I think it’s time to face it. Summer isn’t coming back.

While the calendar may well still say summer, one quick glimpse out of your window will tell you that meteorologically, we're far from it. But rather than dwell, I am looking forward to the new season’s styling and dressing in fresh new ways, taking the opportunity to maximise what is in my wardrobe whilst we go through the transitional period before the cold temperatures hit us.

Whilst the first drops from the high streets and designers can give us a good indication of what is going to be popular this Autumn it’s also worth looking back to previous seasons and seeing what you can continue wearing but just in a different way. The trends are full of florals, checks, leather, lots of sparkle, puffy sleeves and fancy ruffles. Looking at that list I know I own something from all of those categories so I am going to show you how I am going to style them for this coming season to inspire you to dig into your wardrobe and re-style.

The big styling trends for AW19

SHOULDERS

I’ve always loved a big puffy shoulder, some shoulder detailing and pleating at the shoulder - it gives some height to your outfit and adds some style to your tops, jackets and dresses. This Autumn is the return of the shoulder and the high street already has a few of them online, this would be by top tip to buy now and wear all Autumn before the weather changes to having to wear knitwear.

Here is how I am styling my current wardrobe puffy shoulder items -

Here are some new items to buy now -

Puff shoulder blouse, £65, & other stories

LEATHER / FAKE LEATHER

Top of my Autumn wish list is a leather shirt (or shacket) which I will tuck into skirts, put over dresses and wear casually with jeans. In the meantime I will be pulling out these fake leather culotte’s that are a couple of years old from ASOS and wearing them more casually rather than just for evening as that is what I have tended to do in the past.

See how I will be styling them below -

Here are some new items to buy now -

CHECKS

Let’s face it we all have a check shirt lurking in the back of our wardrobes which we tend to pull out every Autumn and wear it with jeans. This season will see another load of checks out there from ginghams to windowpane checks and Prince of Wales checks. I brought a fab coat from Warehouse in the Winter sale that I will no doubt be wearing alot this Autumn, and this check shirt from Zara which is years old will be styled up over dresses in the coming weeks.

Here is how I am styling my check shirt -

Here are some new items to buy now -

Faux Sherling collar plaid coat, £120, &other stories

FLORALS

My Winter jumpers are currently packed away so I know that when they come out I will be wearing them over these dresses with tights and boots into the cold weather. For now I will be adding layers and high tops so I can stripe or keep warm depending on what the weather will do.

Here is how I will be styling my floral dresses -

Here are some new floral dresses to buy now -

Jenna Floral dress, £120.00, Ghost at John Lewis & Partners

Rae dress, Lily & Lionel, £220, from The Dressing Room

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I have written many blog posts about Leopard print over the years, for me it is one of the fail-safe prints that never goes out of style, out of fashion and always makes a statement. Over the years I have collected many pieces of Leopard print items for myself from coats, to shoes, to bags and a skirt, and I often advise clients to add the print into their wardrobe if in nothing more than accessories to liven up an evening outfit. This season Leopard print is having its moment in the spotlight and has been in every fashion magazine, glossy supplement and style website for the past month as it is a great transitional print and can update your outfit in an instant. But the tones in the Leopard do not suit everyone. If you are choosing a Leopard print that is predominantly stone then this can often drain you of any colour in your cheeks as it might not the right stone.

So know this for Autumn, fashion is really, really wild for animal print. Right now on the highstreet you can get Leopard print in an array of different colours so you can match your favourite print to your perfect colour. Why not go bright and zingy in your leopard print choices, you are already making a statement with the print so go that extra style mile and choose it in the right colour for you.