5 key fashion trends to try for autumn 2012

Have you ventured near clothes stores and boutiques lately?  If you have you would have seen that it’s starting to look a lot like autumn in fashion land.

This is, of course, a super tricky conundrum to get your head around and it’s ok if you don’t get your head around it. It’s just how the fashion industry works.

Yes, as we are still in the grips of summer and weekends at the beach, yet the law of fashion decrees that the cooler season stuff must arrive in our stores. Stat. Meanwhile, boutique owners and store buyers are ordering stock for next summer. Confused? Much?

And in the fickle world that is fashion, there are always “new” trends thrust in our general direction. I added the inverted commas around “new” as these days there are few totally new trends. Most are variations of something that has gone before. And most are variations on what we’ve seen and worn the season before.

Which is good for you because it’s really very silly to start your wardrobe over again each season. You want to add to it and fill the gaps so that you’re on trend but not trending. If you get my drift.

You want to be YOU. You don’t want any trends to take away from YOU. The best ones will make you look and feel a gazillion feet tall.

Here are five trends to try on for size this season:

1. Earthy colours: Totally in love with this Gorman waffle t-shirt dress. Perfect on its own for now and you can layer it with tights, boots and a coat for winter. The colours are on the fashion money with an earthy mix and a touch of bright your keys to style this season.

2. The jacket: You’ll find a stack of jackets out there – structured and floaty kimono styles – consider both as the icing on the cake of your autumn outfit. You only need a simple tee underneath, maybe a scarf on top and you’re good to go. This one’s from Witchery.

3. Animal print: It’s everywhere – from sheer shirts like this one from Sussan (the sheer shirt thing is also a huge trend in itself) to jackets, boots, heels, handbags and loafers. There’s a little bit of animal in everyone and I suspect that most of you have a little bit of animal print tucked away in your wardrobe already. Don’t you? Don’t worry, your secret is safe with me.

4. Coloured jeans: Yes, you can. You can go there. If a little unsure, I’d go for a rust, red or wine colour and wear them back with neutrals – think a white tee, tan boots and a nude/tan coloured jacket. I’d love you to try them on and have a bit of fun. Yes, I would. These are from Sportsgirl but just about every store even down to Emerson at Big W is doing them.

5. The ankle boot: This was a trend that very much rocked last winter and it’s going to be huge again with ankle boots in everything from platform heels through to low to the ground. My money’s on a honey/tan pair for teaming with those red coloured jeans. It’s a fresh look and a break from black. These babies are from Country Road.