Five Ways to Wear a Black Leather Jacket

Over a slip dress: the hard shoulder against fluid silk is the oldest trick in the book and still the best one. Keep the shoe simple.

With wide-leg tailoring: crop the jacket at the high waist so the trouser line runs uninterrupted.

Over knitwear: a fine-gauge roll neck in cream lifts the whole look and stops black-on-black flattening out.

With denim: match the wash to the hardware — silver zips with indigo, brass with a washed mid-blue.

Layered under a long coat: sleeves inside sleeves takes planning. Choose an unlined-sleeve jacket so it slides.