Snakes Alive – This Season’s Python Skins Are the Full Monty

When choosing an animal print, women tend to plump for the most predatory option. Take from that what you will (or just take it with several grains of salt). Consider the leopard – stealthy, agile, quick to snap. Or the crocodile, with its flashy, deadly grin. These powerful animals are proof that a print can be confidence boosting – a psychological suit of armour.

picture: http://www.queenieaustralia.com/formal-dresses

It’s no surprise, then, that snake print is growing in popularity and that the most popular snake is the much maligned python. The poor pythonidae are not as dangerous as one might think – in life or on the runway. In fact, if you’re wearing python, there’s an excellent chance that the predator might be you.

Pythons have long been hunted for their hides and their population has been decimated. The global trade in python skin is often illegal, and those who want the real deal should be especially careful when sourcing, on both legal and ethical grounds. For everyone else, there’s no end to the close approximations in leather and synthetic fibres. No one will know the difference but you.

Snake is the new go-to print for the kind of person who regards leopard as a neutral colour. It’s loud, yes. Flashy, definitely. But a good snake print will go with everything. While designers are quick to fling out top-to-toe looks that are practical only on the runway, it really comes into its own as an accessory – namely a shoe, boot or bag.

These accessories hit all the fashion sweet spots; just sufficiently rock’n’roll to add an edge to an outfit; serene enough to wear to the office. It’s an unexpectedly arresting animal print that cuts through the ubiquity of leopard.

The snake print camps can be split into two opposite, warring factions: the natural look, in tans, taupes and browns, or unreal colours, in tropical blues, greens and pinks.

The Natural Look

On the runway: As seen at Chloe (where the snakes were the real thing), python dresses...