Longer skirts ‘are so depressing’!

London - The lengths of skirts have historically been an indicator of economic downturn and if what is on offer on the high street is anything to go by, the economy is in a dire state, it has been revealed.

Hemlines have hit their lowest since the 1929 Great Depression, with celebrities such as Victoria Beckham, Katie Holmes and Christina Aguilera sporting skirts as long as 33in, below the knee, the Daily Mail reported.

However, according to the Hemline Index, the ‘official’ indicator for skirt-lengths in relation to the economy, says we may be looking at brighter times.

The return of the long skirt has historically been a sure sign of a reclining economy with below-the-knee skirts featuring heavily in designer shops and high street chains during recessions.

Last time the fashion industries reported maxi skirts on trend was in the early nineties when inflation hit 15 percent.

This is compared to financial highs such as the 1960s, the time of the creation of the mini skirt and the later nineties where the economy boomed and 18in skirts were the norm.

During a period of economic boom tiny skirts came back into fashion as ‘Cool Britannia’ took over and the ‘Spice Girls’ took to the stage in thigh-skimming outfits.

The double-dip recession of the tens has seen hemlines move further down and maxi-length pencil skirts are in shop windows everywhere, from Selfridges and Harrods to high street giants such as River Island and H and M.

Although shop windows predict a bleak autumn when put to the test the Hemline Index show that things are looking up for both hemlines and the economy.

The longer hemline featured heavily on the Autumn/Winter runways last year which is now reflected on the high street.

However observations made at the 2012/13 shows indicate that by the time the catwalk creations become common fashion we may be out of the recession.

The Hemline Index was established by economist George Taylor at Wharton School of Business in 1926 who noticed a connection between good times and short skirts.

When the economy was good women would wear higher hemlines to show off the more expensive hosiery compared to rough times where the skirts would become longer so women could hide their cheap stockings.

Observations were made during the New York Fashion Week earlier this year where online magazine Business Insider compared the Hemline Index from Autumn/Winter 2011 collections with A/W 2012.

The Hemline Index rose from 35.04 in 2011 to 44.38 this year.

The higher the index the shorter the skirts and, according to George Taylor’s calculations, the better the economy.