Forget skirts and shorts, step out in a skort this summer!

AS they emerge from lockdown, women have left leggings and joggers in the closet in favor of slightly more sophisticated fashions. But that doesn't mean that they're squeezing into restrictive, constraining or even suffocating skin-tight pieces. Right now, it's all about a hybrid kind of fashion, where comfort meets elegance, and which seems to suit these freer but still uncertain times. As a result, the skort is shaping up to be one of the star pieces of the season. But what exactly is a skort?

Skort may be a strange word, but the concept is actually quite simple. It's basically shorts with a skirt-like fabric covering over the top, so skirt + shorts = skort. Anyone born in the 80s and 90s will understand. As for everyone else, they'll soon discover the practicality of this hybrid piece, which is both trendy and ultra comfortable, and most often found on the tennis court. In fact, the skirts worn by amateur and professional players are none other than skorts, even if on-court fashion has evolved in recent years.

As we know, fashion is in some ways at a turning point. In terms of trends, the need for comfort which saw a boom in homewear pieces during the various covid lockdowns recently seems to be confronted with a desire for extravagance, folly and trendy styles. As a result, men and women are looking for hybrid pieces that are both stylish and casual. No wonder, then, that the skort is now proving a hit.

The global search platform Stylight reveals that searches for the word "skort" have increased by 62% on Google Trends since the beginning of May. Meanwhile, the product category for tennis skirts with integrated shorts jumped 219% between May and June this year across all Stylight's international platforms. And so it seems that skorts already have a significant following all around the world.

Note too, the specialist activewear brand, Halara, which sells a wide range of dresses and skirts with integrated shorts, is proving particularly popular at the moment. According to Google Trends, searches for the brand name are up 300% since the beginning of May. All in all, this summer is shaping up to have a decidedly sporty or skorty vibe!