Enjoy chocolate this winter, without the guilt! How to Dress Like an Adult with SHANE WATSON

Last week something surprising happened. I bought a pair of brown corduroy pants, something I haven’t worn since my mother bought my clothes in the 1970s.

There are a few black cords in my wardrobe, but I didn’t think about them when I picked up the brown pair: I didn’t think, ‘Wait a minute, the black ones will do just as well,’ because they wouldn’t. ‘T.

They would look colder, older and more ordinary, and certainly not so in the fall of 2023.

What’s surprising is that the color I last wore to any significant extent in my teenage years is not only in fashion, but also looks like an easy and obvious alternative to black.

When I went outside with the cords on on Friday (more of the clubbing appropriateness of brown in a minute), a friend swooped down to look at my legs and exclaimed, “Brown? Ooh! Nice!’.

Warm tones: Olivia Wilde wore brown suede knee-high boots with a long tweed coat and a fringed bag

Later, when my fashion editor friend called and I told her I had just bought some cords, she just assumed they were brown.

She also guessed it was Me+Em (£195, meandem.com), which is a great style, barely flared, with patch pockets and a mid-rise waist, as she went on to sing the praises of Massimo Dutti’s Chocolate Needle Cords (£69, 95, massimodutti.com) and Marks & Spencer’s bitter chocolate corduroy wide leg trousers (£39.50, marksandspencer.com).

She would say that I am late to the brown party: all shades of brown, from caramel to 90 percent cocoa, are the new basic colors of the wardrobe. And it’s true, I’ve been slow to accept this fact.

But there’s no other way to say this: brown really is the new black, especially when it’s dark enough to require a double take.

If you’re buying a basic building block for your wardrobe, dark brown is now the color that looks new and polished, the color that goes well with all the other colors out there, from bright blue and plum to red and green.

When you’re young, you can wear all shades of brown everywhere if you want; if you’re not young, it has the same benefits as navy blue: it’s softer, warmer, and more forgiving against older skin than black, and it works well around the clock, if not better.

For example, you can wear a colored top with chocolate brown pants and look smart and ready or dressed for work on Friday evening; while bright colors and black together always look a bit like Christmas parties.

Likewise, brown and light gray or cream is a luxurious-looking combination for daytime use, while black plus gray or cream has the potential to look cold.

Hot chocolate: Tory Burch 2023 showed a long brown coat paired with a bright green leather handbag

It is easier to experiment with colors if you combine them with brown. And brown is less formal and more evening-friendly than neutrals like gray.

It’s also true that brown isn’t nearly as easy to wear for us adults as it is for our daughters.

You need to consider the texture (chocolate corduroy or velvet is very different from a flat brown crepe). A little shine is a must, and tone is crucial.

And don’t wear it next to your face. There’s nothing that can kill a complexion faster than a donkey or a mouse, and if you want to avoid accidentally looking like a penitent, stick to the bitter chocolates and don’t wear these from head to toe.

Luxury shirt company With Nothing Underneath (WNU) has added a delicious-looking chocolate poplin shirt to its range (£95, withnothingunderneath.com) that has that crucial bit of shine and would make a great alternative to a black top for dressing up jeans (just add a midnight blue velvet jacket – £79, marksandspencer.com).

M&S has a satin midaxi slip skirt in chocolate (£35), which you can wear during the day with boots and a hip-length turtleneck or a longer jumper with side slits.

Otherwise, try a pencil skirt with a bit of shine (£87, arket.com), less intense than black and neat with an open blazer.

Brown is a color that always looks best in more luxurious fabrics.

A faux leather-effect blazer (£89.99, shop.mango.com) or a single-breasted blazer in bitter chocolate (£79, marksandspencer.com) worn over a black jumper and trousers for the office looks stealth-rich and businesslike out. then assassin.

Finally, a dark orange-brown will make a sassy alternative to a black tuxedo (€119, shop.mango.com) this festive season, with matching trousers (€79.99).