by If there’s one country you should follow for serious style advice, it’s not the often underrated French. Instead, if you want a laidback, practical yet sophisticated style, take notes from the Danes. Think outfits where you can ride a bike, but still turn up to a board meeting or party and look effortlessly chic.
With Copenhagen Fashion Week kicking off, there will be plenty of opportunities to tap into her laid-back yet polished style. Home to brands including By Malene Birger, Stine Goya, Birger Christensen, Ganni and, the under-the-radar favourite, Cecilie Bahnsen, many new and emerging brands will be in action in the coming days.
Fans of Denmark already know that it’s not reserved for zoomers – in fact, it’s an easy shortcut to looking stylish and pulled together when you’re over 40, too. “Danish fashion is very age balanced,” agrees Denise Christensen, CEO of Birger Christensen Collective. At 50, she has an enviable Instagram account where she shows off her carefully curated outfits, which range from outfits by REMAIN (such as the heavy wool blazer, £470; restbangerchristensen.com), or items from ROTATE (such as the new season. jacket cropped bombers) but also includes Saks Potts (another of the country’s biggest exports) “for their new uplifted direction – their shearling and polo shirts are great”, and Aiayu for simple knitwear (like a yak polo shirt, £335 , aiayu.com). “Danish women have a sporty, casual simplicity about their lifestyle, which is reflected in the way they dress,” says Christensen.
Laura Meldal Westerskov Nørgaard, 43, Creative Director at accessories brand Yvonne Koné, says the country’s fashion heritage owes a debt to its long tradition of iconic architecture. Names like Arne Jacobsen, Vilhelm Hammershøi and Hans J. Wegner “created a very strong foundation for our direction within aesthetics, even before fashion,” she says. This means that classic, reverse design is almost in the Danish DNA – the Leo Bucket Bag (£677; yvonnekone.com) reflects these principles beautifully.
Create a capsule wardrobe
Instead of following trends, Christensen says the key is to build a solid capsule wardrobe made up of “classic shapes, toned colors” and “not being afraid to dress confidently”. She says she sees her “core style more as a cornerstone that I’m always playing with. I can develop some good easy looks that I can build on.”
That doesn’t mean it has to be boring. “There has to be a little element of playfulness in the cut or the mix of materials, it’s all about the combination of quality and conceptual design,” says Ane Lynge-Jorlen, 48, director of the young designers’ platform, ALPHA. Look to Elaine Hersby for statement pieces, such as the Lorenza top (£294, elainehersby.com)
Work out your cut
Christensen recommends high-waisted trousers and skirts: “The silhouette is flattering on most body types and works in jeans or a suit,” she says – try the cocoon pants (£220; restbangerchristensen.com). She also loves a high-waisted balloon sweater: “The balloon silhouette works for me because of the high waist and the long length works to elongate your leg and narrow your waistline, while also having a more directional design,” she says. she Ganni’s (ganni.com) exaggerated Stary jeans are a great example of this silhouette.
Don’t be afraid to dive into menswear, advises Julie Fagerholt, 56, Creative Director & designer of H2OFagerholt. “I keep an eye on men’s trends and designs, as well as womenswear. I find the interplay between masculine and feminine very interesting.” She likes men’s jeans, especially paired with a tight tank top to create a flattering silhouette and oversized blazers. “I can wear this outfit to the office, and then go straight to dinner in the city afterwards,” she says. Baum und Pferdgarten’s Nara jeans borrow from a classic men’s silhouette (£159; baumundpferdgarten.com).
Lynge-Jorlen agrees that the fitted and loose mix works well, often pairing “big jeans with a deconstructed white shirt, fitted with trainers or tabi shoes” for a daytime look.
Focus on quality and sustainability
When the Danes choose a garment, “the emphasis on quality and beautifully cut pieces is very important,” Christensen emphasizes.
Sustainable purchasing is also important. That starts with buying less and wearing everything you need for longer. Mona Jensen, 49, creative director and founder of jewelery brand Tom Wood, which will show during Copenhagen Fashion Week, agrees that she has a “strong basic wardrobe that I’ve had again for the last 15-20 years.”
Although they are on trend, Danish women are never slaves to fashion, which means, “the Nordic style of fashion tends to last longer because of its functional approach that helps us have a healthier and more taking an ethical approach to fashion and clothing,” explains Jensen. . “We don’t need that much in our closet, but you can easily change details into an outfit to update it for different occasions.”
That also extends to the eco-credentials of the fabric and production methods. Tailoring brand Mfpen uses high-quality dead stock fabrics sourced from European mills for its suits (blazers start at €240; mfpen.com), Samsøe Samsøe uses recycled polyester for its slinky dresses (£170; samsoe.com), and Baum und Pferdgarten is committed to transparency in its production chain, listing the place of production, including the name and location of the factory, for each garment on its website.
Think practical
There is nothing less chic than dressing inappropriately for the weather. The Danes know not to be too optimistic, even in summer. “We have to think functionally and practically when we dress,” says Jensen. For many women, that means freedom in their clothes to “ride my bike, like we do in Copenhagen,” according to Lynge-Jorlen. It could be skirts that allow room to pedal (but soon get caught in chains), or trousers with a little give.
Many Danish designs have practicality built in: for example, Saks Potts’ Shake jeans come with a leather coin purse attached to the back band (€385, sakspotts.com) and its Ada Jacket, a reversible tan shearling, has D-rings . in front, to clip your wallet or keys on (€1,800, sakspotts.com).
That also means wearing practical shoes. Danish women might wear pointy mules with their evening wear (more practical than high heels), but chances are they’ll wear trainers under smart dresses. Cecilie Bahnsen’s second collaboration with Asics is a case in point, designed to be worn under the brand’s structured greens (ceciliebahnsen.com).
Practical footwear adds to that cool factor. “I love that you can wear a pair of sneakers under a sculptural accessory or a feminine dress, or how we can easily style a statement necklace or diamond over a simple outfit like denim,” agrees Jensen.
Scale back
The Danes are known for their similar aesthetic. Meldal Westerskov Nørgaard says she sticks to a magic number of a maximum of three items: “pants, top and blazer.. if there are too many elements in a suit, it becomes too complicated and too sweet,” she says.
The same with the color palette. Jenson says that “all my life I preferred black” as many Scandis do. That is not to say that color is completely out; Stine Goya, for example, represents a new wave of designers championing bright prints in their hand-drawn designs (try the long-sleeved print dress, £370, stinegoya.com). “Stine is the master printmaker in the Danish way,” says Terenziani. “Her prints are unique and when she wears her dresses, I feel like I want to share a piece of art with the world.”
Greta jewelery is the secret to bringing more personality to the most dialed ensemble. “If I want to add extra detail to an outfit, I’ll opt for jewellery,” says Jensen, favoring Tom Wood’s BAO Wallet, “stacks of earrings and a ring on my pinky (slim ear cuff, £99, tomwoodproject.com ) . I like the minimal but bold presence of jewellery, like wearable art.”
