Enter: the evening jacket. I think this is the key piece for fall, with trends skewing towards embellishment, silk, Asian styling, and opulence. What I love about these: you can wear them to the office or to an event. The jacket is the outfit. They can be layered as easily with a white t-shirt or a slinky black dress. With a longer duster or coat, I prefer a slim leg jean or pant to keep proportions in check (avoid wide leg denim - adds bulk at the ankle area with a duster). A short evening jacket is calmed down for daytime and quite approachable when paired with denim. Perhaps a cropped vintage Levi’s and a ballet flat for day, with a heel swapped in for dinner.

Below—find my favorite secondhand and vintage picks spanning mostly under $150 range. Some real gems and reasonably priced Roberto Cavalli, Armani, Valentino, Ralph Lauren, and YSL Rive Gauche….

1. Wool evening jacket 2. Vintage silver coat 3. Velvet fur trimmed opera coat 4. Ciao Lucia evening jacket, size Large and size XS 5. Vintage embroidered jacket 6. Blue velvet duster and blue damask coat 7. Brocade jacket with fur cuffs 8. Maje virgin wool evening jacket 9. Cabi jacquard blazer 10. Sigrid Olsen embroidered jacket 11. Gold car coat 12. Brocade jacket with frog closure 13. Navy silk evening jacket 14. Silk brocade evening jacket 15. Ivory jacket with fur cuffs

1. 90s Gap mandarin collar velvet jacket 2. Victor Costa silk jacket 3. Vintage Guy Laroche black jacket with rhinestone buttons 4. Vintage Tocca velvet duster 5. Vintage St John evening jacket 6. Zoran Silk black jacket 7. Vintage jacquard evening jacket 8. Vintage Giorgio Armani burnt orange jacket 9. Escada wool evening jacket 10. Vintage 60s gold and ivory brocade car coat 11. 90s Satin jacquard evening coat 12. Red St. John evening jacket 13. Brocade jacket 14. Silk black opera coat 15. Satin Tang jacket with Mandarin collar and frog closure

1. Alberto Makali patterned evening jacket 2. Ralph Lauren Collection wool evening jacket 3. Roberto Cavalli printed evening jacket (!!!) 4. Vintage Silvery metallic brocade opera coat 5. La Prestic Ouiston Silk evening jacket with oceanic prints 6. Ulla Johnson silk evening jacket 7. White silk jacquard jacket 8. Vintage crushed velvet embroidered duster 9. Red Valentino silk jacket 10. Vintage midcentury Japanese silk brocade jacket with tassels 11. White Akris x Bergdorf silk evening jacket 12. Vintage Japanese silk brocade jacket

1. Blue silk Max Mara evening jacket 2. Cynthia Rowley white evening jacket 3. Naeem Khan silk evening jacket 4. St John evening jacket with furry collar 5. Armani silk patterned jacket 6. Eskandar silk jacket 7. Dusan silk brown jacket 8. Vintage Chinese evening coat 9. Satin brocade reversible opera coat

1. Reformation coat 2. Blazé Milano silk belted fringe coat 3. Blue Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche coat 4. Black Eskandar silk patterned coat 5. Etsy silk velvet duster coat 6. Metallic St John Couture evening jacket 7. Vintage mustard damask tapestry coat with mink collar 8. Ralph Lauren Collection silk jacket 9. Zara velvet kimono duster 10. Etsy green velvet silk duster 11. Vintage tapestry coat with fur collar 12. Vintage Chinesse frog closure black satin jacket

In lieu of rifling through samples in plastic bins, I dug through the Ref site to deliver the coolest picks so you don’t have to spend hours scrolling. Behold—my favorites, a wedding guest edit, formal shoes, SWIM!, and some fall transitional pieces.

Brown mini, black keyhole mini, tassel pouch bag, orange silk dress (kudos if you can pull this color off), red flats, red silk tank (a perfect Going Out Top)

Black harem pants, plaid long sleeve, brown satin capris, knit periwinkle halter, orange skirt, white cashmere sweater, tan jacquard bias cut pants, pink cotton sweater

Insane blue silk gown, black silk skirt, chartreuse off the shoulder dress, navy long sleeve dress, red floral silk, silk green gown with tassel tie

I will never NOT love a gorgeous Reformation gown for a formal event. It’s easy, it’s nice to have one that fits perfectly on hand for any kind of event, etc. The best time to score these is during a sale. Several of these are over $100 off, making the price a little less painful. The electric blue is calling my name.

