Jennifer Mackey (0:01)

Are you struggling to get dressed right now because Mother Nature can't make up her mind? The day starts out cool, but by the afternoon you're regretting that cute fall outfit you chose for the day. Or maybe you're impatiently waiting for fall, but summer just won't quit. Either way, this time of year can make getting dressed for the entire day really difficult, but I'm going to help make it a little bit easier. Let's get started. Foreign welcome back to the Everyday Style School, the podcast that gives real life style advice to real life women. I'm your host, Jennifer Mackey. Mary I'm a wardrobe stylist who's been dressing everyday Women for over 20 years, and I'm the founder of Everyday Style, where we're on a mission to inspire women to love the way they look and give you the tools to make getting dressed easy Friends this is not the episode that I had planned for today, but a couple things happened that made me switch things around and add in another episode about fall transition. First, we have gotten more questions this season about how to get dressed for fall transition than we have in years. I don't know if we just have a lot of new members or what it is, but from our members to DMs and emails, it feels like there's a lot more struggle this year. When I started seeing that pattern, I made a note to do a fall transition episode next September, but I also wanted to share a few of the pieces that are getting me through this time, and since they are still mostly available right now, I thought getting it out sooner rather than later would be a good idea. The other thing that's happening is that summer just won't quit. For me, living in Minnesota, having temperatures in the 80s this far into October is kind of crazy, and normally I would be losing my patience and complaining every day about the weather and about how hard it is to get dressed. But because I put some key pieces into my closet earlier this season, I'm like 80% less bothered than I normally would be. Now. Don't get me wrong, I really want sweatshirts and jeans and fire pit weather, but I'm not nearly as irritated as I have been in years past, and for me that's a huge win. So I figured some of you might want that internal peace that comes from having the right thing in your closet. I'm reminded of the Norwegian proverb, there's no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing. Having the right thing to wear makes the weather so much easier to deal with. So today I'm going to quickly share my simple tips for transitioning your wardrobe from summer to fall, and then I'm going to give you just a little audio glimpse of the pieces that I'm living in right now. There are links in the show notes to the exact pieces that I'm talking about, if they're still available, as well as some links to just similar pieces that I found. So don't forget to head to our website and check those out. Okay, let's talk about transitioning your wardrobe from summer to fall. When the calendar says October, but the thermometer is still clinging to August, it can be really tough to get dressed and look appropriate, but it's actually not that difficult. You just need to follow a few simple tips. By the way, these are the same tips for transitioning your wardrobe from cold weather to warm weather. I know that I'm going to get the exact same questions in March and April, but the steps are exactly the same. The application's a little bit different. Like, instead of adding more coverage going from summer to fall, you might need to take away some coverage going from winter to spring. But that's not like a vastly different strategy. So commit these four things to memory and you will be good to go anytime the weather shifts. The first one is to choose temperature appropriate pieces in seasonally appropriate colors. I talk about this one all the time. You've probably heard me talk about this one a lot. So instead of a bright yellow tank, choose an olive tank. For warm fall days, instead of white linen pants, which might feel a little too summery, choose black linen pants. Now, if you're going from winter to spring, instead of a warm burgundy sweater, choose a warm, light pink sweater. Changing the color makes you look in step with the season while still feeling comfortable. This is the easiest thing you can do. Color makes so such a huge difference and it's super easy. The second seasonal transition strategy is to change the coverage in your shoes. Since today we are talking about summer to fall, put away the flip flops and even if you're still in sandals, go for a pair with more coverage, like thicker straps or even a fisherman style. For dressier shoes, put your toes away and choose a sling back or a ballet flat instead. There is a whole season between flip flops and booties, and if you haven't invested in shoes for it, this is something you're going to want to do. It's going to make a huge difference. The third strategy is to do what I call the half and half half bare, half covered. I was actually at Costco with my younger daughter last weekend, and we were both doing the half and