There’s a nip in the air and as we reach out more frequently for a hot cup of coffee, it’s time to start thinking ‘winter wardrobe’. It’s the season where layers dominate — with fluid linens paired with cosy stoles, plaid jackets, woolly shawls and high boots. Worn the right way, it can be pretty easy to work out a cool, style-savvy vibe. A cursory scan down the local and international runways reveals some great winter-wear options and here’s a rundown on how you could spin out some hot-off-the-ramp, head-turning winter look:

STYLISHLY ENTRENCHED

The flowing long coat can possibly be the easiest way to make a winter fashion statement. It’s baggy enough to hide unwanted bits of weight in its folds and it is absolutely diverse. Dress it up for the evening party, dress it down for the lunch and if you’re truly adventurous, pair it with a sharara at a wedding, as Ali Xeeshan did at this October’s PFDC L’Oreal Paris Bridal Week. Our favourite looks from the designer’s collection were the not-very-bridal structured trench coats in basic white and black. Cinched at the waist, the long coats swept the floor, with lavish embroideries peeping beneath them, twirling on a sharara and a short shirt.

Rounding up the top must-have fashion trends for cooler days ahead

Fabulous statement-making coats, in fact, have always been fashion week favourites. The Khaadi Khaas line-up from earlier this year at the PFDC Sunsilk Fashion Week featured a gorgeous long coat worked with zigzagging tribal motifs and funky floral embroideries. It had all the makings of a must-have, for winter and beyond.

Generation is possibly the only brand to quickly translate what it shows on the catwalk right on to its retail racks. The brand’s fashion week collection, Bring Basant Back, featured lightweight cotton wraps and now that winter’s around the corner, Generation stores are brimming with a range of long coats. There are basic long designs and others that resemble loose belted chughas. Fabrics range from cottons, for when it’s slightly cold, to raw silk for formal wear and linens for when it gets blustery especially for those outdoor weddings.

SLEEK IN SUITS

The suit could be winter’s savviest statement; androgynous in essence, tapered, sleek and smart. The basic business suit is great for a casual lunch, paired with a shirt that pops. However, for a rockstar look in the evening, make sure that you tweak the austere lines of your suit. Funky accessories always help and local designers invariably offer a number of suit options. Sania Maskatiya, for instance, creates beautiful evening suits in velvet, accentuated by sleek embroideries. Online brand Lulusar offers blazers with matching bootleg pants and Daaman often delves into fitted suit jackets in bold colours. Taking a leaf from international runways, local labels are opting mostly for matching separates: same-coloured pants with coats or if you’re a luxury wear label like Elan, a suit tailored in vivacious botanical prints.

THE VELVETEEN TOUCH

There’s no doubt that velvet is a winter wardrobe fixture but it needs to be worn the right way in order to slip away from generic boundaries. For the House of Shamaeel Ansari, velvet is a favourite, moulded into stiff high collars and exaggerated bell sleeves. Sonya Battla, in her latest collection dedicated to Amir Khusrau’s Urdu poetry, has created beautiful velvet kaftans etched with embroidered verses. Misha Lakhani’s winter range of formal wear includes an embroidered, short ‘Nawabi’ jacket with slits for sleeves and lined with silk. The velvet suit is a classic and, of course, velvet pants — embellished or plain — always work well for a chilly evening out.

THE CLASSIC SHAWL

Shawls, shrugs, stoles and their many other variations can never go out of style. Luckily, there’s a large range available in the market, traversing heavy cottons and going on to linens, wools, Pashminas, viscose blends, velvets and the absolute real McCoy: Shahtoosh. Designers like Misha Lakhani, Nida Azwer and Shamsha Hashwani have a penchant for statement shawls, created from luxe pure fabrics and with intricate embroideries spread out on their canvas, telling stories from Mughal history, spinning out Persian sonnets and brimming with flora, fauna and multicoloured wedding processions.

Shawls, shrugs, stoles and their many other variations can never go out of style. Luckily, there’s a large range available in the market, traversing heavy cottons and going on to linens, wools, Pashminas, viscose blends, velvets and the absolute real McCoy: Shahtoosh.

On the high street, almost every retail brand worth its salt brings out line-ups of unstitched suits paired with shawls. Not every shawl is a winner for the market for unstitched fabric is often a mundane one. Given the large range of options, though, it’s easy to chance upon a shawl worked with a bright kaleidoscope of colours. It’s a great winter statement — and easy on the pocket too!

BRING OUT THE BOOTS

Earlier this year, Yves Saint Laurent brought out a pair of glittery, knee-high boots on to the Paris Fashion Week catwalk and threw the internet into a tizzy. Ever since, A-list celebrities have been spotted blinging it out in their YSL boots. While not everybody can access the high-end brand, boots always work well in the winter. The staid leather option can’t go wrong and the footwear market is rife with other alternates: printed boots, embroidered ones, boots studded with metal rivets and sparkly boots following the YSL trend.

Take your choice — and step up your style this winter!

Published in Dawn, EOS, November 19th, 2017