Aristocrat meets gangster may seem like surprising style inspiration. But for viewers of Guy Ritchie’s sumptuous new Netflix series The Gentlemen, it makes a lot of sense.
The show, which reportedly racked up 215.7 million hours of viewing in its first two weeks, is a rich cocktail that combines the opulence of a rural area with the hedonism of an impeccably dressed criminal gang, played by a star-studded cast that includes Theo from White Lotus. James, Kaya Scodelario from Skins and Joely Richardson as Lady Sabrina.
In short, when aristocratic army captain Eddie (James) inherits a dukedom and his family estate, he discovers that it has been taken over by a massive marijuana empire run by the gangster’s daughter, Susie Glass (Scodelario), who, naturally, doesn’t. will go nowhere.
And thank God. Because he’s given costume designer Loulou Bontemps plenty of opportunities to indulge in British country chic, complete with velvet trimmings, tweed and millinery to die for.
As a result, sales of the brands featured on the show have skyrocketed. So if you’re looking to steal The Gentlemen’s look, here’s our guide on how to get the look – no duchess’s wallet or criminal mastermind necessary.
POWER SUIT
LR: Susie Glass’s gray striped three-piece suit is from Dolce & Gabbana: jacket, £1,800; trousers, £725; and vest £525; Jacket, £22, hm.com; vest, £35 and trousers, £59, next.co.uk; bag, £220, jasperconran.com; scarf, £105, bellasingleton.com
LouLou Bontemps has thanked Guy Ritchie for his “inspiration and determination to celebrate powerful women.” The latter’s uniform? A power suit, of course.
At the show, Susie Glass’s three-piece gray striped suit is by Dolce & Gabbana: jacket, £1,800; trousers, £725; and vest £525.
But instead of spending your savings to achieve the look, you can head to Next, which has a replica gray striped vest for £35 and matching trousers for £59.
There’s no jacket, but H&M has one that matches almost perfectly for £22 on sale.
VELVET UNDERGROUND
LR: Susie’s red velvet Stella McCartney suit costs £1,095 for the jacket and £675 for the trousers; Jacket, £420 and trousers, £270, cefinn.com; shirt, £45, hawesandcurtis.com; belt, £55, boden.co.uk
Perhaps the most praised look from The Gentlemen is the elegant red velvet Stella McCartney suit worn by Susie Glass.
It’s the perfect look for a fancy dinner, a night out, or planning to take over the world.
However, Susie’s glamorous gangster suit comes with a hefty price tag – £1,095 for the jacket and £675 for the trousers, to be precise.
Enter Samantha Cameron’s brand Cefinn with a slightly more affordable take on velvet tailoring, like the one worn by our model (blazer, £420; trousers, £270).
Or for those on a budget, Sainsbury’s brand Tu offers a red velvet jacket for £25 (tuclothing.sainsburys.co.uk).
And the key to making this look really pack a punch?
Pair it with a satin shirt in a matching shade Susie style.
LADY OF THE MANSION
LR: Lady Sabrina is wearing sage trousers from Schöffel (£129.95) and the equestrian-inspired jacket from Joules (£149); Jacket, £149, joules.com; jumper, £15, newlook.com; trousers, £129.95, schoffelcountry.com; boots, £68, studio.co.uk; hat, £89, hicksandbrown.com
Bontemps, who is Franco-British, has injected all her outfits with a certain je ne sais quoi.
While Lady Sabrina spends much of the series dressed in run-of-the-mill ‘get off my land’ attire, she always has a stylish touch: think lace-up wellies courtesy of cult Danish brand Ilse Jacobsen and a scarf tied silk. in some ways she is more of a bandit than Balmoral.
The authentic country uniform requires Schöffel, masters of outdoor clothing. These sage trousers, £129.95, were made for strolling around a mansion, while the requisite tweed comes courtesy of Joules’ equestrian-inspired jacket, £149, layered over a camel New Look jumper, £15.
Of course, you don’t have to travel across the country to enjoy the look. Combine the tweed jacket with elegant pants for the office and jeans for the weekend.
KEEP IT COLORFUL
LR: Susie’s red plaid tweed coat, from British brand Really Wild, is priced at £595; Coat, £275, houseofbruar.com; dress, £42.99, hm.com; shoes, £39.99, office.co.uk; beret, £22, hiornshats.co.uk
The mastery of Bontemps’ costume design is its unexpected combinations.
An example is Susie’s red plaid tweed coat, from British brand Really Wild, £595. Until now, Hooray Henrietta!
But pairing the coat with a white minidress and a red beret makes it punk, not prim. House of Bruar has a similar coat (worn by our model) for £275. You can buy this dress for £42.99 at H&M and emulate Susie’s socks and slingbacks with these kitten heels from Office, £39.99.
Then, top it all off with a lipstick red beret from Hiorns Hats.
LAYER UP
LR: Tweed experts Cordings are behind Lady Sabrina’s style; Shirt, £129, vest, £179, cordings.co.uk; trousers, £79, broraonline.com; scarf, £105, bellasingleton.com
Lady Sabrina’s style can be summed up in one word: texture.
Bontemps turned to tweed expert Cordings for her ensembles.
Our model is wearing a silk shirt, €129, and a tweed vest, €179, from the brand, along with red corduroy pants from Brora, €79.
There’s no excess of textures when you have a title, don’t you know?