Designers just can’t help themselves. Even when they’re hell-bent on pioneering some newfangled concept—nylon body stockings, denim eveningwear, postmodern dirndls—a smart jacket can’t help but worm its way into their fall collections. And thank goodness, because there are few things in life as useful as a well-tailored blazer. Anne McNally, the globe-trotting style setter and an Editor at Large for Air Mail, knows this all too well; she’s been sporting suits religiously since her first taste of Yves Saint Laurent in the 70s. “He made me a very different-looking girl,” she says with a laugh. Although McNally got her start as an equestrian, her taste in suiting is not limited to the riding variety. And so, in the spirit of democracy, she hunted down her favorite jackets from the fall ’19 collections. For those who insist on picking favorites, she’s especially partial to the check number by her friend Adam Lippes, who photographed his pre-fall collection in her New York City garden.

Isabel Marant Étoile Kice checked wool-blend bouclé blazer, Adam Lippes shearling-trimmed check woven coat, Alexander McQueen single-breasted houndstooth wool blazer.
Anne McNally, who takes her jacket selection very seriously.
“I love suits for evening, too—they’re so elegant, as opposed to a crazy dress.”
Alexander McQueen peplum leather biker jacket; Vetements slit-sleeved single-breasted wool blazer; Christopher Kane squiggle crystal-embellished double-breasted twill blazer.