half. Me in a tank and wide leg pants, her in shorts and a long sleeve top. Personally, I feel like shorts and a sweatshirt or a long sleeve top is my weather warming up strategy. But there is literally no good reason I feel like that. I. I just do. So it's not some kind of stylist rule. It's just a personal preference. However, I will say that pants in a tank feels a little bit more modern to me and a little bit more polished than shorts and a long sleeve top. But again, you do you boo. Wear what you like. Finally, in weather that can't make up its mind, you need functional, intentional layers. What are functional layers? They're layers you can take off and still have an outfit that works. Back in my one on one styling days, I used to talk to women about layering, and they'd be like, I can't take off my cardigan. All I have on is a cami underneath, and I don't want to be at the park with my kids and just a cami. That's exactly what I'm talking about. That is not functional layering. That cardigan has to be a part of the outfit for it to work right? If you're just wearing a cami. But if you had a nice tank or a tee under there, you could take the top layer off. Now, on the other hand, intentional layers means that your layer looks like it's part of the outfit. In these wacky weather weeks, often women will get dressed and they'll look super cute, but then they won't have a layer that actually goes with their outfit. So they'll just throw on something, anything to keep them warm, whether it looks good or not, and they wreck the whole look. We're going to talk about my own wardrobe heroes in a minute. But years ago at Loft Outlet, I found these super lightweight cardigans, and I bought one in black and one in camel. I cannot tell you how many times these little sweaters have saved my comfort and my outfit. They're functional and they look intentional. Intentional layers like this are one thing I've seen missing in most women's closets. And if you're still kind of confused about what functional versus intentional layers are, think about it this way. Functional layers is about what you're wearing underneath, right? It has to be functional to take off that top layer. Intentional layer is about what goes on top of your outfit. Hopefully that clears it up for you. So you have to have layers that allow you to take it off and still be dressed. And if you have it on, you still look like it's an intentional outfit. Okay, so now you know how to do the transition. Let me share a few of the actual pieces that have kept me sane and stylish in this never ending summer. First up is my beloved stretch woven athleisure pants. I live in these things when the weather is changing. The fabric is super lightweight which makes them perfect for warmer weather, but again, they have the coverage that feels and looks like fall. Also, they don't wrinkle and they always look polished which makes them perfect for everything from kids, sporting events and travel to running errands and even going to dinner. These are my number one go to's in this type of weather. My current favorite pair are brown wide leg pants which I have been wearing on repeat for the last few weeks. I will link those in the show notes as well as a couple of other pairs that I have. If you take nothing else away from this conversation, you need pants like this. They make everything easy. All right, the next item on repeat are tank tops in seasonal colors, which we kind of already talked about, right? In general, I am a person who likes light, bright colors. That's. That's what my color type is. It's what I gravitate towards. But at the beginning of September I noticed I didn't have a lot of fall hued tops. So I bought a few tanks in darker colors thinking that I would only wear them for a couple of weeks but that I would also be happy to have them next fall. Wrong. I am still wearing them into October and I am so glad that I stocked up. All of the ones that I bought are still available at the time of this recording, so I will share those links in the show notes. Another thing I love for this time of year is short sleeve sweaters and sweatshirts when going into fall. A long time ago, like 100 years ago, I found a short sleeve gray sweatshirt at aerie on clearance for like 10 doll and I wore the heck out of that thing until it got a mystery stain right on the front. I was so sad to have to part with it. I tried all of my laundry tricks. Nothing worked. But that piece was a major go to for me and for years I hunted for one I liked as much as I like that one and I couldn't find anything. But this season I found a fantastic replacement at Anthropologie, which I think I like even more, especially since it's a better color for me. But I will link that one and a few others that I like for you. I think these are great. They're a little bit heavier. They're perfect with shorts. They're perfect with the athleisure pants. Love them. Also, short sleeve sweaters. Another piece that has been an absolute lifesaver for me this season has been a short sleeve linen sweater. And honestly, this piece is the reason I'm doing this