The leaves may not be changing here in Orange County, but thanks to pumpkin spice lattes, the change of season is obvious. Now, we all await the brutally cold 55 degree weather and the possibility of rain. It must mean it is time to go shopping.

Fall instills an image of comfort; sweaters, boots, beanies and leggings are all necessities of the season. However, with each rotation of the calendar year, new trends come along and add to closet staples with a little spunk. Ever wonder how a fashion statement you would have once thought to be bizarre suddenly is dominating the racks? Well, turns out the “sudden” trend shifts aren’t so random after all.

“A lot of the trends actually start in Europe, like Paris and England, but I think the gap is about one to two years until we start seeing them in our stores,” said fashion connoisseur and Nordstrom board member, senior Sydney Mahl.

There is no manual to fashion, but with a bit of analysis of stores’ new merchandise, the trends of fall can be categorized. Which one should you follow? How will you ever find your way in this material world? Well, that’s easy. Who you are is already there, you’ve just got to dress the part.

‘The Sporty Street’

The sporty street girl gets the best of both worlds. (Cue Hanna Montana.)

Mahl describe a sporty street girl as “the girl that is kind of on the front of the trends.”

This style is a blend of typical street fashion and athletic styles, making transitioning from hard work to play super smooth. Who knew being “in” could be so easy?

“If the sporty kind of fades away from the street she is still going to have her running shoes and she can wear those with her yoga pants,” Mahl said.

The versatile basics of this trend are quite simple.

“Basically anything athletic works,” Mahl said.

The sporty inspiration is prevalent with this trends staple of athletic leggings, and a graphic t-shirt represents the street style. To layer your outfit, throw on a beanie or a hip pair of glasses as accessories.

“[The stores] are starting to mix [street style] with more sporty styles like sneakers and athletic socks,” Mahl said.

When talking about sneakers, New Balance and Nike’s seem to be the sole of the season. With simple but powerful logos these shoes are easy to wear with just about anything and comfortable too. No more wearing those heartlessly uncomfortable shoes that just about make your feet bleed!

Fashion is all about self-expression. With sporty street (almost) anything goes.

“Anything to give it that extra edge,” Mahl said.

You can add your own tastes, perhaps with a quotable t-shirt of choice or some striped tube socks.

‘The Jeweler’

‘The Jeweler’ doesn’t shine bright like a diamond (sorry Rihanna) but instead shines like emeralds and rubies. This trend focuses on the popular colors of fall, and this year the palette is trending towards navy, dark emerald and maroon.

Emerald and maroon are a match made in heaven, being they are complementary colors — colors located directly opposite from each other on the color wheel. Turns out opposites do attract. However, it is recommended you break up the prominent color relationship with some subtle hues, perhaps a cream or black.

The girl sporting this trend stays true to her roots, bringing classical components along for a colorful ride.

“Jewel tones girl would probably be a little bit more classic kind of fashion, a little bit more feminine,” Mahl said.

Throw together your look with a blouse, sweater, jeans, or a skirt, and of course, don’t forget the jewels.

‘The Minimalist’ 

You under achiever, you, taking the easy route to fashion. Luckily, your slacking puts you right on this trend’s needle point.

The minimalist’s intentions are quite obvious: to keep all styling components at bare minimum.

“Basically [minimalism is] where you are trying to avoid prints, splashy slogans, [or] anything that is cluttery about your outfit,” said Mahl.

Leave your jewels at home for this one, since the minimalist lacks color and has little to no jewelry.

The necessities for minimalism are limited. The top can be cropped or baggy, perhaps with a mullet tuck. By mullet I do not mean the “business in the front, party in the back” hair-do, but a trendy way to tuck your shirt. To accomplish this trend tuck the shirt in the front, flare it out on the sides, and leave it out in the back.

To complete your look throw on a pair of jeans, either skinnies, boyfriends or mom jeans. Mom jeans? No, please don’t wear your mom’s jeans.

“[Mom jeans] are giant and a little bit more high-wasted and a little bit baggier. They are like a mix between a boy-friend jean and a high wasted jean,” Mahl said. “It is actually kind of hilarious.”