At Who What Wear, we know just how much you, our readers, love to hear about the latest and greatest trends, easy styling solutions, and the best of the best on the high street. That’s why we’ve partnered with Gap, one of our go-to destinations for effortless style, to bring you The Fashion Forecast—a new series dedicated to solving your everyday styling needs and wants as well as getting a grip on emerging trends with the help of some of the coolest influencers around. This week, champion of minimal style and source of eternal outfit envy Kim of @loveclothblog shows us how London girls are layering up their classic staples as they head into autumn.
Layering, for me, is one of the best ways to add interest to my autumn outfits. I rely on it so much to make my simple pieces feel unique. I’m a minimalist at heart, and I’m rarely seen without some sort of denim, so this season, I’ll be reaching for versatile straight-leg jeans (which won’t surprise my Instagram followers who know I’m a big fan), great knitwear, and timeless outerwear. Gap is one of my favourite places on the high street for all of these pieces, so I’m excited to show you three looks from their latest collection that I’ll be living in this season.
As well as layering different neutrals, I’m also enjoying playing around with textures to make a minimal outfit feel interesting. I find that great quality fabrics, like cashmere or 100% cotton, elevate a look immediately. In my autumn capsule, along with my straight-leg jeans in a few different colours and crops to pair with trainers and boots, you’ll always find some navy cashmere. It’s just such a timeless classic that I’ll wear all through this season and beyond.
Denim-wise this month, I’m seeing lots of Londoners opting to pair their cosy pieces with longer length, slightly looser jeans for a 2020 update. With Gap’s Sky High jeans, I can stick to my favourite straight leg but try out that fuller-length inseam, which I’m loving. The skinny jean will always be a classic, but straight styles have that relaxed cool-girl feel that reflects London’s attitude toward fashion. Anything with a slightly vintage feel and not too much stretch, and I’m sold.
The key, though, is to find the style that you feel most comfortable in and work around that. I spend my life searching for the perfect shade of blue, and I think I may have found it in these Gap jeans. As the weather cools and I pack away my sandals for another season, I’ll be pairing my cropped denim with a loafer or chunky trainer. I’ll choose boots or heels to go with the longer-length styles of the moment for a more elevated look.
In London, the weather definitely calls for cosy and comfortable dressing, so I’ll be prioritising that this year. Every Londoner owns a great selection of knitwear, and I’m no different. Some of my favourite pieces from Gap’s autumn collection are the knits—the cashmere is super soft and such a great value and the merino wool feels so luxe. They always do the perfect simple shapes, with no fussiness that could ruin it. I’ll pop a white T-shirt under my knits and throw an extra sweater over my shoulders as a scarf-jumper hybrid to add some interesting layers.
Here are three of my favourite outfit combinations from Gap’s new drop…
The camel coat is the perfect wardrobe staple for autumn. It works seamlessly with any outfit—dressed up with boots or down with trainers. As for this sweatshirt, I was particularly drawn to the button detail, and it’s so soft inside, too.
Cardigans are something I’ve really got into wearing in recent years. They’re the ideal throw-on layer, especially for this transitional time.
For now, I’ll wear mine buttoned up with nothing underneath (am I a chic French girl yet?), but they work just as well over a vest or left open as an added layer.
Due to our new working-from-home routines, I’ve been living in joggers. To make them feel less sporty, I always try and elevate them with a cashmere knit and jacket when running errands.
These looks are perfect examples of how keeping a classic colour palette helps to create a capsule wardrobe you can wear year on year. I always lean toward basic colours, such as navy, whites, and beige, so that all of these pieces can be mixed and matched to make them more versatile. They can be easily layered over each other come winter. The navy knit elevates the joggers but would also work with any of the denim. Likewise, the white henley would pair perfectly with the joggers for a loungewear look, and the camel coat would easily work over everything.
Gap is always great for classic wardrobe staples, and those are the items I tend to look for. This is just one way I can make sure I’m shopping more mindfully, by investing in timeless pieces that are really well-made and I know I will wear again and again. I just make sure to keep them current with simple styling tricks.
