Brace yourself... dungarees are back

With every season comes a new denim to get to grips with. In just a few short years, we’ve had to contend with spray-on skinny, wet-look leatherette, jeggings, boyfriend, drop-crotch, neon and leopard print. We’ve worn them high, uncomfortably low, rolled up to the ankle and ripped to shreds. But for even the most hardened fashion buffs this may take a little getting used to: dungarees are back on the scene.

As part and parcel of the Nineties nostalgia that’s taken a hold of our summer high streets, the fash pack is fighting with the scaffolding set for the right to the denim onesie.

Preparing, that is, unless you are Alexa Chung. Aside from her Twitter account, which is littered with shots of her relaxing at home in an array of retro denim overalls, the trailblazer relishes the chance to whip out a set at any occasion. For a night out in New York’s Boom Boom Room, Chung teamed washed denim dungarees with a cream silk shirt and metallic platform pumps, while for a stroll around the Big Apple’s SoHo, she favoured a loose-fit short set with shades and espadrille wedges.

But Chung isn’t the only dungarees loyalist. Model Daisy Lowe’s Primrose Hill strolling attire seems to consist solely of short styles ranging from pale denim to blue and white polka dot, and singer Eliza Doolittle recently stepped out for the celebrity hotspot’s summer fête in purple ditzy print dungarees paired with a neck scarf and Nike trainers.

While the word “dungaree” originally came from the coarse, poorly woven calico fabric widely used to make cheap clothing and workwear, this hasn’t stopped the catwalks from reinventing the garment with a more luxurious edge. The Topshop Unique collection for next season includes dungarees in jet black velvet, high-shine leather and printed silk, while Chloe’s Resort 2013 offering features a variation in caramel brown silk georgette.

But for the remainder of summer, the high street is favouring a more classic approach. Urban Outfitters’ renewal collection is teeming with vintage washed denim finds, while ASOS offers an abundance of long candy-coloured styles, and River Island’s latest Chelsea Girl collection — so named after the high street chain’s original name — provides a blast from the past with its short, sweet dungarees.

Let’s just hope the builders leave these well alone.