The autumn trends we're still not quite sure about
Although much of eastern Australia has experienced an Indian summer, with an unseasonably warm Easter, at some point, we know the tide is going to turn and winter will be upon us. And when it does, we will need warmer clothes.
And when it feels as though everything is in fashion (The '80s are back! The '90s are having a revival! Wait, the '70s are where it's at!) it's easy to experience something of a paralysis, and resolve to just sit out the season altogether.
That happened to me last winter, when I didn't buy a single new significant thing because a) I couldn't decide what I liked and b) by the time I did it was nearly spring.
The Cut's Mollie Fisher tapped into something when she recently wrote about fashion JOMO (joy of missing out), which she dubbed the joy of sitting out a trend (let's call it JOSOT).
In relation to prairie dresses, Fischer wrote: "I try to imagine wearing one – happily, voluntarily, in public – and my imagination quails, offering up only a public-speaking-in-underwear nightmare sensation."
My 2017-18 equivalent was pyjama dressing. I just didn't get it, couldn't see myself in it and refused to partake, even though my Instagram feed and inbox were chock full of attractive women looking like they had just rolled out of bed.
Sometimes though, we may not get on board with a trend at its apex but long after. You see, as I write this I am wearing a pair of, you guessed it, printed silk pyjama pants. In the office.
Which brings me to this autumn, when it eventually arrives. If we are to adopt a traffic light system, there are some trends that are green (go! shop! wear!) and some that are red. But it's the tricky orange space in between where most of us will find ourselves, and where we must decide whether to spend our money. Here are three that deserve a second look, but not before a long, hard think.
The teddy coat: If I had to sum up winter 2019 in one coat, it's this boucle-style jacket, in camel. I am a huge fan but my mother tried one on recently and remarked that she looked like a walrus. It's likely to be a trend that will last, so invest wisely. You definitely get what you pay for.
Neon tiger: It seems that just as soon as we think fluoro has been shelved for another five years, it rockets back into vogue. I saw a fashion editor and influencer wearing one at New York Fashion Week last September and seemingly overnight, they were everywhere. But for the love of ethical fashion, if you are going to buy a neon green top to wear under your black slip dress, as I am, resist the temptation to buy a fast-fashion one. Neon is another thing that can easily look tacky when it's of poor quality. If you can't invest, maybe buy a scrunchie instead.
The side-mullet top: If Coachella has shown us anything, it's that the granny-pant trend refuses to die, and the side-tail top is the mullet dress of 2019. Shorter on one side, the top has a long tail that gives the skirt over pants effect in an efficient package. Just watch it when you're getting in and out of an Uber.
Get the look
Stockists
ASOS: asos.com.au
Sportsgirl: sportsgirl.com.au
TK Maxx: tkmaxx.com.au
MATCHESFASHION.COM: matchesfashion.com
Thurley: thurley.com.au
