How To Wear Camo, Leopard and Jorts Into The Fall

• Posted on 9 October 2026
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Don't Pack Them Away Yet: How to Wear Camo, Leopard and Jorts Into Fall

Some trends have a very short shelf life. They arrive, they're suddenly everywhere, and just as quickly we're ready to move on.

Every once in a while, though, one sticks around long enough that it stops feeling like a trend and starts feeling like part of the wardrobe. That's what we're seeing with camouflage, leopard print and jorts.

All three were big this summer, and none of them need to disappear because the calendar says fall. Camo and leopard have become easy to wear because we're treating them like neutrals. Longer denim shorts are proving they handle cooler weather far better than you'd think.

Here's how we're carrying all three into fall.

Camo Is Having a Fashion Moment

Camouflage is back in a big way, but it feels different this time. Instead of looking military, or like something pulled straight from the early 2000s, today's camo gets mixed with pieces that are feminine, polished and sometimes completely unexpected.

A few ways we love it: camo pants with a soft cream sweater. Camo with lace or ruffles. Camo cargos with a blazer. A camo jacket over a white tee and jeans. Camo with loafers or ballet flats. Camo pants with a great pair of boots.

Why is camo so easy to wear? Look at the colors. Most traditional camouflage is made up of olive, khaki, brown, tan and black. Those are all neutrals. So while camo is technically a print, you can style it the way you would an olive pant or a khaki jacket.

What Colors Go With Camo?

Almost anything. For an easy fall look, pair camo with cream, black, chocolate brown, denim, burgundy, camel or olive.

You don't have to stay neutral, though. Camo also looks great with pink, red and even pale blue. Sometimes the contrast is exactly what makes the outfit work.

Our favorite rule: don't make the whole outfit look military. Pair something rugged with something pretty, polished or unexpected. That's when camo starts to feel like fashion.

Leopard Isn't Really a Trend Anymore

We're willing to say it: leopard is a neutral.

Fashion comes back to leopard again and again, and this year is no exception. Harper's Bazaar singled out the leopard coat as the standout piece of New York Fashion Week street style this season.

Look closely at the print and you'll find camel, tan, chocolate and black, the same neutrals already hanging in most closets. That means you can treat leopard a lot like denim. Instead of asking "What matches leopard?", ask "What would I wear if this were a brown or tan piece?" Suddenly it gets much easier.

Wear leopard with denim, cream, black, chocolate, olive, burgundy, red or pink.

A leopard flat can take the place of a neutral shoe. A leopard bag works with almost anything. A leopard jacket makes jeans and a T-shirt interesting. And leopard pants with a simple cream or black sweater can feel surprisingly understated.

The secret is letting the print do some of the work for you.

Yes, You Can Wear Camo and Leopard Together

This may sound like breaking one of fashion's old rules. Good. Some rules deserve to be broken.

Camo and leopard work together because they share so many colors: brown, tan, black, olive and khaki. Your brain knows you're mixing prints, but your eye sees one cohesive palette.

You don't need a leopard jacket with camo pants and ten other things going on. Start small.

• * Camo pants + cream sweater + leopard flats
• * Camo jacket + jeans + leopard bag
• * Leopard cardigan + faded camo pants + white tee

Keep the rest of the outfit simple and let the two prints play together. And if someone once told you never to mix prints, consider this your permission slip.

And Then There Are Jorts

Jorts were everywhere this summer, and they were still showing up on the street style crowd at New York Fashion Week in September. 

Before you picture the tiny cutoffs you wore twenty years ago, know that the newer version is different. Today's jort is longer, looser and more relaxed, sometimes reaching close to the knee. That longer silhouette is exactly why we don't think you need to pack them away when summer ends.

Especially if you live somewhere like Texas, where "fall weather" can mean it's still 85 degrees outside. For those of us in warmer climates, jorts are one of the easiest ways to dress for the season without pretending it's sweater weather when it absolutely is not.

How to Wear Jorts in a Warm Fall

Try them with an oversized sweatshirt, a lightweight sweater, a plaid button-down, a graphic tee and a barn jacket, or a denim or utility jacket. Finish with loafers, sneakers or clogs.

You're adding fall textures and layers without adding much weight.

What If You Live Somewhere Colder?

Don't count jorts out. Our favorite way to take a longer denim short into fall is with tall boots.

• * Long jorts + oversized sweater + tall brown boots
• * Jorts + blazer + tall boots
• * Jorts + tights + boots + chunky sweater

The contrast between relaxed denim and a polished tall boot makes the outfit look intentional, and much less like you forgot summer was over.

The Bigger Shift: Stop Dressing Head to Toe in a "Theme"

There's a bigger change happening underneath all three of these trends. For a while, fashion was very focused on named aesthetics. Everything had a category: cowgirl, coquette, old money, clean girl, mob wife. Getting dressed started to feel like choosing a costume.

We're much more interested in what happens when you take pieces from different styles and make them your own.

Wear the camo pants with lace. Put a leopard flat with an otherwise classic outfit. Wear the jorts with a beautiful riding boot. Mix something feminine with something rugged. Pair something polished with something distressed.

The result feels much more personal.

Treat the Print Like a Neutral

If you take one thing away, let it be this: a print doesn't always have to be the statement. Leopard has already proven that. Camo is quickly getting there. And denim, whether it's your favorite jeans or a pair of long jorts, has been doing it forever.

Instead of asking whether something is technically "in" or "out," look at the colors, the silhouette and how easily it mixes with pieces you already own.

The best trends aren't necessarily the ones everyone is wearing. They're the ones you can make feel completely your own.