Luxury Is Set on Rebranding the Hard-Wearing Flannel Shirt Outfit
The tartan button-down is in the throes of a high-fashion makeover.


Comb the internet for flannel shirt outfit inspiration, and you’ll find looks for a forest-dwelling lumberjack or a grunge head whose style is stuck in the 1990s. Rugged outdoorsmen recommend shopping for thermal button-downs at labels like Carhartt and L.L. Bean, while rough-and-ready rock enthusiasts still wear the same checked button-down shirt from when they saw Nirvana back in ‘93.
But if you ask the high-fashion crowd, they’ll paint a different picture than the flannel shirt’s well-known woodsy archetypes and subcultures. They’ll tell you it belongs in downtown Manhattan or Milan, worn by a quiet luxury lady running weekend errands. They’ll let you know it’s only a matter of minutes before Kendall Jenner or Jennifer Lawrence steps out in a humble tartan top—only theirs will undoubtedly have a not-so-humble price tag—and every fashion outlet (including, yes, this one) will report on it as a surprising Spring trend worth trying.
You may ask who or what is responsible for the pivot in perspective of flannel shirts. As many fashion roads do, our answer often leads us back to The Row when Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen opened their Spring 2025 collection with a red and blue tartan shirt paired with smart front-pleated trousers and open-toed flat sandals.
The Row's flannel shirt outfit that ignited the spring trend.
In doing so, the twins flipped the script on flannels, presenting them as a simple, laidback staple that possesses the level of luxury that The Row is known for. (The brand’s red Spring 2025 shirt hasn’t been released yet, but an all-black flannel button-down rings in at $1,490.) And it’s not just The Olsen twins either; Bottega Veneta’s Spring 2025 collection included a handful of flannel shirt outfits—including a spectacular styling of a cream and olive plaid shacket teamed with supper baggy jeans and an oxblood-colored tote bag.
One of the many flannel shirt outfits of Bottega Veneta Spring 2025.
Celebs are also in on the rebrand of the humble checkered button-down. At the top of the New Year, Katie Holmes wore a neutral version alongside pleated jeans and white sneakers, a new outfit addition to her arsenal of off-duty uniforms. Given the actress’s taste-making prowess as a casual cool girl (Holmes singlehandedly kicked off the subdued pastels 2025 color trend with a muted pistachio sweater), her flannel outfit is sure to inspire a slew of copycats come spring.
Katie Holmes's styling of the relaxed, checked shirt.
To help you prep ahead of the spring season—or for you to proactively wear it as a winter 2025 trend—below is a round-up of the best luxe-leaning flannel outfits to recreate. Consider the below looks a cheat sheet for mastering the 2025 fashion trend.
A Trusty Shacket
Reliably cozy and dual-purpose—flannel shackets, like Paloma Elsesser's ketchup and mustard-colored overshirt, are smart additions to your outerwear arsenal. Wear it open with a white tank underneath, and add a simple, sleek pair of tailored trousers.
An Unnatural Color Palette
Consider grabbing a flannel shirt in an out-of-the-crayon-box color—like bright Brat green (yes, the color is still trending in 2025). By choosing a shade that you'd certainly never find in nature, you're contrasting with the shirt's inherent crunchy, down-to-earth feel—and juxtaposition is often the secret sauce that separates a good outfit from a great one.
A Flannel Barn Jacket
Given its smash-hit success over the past 12 months, last year's barn jacket trend is trickling into 2025. But opting for a chore coat in a flannel print gives the silhouette a fresher feel than the traditional khaki or waxed forest green. Add in a flirty mini skirt and tan button-down skirt, and your look is complete.
Dark and Subdued
Another unexpected choice that adds intrigue to a flannel shirt outfit is to opt for all black—against a sea of fire engine red flannels, the neutral stands out. Try a cropped jacket in dark plaid with a black pant in a complementary tweed material and refined heels.
Smells Like Teen Spirit
Kick it back to Kurt Cobain with an homage to the 1990s trend with a red flannel shirt that features a crafty DIY touch—like J.Crew's embellished plaid button-down—leather trousers up the grunge ante.
Ladylike Spin
Alternatively, lean into more feminine stylings. Like this Paris Fashion Week guest, who paired a teal flannel with a structural midi skirt and cap-toe booties.
