The backstage-model look is about as cliched as it gets. Something skinny and leather – be it a jacket or trousers – with a fine jersey T-shirt, a generous pashmina-type thing and possibly a free Chanel handbag. Here’s Elle Macpherson after her catwalk comeback at the Louis Vuitton show last week ticking most of those off-duty cliche boxes. But doesn’t she look fab? She also earns a style salute for the ponytail – very next season feminine minimalism – and the grey-on-grey tonal action. And at 46 she has the wisdom to wear the whole look with flat, down-to-business pumps. A backstage triumph. Photograph: Nicolas Khayat/Enigma/Rex Features
Karen Millen is not just a one-stop party-dress shop. These flats – coming to a store near you this May – prove it. Rather like a 2010 riff on the gladiator sandal, they embrace the season’s neutral hue, factor in a spot of fringing and all while paying homage to the sensible shoe revival.
£99, karenmillen.com Photograph: Guardian
Oh, the tedium of wearing the same old winter coat for months on end. Luckily, this men’s cotton parka by Ted Baker is a great stop-gap between the seasons, merrily hitting spring’s utility trend with multi-pockets and a hood to boot. Plus, with its added summer festival potential and a nod to the military look of autumn (yes, it’s a long way off, but it’s good to be prepared), this is a fashion hat-trick.
£195, tedbaker.com Photograph: Guardian
This sleek wooden ring by newcomer Simone Brewster is like a miniature doorknob sitting atop a classic band of bronze. Brewster, a graduate from the RCA with a background in architecture and product design, is definitely a jewellery name to watch. Her rings are made to order, and take about three weeks.
£305, gaudionbowerbank.com Photograph: Guardian
Few fragrance bottles find inspiration in both an army knife and a horse’s stirrup but those references come together in unlikely, classy harmony to house Voyage d’Hermès, a new unisex smell from the luxury French label. Sandalwood, cedarwood and juniper berries mingle to give a fresh, musky, woody number. The scent comes in two sizes, including this handy 35ml travel size. Plus you can buy more affordable refills in plain bottles to top up the posh one. Snazzy.
£53, for 35ml, from Harrods, harrods.com
Photograph: Guardian
The Hi-Tec Silver Shadow trainer first appeared back in the good old days of 1981. Rather like so many bands from that decade, this shoe is staging a comeback. But it’s a limited edition, with just 48 pairs of each style, so you’d best get a wriggle on. Available at the end of the month, exclusively from New Look.
£40, newlook.com Photograph: Guardian
