Runway Report: Top Picks For Fall 2016

Aug. 5, 2016

Whether your fall involves plucking apples, buying boots, or strutting your stuff at your local cider house, you’ll need some great new autumn wear for the brand new season. So here are some just ripe for the picking: this fall’s top trends, right from the runway.

SHOULDER IT

Reminiscent of the shoulder pads of the late ’80s and early ’90s (think Melanie Griffith in Working Girl), today’s more dramatic versions of power wear showcase shoulder reconstructions that look like geometric sculptures, extending outward from each shoulder with a small mountain’s worth of fabric. Phoebe Philo translated the trend for Céline in both a long mustard-green kneelength coat with man-sized shoulders, and a similarly boyish suit in a slightly luminous wine color, but be ready for more: Stuffed shoulders were ubiquitous in nearly every designer’s collection.

IN THE NAVY

Army fatigues, in the form of slim-shaped pocket pants, jackets, and even bedazzled T- shirts, have been part of many collections for the past several seasons, but designers seem to have grown weary of camouflage green and are instead looking to the Army’s seafaring fellows, the Navy, for crisp lines and dark shades of blue. You’ll find front-buttoned sailor pants, double-breasted jackets, rope trim, and even (unearned) naval stripes surfacing on some pieces. Tommy Hilfiger managed to combine several of these trends into one must-have fall coat.

LUXE APPROACH

Glamour and glitz also were seen on the runways for this fall and winter, but in more luxurious textures than years past — namely, lush velvet and thick, often embroidered brocade, primarily in darker shades with tone-on-tone patterns and accents. Newbie designers Brock Collection brought out even more depth in the brocade trend with their sweeping gold skirt, while the other side of luxury wear brought to the forefront stacks of velvet. That trend inspired elegant restraint from many designers, including Valentino, who turned the fabric modern with his velvet cropped pant, a runway hit.

STACK ’EM UP

If one layer of skirt is good, then wouldn’t it stand to reason that several layers are even better? Multi-layered, tiered skirts are definitely set to be a fall essential, with Hollywood actresses like Michelle Monaghan already jumping on the tiered bandwagon with a dramatic black version from Canadian designer Erdem Moral o lu. Design house No. 21 showed a more subdued take on the trend with a green skirt cast in a color somewhere between cactus dust and mint, while Gucci executed it in a pale denim blue with a contrasting schoolgirl neck bow in red.

GETTING WILD

For many fashionistas, animal prints never really go out entirely, but the runways were virtually covered in leopard this season, as everyone from Dolce and Gabbana to Sonia Rykiel included the bold print in their collections. Alexander McQueen got especially wild with the trend, pairing a jungle-patterned dress and street-tough wedge booties with an oversized pocketless blazer in leopard.

BOY POWER

And guys, designers haven’t forgotten about you. The biggest news from your side of the runway is the loosening up of men’s style all around; suits and blazers become more and more deconstructed, going along with the trend of more casual workplaces. We’re not saying ties are an endangered accessory — yet — but the ingredients for your fall 2016 look are mixed throughout the runway collections of Steven Alan, Michael Kors, and Orly: an untucked shirt, loose blazer, slim but casual trouser or skater pant, and shoes equally ready for an urban walkabout or lunchtime hike. In addition to earth tones — most notably, a flat orange clay tone — denim dominates this season with light washes and matched pieces.

1. Céline’s shoulder-heavy suit jacket brings back the office power-wear of late ’80s movies like Working Girl or TV shows like Dynasty.

2. On the lookout for the naval trend? Tommy Hilfiger buttons up its elements in this fall coat.

3. Tone-on-tone patterns are a hallmark of brocade, executed beautifully by Brock Collection on this gold skirt.

4. Luxury expert Valentino put a modern twist on velvet with a chic cropped pant.

5. Hollywood is picking up on the stacked and tiered skirt trend already, as seen here on actress Michelle Monaghan at the Pixels movie premiere. Skirt is by Erdem.

6. If Monaghan’s version of the stacked skirt is too dramatic for your taste, try No. 21’s design, which reduces the tiers and suffuses the color to a dusty mint green.

7. Alexander McQueen took the leopard trend to the max for this fall, mixing it with more vivid and bold patterns.

8. Menswear gets even more casual with loosely fitted suits, mismatched pieces, and less formal footwear.