Leopard Coats: Blame Alexa Chung. We Do

Keep everything else plain. Navy, black, grey, denim. A smaller, softer print in browns and caramels looks way more expensive than big orange blotches. And length matters. A short jacket is fun, but a long one is the one you'll wear four days a week.

Zara and Mango both have faux fur leopard coats in every year, and they sell out fast, so don't sit on it. M&S does a softer, wool-blend version that works for the office. Boden goes a bit bolder, and ASOS has the widest range of sizes if you're petite or tall.

Rixo basically owns leopard at this point. Whistles and Jigsaw do the quieter, tailored kind. Ganni is the Copenhagen-cool option, Anine Bing is very rock-chick, and Jakke for the fluffiest faux fur you've ever stroked.

For Max Mara, Toteme, Dries Van Noten and friends, Net-a-Porter and Mytheresa are the easiest places to compare. Liberty and Harvey Nichols are worth a nosey in person. Honestly though? Vintage leopard is the best leopard. Have a scroll on Vestiaire Collective before you pay full price for anything.

The good ones look like an actual animal. Soft browns, caramel, black rosettes that vary in size, a bit of irregularity. The cheap ones look like a print on a phone case: too orange, too even, too high contrast. Hold it up in daylight before you buy. If it looks yellow by the window, it'll look yellow on the bus.

Fabric matters too. Faux fur and a brushed wool feel cosier and look richer. A shiny printed nylon will look like a fancy dress costume however good the cut is.

A mid-thigh faux fur jacket is the easiest place to start. It works with jeans, it doesn't take over, and it's short enough to look casual. A long, belted wool coat in leopard is more of a statement, and it does a lot of the dressing for you, so keep everything underneath plain and dark. A cropped bomber is the most playful option and looks great with a mini and boots.

Treat it as a neutral and you'll wear it much more. Black, navy, grey, denim, cream and chocolate all work. Red is the classic pairing if you want a bit of drama: a red lip, red shoes or a red bag. Burgundy does the same thing more quietly. Avoid other prints. Leopard and stripes is a look, but it's a look you need to be very sure about.

Leopard coats come round every few years, so there are plenty on resale sites. Vinted is full of barely worn high street ones from last winter. Vestiaire Collective is better for older designer pieces, and the prints on 90s coats are often softer and more realistic than anything on the rails now. Ask for photos in daylight, and check the lining and pockets, which go first.

The Alexa: blue jeans, a white tee, ballet flats. Done in 30 seconds.

Work: over grey tailoring and a black roll-neck. It makes a boring suit look like you meant it.

Going out: a black slip dress, sheer tights, red lip. Very Kate Moss in 1999, which is never a bad thing.