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The Weekend Read * Burgundy & Brown: Two Colours That Can Change Your AW ‘26/27 Wardrobe

October 02, 2026

The Weekend Read * Burgundy & Brown: Two Colours That Can Change Your AW ‘26/27 Wardrobe

Judi Prue | Read in 8 minutes

Hello!

There comes a point every season when you realise you are seeing the same colours everywhere. You walk into one shop and see them. You're then scrolling through some websites and there they are again. And when you pop into your favourite high-street store, there are trousers, coats, knitwear, dresses and accessories all appearing in variations of the same shades.

For Autumn/Winter 2026/27, two colour stories in particular have caught our eye. On one side we have those deliciously cool, rich shades sitting somewhere between maroon, damson, berry, aubergine and burgundy. At the other, we have wonderfully warm browns of chocolate, cocoa, chestnut, coffee, cognac and mahogany. The good news is that whilst fashion is telling us what's current, colour analysis tells us which versions are ours.

Rather than simply showing you what's fashionable this week, we're going to do something rather more useful. We're going to show you how to find it, pair it and wear it. And as always, before we even think about shopping, we're going to see whether the makings of your new-season outfit might already be hanging in your wardrobe.

Which Side Are You On?

If you're a Winter or Summer, look towards the cooler end of this trend. Damson, berry, cool maroon, wine-purple, plum, aubergine and burgundy look fabulous with so many colours you may already own; navy, grey, blues, cool greens and your best versions of white.

If you're a Spring or Autumn, your version of this season's rich colour story is all about warmth. Think chocolate, cocoa, chestnut, cinnamon, cognac, coffee and warm reddish-browns. Pair them with cream, camel, coral, rust, warm greens, turquoise and those gorgeous warm blues.

Always remember to not go by the name on the label. One retailer's burgundy may be quite cool and purple; another may be warm and red. One chocolate brown may have a beautiful warm golden undertone while another is almost black. Ignore the fancy name given to the item and really look at the actual colour of the item. We've both fallen foul of this in the past, and it can happen often when shopping online. There's nothing worse than opening your delivery and seeing how wrong a colour is just as you slide it out of the bag - so disappointing!

The Weekend Read * Burgundy & Brown: Two Colours That Can Change Your AW ‘26/27 Wardrobe

Find It: Start With One Piece

Here's your first challenge: Before you buy anything, open your wardrobe and look for one item in your version of this colour trend. Perhaps it's a pair of chocolate trousers you've had for years. Maybe there's a damson jumper lurking behind your navy knitwear. Perhaps it's a berry blouse, brown suede jacket, aubergine dress or cognac handbag.

Take it out and let's get reaquainted with it. The easiest way to make a wardrobe feel current isn't necessarily to replace things, it's sometimes simply about putting familiar pieces together differently.

Pair It: Try a Colour Combination You've Never Worn Before

This is where we want you to experiment:

Winters: Try your cool berry, burgundy or damson with navy, emerald, royal blue, charcoal or white - don't automatically reach for black. Imagine burgundy trousers with a beautiful royal blue knit and navy coat. Or a berry blouse with charcoal trousers and an emerald accessory. Rich, sophisticated and much more interesting.

Summers: Let your burgundy become a little softer. Try plum or smoked grape with soft white, delph blue, blue-grey or French navy. A soft plum jumper with blue-grey trousers and a beautiful delph scarf could look fabulous without shouting fashion trend at anybody.

Autumns: Dark brown really comes into its own here. Try it with rust, mustard, kingfisher, olive or oyster. Dark brown trousers, a warm cream blouse and kingfisher jacket? Gorgeous. Or try a dark brown knit with olive trousers, tan boots and gold jewellery.

Springs: Your warm browns can become wonderfully fresh when you combine them with cream, coral, turquoise, bright blue or kerry green. Imagine chocolate trousers with a cream blouse, turquoise cardigan and gold jewellery. Suddenly brown doesn't look remotely boring.

