The coolest layers to keep you warm? See Junya Watanabe’s collaboration with The North Face, OFF-WHITE’s plaid shirts and branded bobble hats. Snazzier than a novelty Christmas jumper and set to make mothers across the land overjoyed at fashion’s preference for the warm and functional – cosying up has never been cooler. Sign us up. 

While we Brits are famed for braving cold, blustery streets in just a shirt and jeans (especially when there’s a cosy pub in our midst), it’s probably not our most practical of style habits. Enter the party-worthy jumper: whether colourful, printed or embellished, this is the layer that ensures you’ll arrive shiver-free and smart. Layer over an embellished-collar shirt for an additional conversation starter.  

Let your layers shine through this autumn with distressed knits that offer a peek of autumnal tartan and ripped, knee-flashing jeans. Go for ‘refined and roguish’ rather than ‘teenager fresh from his first mosh pit’ by keeping colour to a minimum and topping it all off with a smart twist on a classic jacket: the velvet bomber. 

While many of us say we love autumn, do we really love it on a dark, wet morning with a broken umbrella? Not so much. Here to brighten things up a little, then, is a fresh palette of eye-enamouring colour. Trade in a grey overcoat for something brighter – emerald green or post-box red, say – and clash it with a colourful knit and that all-important winter scarf. Goodbye autumn blues! Well, unless it’s bright cobalt you’re talking…

Freezing streets. Sweltering transport. An office that is never, EVER the right temperature for everyone. Yes, in the city, your layers may need to work for all seasons, in the space of one day. How to respond to such tumultuous conditions? A light, packable mac and a smart, chunky knit to pull on over your shirt, we say. And don’t forget a trusty scarf – especially helpful for dropping oh-so-subtle hints when the office manager refuses to turn the heating on…