Yes, you do need more chocolate in your life
AT SOME point over the past few weeks, without consciously thinking about it, I started dressing like my mother did during the Seventies.
As I type, I am wearing a gorgeous splashy print dress by my favourite, Essentiel Antwerp (background colour: terracotta) with knee -high boots in a shade that is probably best described as conker.
My prized tan leather Mulberry saddle bag is also slung on the back of my chair . . .
Starting to notice a theme here? Uh-huh. Brown.
Frankly, I didn’t think I wore brown (grey marl, pale blush, navy and off -white have been my default neutrals for as long as I remember); but it turns out that I do.
Shades of chocolate, caramel, cinder toffee and — steady yourself now — rust were simply all over the autumn/ winter fashion runways.
A milk chocolate leather trench at Louis V uitton set the tone and I particularly adored the super - sized take on classic country casual knits and corduroys which featured at Mulberry.
Over in Milan, the MaxMara autumn/ winter collection was all about luxurious headto- toe tonal dressing in a symphony of expensive -looking chocolatey tones.
There were floor - sweeping textured teddy bear coats, grown-up cowl-neck sweaters and slacks, which stole many an admiring glance from the crowds.
On the High Street, Topshop has embraced the brown aesthetic with a fabulous boucle slouch coat in a turmeric shade (£85, topshop.com).
For the bold there is even a maxi-length, shiny brown mac which is much nicer than it might sound, I promise you (£140, topshop.com).
FOR those who, like me, are still slightly in denial about the whole ‘ brown is back’ thing and don ’t quite believe that earthy tones are for them, adding a little bit at a time is the ideal way to be a part of the trend.
A tan belt with a logo buckle on this season ’s ubiquitous long floral dress will give it a little added edge.
Or consider swapping your classic, wear-with-everything black ankle boot for a shiny conker brown.
There’s a truly fabulous pair in Marks and Spencer’s Autograph collection (£79, marksandspencer.com).
I’ve also noticed that there are a lot of brown leather skirts in stores at the moment — doubtless inspired by JW Anderson ’ s wondrous creations at Loewe.
If you feel tempted to try it, then be sure to keep the hemline at the knee. P air the skirt with a lovely chunky ski sweater to soften the effect and keep the look modern.
On a personal note, I’m currently coveting the gorgeous ruffled V irginia blouse in the new Boden Icons collection in sumptuous black and praline-striped silk (£170, boden.co.uk).
It’s inspired by the interior of an English stately home and would be perfect worn with slightly flared blue denim jeans and a pair of chunky platform sandals.
As scholars of Seventies fashion will tell you, it was the back-to-nature movement that inspired the decade’s earthy palette of mustard, olive, mouse, peat and mulberry.
When I interviewed Biba founder Barbara Hulanicki a couple of years ago she explained that her favoured brooding colourways ( a chocolate brown jersey evening dress is quintessentially Biba) were inspired by the Thirties wardrobe of the austere aunt she and her mother lived with after moving to the UK from Poland. It was marrying those moody hues with the glam-rock bohemia of Seventies London that created Biba ’s famous sexy allure.
Of course, we should also thank Biba for popularising dark, chocolatey- plum lipsticks, which are once again back in fashion — but be warned, they tend to flatter the young best.
As ever, when a retro trend is in the air , the key is to avoid being too literal.
If you try on a Caramac-coloured leather jacket and think ‘Starsky & Hutch ’, it’s probably best to step away.
Of course, there are those of us who are never going to truly love brown.
I’ll always be more seduced by the candied chestnut and burgundy options that are in the shops right now , which capture a similar mood.
Take a look at COS for the perfect merino wool polo neck (£55, cosstores.com) and slim twill trousers (£ 59) in a lovely burgundy.
They work fabulously together, but with tone - on-tone dressing always make sure you try before you buy.
You’re looking for a fit that skims the body rather than sausaging it in.
In general, your muse should be Anjelica Huston stepping out with Jack Nicholson in a beautiful burgundy silk shirt and a matching Halston trouser suit.
Or, alternatively, my mum in the Seventies.