When we were small we wore nothing else: in the summer we’d call them cycling shorts and in the winter they’d be leggings. We had them in every colour of the rainbow and I’m sure that your favourites, just like mine, were fluorescent or floral ones. Once everyone grew up they were set aside and forgotten. But a couple of years ago designers and stores rescued them from oblivion, and the cotton and lycra items used only for going to the gym made a huge comeback and became known to everyone as leggings.

It was hard getting used to the idea, but we did eventually. We’ve all gone back to them after some complaining. Wearing something that feels almost like pyjamas on the streets is a guilty pleasure that’s hard to resist.

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You’ll always be hearing rumours about how models only wear whatever freebies designers give them, but only a few privileged ones actually get to take their favourite outfits from the catwalk home.

Regardless of any urban legends about fashion, models are just like you and me: it doesn’t matter what impossible luxury, or extravagant trends they wear at work, when it comes to everyday shopping, they shop at the same places as the rest of us.

Does this girl’s dress seem familiar? Yes, it’s from MANGO. This photo was taken backstage at the independent fashion event “080 Barcelona Fashion”, where Lizzy Jagger was spotted – previously a face of MANGO.

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Continuing the theme of key wardrobe investments, now that December is here and we’re thinking about Christmas, let’s just save our energy for the celebrations and our money for the gifts.

You have to be practical, so additions to the autumn selection of your wardrobe should just consist of the bare minimum and stuff you use over and over again: a faux fur coat, musketeer boots, a leather skirt, long gloves and a nice warm sweater.

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Apart from making an effort to have their own inimitable style everybody loves to “copy” the style of their favourite celebrities, either because they identify with their personality or simply find them more of an inspiration than catwalk models.

Labels aside, what you want is to get a look that is as close as possible to the styles that stick in your mind after flicking through magazines or reading your favourite blogs.

Are you willing to emulate the celebrity you consider most stylish with a little bit of help from MANGO?

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Most of us just can’t get used to the idea of wearing shoulder pads. No matter how popular this trend is for Autumn-Winter 09/10, it’s hard to get used to them. They’re difficult to combine and rather uncomfortable. However, it seems exaggerated volume isn’t just centre stage with dresses, shirts or jackets – shoulders aren’t only built up, they’re embellished.

An alternative that is just as striking, although a bit lighter for those who can’t quite picture themselves in shoulder pads, could be, for example, crystal embellishments. These embellishments can transform a simple jersey dress like this one into an ornate dress that needs very little to finish off the look.

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As well as the wedding, christening and first communion season, one of the most dreaded seasons is Christmas. It’s the busiest time of year and suddenly family reunions coincide with the most important date on the calendar: New Year’s Eve.

Although the last week in December is still a while away, it’s time to start thinking about what you’re going to wear. If you put it off you’re likely to get involved Christmas shopping and leave the most important thing, the dress or outfit you’ve been awaiting for 365 days, till last.

If there’s something Christmas is good for, apart from eating anything you want guilt-free, is that it gives you the perfect excuse to update your party wardrobe.

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Yes, up until now, shiny fabrics, sequins, strass, metallic or satin effects or lace have been exclusively for eveningwear. This Autumn-Winter 09/10 season roles will be swapped. The same thing happens with garments which before we would only have dared wear for partying, like sexy mini-dresses, leather corsets, animal prints or tuxedo jackets.

Now, everyday key pieces will have a night-time twist to them. Your typical daytime clothes can also be worn in the evening. Absurd? Not at all, this is terribly practical. You will no longer have to think about buying workwear, casualwear or occasionwear separately. Your wardrobe will finally be all-purpose.

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Many of you won’t know their names, but you’re sure to know their faces. These girls, who can be found at all the parties for Fashion Weeks, are true trendsetters and are all modelling for MANGO. For the past few weeks they have been spotted both on and off international catwalks, proving that they are highly popular in their own right: they are the it girls we all want to be.

These new muses of street style never stop. Leigh Lezark has been spotted in New York surrounded by friends and getting plenty of attention thanks to her look. This DJ cum fashion icon never stops, you’re just as likely to see her at a film premiere as backstage at a fashion show.

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A common habit that will soon be lost in history, if it is not already, is the change of wardrobe. Between climate change that, little by little, is erasing the different seasons, the frenetic speed at which fashion collections are released so that they overlap, and trends that no longer understand the concepts of hot and cold (boots in summer, sandals in winter, etc.), seasonal clothing makes less and less sense.

Careful, though – this does not mean that we won’t update our wardrobe, but more that, especially given the current economic climate, the best possible solution is to buy items that we can wear all year round. The key to saving money lies in shopping with a focus on reusable items and on skilfully reinterpreting the clothes we already have.

Shorts are the best possible example of a garment intended just for summer that also makes total sense when the temperatures drop. All you have to do is exchange the typical cool T-shirt and the flat sandals for a pair of long socks or some opaque tights, along with some calf-length boots, and the result is a pair of shorts that is as useful in winter as in summer.

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