The fall harvest, clockwise, from left to right, Aritzia super puff jacket, Mango bomber jacket, Paige Mary Jane, L'Agence polo, Remain leather jacket and mini clutch from Mansur Gavriel.
REMEMBER MAROON? Today, it goes by a slew of food-and-wine related names, including burgundy, the most popular, along with merlot, deep merlot, oxblood, dark syrah, claret, Chianti, pomegranate, berry brown and bordeaux. For background, I checked in with an expert, Leatrice Eiseman, director of the Eiseman Center for Color Information and Training and executive director of the Pantone® Color Institute.
“Burgundy is a classic fall color. You don’t look at it and think that’s so yesterday,” says Eiseman. “Its versatility is huge because it works well with so many other colors. Even new cosmetic hair dyes have burgundy tones. It’s universally flattering.”
For those of us whose closets are full of black, burgundy behaves like a neutral on shoes and handbags. Instead of all that face-draining gray from last year, choose a bordeaux or merlot turtleneck, coat or cropped jacket (BTW, it will look terrific with any shade of gray skirt or pair of pants).
And that’s not nearly all. See below for how we’re thinking about wearing the it color of the season.
Gold-tone buttons stand out against this wine-colored, snappy jacket. Cheers to the cropped silhouette. And look how great the blues of the shirt and indigo jeans mate with, er, maroon.
Show off the Mary Janes above with these dark oxblood pants in on-trend corduroy, a fall-to-winter classic—and durable—fabric. Note how the width at the leg and the high-rise waist create a flattering fit that elongates the legs.
A fashionable friend recently met me for coffee carrying this sculptural, small (5" h-by-9.5" w-by-2.75" d) clutch in pomegranate. I immediately wanted it as an alternative to my large tote. I found a similar one from Porto (9.5" l-by-6.3" h) in vino rosso for half the price that's also molto simpatico.
This summer I lived in my white gum shoe sneakers from Cariuma. Now, I'm hankering for something colorful with texture, but still classic, such as these burgundy suede sneakers.
While leather jackets can run into the many thousands, Copenhagen-based Remain's wheelhouse is affordable luxury, which doesn't skimp on style, as evident in this mahogany red, high-neck leather jacket with drop shoulders and wide sleeves.
I have an Iro sweater/jacket with the same boxy silhouette—it was spendy at the time, but I've amortized over many years, and it's a staple of my winter wardrobe.
If burgundy goes with everything, why not make it a mascara color? Charlotte Tilbury's new "dream pop" is a berry-brown hue that brings out those green and hazel tones in the eyes. Plus, the applicator's diamond-shaped bristles coats and separates lashes to full effect.
For a posh evening out in winter or for a dressy holiday party, black velvet pants have been my go-to. But these in dark oxblood look tempting. I'd get them shortened just a bit—to avoid the possibility of a face plant.
I can't say whether the touch technology in these gloves will work well enough to text and take photos, but the cashmere and longish cuffs should keep your digits and wrists cozy. And there's a matching burgundy beanie and scarf to spiff up, say a camel or navy or any color coat.
I usually lean in the direction of longer puffers but lately I'm thinking shorter is my preference for everyday errands—less encumbering. I also don't like to be cold, so this snug jacket in spiced burgundy filled with 700+ fill-power down (I'll stay warm unless it goes below -4°F) is calling my name.
Love all things Maroon or Merlot or burgundy
Love burgundy/maroon. Great minds!