episode, because it's still available. And I want to tell you about it. This sweater that I bought, it's dressier than a linen tee. It has more coverage than a tank, but it feels like I'm literally wearing nothing. It is so light and so comfortable. I hardly ever buy things from, like, mall stores like Loft, Banana Republic, things like that when they're not on sale, because, let's face it, everything always goes on sale, right? You're kind of silly if you don't. But I needed something in a pinch, and so I bought it. And this is a really good reminder that price and value are not the same thing. Price, the relationship between the item and the store, and value is the relationship between the item and you. It's what that piece is worth to you. And let me tell you, this little sweater is worth a lot to me. I have gotten so much use out of it. I get compliments everywhere I go in it. But even more than that, I love that I can put it on with pretty much everything and it looks and feels fantastic. This is what we mean when we talk about effortless style, right? Like, you don't even have to think about it. And you just get dressed easily and love the results. But the thing is, you have to put those key pieces into your closet. They don't appear magically. Lucky for you, though. This sweater is available and on sale at the time of this recording. So if you can snag one, do it. I love this thing. Next fall transition hero in my closet is lightweight crepe dress pants. Now, friends, I wait for ponte pant season like kids wait for Christmas. But putting that thick, heavy fabric on my body right now isn't going to happen, no matter how comfortable they are or how good they look. But I have had to dress up quite a bit in the last few weeks. And my go tos are these wonderfully drapey, lightweight pants that I guess I I collect because I discovered quite a few in my closet. My favorites are from J. Crew Factory, which I will link, and I actually bought a pair last winter. They kind of have them all the time, and they change colors. But this pair was a really pretty like dark, deep magenta color and I like I said, I bought them last winter and we had a very warm winter in Minnesota last year. But still the wind goes right through them. So even in a warm Minnesota winter I could not wear them at all. They were just too cold. They are meant for winter somewhere else. Let's just say that. However, they are the perfect pant when it is 85 degrees at the end of September, so they are finally getting some use. In the show notes, I'm going to link my favorite pants as well as a few others I know to be a good weight for transitional weather. Finally, right now I am loving and living in lightweight jeans. I just really want jeans in a sweater. You know it's time. I have paid my summer dues. I have shaved my legs and applied self tanner long enough, but I also don't want to sweat my face off. And real jeans are hot, so it's going to be a minute before I want to put on long heavy denim pants. However, lightweight jeans are the perfect solution when you're just really over summer clothes. They look like fall, they kind of feel like fall, but I'm not sweating my face off. They have been great for pairing with tanks and a light layer for those days that are starting cool and ending warm. And of course I can pair them with my favorite lightweight sweater. And let's face it, nothing feels more fall than a great pair of jeans, right? I know that we will get there eventually, but until then, you can get the same denim effect with the right pair of jeans. You know, there's a Hal Borlan quote that I repeat to myself whenever I am over the current season and ready for a new one. And here it is. No winter lasts forever. No spring skips its turn. The same thing is true for fall. Eventually it will come. We will get there. But in the meantime, you don't have to struggle to get dressed. Pining for Fab Fall Style With a few simple tricks and a few key pieces, you can navigate these weird weeks or months like a pro. I hope this episode makes it easier for you to get dressed and love the way you look. No matter what weather you are experiencing today, if it's already real fall where you are, congrats. I am jealous. But remember, these transitional weeks will come again next year. Put the right things in your closet now so you're not scrambling. Then your future self will thank you. That is another part of effortless style. Being ready for those moments that normally you've struggled with. Don't forget to head over to the show notes for this episode on our website where I have done all the shopping for you. And do me a favor William. If you're enjoying the Everyday Style School, be sure to subscribe or follow the show on whatever platform you like best. That way you'll never miss an episode and it helps the show get recommended to other women just like you who want to love the way they look. I will see you next time and until then, remember that your everyday matters. So get dressed for it and that's a wrap. Thank you for listening today. 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