The Skirt-Over-Pants Trend Doesn’t Have to Be So Intimidating

First up is someone who regularly wears the skirt-over-pants look (and well!) — Palestinian-American podcast host and fashion influencer Noor Elkhaldi. Noor told Teen Vogue, “wearing skirts over pants, or layering in general, has been a major element in my personal style for as long as I can remember. I rejected the idea of not being able to style a piece as a hijabi and quickly became a fan of layering skirts over pants for personal modesty — but also because it just looks cool and instantly makes an outfit more interesting.” And she already has her perfect fall outfit picked out — “I can finally wear a vintage knee-length denim skirt I recently found over a pair of extra-long blue jeans.”

Fellow fashion influencer, Nawal Sari, who is known for redefining modest fashion, says the look is “nothing new to hijabis who wore the look in the Y2K era and early ‘00s.” She continues, “we learned to layer through all the trends that come around, and now [the skirts over pants look] is back and I’m loving it again.” Sari shared her methods to styling the look, “I would style the trend in two ways. First, I love the look of a super micro skirt over pants as if it is a belt, because it adds extra coverage and looks so cute. I also love a midi skirt with more fitted pants; it reminds me of a certain Disney premier look.”

Stockholm-based style blogger, Lydia Tsegay is drawn to simplicity in style and draws a lot of inspo from the streets. “I love the skirt over pants trend because I think it’s a look you can pull off in any season. I also think it gives the look of you being creative with your clothes.” Tsegay has a method for the look, “I personally wear the trend in two ways — with a pair of tight fitted trousers and a midi skirt with a split in the front, or a loose fitted skirt with straight legged trousers.” She has seasonal tips too! For summer, “I would match it with a basic tank top” and for winter, a “loose sweater or blazer.”

Indian fashion and beauty blogger Shraddha Singh aka @shrads agrees that “fashion always comes back” and loves the trend. “For Indians, it’s nothing new as we wear Kurtis over pants/jeans.” Shraddha feels that there are no rules when it comes to styling this trend and it is more about “having fun and experimenting.” In terms of her tips to style it? “If you wanna slowly ease into it,” she says, “you could try a monochromatic look — keep the two pieces in the same color family. Strong fabrics like linen/leather might look good as well and it’ll give the illusion that the pieces belong with each other. Finally, keep the accessories really minimal so the look is the focus.”