A Leather Blazer Is One of the Chicest Things You Can Own in 2023

I may have been born at the tail end of the '80s, but I still consider myself to be a '90s child. I wore floral leggings with oversize T-shirts, tied my hair with a rainbow of scrunchies, and donned my light-up trainers with pride. Of course, perhaps with the exception of the scrunchie, I would never wear such items now, but it seems there are a plethora of cool '90s trends I missed out on because of my age. And the most notable has to be the leather blazer.

Practically the uniform of the '90s A-list elite—think Gwyneth Paltrow, Jennifer Aniston and Cindy Crawford—the leather blazer was easily the coolest cover-up of the decade. Most commonly worn with slip dresses, vintage denim, or a pair of tiny rectangle sunglasses, it now appears the throw-on is making a comeback and is being styled much the same as it was in its heyday.

Arket was the first brand we registered as resurrecting the trend, with its perfectly slouchy leather blazer. Since then, it's won a legion of loyal fans and began featuring regularly in the sleekest outfits on our Instagram feed. Then that was it—we began spotting leather blazers left, right and centre, gracing new-in sections across both high-street and high-end shopping circuits. 

Keep scrolling to see just how much outfit mileage it can give you. Then once you're sold (which we have a feeling you will be), proceed to shop our edit of the best leather blazers—be it vegan or the real thing.

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(Image credit: @sylviemus_)

Make like stylist Sylvie and wear yours over a slip dress and finish with mules for a complete '90s homage. 

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(Image credit: @dawn.tan)

The leather blazer pairs perfectly with classic items, such as a stripe jumper and black trousers.

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(Image credit: Getty Images)

Cindy Crawford donned leather blazers from 1991, right the way through the decade. 

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(Image credit: @thevisuelofgrace)

Who said your leather blazer needs to be restricted to black? 

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(Image credit: @brittanybathgate)

The thickness of the leather makes this blazer the ideal cold-season cover-up. 

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(Image credit: @camillecharriere)

Camille Charriere gives her leather blazer a downtime spin with white jeans and a baseball cap. 

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(Image credit: Getty Images)

Gwyneth Paltrow pairs her leather blazer with on-point grey and white tones in 1995. 

Shop the Best Leather Blazers

Next Up, Spring/Summer 2023 Fashion Trends: The 21 Looks You Need to Know About

This post was originally published at an earlier time and has since been updated. 

Maxine Eggenberger
Deputy Editor

Maxine Eggenberger is Who What Wear UK’s deputy editor and has over thirteen years of experience in fashion journalism. She been creating engaging and elevated style content specifically for Who What Wear UK since 2018, covering runway reports, emerging trends, long-form features, self-styled shopping stories and columns, including her edit of the best new-in buys. She ensures the highest editorial standards are met across the site, leads the editorial team in their SEO strategy and keyword planning, works closely with the beauty team on content initiatives, represents the brand at industry events, and regularly contributes to social media, including her own Who What Wear UK TikTok franchise, French Style Fridays. Previously, Maxine appeared on ITV's This Morning in her own fashion segment and has interviewed countless celebrities—everyone from Victoria Beckham to Oscar winner Lupita Nyong’o.

Prior to Who What Wear UK, Maxine’s career began when, after completing her first-ever internship at Look magazine, she was offered a position on the brand's fashion desk. She accepted, leaving university a year early in the process. Her passion and natural talent for writing and styling meant she swiftly rose through the ranks to become the title's fashion news and commercial content editor, with a stint as InStyle.co.uk’s fashion and beauty writer along the way. She later served as Look’s acting Editor in Chief, overseeing both print and digital, before embarking on a successful freelance career, working with Grazia, The Pool, and Marie Claire amongst others.

Maxine is based remotely from her countryside home near Edinburgh where she spends her downtime renovating her house, walking her dogs, hosting friends and trying to master the art of making Old Fashioned cocktails.