.Crew, Banana Republic, Alex Mill, etc. quickly made them available to the masses. By April 2021, the Tiny Little Vests (TLV) phenomenon had been officially cemented by

Liana Satenstein

at Vogue. Unlike other trends, though, the TLV just won’t quit. “I Can’t Escape This Vest,” wrote

Emily Kirkpatrick

in May on the Cut. When I searched “vests” on Net-a-Porter today, I got 294 results.

I decided it was high time I launched my own little investigation. Why are so many women wearing suit vests again? And more importantly, how the heck are they pulling them off??

To get some answers, I put out a call on Instagram, and the response was overwhelming. I didn’t realize you guys had so many feelings about vests! Some of you hate the trend and think it’s o-v-e-r. Ruined by Dimes Square and straight women, as always. But for the most part, people seem to feel good about the look and are curious to figure out how to make it work for themselves, which is rare.

“I think it’s a natural backlash to athleisure and how lockdown loosened our wardrobes,” says vintage guru Blythe Marks of the Great Vestaissance. “But the way I often see vests worn, like on Ayo, is a way to microdose tailoring. She wears hers with baggy (and very chic) cargo pants, not a blazer or tailored trousers. You get just enough formality to have some delicious tension—even leaving a few buttons open at the bottom feels rebellious. We all want to be Diane Keaton, don’t we?”