the waistcoat needs an SEO update
covering my keyword bases (have we settled on a name for this style?)
Like many a fashion obsession, it started with a photo of Becky Malinsky. I couldn’t find the exact newsletter the photo was included in, but she was wearing the Attersee vest featured in this article she wrote for the Wall Street Journal from 2022. Then in September of last year, Laura Reilly appeared in the same vest in her Paris Fashion Week roundup.
This style has been floating around the capital F Fashion world for a while, though it was only earlier this year that I started coveting one in earnest. This month, I rented a Ciao Lucia one that I’m enjoying, but I don’t think it fits me very well (I think I’m in between sizes, or it might just be proportionally off.)
I struggle with summer clothing, and this new (to me) category of top seemed like a good thing to add to my warm weather arsenal. I have always loved a vest (real ones will remember the time I came home from a trip to NYC in 2005 with a white H&M tuxedo vest), and while it’s been relatively easy to find secondhand vests that I like, that’s because I’ve only been on the lookout for that classic shape until now.
This new shape is a bit harder to pin down—I’ve seen it referred to as a waistcoat, the aforementioned “sculpted vest,” there’s an Endless Rose one on Rent the Runway called a “long split jacket,” Tibi’s version is a tunic, and various other ones from retailers all along the scale of shady to reputable are referred to as cutaway or longline vests… it’s the type of garment that’s harder to find a vintage version of online, as it requires a longer, more inefficient search process. But it also felt like something I wanted to find my own version of, and I was down to try!
I was looking for certain features: longer length, the split at the bottom (not buttons all the way down), collarless, and high/square neck rather than v-neck. With that in mind, I found a fair amount of appealing variations on the theme. Below are some worthy options that I considered but ultimately didn’t purchase.
VINTAGE HARVE BENARD - LINEN VEST TOP, $32
This is the perfect shape and material. The only thing is the color—it’s just not for me! [Ed. note: the thrifting score mentioned at the end of this post also includes a hot pink silk skirt… I still don’t know that I want this color on the top half of my body!]
The Limited Collection wool vest, $40
Perfect silhouette, classic color—this one is wool, which I could see being very chic on a brisk spring day, but as someone who runs hot… couldn’t do it.
Vintage Harris Wallace 100 % linen vest from the 90s, $38
Another promising candidate—the neckline is too similar to another black vest I already own.
New Harve Bernard Blue Linen Vest Size 12, $35
With a decent tailor, I bet you could turn this into a slightly more form-fitting version, maybe even achieve that split at the bottom.
Vintage Cream Beige Button Down Sleeveless Blazer, 80s Linen Blend Vest for Women, Light Brown Collared Waistcoat, Minimalist Coat Size M, $40
I’m really tempted by this one—I was hoping to find something collarless, but otherwise I think I would have tried this one out!
Esprit Woven Linen Vest, M $78
Again, I was hoping for a more straight-across neckline, but I like the button and pocket placement.
Vintage Cotton Linen Button Up Vest Size 36 S, Brick Red Waistcoat for Women, Short Sleeve Blazer, Long Button Front Shirt, Tie Back Top
So cute! A little too scoop-neck for me, but the red and the oversized buttons are a nice contrast to the soft tailoring and fitted shape.
Later in the week, I ended up at a thrift store in Sarasota, where I found a brown linen top (originally from Talbots) that looked promising—it’s short-sleeved, and v-neck instead of square, but otherwise it hits all the right notes: fitted, longline, buttons all the way down with a break before the hem.
As you can probably tell, I bought it! I’ll try out this short-sleeved version in the spring, and come summer if I’m wearing it often, I’ll resume the search for a sleeveless one.
As always, if you buy one of the items in the newsletter—send pics!
<3 E
Loved following this search! These definitely feel like an idea somehow. I am enjoying the Tibi one a lot! Especially feels interesting with the pockets hanging out from something else.
What am I doing opening these links even though I already own a sculpted vest? You are that convincing! Love the Harris/Wallace one!