5 AW16-17 Fashion Trends: Get the Look for Less

One of this season's unmissable trends is velvet. Topshop have an impressive range of velvet bags and clothing including this Preen inspired Pink velvet ruched dress by Jaded London for Topshop (£55.)  Blue velvet dresses are really popular right now and would be perfect to wear for the Christmas party season but hurry they're selling out fast! Miss Selfridge has a long sleeved blue velvet dress (£30) above and Quiz has a Bardot inspired off the shoulder velvet dress  (£19.99.) I also spotted a Bottega Veneta inspired velvet blue suit which is a steal going for £38  from ASOS!

The menswear trend is a masculine /androgynous look with suits and coats in neutral colours in check, pinstripe and hounds-tooth fabrics. 3.1 Phillip Lim styled two very similar grey checked prints together, however if you're unsure about being in head to toe check print you could buy a pair of checked trousers (these are from French Connection £90)  and them pair with a man's white shirt and brogues. Meanwhile Tibi had a new take on the pinstripe suit with slouchy pinstripe trousers and loose fitting blazer for relaxed, informal look. The closest I could find is this suit by Wah London x ASOS (Double Breasted Blazer £75 , Trousers £55) although it's more baggy than slouchy. Finally I managed to find a copy of the Y/Project's long checked coat at Mango (£69.99)

This season tapped into a cat lovers wardrobe, starting with the classic leopard print coat from Givenchy, but a cheaper dupe would be a leopard print coat from Miss Selfridge now £50 in the sale. The red cat printed dress from Dolce and Gabbana makes a bold statement and I've sourced a similar red cat patterned tea dress from Lindybop (£24) which features cats and umbrellas. It's very similar and comes in a wide range of sizes from size 8-26. If you'd rather just give a subtle nod to the cat trend then accessorise with a porcelain cat necklace like at Loewe, although this one from Blossom and Bronze, Etsy (£11.99) is a lot cheaper.

I actually really like this trend it's sexy without revealing too much, though you might want to wear a warm coat on top for the winter! I managed to find a dress similar to the one from Rihanna's Fenty Puma line, from The Jet Set Diaries, Revolve (£48.) Although it's in a different colour and slightly shorter this cornflower blue dress has a similar lace up detail across the chest as the dress at Proenza Schouler. It is from First and I at ASOS (£15). I also found a near identical copy of Anthony Vaccarello's dress from Missguided (£34) a bargain!

This season the traditionally green military trend also encompassed blue Naval inspired clothes as well. Military style wool coats are practical, being both warm and smart. I found this long green wool coat from La Redoute (£99) which fits the bill and is available in sizes 6-24. For a smart navy coat this one from Atelier R at La Redoute (£149) will do the trick and comes in size 6-22.  Capes are also back in fashion and this military inspired one is from ASOS (£75.)