Hard, fierce and tough.

These three-little-words that recur in the glossy magazines' Autumn/Winter 2009 trend pieces prove that fashion is an accurate barometer of the times. The economy crashed. A recession has taken hold. Every shop mannequin, quite literally, models the belted-in look. So what's an intelligent, fashion-loving woman to do? Dress the part, of course, to battle our way triumphantly out of the gloom.

The first step is to stand back and take stock. The shops are full of razor-sharp tailoring, structured shoulders, biker boots, leather, ripped denim and metallic finishes. Silhouettes are austere. Dramatic black is the base colour relieved by zips, studs, shiny fabrics and techno prints. The look is dark, luxurious and edgy. A 1940s silhouette, toughened up with serious leather gloves and oversized cuffs, is as feminine as it gets. There is no romantic option.

It's bizarrely appealing and deliciously easy to translate into workwear-cum weekend wardrobes. Approach your buying tactically. Remember individual style is more important than slavish adherence to catwalk trends. Here we suggest how to invest in key, workable pieces:

1) A sharp tailored dress - It must have structured shoulders and a tulip or pencil skirt. Alternatively, go for figure-hugging skirt and no-nonsense chic white shirt or blouson top with square shoulders. So far so chic. Add zips, chunky jewellery and fierce but chic shoes for attitude. Karen Millen, Zara, H&M, French Connection and Dune all embrace this look superlatively.

2) Heavy textures - Think tough as in hard-wearing, and tough as in attitude. Explore Jigsaw, H&M, Zara, and French Connection, Aftershock and Karen Millen and chose from tweed, leather, thick-knit wool and military / uniform for your new season coat or jacket.

3) Teal blue - Black is the core colour of all collections, but it can be beautifully accented with an injection of teal. GAP has fabulous fine knitwear in this shade. Accessorize have matching jewellery, scarves, bags and so on.

4) Metallics - Ditto. Metal finishes abound in studs and zips on garments and belts, but a subtle way to liven up a black canvas is in big-statement shoes and bags in gunmetal or bronze from Dune and Accessorize. Check out H&M and French Connection's use of techno- fabrics.

5) Trousers - Harem pants or tailored peg legs work best to accentuate the big, draped shoulder line. Go to H&M, Zara, GAP and Karen Millen and think Krystle and Alexis Carrington!