As a rule, I think people shouldn’t get too sidetracked by trends, but heading into autumn, there are some style directions that I’m quite excited by. A lot of us love fall fashion because there’s so much to play with—boots, jackets, layering textures, richer colors. It’s also a chance to embrace your dark side a little, which is always fun.
Zero + Maria Cornejo, Balmain, Haider Ackerman
LEATHER
Confession: I am OBSESSED with leather. Anyone who’s followed my work knows I live for the stuff. It’s such a strange material, and there’s been so much great technology that’s advanced the weight and texture. Feather-weight suede, laser cut lamb skin—there are so many different ways you can wear this material now. I particularly love leathers that have rich colors and unique textures, and I love when designs manipulate leather for surprising details.
Haider Ackerman, Billy Reid, Lanvin
MENSWEAR
Whoever thought plaids and suits should just be for boys never asked a girl how she wanted to dress. The mix of traditional masculine and feminine is so sexy, especially in some of this season’s wide-cut coats and pants.
Celine, Nina Ricci, Vika Gazinskaya
MID-CENTURY SPIRIT
I was a child of the 60s, so you can bet I love the revival going on now. Think Bridget Bardot, Penelope Tree, Jean Shrimpton—a free spirited energy, with clothes that just skim the body. It makes me think of the first time I heard Janis Joplin or the Beatles.
On the flip side, I also still love the ladylike looks of that era, the nipped waists and beginning of women’s suiting. Think Tippie Hedren in Hitchcock’s “The Birds”. It’s incredibly elegant, but I love how today’s looks are playing with volume and fabrics and adding a little edge. It’s more playful, more subversive.
Valentino, Alaia, Valentino
BOOTS
Hard-edged, feminine, tall, short, bootie, shootie—boots are the sign of fall. I always love a good moto boot with a pair of skinnies or a mini, and I love a good stud as a detail on a boot (or in any situation, really).
photo credits: Style.com, Net-a-porter