So here we are. At the end of another fashion month that spanned international borders and showed us exactly what we have in store for us this upcoming season. Yes, we've rounded up all the highlights from NYFW, LFW, MFW and PFW, and all the best street style from each, but you might be more interested to know what the through-lines were. What's making brands and luxury Houses tick right now? What trends are they leaning into and out of for FW24? And what can we expect to see more of in the coming months on runways, in stores, and most importantly, on bodies.
We've rounded up some our autumn fashion trends forecasts from the FW24 runways NYC, London, Milan and Paris, below.
Riding boots
The riding boot was fairly ubiquitous across runways in all major fashion weeks this season, most notably at shows like Gucci, Prada, Hermes, Burberry and FENDI. It came in plenty of shapes and iterations – from the leopard printed at Christian Dior, to the platform heeled at Prada – but the intention still felt the same: it was all about CHUNK. Whether it was referencing the horse riding boot or the moto riding boot, each came with a distinctly oversized and protective feel – like they could carry us through all terrains (though we might opt to keep these ones out of the mud).
Yeti coats
If you've ever wanted to channel your inner Muppet this is the season to do so. Burberry's dreadlocked knits hinted at the trend, but Diesel, Balenciaga, Acne and Saint Laurent really solidified the desire for fuzzy, oversized coats in every shape and colour. There were floor-sweeping black teddy coats at Valentino and leather-fringe kimono-style outerwear at Bottega Veneta too. It seemed the bigger, cosier and all-consuming, the better – probably channelling some of that Mob Wife energy we've been seeing around the streets as of late.
Headgear
Headwear was the ultimate accessory, most notably at CHANEL who channeled their millinery roots through giant pastel sun hats and tweed flat caps. Moschino's camp headwear included a series of structured black and paper boat hats, and Prada topped off most of their collection looks with feathered conductor hats. And where hats weren't present, other headgear was – Saint Laurent's headwraps; Balenciaga's face-covering beanies; Susan Fang's beaded caps and Kim Shui's plastic bonnets.
Oxblood
If there was a colour to underscore this season it would be oxblood – this deep, crimson tone that lands somewhere between a purple, a brown and a red – which has seeped its way into collections across several cities. Of course, Sabato's signature 'Rosso Ancora' tone permeated his Gucci collection and accessories, but it was also present at Saint Laurent in gauzy dresses, in leather at Tod's; it was beaded into dresses at Ludovic de Saint Sernin and translated into outerwear for both Hermes and Eckhaus Latta.
Cut outs
The subtler allure of a cutout – the pop of a shoulder, the hint of a hip – is an exciting trend to see pop up on runways this season. Of course Tom Ford's eponymous label returned to the cutout as a part of his signature savoire-faire, but it was the laser cut-out lace of Valentino and the slice-effect skirts and dresses at shows like OFF WHITE, Eckhaus Latta and Helmut Lang that really caught our eye.
Sheer
Opaque is out. Gauze-like garments are in. Tom Ford sent a gorgeous sheer purple floor-length slip dress down the runway, while Moschino kept things camp with translucent skirts over bloomer-like briefs. Saint Laurent, Gucci and Valentino really leant into the trend too, with boxy dresses and sheer pussy-bow blouses permeating showings. But we think no one did it better this season than Chemena Kamali at Chloé, whose debut collection at the helm of the House encompassed a series of beautiful 70s-inspired diaphanous tiered gowns.
Skirt suits
We're all for a bit of power dressing here at RUSSH and it didn't go unnoticed that most Houses this season felt the same. The skirt suit was EVERYWHERE, from Tommy Hilfiger in NYC, Hermès in Paris and Prada in Milan. Of course, the pioneers of the silhouette stayed true to their roots – we spied many a tweed skirt suit at CHANEL FW24, and wool co-ord at Christian Dior FW24. But it was interesting to see how this classic ensemble was reinterpreted across Houses and cultures – from the sultry mini skirted versions at Ludovic de Saint Sernin, to the sweet floral iterations at Sandy Liang.
Bows
Coquette isn't dead, it's just evolving – at least that's what it looks like on the runways of its pioneers like Simone Rocha, Yuhan Wang and Molly Goddard. Notably, Sandy Liang's show had hardly a bow in sight, but that didn't stop Houses like Coach and Prada from blowing them up to enormous sizes, or decorating gowns in a multitude of them. Paloma Wool had an interesting take on the bow this season, embellishing tops with bows that looked more akin to the type you'd find on a birthday present than one tied in ribbons. Either way, we think this one's here to stay for a while.
Images: GoRunway