Darker Days, Darker Shades | Nicole Clinton

The fashion world bids farewell to last season by shifting its colour wheel writes Nicole Clinton

     As the summer makes its departure (if it ever really made its arrival), so do the bright coloured styles that inhabited the catwalks and the shops for Spring/Summer 2012. With the change of weather comes a change in the colour palette and it’s all about maroon, navy, burgundy and dark mustard for Autumn/Winter.

     For women, the emphasis on these darker, earthy tones seem to be as a result of the current styles invading the high street. The opulent ‘Baroque’ style features gilded and heavily embellished pieces that depend on regal colours such as burgundy, dark blue and gold/mustard to make its impact. Originally displayed on the Dolce and Gobana catwalk, Baroque is huge in the latest River Island collection.

     This season also sees the return of the ‘Military’ look. This trend employs the use of khaki and dark tan colours. Olive green maxi coats, double breasted jackets and leathers appear to be the key items of this trend, which can be seen in Oasis and Zara at the moment.

     ‘Goth’ is meandering its way back into the shops for Autumn/Winter. The gothic style shirt of wine and navy-blue colours is widespread. This is all about lace, ruffles and sheer materials, as seen on the Valentino and Alexander Wang catwalks (or in Penneys of course!).

     The ‘Heritage’ and ‘Equestrian’ looks transport us back into the Countryside as things get old- fashioned for autumn in classic tweeds, ruffle-neck blouses and checked capes with faux fur accessories. The new colour palette really comes into play with this trend as burgundy, brown and burnt orange prove to be its main shades.

     In fact, it seems that the only Autumn/Winter trend that is independent of this colour palette is the ‘Oversized, Textured Knits’. The chunky jumper/ cardigan of the season rely on bright, clashing colours and Aztec patterns, rather than dark, natural tones.

     For men this season, the new colour palette can be mainly observed in trousers. Wine, navy and dark mustard jeans are currently featured in most high street stores collections (most notably in H&M and Topman). The navy blazer is also a key item of menswear presently. The wine suit, pioneered by Andrew Garfield during his promotion for ‘The Amazing Spiderman’, is making its way into the shops as well. However, unlike the feminine collections, men’s knitwear is following the neutral colour palette with the popular rust and maroon jumper and cardigan.