Our top ten denim icons

— 17 August 2012

Denim jeans are well and truly cemented as an undisputed wardrobe staple. From Marilyn Monroe in her boyfriends to Kate Moss in her skinnies, we look back at the style icons and screen stars who have taken denim on a journey from humble workwear to fashion must-have.

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In 1955, James Dean spent the majority of Rebel Without A Cause in a pair of Lee 101 Riders, imbuing denim jeans with an imitable sense of cool. Where James Dean went, the youth followed and the nonchalant denim-clad American teenager was born.

You can thank Marilyn Monroe for making denim sexy for women. She was the pioneer of relaxed boyfriend style jeans in the early 1960s, lending them her incomparable feminine charm.

Elvis Presley in Follow That Dream - 1962
Elvis Presley proved it’s not just his shoes that were blue when he rocked this all denim outfit in his 1962 film Follow That Dream. There’s an advert for double denim if ever we saw one.

America’s Golden Girl, Farrah Fawcett, sent sales of flares rocketing when she was spotted in these bell bottoms in 1976 – the year she made her debut as one of Charlie’s Angels. Grease - 1978 When Danny Zuko and the rest of the T-Birds strutted their stuff in their jeans they sparked a resurgence in 50s style that sent everyone reaching for the turn ups.

When Catherine Bach fist stepped out in her denim cut-offs, she created a scene-stealing shorts moment that wasn’t rivalled until Kylie’s gold hotpants twenty-years later. Known forever more as Daisy Dukes, they turned a southern belle into a sex symbol.

Brooke Shields launches her own denim label - 1985
At the tender age of 15, Brooke Shields became the poster girl for designer denim as the face of Calvin Klein jeans – simultaneously making her one of the world’s most recognisable faces and sparking the debate about underage models.

Bananarama in the 1980s
Bananarama encouraged girls everywhere to make their jeans their own, sporting an astonishing range of ripped, frayed and customised denim. Well, it was the 80s.

In 1996 Alexander McQueen proved his status as the L'enfant terrible of London Fashion Week when he sent his controversial Bumsters down the catwalk. The low-slung style was a defining moment for the young British designer and – although few dared go quite as low – sparked a decade of builder’s bums and muffin tops.

When Kate Moss stepped out in her now-signature skinny jeans, she prompted a generation of women to step away from the bootcuts. Her fashion formula of skinny jeans, pumps and a blazer proved to be a winner for the high street too, which saw sales of skinnies soar.