Jasmine Garnsworthy Wednesday 25 July 2012 12:01pm

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by JASMINE GARNSWORTHY

I was chatting to a friend earlier this week and I was wearing leather pants. She said what I bet you’re thinking RIGHT NOW. The standard “where did you get them” was followed by the inevitable: “I LOVE your pants but I could never wear them.”

WRONG. All wrong. Because Yes. She. Can. And. You. Can. Too.

I have experienced the same sentiment about things I’ve seen my girlfriends wearing. How can a floral kaftan look effortlessly bohemian on one person, but the minute I try to picture it on me, it’s all disheveled hippie. The answer? Because you have to give it a shot. As in try it on. Duh.

Staring at someone looking fabulous in something and telling yourself it won’t work on you, DOES NOT ACTUALLY MEAN IT WON’T WORK ON YOU. You have to try something to find out it’s amazing. Or not amazing. But you won’t know without giving it a whirl.

So, how does one pull off leather pants without looking like Michael Jackson in Thriller? (Although hey, if that’s your thing, knock yourself out but remember to take a quick selfie with your video camera because we want to see your moves.)

Take a deep breath and keep reading.

This is how celebrities are wearing the trend (post continues below gallery):

Olivia Palermo

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1. Remember that leather pants aren’t jeans, so if (like me) you prefer a little – ahem – coverage at the back, look for a sweater or a shirt with a dropped back hem. They are everywhere at the moment so you will easily be able to find t-shirts, button-up shirts and singlets with a long line through the body. I wear mine with a boyfriend blazer.

2. Footwear is another high-risk area when it comes to pairing with a leather pant. So ankle boots or ballet flats are your safest options. Also, I’ve tried leather pants at night with stilletos from Tony Bianco that have a tiny ankle strap and it looked fabulous. I didn’t look anything like Sandy from Grease after she worked out that Danny is the one that she wants.

3.  This look is red hot right now and does have some longevity (it’s pretty much a staple along with jeans) but forking out a month’s rent on exxy designer leather pants – that pain is for LIFE. Asos and Topshop have great, realistic, FAKE leather pants and leggings for online shoppers.

4. If you prefer to try on then you need to go for either Sportsgirl or Supre. Both sell a great skinny fit that just grazes the ankle – so there is really no excuse not to give it a go.

GOOD LUCK.

Would you wear leather pants? What trend do you want to try, but your not sure how?

Help us reflect more diversity in fashion! Mamamia is committed to portraying women of all shapes, sizes, ages and skin colours in our fashion posts. BUT WE CAN’T DO IT WITHOUT YOU. Send a photo in your favourite outfit this week to jasmine@mamamia.com.au to be added to our weekly ‘Wardrobe Week‘ post. Remember to tell us where you got your outfit.