Houndstooth Skirts and Trousers: How to Wear Them This Fall

A houndstooth skirt is the easiest way into the pattern: it puts the check below the waist, where it reads as texture, and leaves the top half to a plain knit. For Fall 2026, Adam Lippes cuts both a houndstooth skirt and houndstooth trousers from the same camel-and-brown virgin wool: the bias-cut Tess midi skirt and the wide-leg Wyatt pant.

This guide explains what houndstooth is, compares the two pieces, and sets out how to wear each one with knitwear, silk and outerwear, plus a corduroy alternative for anyone who prefers a solid.

What is houndstooth?

Houndstooth is a two-tone broken check. Bands of dark and light yarn cross in the weave and produce small jagged shapes with pointed corners, so the pattern looks like a check whose squares have been nicked at each edge. It is a woven pattern, which is why it sits so naturally on wool suiting and tweed.

Scale changes the effect. A small houndstooth, sometimes called puppytooth, blurs into a single tone from a few steps away. A larger one reads clearly as a pattern. Adam Lippes chose a camel-and-brown colourway instead of the familiar black and white, which softens the contrast and makes the check far easier to pair with brown, black and cream.

Is houndstooth in style for fall 2026?

Yes. Adam Lippes showed his Fall 2026 collection at New York Fashion Week in February 2026, built around sculpted jackets, enveloping capes over lean knits and fluid skirts, with tailoring that is architectural but light. Houndstooth is the suiting cloth of that story: the Tess skirt, the Wyatt pant and a matching Asher jacket.

One note: the Asher jacket is not on Coveti. The Tess and the Wyatt are, and both work as standalone pieces, so you can build the suit around them with a jacket, cardigan and coat you already own.

The Tess skirt in houndstooth

The Tess Skirt in Houndstooth Plaid, Camel Brown is cut on the bias, with a midi length that flares from the knee, a concealed side zip and a lining of 100% silk. The cloth is 92% virgin wool with 6% polyamide and 2% elastane.

Bias-cut wool is unusual, and it is the reason to choose this skirt. Cut on the diagonal, the fabric relaxes over the hip and swings below the knee when you walk, where a straight-grain pencil skirt would hold stiffly. The check also turns on the bias, so the houndstooth runs at an angle across the body, which is more flattering than a grid. The silk lining lets the skirt slide over tights instead of clinging. Verdict: best houndstooth skirt for anyone who wants movement, not stiffness.

The Tess is an Adam Lippes signature, and this season it also comes in silk charmeuse: the Tess in khaki charmeuse and the Tess in hunter green charmeuse. If the cut suits you in wool, it will suit you in silk.

The Wyatt pant in houndstooth

The Wyatt Pant in Houndstooth Plaid, Camel Brown is the brand’s perennial trouser, here in the same virgin-wool houndstooth as the Tess. It has front pin tucks and a generous leg. The pin tucks are stitched folds at the front, so the trouser keeps a defined line down each leg and falls straight from the hip.

The brand pairs it with the Asher jacket for a long, lean silhouette. Without the Asher, the next best match is a plain jacket in a colour from the check. The Rhodes jacket in mink grey double-face cashmere is reversible, with side pockets, a gold hook-and-eye closure and a detachable scarf; over the Wyatt it makes a soft suit. Verdict: best houndstooth trousers for the office.

Houndstooth skirt vs houndstooth pants: which should you buy?

If you wear trousers four days a week, buy the Wyatt. If your wardrobe is short on skirts that work with boots, buy the Tess. They are cut from the same cloth, so owning both gives you two outfits from one jacket.

The corduroy alternative: Wyatt in hunter green

For the Wyatt shape without the check, the Wyatt Pant in Corduroy, Hunter Green is cut in 100% cotton corduroy with the same front pin tucks and generous leg. The ribbed pile gives the trouser a country-weekend feel, and hunter green is a colour that works with brown and camel almost as well as navy does.

Wear it with the Perrine shirt in hunter green-and-white stripe, an airy, relaxed shape with dropped shoulders, and the Eve turtleneck in espresso layered underneath on colder days. Our guide on how to layer a shirt under a jumper covers the collar and cuff details.

