Victoria Beckham was way ahead when she wore this leopard print pencil skirt - it's the must-have item to make your wardrobe 10 times chicer

Newsflash: pencil skirts are huge for this season. Forget flowing maxis or micro minis, now we're all about the very sophisticated knee-length pencil skirt, according to labels like Saint Laurent and Alaia.

There is of course another trend we can't get enough of at the moment, and that's leopard print. So when I took a walk down memory lane and found Victoria Beckham wearing the chicest skirt that's both the length and print of the season, it reminded me that she's always at least one step ahead.

The ideal statement piece to add to your autumn capsule wardrobe, the beauty of a skirt like VB's is that you can afford to keep the rest of your outfit really simple. When she wore hers back in 2014, she put a Posh Spice spin on Scary's signature look, teaming it with a simple black knit and matching court heels. Hers was designed by Balmain, but the good news is you don't have to fork out a fortune to get the the look this time around...

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Whilst she tends to stick to block colours and pared-back designs, Victoria is clearly partial to a spot of animal print. We recently fell in love with this leopard print dress that was one of her own designs, and she'd surely love those Prada leopard print ballet flats we're coveting at the moment.

If you're a bit of a wallflower when it comes to leopard print, a skirt is a great way to dip a toe into the trend. It feels a bit less full-on than a coat, for example, and simple accessories will help tone it down.

However, if you're anything like me and you consider leopard print a neutral - go ahead and layer up your leopard prints! There's no such thing as too much.