Five Ways to Wear Into Autumn

Early autumn has its own rhythm.

After months of dressing for heat, suddenly there are choices again. A shirt can stay on a little longer. A knit comes along for the evening. Socks return. A jacket might be useful in the morning and spend the afternoon folded into a bag.

In Japanese, kisetsu no kawarime [季節の変わり目] describes the change from one season to another. I like the expression because the change is not treated as a clean break. For a while, two seasons occupy the same day.

That is how I wanted to approach these five looks.

I started with a group of MUJI pieces rather than five separate outfits. Some appear several times. The same merino jumper is worn in three looks. The same wide cropped trousers work with a short jacket in one and a hoodie in another. Men’s and women’s pieces sit together without much concern for which side of the shop they came from.

I wanted to see how far the same pieces could go before adding anything else.

01. Shirt, knit, short jacket

Three layers do not need to feel like three layers.

Here the flannel shirt brings a little colour and pattern between the black knit and the short brown jacket. I like that none of them completely disappears. The shirt still shows, the knit grounds it, and the shorter jacket keeps the proportions light.

The wide cropped trousers leave some space around the ankle, which works well at this point in the season. Add the bucket hat and wool socks and the look has already shifted away from summer, without becoming too warm.

Explore this look:

02. Hoodie and overshirt

I wanted to use the same hakama pants again, this time in a much more casual combination.

The hoodie becomes the middle layer, with the checked overshirt on top. This combination is especially useful now because each layer can be added or removed without changing the rest of the outfit. Start with the T-shirt, add the hoodie, then the overshirt. Reverse the order when the day warms up.

Most of the look stays dark, so the yellow socks are allowed to be the small odd thing. Sometimes a detail like this is enough to make clothes you know very well look a little different.

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03. The skirt stays

There is no particular reason for a skirt to disappear when summer does.

There is no particular reason for a skirt to disappear when summer does.

I kept the denim midi skirt and simply changed what surrounds it. A linen and cotton T-shirt still belongs to the warmer part of the day. The merino jumper adds warmth without much bulk, and the long cotton coat can come and go as needed.

I especially like the meeting of lengths here. Long skirt, long coat, simple trainers underneath. Nothing needs to be tucked, shortened or carefully arranged.

It is a simple way to approach the change of season. Keep something from summer and see what happens when the first autumn pieces are worn with it.

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04. Soft tailoring without formality

This one began with the cropped denim shirt and the idea of putting several quite different textures together.

Denim, a quilted gilet, soft ponte trousers and a gauze jacket do not obviously belong to the same family. That is what makes the combination work for me. The jacket gives the outfit a slightly sharper outline, while everything underneath remains relaxed.

The men’s jacket also changes the proportion of the women’s cropped shirt and tapered trousers. This is one reason I rarely find it useful to stay within one department when putting clothes together. Sometimes the shape you are looking for is hanging somewhere else.

The beret and argyle socks add just enough pattern.

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05. T-shirt, knit, jacket

The last combination is the simplest.

A black T-shirt, green merino knit and lightweight jacket give three options for the same day. The wide trousers stay put. The top half changes with the temperature.

I chose green here because after so much black, navy, grey and brown, one clear colour changes the balance. The striped socks do something similar on a much smaller scale.

This is also the third appearance of the same merino jumper in these five looks. That repetition is intentional. If a piece works, I want to find several ways of wearing it rather than reserve it for one combination.

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What to Buy in Japan

One of the things I like buying in Japan is something I will actually use during the trip.

A bag is a good example. You have a chance to understand its weight, pockets and capacity properly, and if it works, it can become part of the journey before it ever comes home.

For these looks I chose a large shoulder bag by MILESTO. I already own a MILESTO bag and can recommend the quality from experience. What I particularly like is the balance between capacity and weight. This one can carry almost what I would expect from a backpack, but worn over the shoulder it has a very different presence.

That was important here. I did not want every practical choice to lead automatically to a backpack. The shoulder bag works with the hoodie and wide trousers, but also with the skirt and long coat or the softer jacket in the fourth look.

MILESTO is worth looking for while travelling in Japan, especially if you prefer to see a bag properly before choosing it. Bringing a lightweight piece home yourself also avoids international shipping, and eligible overseas visitors may be able to shop tax-free at participating Japanese retailers when the relevant conditions are met.

Explore MILESTO⁠ Traveling Goods Collection

Japanese Magazines to Read

The October 2026 issue of GINZA feels like a natural magazine to open alongside this story.

Its fashion feature, “How are you, Autumn? Our Style Samples 2026,” begins with the same season we are dressing for here. What interests me is not finding an outfit to reproduce exactly, but looking at the combinations. What is being worn together, how familiar pieces are being proportioned now, where colour appears, and what happens when outdoor clothes move into the city.

The issue continues with autumn shopping selections, outdoor-influenced city clothes and the shopping spots of GINZA girls. It was released on September 11, 2026, and Magazine World lists an electronic edition.

Read GINZA No. 352 on Magazine World⁠

Mentioned in the story:

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