How bout some shoes to go with that gown? Gold platforms, brown wedges, black patent leather, satin pointed toe pumps, burgundy peep toes, white heeled sandals

Brown pants, burgundy bag, snakeskin boots, plaid top, wool sweater

It isn’t fall yet, but it IS a great time to secure a few fall pieces while they’re on sale.

Black linen set, teal halter maxi, brown flat sandals, cyan blue waist tie dress, red mini, basket, navy backless silk mini

I do think stocking up at the end of summer for NEXT summer and putting the stuff you buy away is a great way to shop, too. I have my EYE on that teal maxi.

Purple one piece, zebra one piece, red and navy piping two piece, brown two piece

It is in fact also the best time of year to buy swim.

Keep in mind - Ref has final sale on most of their sale items, so measure twice, buy once! More finds linked in my ShopMy here.

I do trend research as part of my work, and mark my words, this Connor Ives coat (inspired by a Galliano piece, who was inspired by Paul Poiret, who was inspired by Chinese design) is going to be the key piece for fall. Our current Art Deco revival (not to be confused with 80s Deco Revival, please!) has been happening in home décor for years now — and its opulent elegance has started to make a transition into fashion more recently. This trend is kind of similar to the boho chic vibe popularized by Rachel Zoe and the Olsen twins about 15 years ago. Much like the Olsen twins, the styling has evolved — this time the vibe is more elegant, refined, and restrained in color with a major Chinese design and 1920s Jazz Age influence. Think opera gloves, tassels, minaudières, frog closures, rich silks and velvets, embroidery, fringe. Worn all together, it can feel like a flapper costume. Worn selectively, paired with other more modern pieces, it feels sophisticated and fresh.

My favorite follows for this trend are Christina Grasso of The Pouf for a more 60s spin, Alexis Badiyi for a super elevated vibe, and for a sexy goth mom vibe, Tish Weinstock. Now, these women don’t seem to “follow” this trend — they are embodying it. Much more fun to follow along with their style as it feels intrinsic.

What I love about this trend is that it’s very accessories driven, and can be replicated using items you will have forever and can be restyled a thousand ways. A simple sheath can be transformed into an Elegant Moment with some chandelier earrings and a silk fringe knotted scarf. A caftan can be elevated with an antique beaded bag and a fur stole. Vintage items abound. As promised: links. Inspo. eBay treasures.

Pants, silk top, velvet top, a similar option, fringe bag, earrings, velvet bag

I find velvet to be best when vintage or secondhand. I love Ralph Lauren velvets from the 90s. Beautiful quality. The red velvet purse above is Prada, sorry. I promise to keep everything else pretty Normal.

Embroidered blazer, black scarf, another option, sunglasses, bag

GET YOUR SILK SECONDHAND. The quality is incomparable and the pricing is just better. Also, ThredUp has an excellent algorithm for finding specific cuts and shapes.

Gold kimono, crane kimono, embroidered kimono (I found three: one, two, three), fur collar, fur collar with notches, silver bag

I am of the belief that a beautiful vintage kimono and a vintage fur stole can really get you 80% of the way there with the Connor Ives vibe. I would love to support him because he’s an up and coming designer, but it’s simply not in the budget.

Black gown, tie-dye velvet duster, blue velvet duster, velvet burnout black dress, other black slip dress option, gold bag, rhinestone earrings, browny purple duster, same one here

Velvet. Dusters. Burnout velvet gowns. Slinky slip dresses. YES PLEASE! More black slip dresses linked here on my ShopMy.

Black embroidered top, black frog closure top, black with feather trim, similar option with feather trim, black with white trim, gold bag, onyx & silver pendant

So many beautiful black tops with incredible texture.

Feather trim jacket, red Manolo heels, strapless fringe dress, shiny linen dress, green velvet duster, earrings, silver shell pendant

I need someone to buy all of this so I don’t. The Sleeper ostrich feather trimmed coat is the STUFF OF DREAMS.

BAGS GALORE! Red fringe bag, Black minaudière, black velvet tassel, gold minaudière, paisley beaded bag, red tassel bag

Delightfully perfect caftan, another option from Etsy, red beaded bag, fur collar, another option here, chartreuse bag, gold necklace, chandelier earrings, and ostrich trimmed caftan

Green velvet skirt, black top with bows, sterling silver bolo necklace, Ralph Lauren velvet skirt, red scarf, rhinestone and pearl earrings, velvet bag, midnight velvet Ralph top

Slinky slip dress, fur stole, other fur stole, another one, chainmail bag, another chainmail bag option, fluffy feather shoes, blue minaudière bag

What else do we want to see? What are you all shopping for? What trends are catching your eye?