Cowgirl style is trending – here’s how to wear it without looking like you’re in fancy dress

Call it Texan girl, or cowboy cool; the Western wear trend has arrived. From Beyoncé’s new chart-topping country single (with the red carpet reinvention to match), to catwalk interpretations at Louis Vuitton and Molly Goddard, there are new references to be found everywhere you look in pop culture.

Born in the wild North American West, cowboy duds are nothing new – they’ve been around for the better part of 200 years. “Whether on a ranch, at a festival, or walking the streets of London, the Western look is a trend that just keeps coming back,” says Marcus Fairfax Fountaine, co-founder of Norfolk-based brand Fairfax & Favor.

So, if you’re a cowboy-curious city dweller, how do you “go country” without looking like you’re the hired entertainment at Lottie’s eighth birthday party?

Having spent the summers of my youth wearing a name tag that read “Howdy! How can I help you?” at a rodeo and country music festival in my home city of Calgary, Canada, I happen to have a bit of practice in this arena. My wardrobe is studded with boots, bolo ties and jazzed-up belts – but rather than letting these pieces languish in my wardrobe now that I live in London, I find ways to incorporate them into my city style.

Elle Macpherson is one celebrity pin-up who has got the balance right. She paired her pearly boots by Milanese atelier Paris Texas with a more subtle fringed skirt set by Melbourne label Clea, giving a masterclass in interpreting the trend without looking like you’re wearing fancy dress.

Combining the “country queen” trend with some “quiet luxury” style principles works well. True Western folk know to buy natural and breathable, like cotton, as well as durable leather. Inherited and satisfyingly worn-in, like vintage. The sort of quality style principles that anyone, anywhere can get on board with.

Whatever your style, these are the four key Western items I’d recommend trying.

The boots

Western-style boots are the easiest way to incorporate a bit of rodeo flair into your wardrobe. A pointed toe will sharpen up a pair of jeans, a styling trick that Katie Holmes paraded down the streets of New York.

If you’re looking for an authentically Western label, Alberta Boot Company has made custom pairs for King Charles and the Prince and Princess of Wales, whilst Texas-based City Boots gives classic silhouettes the coquette treatment with candy colours.

For the best of British and Americana, Penelope Chilvers has been making top-quality Western styles for years: “Our UK customers love to wear them in the city or country and our US customer says they are the softest, most lightweight and comfortable boots they have ever worn,” she says.

Handmade leather, £1,041, Brother Vellies; Silver leather, £269, Penelope Chilvers

Isabel Marant Suede, £264.60, Vestiaire; Leather lightning, £1,326, City Boots

The Western shirt

“I love fringe!” proclaims Ryan Gosling as Ken in the Barbie movie, stepping into the California sunshine with his glorious white wingspan aflutter. Cowboy Ken may be just a character, but his shirt is very real, and available to purchase from Hollywood-based brand H Bar C.

Though, with all of their campy piping and rhinestone-studded embroidery, Western shirts can easily veer into the kitsch rather than the cool. Counteract this by pairing the shirt with an understated bottom half: black denim or a monochrome skirt and sleek leather boots will do the trick – they needn’t be of the cowboy variety.

Much of modern Western style is influenced by North American Indigenous cultures, and that includes the geometric patterns and beaded designs. Look to Ralph Lauren’s collaboration with Naiomi Glasses, a 24-year-old Navajo textile artist and designer, for an Indigenous-designed piece to cherish for years to come.

Calico print cotton linen blend, £319, Polo Ralph Lauren x Naiomi Glasses; Tencel lyocell, £165, Nudie Jeans

Lemaire Cotton silk and linen blend, £495, Net-a-Porter; Saint Laurent Printed shirt, £285.60, Vestiaire

Suede zip top, £295, Fairfax & Favor

The jeans

This is simple: go for boot cut or wide-leg jeans. A real cowboy would never be caught with his jeans tucked into his boots – it cuts up the line of your legs and makes them appear shorter. Though, when skinny jeans were in their heyday, it was more common to see women wearing their boots on the outside.

At the Dior Paris Fashion Week show, creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri flawlessly executed the correct proportions when she stepped onto the runway to take a bow. The Telegraph’s Lisa Armstrong was there, and observed that Chiuri “was wearing jeans, a black cashmere jumper and the most perfect black cowboy boots I’ve ever seen. All Dior.”

If you’re feeling adventurous, you can get literal with the trend and try “horseshoe” jeans, a rather avant-garde, convex silhouette being worn by the likes of Rosie Huntington-Whiteley and the social media set.

High waisted crease front slim flare jeans, £39.50, Marks & Spencer; Citizens of Humanity Horseshoe jeans, £350, Selfridges

Studded wide leg jeans, £198, Reformation

Put some fringe on it

Now this is a strong look. Wear anything fringe and you get instant cowgirl appeal – no need to add anything more. Suede is the most typical material for fringed garments, but if you want to make a glitzy statement that Dolly Parton herself would approve of, look to south London label KNWLS – they’ve got a knockout fringe dress in their spring-summer 2024 collection. For those who want less commitment but still want to experiment with some Parton-esque ritz, fashion rental platform Hurr has a rhinestone cowgirl minidress by Nadine Merabi for a fraction of the price.

For a more casual, everyday style, Chemena Kamali’s debut collection for French fashion house Chloé put a Parisian spin on the look with glossy fringe blazers and swishy open-toed heels. Back in Blighty, Fairfax & Favor’s new Western line is also enthusiastically fringed: “We wanted to emphasise the dynamic movement of the fringe as a focal point,” says Fairfax Fountaine. “[The collection] takes equestrian-inspired fashion to the next level and fuses country and Western influences with our signature, classic British silhouettes.”

Wool jacket, £250, Balzac

Suede embroidered jacket, £350, Rixo

Suede jacket, £450, Jigsaw

Suede bag, £295, Fairfax & Favor; Beaded bag, £100, Rixo