The cord jacket to see you through this season.

There’s always a certain element which makes its mark on a season, and this time around you need to keep a lookout for the corduroy trend. We saw a smattering of it last winter thanks to retro being ‘a thing’ – think 70’s vibes and you will be on the right track. But this season cord is a key fabric and well worth adding to your outfit armoury, so this week I’ve been scoping it out through the medium of a cord jacket.

If the idea of getting back into cord is bringing you weird flashbacks of scary cord hotpants back in the day which your mum proudly plonked you in and sent you off to school with (or is that just me?); then think again. It’s come a long way since those scary days and thanks to some classic tailoring your cord jacket, trousers or skirt are going to be a winner this season. Corduroy is a classic textile with a distinct cord or wale which makes up the lines of the fabric. It’s a hard wearing material, and the size of the wale (numbers of ridges per inch) can vary to give you a thicker pattern – or jumbo cord as we used to call it way back when. Thicker cord tends to have a chunkier fit so if you are on the petite side or looking to use this trend for a slimming effect, then opt for thinner wale cord for a neater silhouette.

I snapped up this dark blue cord jacket from Arket – a Scandi brand which has landed on our shores with just the right amount of classic meets edgy tailoring for us gals who prefer to keep our lines simple but our fashionista flag flying. It comes up pretty big (this is a size 44, and I normally take around a 42 on top but wanted to make sure I could fit winter knits under it). It also has a longer line hem which is great for covering the butt, although you can run the risk of looking a bit swamped. I’ve hoicked up the sleeves to a 3/4 length which is an old styling trick which gives you the illusion of a nipped in waistline on anything from jackets to shirts to sweaters.

I’ve paired the cord jacket with Marks & Spencer half sleeve knit, J.Crew necklace (old but similar here), Massimo Dutti jeans (last season but similar dark wash here), Marks & Spencer sneakers and old Kenzo bag.

The cord jacket and cord trend… where to shop.

So what’s out there right now on the cord front which is worth a purchase and doesn’t have you falling into a pit of despairing memories from when you wore it the first time around? The answer is quite a lot. Think tailored jackets, retro skirts with cute patch pocket details which work well for the office and a bunch of great weekend ready jackets and trousers. If it’s a pair of pants which catch your eye then look for 70’s influences like flares or culottes to hit the right on trend seasonal note. Colour wise Autumnal hues are a winner as well as anything in a jewel tone which will work well right on through to the festive season. Here are some of our faves – click the images to shop. *Affiliate links used.