Light jackets are one of my favorite things about fall, and one of my very favorite jackets is my downtown field jacket from J.Crew. Only problem is that it's not warm enough to wear into Michigan Novembers... So a new version that's warmer and comes in this fabulous green? Yes, please!
This jacket is fall style perfection, just like that tree in my yard is fall foliage perfection. Love that it's warmer without being too bulky. Also love how it pairs with a cozy turtleneck sweater and makes a great pulled-together outfit completer. Loving less? How the sunshine on this day was the only thing keeping me from the full-on winter coat... Come on, winter - give me a little more time!
Here we are in November... with an outftit that is a quintessential illustration of my dual modus operandi for this month's wardrobe: (1) updating my sweater collection and (2) wearing my favorite flats on any day the sun comes out.
If you live in a place with long winters like I do, I think you'll understand how it's hard to maintain warm and fuzzy feelings about your sweater after you've worn them on repeat for so many months. So when sweater weather rolls back around, I like to find a few well-priced selections to freshen things up - and I'm sure I'll get my money's worth out of them if I purchase in November... This one find from the new line at Target fits my desires - cozy textured neutral that's warm but not too bulky. And it was a good deal!
But then, despite it being sweater weather, if the sun makes any appearance and warms things up even a little, I always plan an outfit around my favorite fun flats, because I know that days where being able to go sockless are going to be a distant memory soon. And also because I know that I will start to feel the same way about all of my boots as I do about my aforementioned sweaters, come about February... Honestly if I could wear this combination of neutral top, jeans, and awesome flats every day, I'd be a happy girl, but the boots will be here to stay soon.
I really enjoy putting together monthly mini capsules of current wardrobe favorites that mix and match well together, so it's probably not a surprise that the 10x10 challenge (make 10 outfits out of 10 items) caught my attention. So I focused my October capsule this way, and it was a lot of fun to stretch to 10 outfits, from the 5-6 outfits I usually come up with from a capsule of this size.
So here is a recap of all of my outfits (you can see original posts here, and a collage of the items here). It's not surprising that they look quite cohesive, since they're made up of the same items, but I do appreciate how they manage to look not too similar. Moral of the story, you can do a lot with a little... and I'm feeling energized about streamlining my wardrobe again after this.
Overall, I am pretty darn pleased with all of these outfits, actually, but I think the last one, with the white jeans and suede jacket, has to be my favorite. (Helps that it came with an extremely delicious date night dinner.) What's your favorite? Have you done a challenge like this? I want to see more examples, now that I'm all jazzed about this!
The final outfit in the 10x10 challenge is thanks to Pinterest... I was already fully intending to include my favorite new jacket as one of my 10 items, and then when I spotted this fabulous way to make white jeans work for fall and date night at the same time (via Extra Petite), I immediately added in a camel sweater. And then lined up a babysitter and recreated the look (+ had an amazing dinner out with my mister).
Besides getting a great date night outfit from some Pinspiration, this is a win for the 10x10 challenge because it's something I think I wouldn't have come up with on my own - and I loved it. (Though I admit this outfit actually has a tiny cheat on the 10x10 challenge since these shoes aren't in my lineup - but hey! It's my blog. And they're very similar to the ankle boots I selected for the challenge - but way better for date night.)
If last week's outfit was "black and white and red all over", then this week's is the "tan all over" version of spicing up a simple black and white outfit - except for the whole "it's late October and the summer tan has faded" part, of course...
My October 10x10 challenge outfits are wrapping up, and this sweater is making its first appearance - along with some excitement about achieving one of the challenge's purposes: creative and effective utilization of my wardrobe. This sweater has nearly been on the closet cleanout chopping block several times because I just don't wear it that much, sometimes wondering if I really like the color or the fit. But pairing it with gingham and all-cognac accessories gave it some new life that I am quite pleased with.
