Tory Burch's best fall/winter accessories are inspired by the designer's stylish parents

Few things induce as much nostalgia as photos of our parents. There's something about black and white shots of the people who brought us up, younger and living a life we never knew, that serve up the feels in bucketloads. Tory Burch is likely to concur. Above, a snap of Tory's parents Buddy Burch and Reva Robinson on a summer vacation — of which they took every year around Europe for six weeks before Tory was born. The American designer has never failed to cite them parents as a constant source of inspiration; her love and gratitude for her folks, Buddy and Reva Burch, most recently expressed in her fall/winter collection (more on that later).

Out of the two, Burch's connection is strongest with her patriach, whom is is known to gush about.

"A true dandy, he should have been a fashion designer. He taught me about elegance, in every sense of the word: the way you treat people, the way you live your life, the way you dress. He had an appetite for beautiful things and, with my mother, had collections from around the world."

Ever the consummate gentleman, Buddy Burch customised his own suits and cuff links, his dinner jackets lined with Hermès scarves and paired with Gucci loafers — decades before it was deemed fashionable. The jewellery he designed for Tory's mother Reva, sparked an interest in Tory to make her own. The pendant Tory wears often was originally a gold Zippo lighter Buddy decorated with charms, the replicas of which Tory expropriated for her upcoming collection.

Buddy's influence this season — unlike the more subtle criss-cross detail on Tory's Bond shoe, borrowed from Buddy's vintage loafer — continues to be loud and proud. Here, an embroidered logo on the Jessica Bow blouse. It reads "TB" for the designer's acronym, an almost identical copy of Buddy's own monogram he designed and embroidered onto his clothing.

"'Who’s Reva?' It’s the question I get asked the most because people want to know the story behind our signature Reva ballet flat. She is the most effortlessly stylish woman I know, my greatest source of inspiration. She always jokes that she never thought she would be famous for a shoe!"

Burch's adoration of her mother — and her style — too is well-documented. Tory's signature flat, the Reva flat, was named after her. In 2013, Tory designed an entire line of accessories using leopard prints based on one of her favourite photographs of her mother dressed in a leopard print bikini. Years later, the unearthing of her mother's vintage dress with blue and white china print would lead to Tory's own interpretation of various fall frock's dressed in the same Rosemount print for 2017.

Read more about Tory's parents Buddy Burch and Reva Robinson.