I Just Came Back From NYC—5 Items I'm Suddenly Inspired to Add to My Cart

Whenever I make a trip back east, it really gets my creative juices flowing. Los Angeles certainly has its strong spots—amazing denim and smoothie shops by the dozen—but the fall season is where New York really shines. During my stay in New York, I noticed plenty of the usual: all-black outfits, cool purses, and lots of Telfar. But a few other sartorial themes quickly emerged throughout my hour-long walks and coffee-shop work sessions around the city. Making their way out of the woodwork were pieces such as cheerful, saturated knits; trench coats; and chunky loafers. (After all, New Yorkers are all about walkable shoes.) To my surprise, the latest cardigan micro-trend, courtesy of Jacquemus, was also in full effect on the streets.

As I made my way to Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, and back, I made sure to take plenty of mental style notes along the way. I can definitively say that seeing all of these trends in the wild persuaded me to immediately add all of them to my shopping checklist. Keep scrolling below to see all of the items that left me inspired.

Cheerfully Vibrant Knits

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(Image credit: @mariaalia)

It's a hard fact that New Yorkers love the color black, but there are exceptions. Popping in and out of stores all over the Lower East Side, I noticed strong-hued sweaters of every color imaginable. When gray, overcast skies become an inevitable everyday occurrence, it makes sense to have a hit of endorphins in the form of a few bright knits.

SHOP BRIGHT KNITS:

Heavy-Duty Trench Coats

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(Image credit: @christietyler)

Before it's time to pull out the big guns (aka puffer coats), a layer to carry you through the October and November chill is highly essential. Through my observations, that layer of choice seemed to be hardy trench coats. Thicker and more substantial than the springtime favorite, these coats fall on the bulkier side on the trench spectrum, meaning they'll do an A1 job of keeping you warm. Since thick and wool coats are off the table for my L.A. lifestyle, this feels like one coat trend I can actually partake in.

SHOP TRENCH COATS:

Cool Cargos

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(Image credit: @chanelmckinsie)

Not only are cargo pants a hit among fashion It girls worldwide, but they also have found a devoted audience among the New York crowd. Styled with a cool leather jacket and boots, it's like a match made in heaven.

SHOP CARGO PANTS:

MICRO CARDIGANS

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(Image credit: @kalysseanthony)

It didn't take long before Jacquemus's beloved F/W 21 logo cardigan made its way into the hearts of celebs and fashion insiders alike. Featuring one small button or fastener at the top, it's more cute than functional, and that's the charm of it. Always ones to immediately jump on trends, New Yorkers grabbed a hold of these teensy cardigans before anyone could even blink. If you don't want to spend hundreds on the designer find, similar affordable versions have recently popped up.

SHOP TINY CARDIGANS:

Chunky Loafers

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(Image credit: @brooklynngallagher)

It shouldn't come as a shock that a foot-friendly shoe trend appears on a list related to NYC style. Walking is a way of life if you're a New Yorker, so it's only natural to embrace shoes that are easy on the feet yet chic at the same time. Since it was still too warm to transition to boots, chunky loafers were out in full force during my trip. As a result, I currently have five different styles in my Nordstrom cart right now.

SHOP CHUNKY LOAFERS:

Up next: 5 Certifiably Cool Finds Fashion It Girls Will Embrace This Season

Fashion Market Editor

Indya Brown is a fashion editor, stylist, and writer living in Los Angeles. While going to school at Columbia University in New York City, she got her feet wet in the fashion industry interning at Elle magazine, Harper's Bazaar, and New York magazine's The Cut. After graduating in 2016, she joined The Cut as a fashion assistant, eventually working her way up to fashion editor. There, she worked on a multitude of projects, including styling inbook feature stories for New York magazine's print issue, writing and pitching market stories for The Cut, and serving as fashion lead for The Cut's branded content. While New York has been her home for over 10 years, she moved to Los Angeles in the midst of the pandemic in 2020 for a new chapter. Now she is a fashion market editor for Who What Wear, focusing on emerging designers, rising trends on and off the internet, interior design, and BIPOC creatives and brands. Aside from her duties as a fashion market editor, Brown is also a freelance stylist and writer, working on national print and video commercial campaigns for Sephora, The Independent, and Cadillac. Her bylines also include Harper's Bazaar, Vox, and The New York Times. But once the computer goes down and the emails turn off, she's likely eating her way through Koreatown, hunting down vintage furniture, scoping out new outrageous nail designs to try, or taking a hot cycling class.