From Charli XCX to Hailey Bieber: how the once divisive jorts became a wardrobe staple

During my ten hour stint at an East London pub this weekend for the Euros, I took a brief nap underneath a ping pong table. Relevant? Yes. Because during my time on the floor, I had a clear frame of the legs and feet of everyone in the pub. A proper mise-en-scène. And you know what I noticed? Jorts. Jorts (jean or denim shorts for the portmanteau-uninitiated) everywhere. Jorts and high socks. Jorts and biker boots. Jorts with little carabiners attached to keys and pocket chains. Jorts as far as the eye could see.

Jorts, whether you like it or not, are the undisputed fashion item of the summer. And you can see why, with intermittent rain and confusingly high winds popping by to ruin our days every other hour. But jorts can handle it all. Throw any element at them, and they’re still confusingly chic. 

Once the mainstay of truckers and German tourists, how did the humble jort handle such a quick 180 turnaround?

“I think jorts are so popular because they’re more forgiving than the little denim Daisy Duke style of denim shorts that have held women hostage for so many decades,” says Evie Stothert, a senior stylist at Harrods. 

“They’re versatile,” she adds, “you can buy them second hand, very cheaply, and you can cut them to whichever length suits you best. They’re also androgynous. Trends in general are leaning into less gender specificity. My male friends wear jorts, my female friends wear jorts.”

The celebs are getting on board too. Hailey Bieber is a known jort lover, alongside Bella Hadid and Gen Z icon Emma Chamberlain. In April, Brat Girl du jour Charli XCX even dared to wear a pair of jorts with heels (of course she did).

“You can wear them with everything,” says Stothert, who very much believes that jorts can be dressed up or down. “I love seeing people wearing jorts with semi professional outfits, like a cute little blouse, a cardigan and some Margiela Tabi ballet flats and little socks. But I think a nice off-the shoulder-top, a pair of jorts and boots is the new ‘jeans and a nice top’ for going out.”

Just as you can judge a tree by its rings, and a person by the length of their sock (tennis = millennial, mid-calf = Gen Z, no sock = insane), you can also judge someone’s stylishness by the length of their jean shorts. If it’s more than six inches above the knee, I’m afraid you’re officially out of the loop. 

With the ease of jorts, we could all be liberated from lousy, English non-summer dressing. However, they’re also tricky to get right. “If shorts are too tight, they can end up looking a bit like bicycle shorts or like pedal pushers, which is not what we want to be going for.”

As for length, celebrity stylist Corina Gaffey says they should generally hit “just above the knee”, for balance. This makes careful styling important. “Consider proportions,” she says, “as jorts tend to hit in the middle of the leg, you need a top to create a clean line if you want to elongate the body. Kitten heels or slingback courts are a natural shoe choice if you need a little elevation or want to wear them in the evening. Charli XCX’s look proved they don’t need to be relegated to casual ensembles.”

Plus, Stothert firmly believes this is a trend that will continue into winter, so it’s not too late to invest if you haven’t yet bought into Big Jort™. “I actually love wearing my jorts all year round,” she says. “In autumn sometimes I will wear them with tights and boots. Usually like a knee high Western or biker boot with some chunky black socks, a cardigan and a little vest underneath. I think jorts now are going to become a wardrobe staple as opposed to a seasonal trend.”