Leader: Carried off with style

THE old song spoke the truth: you’ve either got or you haven’t got style. Let us make one thing clear, however: style should not be confused with fashion. Fashion can be bought. Fashion can be followed. To be fashionable requires little more than a close reading of glossy magazines and a willingness to spend money.

Style, on the other hand, is not something you can buy, or learn, or sign up to. It is not something that can be bestowed by a “stylist”. It is, however, something most of us can instantly recognise. And there was much to recognise last night at the Scottish Style Awards.

These awards are becoming an increasingly prestigious event in the Scottish calendar, reflecting style’s growing importance in how Scotland sees itself and, perhaps inevitably, sells itself. Style helps keep Scotland – and especially, Glasgow and Edinburgh – near the top of must-see lists for international travellers. Style bloggers such as Les Garcons de Glasgow – who scour the streets photographing people who just happen to be looking gorgeous – have a deservedly global following.

The award winners last night are all deserving of their accolades and it is particularly encouraging that they are not a list of “usual suspects”.