Black has had a long run. This fall, brown is taking its place, from chocolate suede to chestnut leather to the deep red-brown of burgundy. Searches for brown fall outfits are up 200% on Pinterest, and the switch is easy to make: start with your shoes.
Why Is Brown Everywhere This Fall?
Because the fashion press has made it official. Grazia put it plainly in September: “Forget Black, This Rich Color Trend Is Replacing It for Fall 2026.” The story points to chocolate on the runways at Chloé, Miu Miu, Courrèges, and Prada, and to Zendaya’s chocolate-brown couture gown at the Euphoria season three premiere. Marie Claire is giving black a break for dark brown, and Who What Wear, after combing hundreds of new arrivals, calls brown “one of the defining colors of fall 2026.” Add Pinterest Predicts 2026, which put browns at the center of its Poetcore palette, and the case is closed.
Brown is also kinder than black. It warms the face, works with denim, and gets better with wear, like the leather it so often comes in.
The trick is range. A brown outfit looks richest when it mixes shades and textures: a pale camel coat over a chocolate knit, suede shoes against smooth leather. Grazia’s advice holds: pair chocolate with cream, gray, or soft beige so it never feels heavy, and choose gold hardware over silver.
How Do You Wear Brown Loafers?
Searches for a brown loafers outfit are up 70%, and the reason is simple: a loafer is the most useful shoe in a fall wardrobe. Wear the Tilda Loafer in dark chocolate split suede with cream trousers and a navy knit, or with straight jeans and a camel coat.
Show a little sock. Heels with socks are up 30% on Pinterest, and the same idea works on a loafer. Choose ribbed cotton in cream, rust, or olive, and keep the trouser cropped just above the ankle.
A Brown Boot for Every Height
Swap black boots for dark chocolate and nothing else in the closet has to change. Five heights, one color:
• Ankle, flat: the Rema Ankle Bootie, a sharp tapered toe on a three-quarter-inch heel, for wide-leg jeans and cords.
• Ankle, with a heel: the Everett Vintage Ankle Bootie, in a vintage-effect leather that already looks worn in.
• Mid-calf, slouched: the Etta Slouch Bootie, distressed and relaxed under a knit midi.
• Knee, flat: the Ramona Riding Boot, the equestrian line in pull up calf.
• Knee, with a heel: the Eliza Knee-High Boot, on a two-inch kitten heel for skirts and dinner.
Brown Fall Outfits, Four Ways
• Chocolate on chocolate: a brown knit, brown trousers, and the Eliza in dark chocolate.
• Brown and olive: an olive barn jacket, slim jeans tucked into the Ramona in dark chocolate.
• Brown and cream: cream wide-leg trousers, a chocolate turtleneck, and the Rema in dark chocolate.
• Brown and burgundy: a chocolate slip skirt, a cream sweater, and the Millie Pump in chocolate wine.
Can You Wear Burgundy With Brown?
Yes, and it’s the most interesting pairing of the season. Who What Wear lists burgundy among the seven colors that matter for fall, in deep wine, oxblood, and merlot, and Pinterest searches for burgundy heels are up 60%. Burgundy reads as brown with red in it, so it sits inside a brown outfit rather than fighting it.
Our burgundy is called chocolate wine. Wear the Tilda Mule Loafer in chocolate wine polish calf with dark denim and a camel coat, or the Millie Pump with a brown midi dress and sheer black tights. One rule keeps it grown-up: let burgundy appear once.
A burgundy shoe alone, with everything else in brown and cream, looks like you simply knew.
Where to Wear It
Brown was made for weekends outside the city, and our fall weekend edit works in it from brunch to the orchard. In town, swap a black loafer for a chocolate one and keep everything else the same. It’s the smallest change in your closet with the biggest effect.
Shop every shade in our Shades of Brown collection, then see how brown fits into a pared-back closet in The ’90s Minimalist. More stories live in The Journal.
