SHANE WATSON: The simple joy of jeans and a special top is back

Daily Mail journalists select and curate the products that feature on our site. If you make a purchase via links on this page we will earn commission - learn moreThis year, the cover of the September issue of British Vogue features actress Nicole Kidman, dressed in Stella McCartney’s brand-new look for autumn/winter: JAST (Jeans And a Special Top).Yes, you read that correctly. Inside the magazine we have Ms Kidman in a Dolce & Gabbana satin dress, a Chanel skirt-suit, a McQueen lace bustier dress, but on the cover – where it really counts – she’s wearing jeans and a sweatshirt, albeit super-luxey versions.The message has been drip-dripping through since Chanel’s pre-Fall show opened with a model wearing a quarter-zip sweater and jeans, and now Vogue has made it official: JAST is number one in the dressing charts once again.If you like jeans, this is good news because it’s familiar (jeans and a pretty top was the answer to everything in the early Noughties) and it’s the smart-casual dressing formula of dreams: two easy steps, relatively affordable (you only need one pair of great jeans and then rotate the tops, depending on the occasion) and it delivers in so many ways.When it comes to what you can see above the table when eating out, it scores a ten. For comfort and convenience, ten. For having your cake and eating it – pretty, sexy or chic on top; minimal, flattering, practical on the bottom – it has never been bettered. And the very good news is that the bullseye duo is as wearable in 2026 as it was 25 years ago.Back in the Noughties, a chiffon butterfly sleeve and a smock shape was the order of the day, worn with bootcut or narrow flared jeans. Now the look is more polished, less pretty – so much better for us old hands.The top could be a plain soft sweater (see that quarter-zip Chanel sweater and the sweatshirt on Vogue’s cover), a shirt with extra character or a silk necktie blouse. The jeans are straight and often wide but otherwise the same rules apply: They must look crisp, never washed out, worn or baggy.First the top. Personally, I’m not going near the overtly sporty options (impossible on anyone over 50, bar Ms Kidman) or the many soft blouses with silky neckties (too lady mayoress when you were wearing them 30 years ago).I’m interested in sharp but feminine styles which you can wear day or evening; a top with just enough class to tip jeans into smart territory.The white shirt continues to be an instant uplift, but a plain white shirt is too stark for many of us. Cos’s ruffle-collar white seersucker blouse (£85, cos.com) is more forgiving and endlessly versatile – not least because the collar is detachable – and it looks great in ice blue too. Me+Em’s ‘impossibly soft shirt’ with a slim frilled trim on the collar and cuffs is, likewise, a flattering compromise (£165, meandem.com). It’s not cheap but it might pay per wear if you team it with flattering sleeveless sweaters or waistcoats as the weather gets cooler.Femininity with structure is the key here. The slightly more feminine, yet still sharp, shirt in all hues is having a big moment. Zara’s fine striped pale blue shirt with a white bib front (£39.99, zara.com) looks lovely styled with a pale pink silk cummerbund and jeans on its website. But it would look just as good half- tucked in, topped off with shiny mid-heel loafers.Me+Em has a wide selection of crisp pretty shirts, including several with elasticated ruffle-trim cuffs (a quick fix for evening – pushed up to bracelet length). Me+Em’s ‘in the details’ collarless blouse (£95) in white or a dark navy, which could be black (more forgiving), is what I reach for now.Plain shirts don’t generally fit the JAST formula, but I love Zara’s batch of bolder, looser-fit statement shirts. The collarless, yellow with burgundy striped one (£29.99) looks expensive and different.A quality lace-trim top, worn under a semi-open cardigan still works – Massimo Dutti does a good one (£35, massimodutti.com) – and a short sleeve, fluffy crew-neck knit is a really useful buy, if you don’t mind showing your elbows (the fluffy texture is what elevates this). Try Marks & Spencer’s in dark petrol blue (£26, marksandspencer.com).As for the jeans, the only rule is to keep them crisp and on the darker side. I love Zara’s current selection (from £27.99), and M&S’s ‘smart, high-waisted, wide-leg jeans’ (£46). Worn with a smooth mid-heel – loafer or slingback – this look will take you pretty much anywhere.SHOP: SHANE WATSON'S verdict on the hotly anticipated M&S autumn collection: Even Vogue editors are jostling to snap up quality pieces for less than £30READ MORE: Think pencil skirts are dated? The controversial style is back for autumn – here's how to wear it