When it comes to fashion, I’m always late to the party. It was only last year that I decided skinny jeans might actually look better than boot cut. By the time I actually invest in a new fad, it’s already on its way out. I’m kind of like the harbinger of death for any fashion trend.
Which is why I’m surprised that I’m open to one of the latest trends in women’s tennis togs–the tucked-in top. Not that it’s a new trend. Chris Evert and Steffi Graf spring to mind as examples of neat-as-a-pin tuckers.
But for years, the standard has been for the top to be outside the skirt. This seems to lengthen the torso, a plus if you’re short-waisted like me. And depending on the tightness of the shirt, the top-out look can be a bit more forgiving for those of us who don’t look like Chris Evert and Steffi Graf.
The tucked-in top emphasizes the waist and lengthens the legs–all good things, surely, but I didn’t love the retro tucked-in silhouette the first few times I saw it. But now, after a mere twelve months or so…I’m kind of, sort of, on board. Mind you, I’m not going to wear it anytime soon, but I don’t actively dislike it. That’s a big deal for me. Maybe I’m not as hopelessly backward as I thought.
For this week’s poll, we have the cute-as-buttons Angelique Kerber and Naomi Osaka. They’re wearing the same Adidas ensemble with the straight skirt and a top with contrasting piping. Kerber wears her shirt tucked in…
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while Osaka leaves her shirt out.
Embed from Getty Images
To be honest, I’m on the fence about “who wears it better”-type polls. They can feel a little mean. If both people are wearing the same thing, you can end up comparing bodies, not fashion. Most Hollywood celebrities deserve what they get–at least the ones smugly preening on the red carpet. But tennis players aren’t putting themselves on center stage to be ogled over. Well, except maybe Genie Bouchard.
Fortunately, I know you all haven’t a mean bone in your bodies and that you’ll focus on the trend at hand and not on the comeliness of the players. (Besides, they’re both adorable.)
Warm up your voting fingers–we have another twofer this week:
So here’s the deal… the untucked thing is just not professional looking. The tucked look gives the appearance of something more like a “sports uniform”, not just something to wear while playing the sport. When I think of other sports… baseball, football, basketball… the casual, untucked look just looks lazy and doesn’t represent the brand very well, IMO. I think the same applies to tennis players.
But isn’t it interesting that Kerber is winning the face-off, even though most people don’t want to wear their own shirts tucked?
The tucked look is indeed neater — and she rocks it. Untucked, for that outfit, doesn’t help. It’s surprising to me to land there since I am staunchly a fan of untucked. And the photo doesn’t even show Kerber’s full legs. As for me, when my body looks like hers, I will go back to tucking!
If I start working out hard now, my body should be looking like Kerber’s in about five years…just in time for the tucked-trend to be over. Based on the results of the second poll, I’m not sure it will ever amount to a full trend, though. Most of us seem firmly in the “never gonna happen” camp.
Deb, I love your post: your lack of progressive fashion sense, your snarky Genie Bouchard comment, and your spot-on assessment of your fellow tennis players, not a mean bone in our competitive un-tucked tennis bodies! Go Deb!
Being snarky is different from being mean, right? Right??? 😂
Don’t think Bouchard would be too concerned about it, though. I believe the score stands at
Bouchard: 1,700,000 followers
LYB: 62