How to style a houndstooth skirt and trousers

• Take one colour out of the check. Camel, brown, espresso and cream all sit inside this houndstooth, so a knit in any of them looks deliberate.
• Keep the top plain. Houndstooth already has two tones and a lot of edges. A solid knit gives the eye somewhere to rest.
• Match the weight. Wool houndstooth wants cashmere, not cotton jersey.
• Add shine sparingly. One silk piece, such as a charmeuse shirt, lifts the wool for evening.

With knitwear

The Didion crew in espresso tucked into the Tess is the most natural outfit in this edit: close-fitting fine cashmere above, swinging wool below. Over the Wyatt, a cropped cardigan buttoned to the top works as a jacket. The Worth cardigan in espresso has a cropped silhouette, a crew neck and self-fabric buttons, and the brand designed it to be worn with the Ava shell in espresso underneath.

With silk

For evening, tuck the Mathias shirt in bronze charmeuse into the Tess. Bronze picks out the warm brown in the check, and the shine against matte wool is the whole effect.

With a coat

Long and dark is best. The Daia coat in ebony double-face cashmere is floor-length and designed to be worn almost like a cardigan, with a self-belt and a slim leather belt, so it covers the Tess entirely and shows the Wyatt only at the ankle. The Hesper cape in black double-face cashmere is the alternative for the skirt: a cape leaves the waist and hem visible. See our edit of cape coats for women, and for a camel-on-camel approach read how to style a camel coat. For a long camel coat to wear over the check, Max Mara is the obvious place to look.

Sizing the Tess and Wyatt

Both pieces are listed on the UK 4 to 18 ladder, which equals US 0 to 14. Adam Lippes gives no instruction to size up and size down, and Coveti’s read is that the brand runs true to size. The Wyatt has a generous leg by design, so choose by your waist, not your hip. Full conversions and measurements are in our Adam Lippes size guide.

Shop the edit

• Best houndstooth skirt: Tess Skirt in Houndstooth Plaid
• Best houndstooth trousers: Wyatt Pant in Houndstooth Plaid
• Best solid alternative: Wyatt Pant in hunter green corduroy
• Best knit to pair: Didion crew in espresso
• Best coat to pair: Daia coat in ebony

More in midi skirts and wide-leg trousers.

Frequently asked questions

What is houndstooth?

Houndstooth is a two-tone broken check woven from bands of dark and light yarn, which create small jagged shapes with pointed corners. It is most often seen in wool suiting and tweed. A small version is sometimes called puppytooth. Adam Lippes uses a camel-and-brown houndstooth in virgin wool for Fall 2026.

What do you wear with a houndstooth skirt?

Wear a houndstooth skirt with a plain top in one of the colours inside the check. For a camel-and-brown houndstooth, an espresso cashmere crew neck tucked in is the simplest pairing, and a bronze silk shirt works for evening. Finish with knee boots and a long dark coat, and avoid a second pattern.

Are houndstooth pants professional?

Yes, houndstooth pants are a classic office choice because the check comes from traditional wool suiting. A pressed shape helps: the Adam Lippes Wyatt pant has front pin tucks that hold a straight line down each leg. Pair them with a fine cashmere knit and a plain jacket for a polished workday outfit.

Is the Adam Lippes Tess houndstooth skirt lined?

Yes. The Tess skirt in camel-and-brown houndstooth is lined in 100% silk. The shell is 92% virgin wool, 6% polyamide and 2% elastane, cut on the bias for a fluid drape, with a midi length that flares from the knee and a concealed side zip. It is labelled Dry Clean Only.

Does Coveti carry the Adam Lippes Asher jacket?

No. The Asher jacket is the houndstooth partner piece the brand designed for the Tess skirt and Wyatt pant, but it is not on Coveti. Both the Tess and the Wyatt work alone, and a plain jacket, a cropped cashmere cardigan and a long dark coat all complete the look without the matching jacket.

How do Adam Lippes trousers fit?

Adam Lippes trousers fit true to size in Coveti’s experience, and the brand gives no size-up instruction. Woven pieces are listed on the UK 4 to 18 ladder, equal to US 0 to 14. The Wyatt pant has a generous leg by design, so choose your size by waist measurement and let the leg fall.

Read next: how to wear tiger print, the best cashmere turtlenecks and Adam Lippes Fall 2026, explained.