The Fashion Evolution of Harry Styles

When Harry Styles first stepped into the limelight back in 2010, he was described as many things — beautiful, charming, gorgeous, etc. In his early One Direction days, Styles was never seen as a fashion icon. Like many teenage boys, he dressed well for the times but was not not particularly fashionable. It would have surprised many  2010 One Direction fangirls that the teen heartthrob would be chosen as a Co Chair for the 2019 Met Gala.

2010: Styles was often seen sporting cringey English fads such as Jack Wills hoodies, Toms shoes, and polos with the collars popped (yikes!) Occasionally, he added some fashionable flair by pairing a skinny scarf to his outfits, however he never took any fashion risks.

2011: As One Direction finished their season on the X Factor and began to gain prominence around the world, it was clear a stylist was hired for the band. In 2011, Styles unveiled his iconic blazer over a T-shirt look. The look was repeated on stage during the band’s debut tour and off stage throughout the year and into early 2012.

2012: By the end of this year, Styles was sporting much more casual outfits. The boyband no longer synchronized their outfits onstage, often wearing skinny jeans and plain or simple graphic T-shirts instead of their preppy 2011 ensembles. In this photo, he sports a beanie and a simple graphic tee with the sleeves rolled--a basic look he repeated several times publicly. These looks were often paired with skinny jeans and white Converse All Stars.

2013: This year, the then 19-year-old  began to create a style of his own. He was often seen wearing the same pair of brown boots (which he made known to everyone that he loved via his Twitter) and patterned shirts by Burberry. 2013 was the first year Styles obviously took fashion risks that were not prompted by One Direction stylists, however he did not veer into camp style just yet.

2014: In 2014, Styles began to stretch his fashion even further. He grew out his hair, often covering up the awkward lengths with head scarfs or hats until it reached a desired length. With the release of One Direction’s fourth album, the pop star decidedly did not cut his curls for the promotion, rather allowing it to flow down just beyond his chin. By the end of this year, Styles began to embrace more stereotypically feminine looks, with his long hair and patterned shirts.

2015: As talk of a One Direction hiatus began to circulate, Styles took more fashion risks than ever before. His hair was grown out to a longer length than seen before. His patterned shirts were unbuttoned to expose his chest tattoos and paired with matching patterned scarfs or necklaces. However, his most iconic look of 2015, and perhaps to date, was the Gucci suit he wore to the 2015 AMA’s. Following the mass hysteria caused by the floral two piece, he repeated a similar look at the band’s final performance before their hiatus in December 2015.

2016: In September of 2016, Styles appeared in a shoot for Another Man magazine, which followed his hairstyle from start to finish. This photoshoot arguably solidified his reputation as a fashion icon and the photos became every One Direction fan’s lockscreen for a solid month. His confidence in the shoot paired well with his already bold fashion choices. The photoshoot took place in his hometown of Holmes Chapel and Styles appeared in a series of looks inspired by Mick Jagger and the Beatles.

2017: With the release of his debut solo album, Styles reappeared in the limelight. He was rarely seen publicly in an outfit that was anything less than revolutionary. Throughout his album promotion and first leg of his tour, Styles served look after look. The Gucci suits he debuted in 2015 became his go-to for his tour. Every single show was paired with a look almost as exciting as his performance. Off stage, Styles did not shy away from surprising people with his fashion choices. He began to paint his nails and add bold choices to all of his casual outfits, such as  replacing his usual black skinny jeans with silk pink pants.

2018: This year, nobody questions the boldness of Harry Styles’s fashion. His biggest exhibition to date was the Gucci shoot he did at the beginning of this year. If his fashion isn’t enough for you, Styles is seen in every photo cuddling a cute baby animal.

Fashion has become a big part of who Harry Styles is. The singer is much more open with his interest in the fashion industry and as he has been making bigger and bolder moves with his clothes every year, it comes as no surprise that Vogue has named him a Co Chair for the 2019 Met Gala. The gala’s theme, camp, is also a great descriptor for Styles’s fashion choices. Despite the basicness of his fashion only a few years ago, the last eight years has evolved Harry Styles into someone the fashion industry cannot ignore.