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Denim Maxi Skirts Are Back in Style, Says Vogue

They’ve long been a sartorial staple for observant Jewish women

by
Stephanie Butnick
November 06, 2014
(Shutterstock)
(Shutterstock)

“Frum girls everywhere rejoice,” Jewcy contributor Shayna Weiss tweeted Wednesday, with a link to a Vogue article titled, “The Denim Skirt—Mini or Maxi—Is Back and Better Than Ever.”

The article extolled the oft-overlooked virtues of the humble denim skirt, in both its teeny-tiny above-the-knee iteration and its longer, flowier cousin. But for many observant Jewish women, the denim maxi skirt has long been a reliable sartorial staple—it’s the fashion magazines that are only now catching on to its utility.

As Dvora Meyers wrote in her 2011 ode to the jean skirt, “In a culture where jeans and T-shirts are de rigueur, the denim skirt allows observant women to fit in while still adhering to the laws of feminine modesty.”

Vogue’s embrace of the denim maxi skirt is the most recent example of fashion industry insiders touting more modest styles—looser fits, longer cuts, and higher necklines, for starters—all of which has made it easier for Jewish women to reconcile the Jewish principle of tznius, or modesty, with the latest trends.

Still, it’s Vogue, which means that while the skirts showcased in the article might be tznius-friendly, they’re not exactly budget-friendly. Their featured Junya Watanabe Patchwork denim midi skirt, which has bits of flannel mixed in with the denim, sells for $1,315, and a Saint Laurent Denim Patchwork A-Line Maxi Skirt costs a cool $1090.

Maybe next season.

Stephanie Butnick is chief strategy officer of Tablet Magazine, co-founder of Tablet Studios, and a host of the Unorthodox podcast.