From gran to glam: Why nan’s closet is fashion central

SPOTLIGHT / Gran designs

Granny chic, here demonstrated by model Kaia Gerber, is alive and kicking.Credit: Getty Images

When nepo baby Kaia Gerber recently turned up at a Hollywood farmers’ market in a decidedly nana-ish, off-white, short-sleeved, button-through shirt and flowy patchwork midi skirt (pictured, with Austin Butler on her arm), she confirmed that grandmillennial style – aka granny chic/grandma chic/nana chic – is still alive and kicking. (And that dressing like a 72-year-old doesn’t preclude you from having a seriously hot boyf.)

The trend isn’t exactly new – New York label Batsheva has been embracing grannyness in a big way since 2016 – but as sustainability becomes an increasingly potent force in fashion, raiding Nana’s closet and buying second-hand/vintage seems absolutely on point.

But what is gran-ifying? It’s about taking the wardrobe pillars of your average nana – think floral blouses, top-handled handbags, frilly frocks, chunky cardigans, ruffly skirts, crocheted vests, tweed or bouclé jackets and sensible sandals (orthopaedic loafers, as Refinery29 website unkindly suggested) – and adding sleek, contemporary styling. Gerber, for example, modernised her look with a pair of Aeyde Mary Janes and oval Céline sunglasses.

Heirloom-themed accessories are key. Etsy has reported a 48 per cent increase this year in searches for brooches, a 39 per cent fillip in eyeglass chains and a 19 per cent jump in vintage clip-on earrings.

The only dismaying sidebar, apart from the reappearance of the smock? In 2021, British underwear brand Agent Provocateur reported that sales of high-waisted knickers (to wit, granny undies) had increased by more than a third. We’ll do a lot for fashion, but we won’t do that. Deborah Cooke

LISTEN / The write stuff

A podcast about the story behind the story.

Read This, the title of Schwartz Media’s newish weekly podcast, is something of a misnomer. Hosted by Michael Williams, former artistic director of the Sydney Writers’ Festival, it’s not so much a show about books as the people who write them. Williams is a consummate interviewer, balancing sharp enquiry with humility. Highlights include his interview with George Saunders (whose dream of being a writer was “so dear to me that I was too scared to start”) and the always-curious Helen Garner. Paul Connolly

READ / Take us to church

The Conversion asks whether a deconsecrated church can become a home.

When her husband Nick dies, Zoe decides to take up his dream of converting a deconsecrated sandstone church. Nick was concerned they had become “stale and complacent”, so Zoe relocates from her Federation villa in the city to a rural valley despite her concerns that you can’t make a church into a home. The conversion of the church, of course, runs parallel to the conversion of the self: spirits are transformed. In The Conversion (Text; $33), Amanda Lohrey revisits the terrain of her Miles Franklin Award-winning The Labyrinth to create another meditative and rewarding read. Melanie Kembrey

SHOP / Out of the blue

These earrings are part of a collection inspired by the NSW South Coast marine flora.

Inspired by marine flora and the rugged charm of the NSW South Coast – a location Sydney jeweller Marina Antoniou has visited since childhood – her 17-piece “Neptune” collection unfolds as a narrative told in three “stories”: Seagrass Meadows, Sea Grapes and Lichen. Gold and rare Australian gemstones take centre stage as the protagonists. Take these earrings ($13,000), which move like blades of seagrass in underwater meadows. In other pieces, yellow sapphires sprawl across hand-carved gold, referencing seaside lichen growing over rock pools. Elsewhere, grouped chrysoprase cabochons, sapphires and golden granules evoke memories of sea grapes on the shoreline. Frances Mocnik

Heidi Dokulil’s book explores Sydney’s brutalist landmarks and a resurgent interest in these “concrete monsters”.

LEARN / A brutiful life

In Sydney Brutalism (UNSW Press; $50), Heidi Dokulil explores Australia’s brutalist architectural revolution that kicked off in the late 1950s. Her in-depth research uncovers the movement’s international influences, its visionary architects and societal impact while exploring our resurgent interest in Sydney’s iconic brutalist landmarks, such as the Sirius building (The Rocks) and the UTS Tower (Broadway). Accompanied by striking photography, it’s a must-read for architecture enthusiasts, shedding light on the enduring beauty of these “concrete monsters” and their lasting significance in the architectural world. Frances Mocnik

PLAY / That sinking feeling

A chance to relive what it might have been like on the most famous ship in the world.

“Gentlemen, it’s been a pleasure playing with you tonight.” If that line can still bring a lump to your throat – as it did 26 years ago watching a certain squillion-dollar blockbuster by James Cameron – you’re in for a treat. On December 16, Titanic: The Artefact Exhibition will drop anchor at Melbourne Museum for four months, marking the 112th anniversary of the demise of the world’s most famous ocean-liner. Fresh from a rapturous run in Paris, it features more than 200 artefacts that have been retrieved from the wreck – most of them personal possessions of her 2240 passengers and crew – as well as full-scale replicas of some of her most famous interiors (including that staircase). Visitors, issued with their own boarding passes, can touch a piece of her hull and an iceberg the same temperature as the North Atlantic into which she sank that fateful April night. The legend lives on (adults $32.50; kids $18). Sharon Bradley

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