Katie Holmes Has Always Been A Truly Excellent Dresser, As These Throwback Photos Prove

It might have taken a Khaite bradigan to catapult Katie Holmes into the fashion limelight she is currently basking in – but this is not another piece about that (although admittedly, yes, it was a marvellous moment that we still aren’t sick of looking at or decoding). Because long before Katie went on a Khaite trip, long before Tom Cruise came on the scene, there was Katie Holmes of Dawson’s Creek teen dream fame.

For the eager Holmes watcher, her Joey Potter-era looks are worth a revisit now. In fact, you can see the green shoots of her Khaite obsession in her late-’90s/early-’00s get-ups. Catherine Holstein is a whizz with sleek, pared-back leather tailoring, something Holmes was already championing at the turn of the millennium. For reference, see the black leather blazer she wore to the Go premiere in 1999 and similarly pared-back long-line jacket she wore MTV Movie Awards that same year (testament to this style’s versatility, she wore a similar – if not identical – style out and about in New York with mum-jeans and dad-sneakers in 2001). All of them are looks we’d love to see her revisit now. Scratch that, all of them are looks we’d love to wear now.

Leather, of course, isn’t just reserved for jackets. The chocolate brown pencil skirt she wore to a party at Bergdorf Goodman in 2003, makes the point excellently. This was teamed with a simple V-neck knit in a similar shade and kitten heel knee-high boots, which again, we’d happily snap up this autumn.

Two other things Khaite is known for today and which the then-up-and-coming Holmes had a soft spot for? Denim and great knits. Shout out in particular to the indigo denim she took for a spin on MTV in 2003 – and the asymmetric, off-the-shoulder white sweater worn with it (twisted knits like these have been doing business at Bottega Veneta).

'Less is more' might have been her fashion modus operandi, but Holmes also had a touch of boho flair. If you’re a fan of Bode, then you’ll love the multi-coloured patchwork maxi skirt she wore to a Dior party in 2003; if you can’t see yourself ever opting out of the skipping-in-a-meadow prairie dress trend, then it’s the white lace, cap-sleeve, empire-line gown she wore to the Emmy’s in 1998 you'll be sweet on (swooning ensues).

While we might appreciate the simplicity of Holmes’ early-fame looks now – a snakeskin midi skirt with barely-there, square-toe sandals and a white T-shirt are chef’s kiss - it’s probably also the reason we didn’t really appreciate her the first time around. The early noughties were, after all, a golden era for lurid velour tracksuits, monstrous trucker hats and paparazzi bait party dresses. If you’d looked at Holmes then you might have thought she was ‘stuck in the ’90s’ in a bad way (or, whisper it, boring) – today, that is the highest form and flattery. Consider it proof that sticking to your style guns always pays off in the end.