Weekend Uniform
Like Holmes, this Paris Fashion Week show-goer uses a brown flannel shirt as the foundation of a nonchalant and no-fuss look. Cargo pants and a sleek gray crewneck sweater will work to fill in the rest of the outfit.
A Flannel Skirt and Leather
Once you've mastered flannel button-up shirt outfits, level up your styling know-how by teaming a flannel skirt or dress with a leather jacket and stomp-ready combat boots. This look is another throwback nod to the 1990s grunge groups, so if you're someone who's still streaming Soundgarden, this might be a combination to consider.
Business Flannels
For a more professional and polished take, try a blazer done in tartan tweed with a simple white T-shirt and cropped black pants. As far as spring work outfits go, it's a fresh-feeling departure from the standard florals or pastels you'll spot everwhere else.
Crop It to Me
Consider a cropped flannel jacket if you want the graphic intrigue of a tartan top but crave a more feminine feel. Steal this London Fashion Week guest's style, a waist-level lady jacket in ruby red plaid with high-rise blue jeans.
Stay In The Know
Get exclusive access to fashion and beauty trends, hot-off-the-press celebrity news, and more.

Emma is the fashion features editor at Marie Claire, where she explores the intersection of style and human interest storytelling. She covers viral styling hacks and zeitgeist-y trends—like TikTok's "Olsen Tuck" and Substack's "Shirt Sandwiches"—and has written hundreds of runway-researched trend reports about the ready-to-wear silhouettes, shoes, bags, colors, and coats to shop for each season. Above all, Emma enjoys connecting with real people to yap about fashion, from picking an indie designer's brain to speaking with athlete stylists, entertainers, artists, politicians, chefs, and C-suite executives about finding a personal style as you age or reconnecting with your clothes postpartum.
Emma previously wrote for The Zoe Report, Editorialist, Elite Daily, Bustle, and Mission Magazine. She studied Fashion Studies and New Media at Fordham University Lincoln Center and launched her own magazine, Childs Play Magazine, in 2015 as a creative pastime. When Emma isn't waxing poetic about niche fashion discourse on the internet, you'll find her stalking eBay for designer vintage, reading literary fiction on her Kindle, doing hot yoga, and "psspsspssp-ing" at bodega cats.
-
Sarah Jessica Parker Test-Drives the New Platform Ugg
Carrie Bradshaw would have some thoughts on the exceedingly fluffy footwear.
By Amy Mackelden
-
Michelle Obama Elevates Baggy Cargo Pants With a $3,700 Tote
The former First Lady elevated her casual outfit with sleek accessories.
By Amy Mackelden
-
Youn Yuh-Jung Didn't Want to Make Another American Movie—Then Came 'The Wedding Banquet'
The Oscar winner shares why the LGBTQ+ rom-com hit close to home and the message she hopes it sends to ''conservative'' Koreans.
By Quinci LeGardye
-
Daisy Edgar-Jones Perfects the Boho Fashion Trend and Meaningful Minimalism in Under 12 Hours
There's no aesthetic she won't try.
By Emma Childs
-
Jeans and a Cute Top Are Your Shortcut to Easy Summer Style
The classic outfit formula got a revamp.
By Julia Marzovilla
-
I Asked Nordstrom’s Associate Fashion Director About 5 Can’t‑Miss Spring and Summer 2025 Trends—Here’s What She Told Me
From groovy boho styles to polished gardener-inspired outfits.
By Lauren Tappan
-
Spring 2025’s Floral Prints Keep the Love Affair With Fashion Alive
From Dior’s iconic rosettes to Laura Ashley’s vintage blooms.
By Emma Childs
-
Everything Marie Claire Editors Are Buying This April
From trendy East-West handbags to the perfect creamy pink blush, these are the coveted items filling our spring shopping carts.
By Marie Claire Editors
-
2025’s Sunglasses Trends Are Not for the Faint of Heart
Love or hate them, the boldest styles are turning heads—for all the right reasons.
By Emma Childs
-
I Left My Favorite Sunglasses in Paris—But Now I Can Test These Street Style Trends
From retro cat-eye frames to high-tech transition lenses, there's so much inspiration for my next purchase.
By Sara Holzman
-
Fashion’s Betting the Boxing Sneaker Will Be the Knockout Shoe Trend of 2025
Let's get ready to rumble.
By Emma Childs