Nineties dressing continues to emerge as one of the spring season's biggest trend contenders. We only need to look at the rise of double denim, low-rise pants, crop tops, cowboy boots, and glittering sequins to see that nineties and Y2K styles are having a major influence on our wardrobes. Adding weight to the return of 90s dressing is the recent spate of wide buckle belts spotted on the Fall 24 runways and celebrity style stars like the eternally cool, always on-trend Jennifer Lawrence.
J-Law recently made a serious case for the wide buckle belt when she was snapped working an off-duty street style look that could have easily been borrowed straight out of Gwyneth Paltrow or Kate Moss's iconic 90s closets. The actress accessorized casual midwash bootleg jeans with a wide buckle belt and finished her look with a broad-shouldered tan leather blazer by Bottega Venetta, black cropped knit, and ankle boots. And well, now we're obsessed with big belt energy.
How To Channel Jennifer Lawrence's 90s Belt Style
"Right now it's all about belts, belts, belts. The latest look calls for a wide belt, around 2.5 inches ideally with a big gold buckle. It's the statement accessory of the moment to elevate jeans, pants, shorts and to cinch in your waist on jackets, coats, dresses, and even suiting," says Fashion Times fashion market director Sarah Meikle.
It was looking at the belts in the Miu Miu Fall 24 collection that first captured Meikle's attention."I started loving belts when I saw the Miu Miu show. Miuccia Prada showed some amazing belts, mostly wrapped around the hips, but it was the size of the belt that I really started paying attention to. Chanel and Tom Ford also helped throw the spotlight back on the wide buckle belt during the recent Fall 2024 collections according to Meikle. "Chanel's creative director Virginie Viard did a few amazing suits in oxblood and black and great coats cinched in at the waist with wide belts. It was a sort of "smart casual" vibe. And Tom Ford also showed some great belts, again as a statement accessory on jackets and coats.
How to Wear The Wide Buckle Belt
"These wide buckle belts look super cool with low-rise jeans and pants that are a little lower in the waist, but they work for high-waist pants too. And now that it's getting warmer, a big belt is a great way to anchor shorts and dresses," says Meikle. Speaking of nineties-style icons who have long championed the power of a belt, especially a wide buckled one, images of supermodel Kate Moss back in the day immediately come to mind. "Kate Moss has always known how to pull off this trend as she practically pioneered it with her signature festival style at Coachella where she would effortlessly sling a wide belt around shorts and mini-dresses and transform into the queen of cool."