Wear It: What Are You Doing Tomorrow?

Now let's make this really practical. Rather than saving our nice outfits for some mythical occasion that may or may not happen, let's build outfits for actual life.

Work

Cool: Try plum or damson trousers with a soft blue blouse, navy jacket and silver jewellery. Add a berry shoe or handbag if you want to pull the colour story together.

Warm: Start with chocolate trousers, add a cream blouse and perhaps a teal/turquoise jacket or cardigan. Finish with tan accessories and gold jewellery. Smart, current, but still completely wearable.

Off Duty

Cool: Try dark denim, a berry knit, silver trainers, a navy coat and a plum scarf or handbag.

Warm: Take your version of denim and add a chocolate knit, cream jacket or gilet, bright suede trainers and a patterned scarf incorporating some of your best warm colours. There is nothing complicated about these looks and they don't feel as though you've tried too hard. They're just really good everyday outfits.

Dinner, Drinks Or Something Social

Cool: Imagine a burgundy satin blouse with grey trousers, kitten heel boots and beautiful statement earrings.

Warm: Try brown satin trousers or a skirt with coral, rust or red on top, finished with gold jewellery and tan accessories.

These are the same colour trends, and 3 completely different moods created.

Does It Actually Feel Like You?

This is where your Clothing Personality comes in. Two women can wear exactly the same colour and look completely different because we know colour is only part of the story. Let's take our trend-coloured trousers and see what happens.

Dramatics will add stronger contrast and angles, a statement coat, bold jewellery and a fabulous shoe.

Classics will choose beautifully cut trousers, a fine knit, polished coat and structured handbag and real jewellery.

Naturals can relax the whole thing with an easy knit, softer jacket, trainers or loafers and a less structured bag.

Gamines can introduce a cropped jacket, neater trouser, some colour blocking and a quirky accessory.

Ingenues will soften things with detailing in tops and bottoms, rounded shapes and delicate jewellery.

Romantics will bring in satin, draping, waist definition, richer fabrics and gorgeous statement jewellery.

We've taken the same trend and the same colours but applied them to six very different women. This is why we never want you to look at a mannequin or an Instagram post and think you must have that outfit. Rather, ask yourself what it is about the outfit that you like, then work out how to make it yours.

Before you take that fabulous chocolate coat or burgundy jumper towards the till, ask yourself three questions:

Is it actually one of my colours?

Can I make at least three outfits with it using clothes I already own?

Does the shape, fabric and detail feel like me?

If you answer yes to all three, it could be a brilliant addition to your wardrobe. If you answer no, or a slightly uncertain maybe to any of them, put it back. Fashion doesn't get to bully you into buying things.

Your 10-Minute Wardrobe Challenge

When you've finished reading this, go to your wardrobe and find one cool burgundy piece or one warm brown piece that you already own. Now pull out three other pieces in some of the colour combinations we've suggested above and try them together. Add your shoes and an accessory, and make one complete outfit you've never worn before. Then hang the whole outfit together, ready to wear this week.

Final Thoughts: Get Onboard With the AW'26 Two Key Colours

We love a good colour trend, but we don't want you to feel that you have to wear the exact shade that's appearing in every shop window. The fun is in finding your version of it. Colour trends are a great way to refresh our wardrobes and give us a little inspiration for the season ahead. But remember, just because you keep seeing a colour everywhere doesn't mean you need to wear that exact version of it.

The trick is to find your version of the trend. When you choose the one that belongs to your season, suddenly the trend becomes much easier to wear. It works with the colours you already own, feels more natural against you and, importantly, still feels like you.

Perhaps this is the best way to approach any new-season trend. Take the inspiration, leave what doesn't work, and make the colours your own.

We hope you have an amazing week this week. Let us know how your challenge goes this week over on our socials. Next week we are taking a deep dive into the brand we all love, Boden.

Best wishes,

Judi & Jenny xx

Click Here For Our Burgundy & Brown Shopping Inspiration