How to Wear Brown & Black Together

There’s an old school rule that you shouldn’t wear black with brown, but when done correctly, black and brown can be incredibly chic. The combination may have gotten it’s bad reputation from wearing a black suit with brown shoes (still a major faux-pas in London’s financial industry!), which is admittedly hard to pull off, but if you have more flexibility in your attire this unexpected combination can be fabulous for fall and winter. 

1. Limit the color palette – the secret to keeping this look elevated is sticking to a palette of black, browns and whites. 
2. Start with one item that combines both black and brown – whether it’s a plaid coat, a fair isle sweater or a leopard print pair of heels, incorporating one item that includes both black and brown will help pull other pieces together. 
3. Wear one color on the bottom, the other on the top – this was the formula I used for the outfit in this post, reaching for a brown coat and turtleneck on top and black pants and boots on the bottom. Would look great flipped with black on top and brown on the bottom as well! 
4. Wear all one color head to toe with the other as a coat – for example, wearing a black sweater, black jeans and black shoes with a brown overcoat is an easy recipe for pulling off this look. The uninterrupted column of black head-to-toe will also elongate your figure. 
5. Match your shoes to your handbag – this is an easy trick that always makes you look more put together. (Though I am wearing black shoes and a brown bag in this post!) 
6. Add an accessory to brighten the look – if your outfit feels too dark, adding a lighter touch can help brighten things up. For example I added a vintage silk scarf at the neck of my sweater (similar here), but you could also put a white collared shirt on under the sweater, a chunky gold necklace, or add a lighter neutral scarf on top. 

Scroll down for a roundup of some of my favorite black and brown pieces from around the web and you can find other black and brown outfit ideas from the past here, here, here, here, here, and here! 

OUTFIT DETAILS: 

J.Crew Quilted Barn Jacket (On sale for $150 right now!) 

J.McLaughlin Cashmere Turtleneck c/o (20% off full priced items with "Stacie20" through 10/28) 

Paige Maternity Denim (runs true to size), non-maternity here 

Sarah Flint Riding Boots c/o 

J.Crew Suede Tote

Vintage Silk Scarf (similar here, and get 20% off with “stacie20”)

SHOPPING LIST: