The DNA of Double Denim

Denim. You know the drill.

Or do you?

This season, it's 'double yer pleasure' as fashion revisits what is oft-viewed as a style taboo: To do, or not to do, double denim . However, before we even consider the hazards of such a coupling, let us take the time and pay homage to those who wore it best (Steve McQueen; Brigitte Bardot (BB in DD, mais oui); Ali Macgraw; John Wayne; Paris Vogue in the '70's; AC/DC), the latter being the pinnacle of 'dirty denim done good' (and, quite possibly, to bastardise some of their lyrics, 'done dirt cheap'; always a plus for those seeking the look for less).

And yet, citing just a few iconic examples of those who 'wore it well' (namely, with purpose, panache and a pile of precociousness) can't quite eradicate the visions of the many, many multitudes who have tried - and failed - to conquer the fashion world's own Mt. Everest. In essence, the very discovery of double denim's elusive DNA, and how to make it work for you.

Let's call it jeanetics. I've got it, you've got, almost the entire world has it. They just don't know it. Yet. Consider the core evolution of denim. From humble beginnings as workwear in The States, it gained momentum in the '40s and '50s where it morphed into 'leisurewear' and gained screen-idol status, with stars such as Marlon Brando working it in On The Waterfront and The Wild One, only to relegate it to the back of the wardrobe for sharp tuxes in The Godfather and discarding it (even he knew his limits) for swimming muumuus in The Island Of Dr. Moreau.

With its ascent, the advent of denim shirts, jackets, caps, hats and even vests came to the fore. Everywhere you looked, jeanetics had people in its sturdy clutches. For better or for worse, fashion's most-enduring love affair has seen it all, continuing to morph even today into lusty guises so that we, the ever-insatiable style addicts, are driven by an omnipresent, fervent desire to 'have and to hold... 'til denim death to us part.'

Indeed, there are some who have died a double-denim death so unerringly awful, it's almost too much bear. If you can (and you really must), cast your mind back to a time of innocence and love; when underpant-less starlets emerging from limos hadn't yet reared their pert behinds to a howling pack of paparazzi, and when the only thing the traditional 'cougar' pounced on was a slab of freshly killed meat; not fresh meat of another kind.

And yet, in this world of innocence of which I speak, it was denim that brought it all profoundly undone. In a display of its own DNA code so horrific, two young stars-on-the-rise (and real-life loves), managed to divert the world's gaze from other global atrocities to bare witness to theirs: Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake, doing it together, in double denim.

Even now, it's pinpointed as being perhaps the moment when the mere thought of daring to wear such a combination ever again elicited parties that celebrated its mockery with their 'double denim' dress code. To be seen on the street in 'DD' garnered whispered giggles and cruel jibes, such was the tsunami effect of Britney and Justin's sartorial defectiveness.

So why are we turning back towards the 'DD' light, as it were? Who can say, except that perhaps in order to move forward in fashion, we need to look back to those stitches in time and learn from the mistakes of others (perhaps even our own) to embrace 'the old in the new'. In new shades; new cuts; no rules; new rules; it's a veritable denim delight out there in fashion land for those who dare to double-up and do it.

But before you don, do consider this. In the quest for jeanetic supremacy, it's wise to remember that double the wrong will never add up to a whole lot of right.