A roaring trend: why leopard is the It print of the summer

She’s slinky, sleek and her name is Naomi. No, not Ms Campbell, but the “Naomi” skirt. It’s a knee-length leopard print number by the Australian brand Réalisation Par, which is, without doubt, winning Instagram this summer. Heralded as “the most popular skirt on social media” and “the most viral clothing piece of the year” by fashion blogs, it has been modelled in selfies by influencers from Stockholm to Los Angeles.

The skirt has been restocked several times and has just sold out, again, online. Priced at around £160, it will be on sale at a Réalisation Par pop-up at Selfridges in London this week; sharpen your claws if you want to try to get one.

This summer, in a fashion landscape where the selfie is all, leopard print is knocking the spots off florals. When worn by celebrities, the leopard print message is increasingly “go hard or go home”, as seen on Beyoncé wearing a leopard print leotard with thigh-high boots and a hat on tour. Us civilians might go down a subtler route: Urban Outfitters’ A-list midi skirt for £42 looks a treat with a plain white T-shirt, as does Rixo London’s Georgia skirt with mid-thigh split, a cult front-row buy at around the £200 mark. There is also Whistles’ frilled wrap skirt for £99 or, for the top-to-toe look, Zara has an easy, breezy, heatwave-appropriate dress with sleeves in its sale for £12.99.

Leopard print is the beast of pattern, its history loaded with symbolism, from power to seduction. Over the years, its fans have ranged from Bet Lynch to Rihanna, Alexa Chung to Theresa May, the Queen, Jayne Mansfield and Pat Butcher. It comes with its own soapbox, and yet manages to allow wearers to make their own statements.

As a fur, it was associated with “royalty, warriors and goddesses”, says Jo Weldon, author of a new book, Fierce: The History of Leopard Print. The print boomed, she says, in the 20th century: flappers loved real fur coats; Christian Dior wrote in his Little Dictionary of Fashion – “If you are fair and sweet don’t wear it”. In the 1950s, people started wearing leopard print lingerie and bikinis and, Weldon says, “it started to take on that slightly raunchy thing”.

In the 1960s, leopard fur went through a phase of popularity. Jackie Kennedy wore an Oleg Cassini coat in 1962. Demand rocketed and the leopard population suffered. In the 1970s, the print proved popular with glam rockers from Marc Bolan to David Bowie. “It was a way for people to play with androgyny, it was a rebellion,” says Weldon. The 1980s saw it become part of punk and what Weldon calls the “MTV style” of pop stars such as Madonna. The 1990s had Azzedine Alaïa’s iconic 1991 autumn/winter collection, indie faux fur on Garbage’s Shirley Manson and Scary Spice’s jumpsuits.

Ultimately, Weldon believes leopard print remains popular because “it has accumulated meanings … Someone can wear it and feel as if they are standing out or blending in, they can feel outrageous or casual. They can feel like it makes them look more mature, they can feel like it makes them feel more youthful.” The shape-shifting properties of leopard print give it many more than nine lives; this year it is not just a summer fling, but a long-term investment.

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