And now that I also know about the idea of putting it under a matching jacket? It's a keeper! Stay tuned for that look on Thursday... Sharing on Trend Spin, Hello Monday, Mix It Mondays.
Recently I happened upon a J.Crew denim dress in my size when listing some items on Poshmark and though I don't really enjoy second-hand online shopping personally (too much to sift through!) I just couldn't pass up the deal (I think I paid $15?) on this classic J.Crew item, when it basically fell into my lap.
The thicker material and long sleeves make it a dress that's perfect for fall - especially because you can do bare legs in the transition period and then add leggings or tights as it gets colder.
I knew right away I wanted to include it in my list of options for my October 10x10 challenge not only because of this perfect season-appropriateness but also because it seemed like it would be really versatile. So I added an extra challenge, to see if I could remix it 5 ways, with just items from my challenge:
1. with a pop of red: the dress is cute on its own, but even cuter with red shoes and lips!
2. with a pop of stripes: Pinterest suggested this cute layering idea to me - bonus that it makes it even warmer if needed for a chilly fall day.
3. belted: easy, peasy - and though I usually don't try to be super matchy, I liked tying all the cognac accessories together.
4. bundled: plaid scarves = fall, and with my suede moto jacket, I think it makes a really cute and cozy look with this dress.
5. casual: adding some leggings underneath turns it into a more casual tunic type look. A bit of a different style for me, but I liked it to change things up.
So obviously I could be wearing this for pretty much any type of event I have planned for the weekend... maybe I'll go with the first one for Hendrik's birthday bash tomorrow!
What's black and white and (pops of) red all over? The next stylings of my striped tee in the 10x10 remixing challenge! I'm also going with "well read all over" as a label for this outfit, because adding my glasses (that I wear only occasionally) always makes me feel like I'm giving off smart vibes for the day...
The moto jacket was a nice layer to add on a blustery fall day, but mostly I wanted this outfit to be all about the graphic black and white stripes paired with the bright red on the shoes and lips. Such a simple combination of jeans + tee + flats, but the graphic punch makes it turn into an outfit. Kind of my favorite kind of outfit to wear.
And I can't deny that the tassels on the flats make any outfit just a bit more punchy - aren't they great? Almost as great as the cutest tiniest tassels on this bracelet.
Back at it with the white jeans for fall - this time featuring the stripes and slides from my 10x10 challenge lineup. Some pops of fall-ish colors in the accessories make it all work for a mild early October day:
I've been seeing cute mules like these all over the place (by which I mean the internet) and have been tempted by this trend, but they don't end up seeming that practical for Michigan - we're fast approaching sock weather... meaning my heels are going to need warmth and/or protection from something cold and wet (can't say the s*word yet).
So when I saw these slides on clearance for $6 at Target the other week, I thought it would be the perfect compromise of something inexpensive but wearable while we're having way warmer than usual weather that is a similar idea. They're super comfy and give kind of a cool Madewell-y vibe to an outfit, I think, so I'm going to be pleased to style them more summer-like next year too!
Yesterday I introduced my 10x10 wardrobe challenge, and today I'm back with outfit #1: a plaid look perfect for apple picking! And also for bringing white jeans into fall (another favorite pastime).
Now, while plaid and some go-anywhere ankle boots might seem like the perfect thing for a fall orchard visit, white jeans probably don't seem so obvious. Besides the "it's fall" part, there's the dirt factor. But I really don't let wearing white jeans hold me back from anything in life - being after Labor Day, being with a kid, being outside, drinking red wine. I mean, I don't spill on myself or trip or whatever that often, so why worry extra about protecting the white jeans? (The only thing I don't do is go anywhere near my bike - I'm notoriously bad about getting grease from the chain on myself.)
Plus it only took us about 10 minutes to bag 30 pounds of apples from about 3 trees - good pickings! - and then we went out to eat at the quaint old-timey restaurant, so it's actually more of a dinner outfit. Faux farm for me.
