Getting dressed in September can be tricky. One moment you're reaching for a winter coat, and the next you're wondering why you left the house in your black opaques. For a new-season refresh, opt for autumnal conker browns and plum shades, and make your outfits weatherproof with playful layering. London-based model, influencer and high-street shopping pro Emma Louise Connolly tells us that autumn is her "safe place," making her the perfect person to give us a styling lesson for the new season.
We asked Emma to pick her favourite pieces from H&M's autumn collection and create two outfits that she'd wear on a typical day in London. "I never really feel too comfortable wearing dresses or skirts, so summer is a little harder for me," Emma explains. "I absolutely love layering knits and big cosy scarfs." When shopping, Emma always leans towards pieces that will be wardrobe building blocks and that she can wear in dozens of ways. "For me, it's no use if I can only wear it once with a specific outfit," she says.
Keep scrolling to see the pieces she is most excited about from the new collection and how she's planning on wearing them.
Autumnal dressing is all about clever layering, and Emma shows that an easy way to pull separates together is to stick to one colour palette. Her plum camisole looks like it was designed to be worn over this jumper. "This outfit was a little experimental for me," says Emma. "But I really loved wearing it. The boots are great for transitioning from day to night, as is the camisole. I styled it over a roll-neck, but in the evenings it would be great on its own too."
Emma also knotted the front of the slip to give it more shape and lengthen her legs. 'I tend to tie or safety pin most items on a day-to-day basis to make my clothes a better fit on my body," she says. "I can't tell you how many inches I must have taken off dresses with safety pins. I studied fashion design at university and spent a lot of time with sewing machines and hand stitching. I seem to have become very lazy and now only use safety pins. Sometimes I will completely re-create a dress using five safety pins."
If comfort is your top requirement when shopping for a new coat, then look no further than this chestnut-brown teddy bear coat. "I am completely obsessed with this faux fur–and-flares combo," Emma says of her second outfit. "This is very me day-to-day in autumn. I absolutely love these black denim flares. They were a little out of my comfort zone at first, but I actually grew to really love them. I teamed them with the coat to make me feel a little more me—I mostly wear oversized clothes. I don't think I'll ever be able to take this big divine faux coat off. I wore it to hoover the house the other day. I wish I was joking."
We'd also be very happy wearing those pointed ankle boots every single day until sandal season returns.
