4 Fall Trends Miranda Priestly Would Toss From Your Closet—and What She'd Add

It's wild to believe, but I had just graduated high school as an eager fashion-industry hopeful when the film adaption of Lauren Weisberger's The Devil Wears Prada debuted 13 years ago. While I knew it depicted a Hollywood version of what it's like to work behind the pages of a glossy magazine, it did, at the same time, bring me one of my first (albeit exaggerated) glimpses into the cast of characters within the fashion world. Its most noteworthy depiction? Ruthless tastemakers like the infamous Miranda Priestly (played by the legendary Meryl Streep). 

While there are many layers (some icier than others) behind the character of Miranda Priestly, she is, simply put, a fashion connoisseur at her core. As a result, despite her fictional nature, there's a wealth of style knowledge to learn from her regarding trends that are in and out. Of course, there's the obvious—ahem, the importance of the cerulean trend —but there are more lessons I learned from Priestly after watching her (along with Nigel and company) transform Andy Sachs from writer hopeful to magazine maven.

What's particularly interesting is that many of the MP-approved fashion takeaways in question are actually relevant to the autumn 2019 season. With that in mind, I thought it would be amusing to highlight the fall trends I think Priestly would toss and add to our closets based on style hints from the film. Keep scrolling to build that Runway-approved fall 2019 wardrobe. That's all. 

Toss: "Boring" Sweaters

Add: Forward Knits

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(Image credit: Everett Collection/20th Century Fox Film Corp)

"Oh, I don't know, that lumpy blue sweater, for instance"—a stingy quote from Mrs. Priestly. Clearly, boring sweaters aren't going to cut it for MP. Fortunately, the fall runways were filled with unique knits, featuring everything from asymmetrical designs to smock detailing. Trust, we (Andy Sachs included) would avoid one of Priestly's chilling stares if we tested out one of these more forward-feeling knits in her presence.

Shop the MP-approved trend:

Toss: Slouchy Handbags

Add: Structured Silhouettes

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(Image credit: Everett Collection/20th Century Fox Film Corp)

All of Priestly's luxurious outfits were accented with an elegant handbag. While many of Andy Sachs's satchels were of the slouchy, more casual variety, Priestly's were bold and structured. There's no doubt she'd accept the range of polished bags labels from Gucci to Staud displayed in their fall collections.

Shop the MP-approved trend:

Toss: Average Outerwear

Add: Reworked Classics

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(Image credit: Everett Collection/20th Century Fox Film Corp)

Priestly completed many of her ensembles with a range of third-piece options, including sleek outerwear finds. While she didn't steer away from the timeless picks (like this gorgeous off-white trench), she'd definitely note the offering of reworked classics (like puff-sleeve overcoats and extra-long dusters) trending right now.

Shop the MP-approved trend:

Toss: Drab Staples

Add: Metallic Statment Picks

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(Image credit: Everett Collection/20th Century Fox Film Corp)

It's pretty safe to assume that Priestly would remove any drab and dreary pieces from our wardrobes. While she'd mix in a variety of modern items, we think she'd be especially into the high-shine trend designers like Rejina Pyo and Alberta Ferretti are endorsing to bring an eye-catching feel to a fall look. After all, she clearly has a thing for metallics. Case in point? This bangin' jacket.

Shop the MP-approved trend:

Next, check out fashion lessons from Emily Blunt in The Devil Wears Prada.

Bobby Schuessler
Market Director

Bobby Schuessler is a fashion editor with over a decade of editorial experience covering shopping, style, and beauty. He's spent over seven years at Who What Wear, currently leading the market team to deliver highly covetable and convertible content. He creates data-driven shopping guides featuring top retialers like Nordstrom, Shopbop, and Net-a-Porter and is at the forefront of Who What Wear's shopping tentpole strategies, including Amazon Prime Day. He also works on branded content initiatives and appears on camera in video and shopping livestream franchises. He has also worked across a variety of other media brands and fashion retailers like Refinery29, PureWow, Men's Health, and Gilt covering commerce, trend reporting, women's and men's fashion, home, and lifestyle.