Everybody’s wearing belt bags

The last time you wore a fanny pack, you were probably trying to replicate the iconic ’90s style of Janet Jackson or Saved by the Bell’s Kelly Kapowski. The fashion world’s cyclical nature has resurrected the bum bag of yesteryear, but withhold your horror, for unlike the tricolor, polyester pouches of our sartorial past, today’s versions come in far chicer guises.

Recast as the ‘belt bag’, the look has been keenly adopted on the street, where tastemakers like Eleonora Carisi, Thora Valdimarsdottir and Camille Charrière have used theirs to streamline oversized blazers, anchor mixed prints, or add a little more intrigue to minimalist day dresses.

There is a wealth of styling wizardry to be gleaned and a plethora of new designs to inspire you on the SS18 runways, too; everyone from Gucci and Givenchy to Valentino and Versace are getting behind this small but mighty accessory. At Valentino, Pierpaolo Piccioli introduced the all-new Ziggy stud bag: a modern hybrid with a convertiblebelt and a cross-body strap for twofold wearability. Demna Gvasalia put his subverted twist on logoed belt bags at Balenciaga by slinging them, holster-like, across the shoulder, while Givenchy’s newly installed Clare Waight Keller gave hers a utilitarian spin by cinching them over military-inspired pea coats. Small, stylish and brilliantly useful, this little accessory has a lot to offer.