I've followed along as a few of my best blog buddies, like Erin and Kimi, have participated in the 10x10 remix challenge, and I loved the idea - all you need to do is select 10 items (tops, bottoms, shoes) from your wardrobe and make 10 outfits from them. And have fun getting creative!
This actually isn't all that different from what I do with making monthly mini capsules, or my travel capsules - the intention being to have some fun with your wardrobe, and along the way challenge yourself to take a somewhat minimalist approach to a wardrobe, to figure out a cohesive style for myself, and to make getting dressed a breeze (sometimes fewer choices = way less time trying to figure out what on earth to wear). I usually do about the same number of items, but actually pulling together 10 different outfits and photographing them? Still a little bit of a challenge
I was thinking it would be a lot more fun to do this 10x10 thing when it was good layering weather, so I kept it on the back burner until fall... and now here's what I come up with! Kind of the chillier weather version of the black & tan thing I had going on in August. All of these neutrals are super easy to mix and match, and they feel pretty cozy for the season too.
These items have already provided me a most excellent apple orchard outing ensemble, and then a great date night outfit the next night - stay tuned for photos of those, and of course 8 others, to come!
Though not by any means the limit of what I could make from my September summer-to-fall wardrobe, here's the last of the featured combos - two ways to wear this tie-front shirt that is perfect for simple but pulled together outfits. It pretty much pairs with everything possible (being essentially a white tee), and with the interesting gauzy texture and the cute tie, it works well to dress up or down.
What makes this "not tee" a perfect find for the seasonal transition period in particular is that for the warmer days it really takes jeans + a tee up a notch, but I also love it layered, so it'll be great throughout the season when it gets chillier too. For date night, I love it even more with my other top find for fall - this faux suede moto jacket that has not been able to make an appearance because summer has returned full force... I've been relying heavily on the "summer" part of the summer-to-fall wardrobe lately (or just deciding to forget the whole business and give in to living in workout shorts and tanks - bah, 90 degrees in September!).
Wow, it has turned to summer around here again, and I am not mad about it at all. Neither is my September wardrobe, because I planned ahead for this type of weather where it is hot outside, but there are leaves on the ground. Too hot for fall clothes, but summer ones just don't feel quite right. Enter the handy solution of a summer-style dress in a very fall color.
I got this burgundy dress last year for our Paris trip for these exact reasons (it was sooo hot there last September. It can be worn alone and still "feel" seasonal without overheating - but then it still works when fall weather actually arrives, when you layer on a scarf and denim jacket.
I've had fun changing it up a bit this year with this dress by pairing it with pale pink. Bonus: even though these outfits didn't get the green of this month's preferred palette of olive-pale pink-burgundy, I pulled it in nicely with my goofy mini me, don't you think? And burgundy loves a floral too, I've decided, especially these embellished floral flats that are going to be my statement piece from now until the foreseeable future, I love them so much. Here are some other fun floral/embellished ones I've spotted:
When I'm looking for some outfit inspiration, I often go to a patterned scarf or blouse for a built-in color palette. This floral scarf with navy, burgundy, and pale pink has been a favorite for several years, and digging it out of the scarf basket as the weather cools gave a great jumping-off point for my September mini wardrobe - along with a seasonally-updated excuse for continuing to wear my current favorite olive + pale pink combo.
Last week it felt like we were DIVING into fall weather around here, rather than my expected "transitioning", which I found a bit problematic in general (I like an Indian Summer, thank you very much) but also for my summer-to-fall wardrobe in specific - in that to wear outfits from it comfortably I'd need all the layers possible. But at least it makes for a cute outfit here. (Even if the indoor temperature dipped low enough in the mornings that I still had to add a blanket while I worked.)
We're on an upswing now, thankfully, so that I will be able to show off the great transition outfits I had come up with for the dress in my lineup! Sharing on Hello Monday, Mix It Mondays, Trend Spin, The Style File.
