THE last time I wore a pencil skirt, my brother affectionately told me I looked like Nessa Jenkins from Gavin & Stacey. 

Brotherly love ­— always there to keep your feet firmly on the ground. 

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But, sadly, he was right. 

My black, knee-length leather skirt and then short brown hair did make me look like the Welsh slot machine worker, minus the tattoos. 

Despite my affection for the show and actress Ruth Jones, who plays Nessa, the comment was enough to put me off that look for life. 

Nessa is not exactly known for her chic style. 

Now, as trends for autumn/winter start to appear, I’ve spotted that curve-clinging pencil skirts are back — from Gucci and Givenchy to high-street favourites Zara and Mango. 

And now I’m wondering, has the time come to give the style another whirl? 

There was a 12,000 per cent increase in searches on shopping site LTK for “pencil skirts” following the autumn/winter 2025 fashion weeks earlier this year. 

This thirst for a more slimline look tells us one thing, if nothing else — many of us, myself included, want to jump off the conveyor belt of loose midi and maxi styles. 

Five years on from lockdowns, we’re ready for a bit of wiggle. We want to get dressed up!. 

Now, I’m not for one minute suggesting we revert back to peak Noughties pencil skirt trends, when going “out out” was all about looking like a sexy businesswoman. 

Think peroxide blonde Victoria Beckham in her peak Wag era, complete with skintight skirt and peplum boob tube. Or reality stars like Towie original Amy Childs. 

But there was a time before this when the pencil skirt was stylish and classy. 

THE last time I wore a pencil skirt, my brother affectionately told me I looked like Nessa Jenkins from Gavin & Stacey. 

Clemmie Fieldsend, Fashion Editor

Starlets like Grace Kelly and Marilyn Monroe were big fans of the style, which became hugely popular in the late Fifties, with tucked in blouses and knits to show off their waist and bust. 

As Marilyn tottered along the train platform in Some Like It Hot, the tight-fitting style may well have played a part in her trademark wiggle walk. 

In the Eighties, pencil skirts were paired with shoulder-padded blazers. Women were making moves in boardrooms and this was power-dressing at its best. Think Melanie Griffith in Working Girl and Joan Collins in Dynasty. 

Over the next few decades, the pencil skirt became a workwear uniform. 

But recently, aside from wives of world leaders such as Melania Trump or contestants on The Apprentice, it has disappeared from our office attire. 

Especially since Covid, you are more likely to wear flats and comfy trousers than a restrictive, uncomfortable and somewhat dated knee-length skirt. 

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It seems, though, that we have now come full circle. As well as the designers’ offerings, we’ve seen a pregnant Rihanna wear a pencil skirt to a pre-Met Gala bash. 

Fashion darling Daisy Edgar-Jones wore one at Wimbledon and another to a recent event. 

Pamela Anderson has been channelling Marilyn Monroe with her retro looks, including her trademark wiggle skirt. 

Even Victoria Beckham has given into the revival and created her own design, with a matching blazer, to revamp power-dressing. 

I am convinced that there’s a way to wear this season’s wiggle skirts without looking like a string of sausages

Clemmie Fieldsend, Fashion Editor

We’ll also see the pencil return to screens this season as Kim Kardashian, Naomi Watts and Niecy Nash-Betts star as outrageously fierce and successful lawyers in Disney’s legal drama All’s Fair later on this year. 

But after enjoying years of elastic waistbands and roomy skirts, are the rest of us now ready to squeeze into a tummy-sucking number? 

Personally, I’ll never get back into a black pleather version again. 

I can’t shake my Nessa past and rarely get dolled up enough to dust off my peplum and six-inch heels. 

But looking at the styles around on the high street, I am convinced that there’s a way to wear this season’s wiggle skirts without looking like a string of sausages. 

The faux-leather options out there are looser and more flattering, and they come in a range of colours. 

There are also cosy knitted versions or softer viscose numbers with bold patterns. 

I like the idea of wearing one with an oversized blazer and knee-high boots to the office in the autumn, to sharpen up my workwear. 

For drinks, I might even plump for a faux-leather number in sage or burgundy, with heels. 

But for the majority of the week, I will be sticking with my favourite flats. 

And I’m sorry, but you just can’t do a pencil skirt with ballet pumps or brogues without looking like a wally. 

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