Olive green and burgundy outfits work in fall because the two colors have about the same weight, so neither takes over. I put together four, such as an olive knit with a burgundy skirt and a burgundy knit with olive trousers.
Olive Green and Burgundy Outfits to Try This Fall
Both of these colors are named after something on the table. Olive has been a color word in English since late Middle English, and the first recorded use of burgundy as a color name, after the wine, was in 1881. Put a bowl of green olives next to a glass of red and you have the palette, which might be why it looks so grown up.
What makes olive and burgundy easy is that they are about equally dark. Neither one shouts, so you can wear them head to toe and still look like you are on your way to the office. I treat olive as the neutral and burgundy as the color, but it works the other way around too.
A quick test: if you own a khaki jacket and a wine-colored sweater, put them on together before you buy anything.
Start With One Piece of Each
The accessories are where I would start. Liffner's Belted Bucket bag is olive suede and easy to carry every day, and Le Monde Beryl's Babouche 40 pumps are the same army green on a low heel. For burgundy, Acne Studios' fringed wool scarf is the simplest way in, and Bottega Veneta's Intrecciato belt adds a thin line of wine at the waist.
An Olive Knit, a Burgundy Skirt
Extreme Cashmere's Mike sweater is an army green cashmere-blend knit, and it sits well over Burberry's belted wool midi skirt in deep burgundy. The skirt does the work, so the sweater only has to be easy. Alaïa's 75 wedge mules are burgundy calf hair, and Bottega Veneta's Giorno shoulder bag is green suede woven in Intrecciato, which brings the olive back down to your hip.
Burgundy Knit, Olive Trousers
Flip it and the burgundy goes on top. Arch4's Jackie sweater is plain burgundy cashmere, the kind you end up wearing every week once you have it. Theory's crepon wide-leg pants are a muted olive with a light crinkled texture. Aeyde's Delia ballet flats repeat the burgundy at the bottom, and Marni's green suede shoulder bag finishes it.
How to wear it: tuck the front of the sweater in so the waistband shows. It keeps the wide trousers from swallowing you.
The Olive Dress, Burgundy Boots
The Attico's asymmetric mini dress is olive cotton, and it looks best with something tall and serious underneath. Gianvito Rossi's over-the-knee boots are burgundy suede, and they cover enough leg that a mini feels wearable in October. Proenza Schouler's ruched suede tote and Toteme's leather gloves repeat the burgundy.
What I would skip: burgundy tights as well. With boots this tall, bare knees or sheer black look better.
A Burgundy Blazer Over Olive
Blazé Milano's Everynight blazer is double-breasted burgundy, and it looks best over something soft. Underneath, Violante Nessi's knotted cropped top in army green and Joseph's pleated tapered pants in olive cotton make one long column of green. Paris Texas' Lidia pumps are burgundy patent on a high heel, for the nights you want to stand up straight.
Olive Is the Neutral Here
I think of olive as a neutral that happens to be green. It goes with brown, black, navy and denim, so most of the olive pieces here will outlast this one pairing. The burgundy is the part that makes it feel like fall. If you only buy one thing, make it the burgundy piece you would wear with jeans anyway, then pull the olive from a jacket or a pair of trousers you already own. If you want to keep browsing, I also put together Olive Green and Chocolate Brown Outfits to Try This Fall and Lilac and Olive Green Outfits to Try This Fall.
