Casual Summer-to-Fall Transition Outfit

I’m all too aware that summer is in no way over yet, but can you really blame a desert dweller battling triple digit temps for the 3rd month in a row for clinging to the summer to fall transition with a Hulk-like grip? No, no you can’t. Which is why every single year I start celebrating my favorite time of year on the style front (and on about every other front, too) as early and as often as possible. Unfortunately, these steamy temps don’t exactly lend themselves to cozy fall outfits and diving deep into cool weather ensembles, so today I’m serving up a little bit of inspiration for what to wear when your mind says fall, but the temps say summer with an outfit that you can wear now, but easily layer when the seasons change. 

Shop The Post

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: chambray is always, always, always a good idea. It’s a casual fabric that works in every season — lightweight enough to wear on its own in the warmer months in tanks, dresses and skirts, but also perfect for long-sleeved layering when the weather gets cool. Which is exactly why I jumped on this perfect little chambray eyelet top I snagged at Anthropologie a couple of weeks ago — it was love at first sight! 

As a general rule I don’t buy pieces that I don’t feel like I’ll be wearing for years to come (my adult self just doesn’t have time… or space for that), and at this stage in the summer I also won’t buy anything that I don’t think will be a staple in my fall wardrobe. And this top adheres to both of those rules. The shell fit is one of those timeless styles that will always be easy to throw on and will always make me feel good, and layer a suede moto jacket like this one or this one or cute fall cardi over this bad boy and you’re in fall business!

And of course I love a summer sandal and espadrille as much as the next person and this outfit would pair perfectly with both of those footwear options for the next month, but I’d be lying if I said that I wouldn’t throw a sandal overboard for a brown suede bootie any day. And this outfit pairs perfectly with my favorite brown suede booties from last year, too! Aaaaall of the options, people. All of the options. Because no fall outfit is complete without some great suede booties. It’s practically a law! I’m really loving this bootie and this bootie this year. I need to start a suede bootie Kickstarter campaign to feed this habit!

And outfits aren’t the only thing I’m transitioning as summer shifts to fall. Every time summer comes to a close it’s like a switch flips in my brain and I immediately start thinking of ways to switch up my hair and try new styles on for size. I’ve been growing out the lingering semi-permanent strawberry hair color that I typically dabble in all summer long in hopes that I could get back to a totally natural hue (and get my hair back to optimal health), but this process has been painful. So painful! I’ve been trying to stay strong and stick it out, but looking at this slightly orange-hued hair of mine every morning and styling it has been a test of my willpower! So I thought I’d put my scarf collection to good use and make it a little bit easier on myself by throwing my hair up in a messy bun and weaving a fun scarf through it. And to my shock and surprise, it worked!

There was really no method to this hairstyle madness. I had tried to style it down with loose waves prior to throwing it into this bun, so it already had a little bit of curl and hairspray in it, which made it easier to work with. So I just threw it in a low, parted ponytail, tied the scarf in a knot around the ponytail so the long ends hung down, then just wrapped my hair and the loose scarf ends together, tied the scarf in another knot and pinned the loose hairs into a bun. That’s probably not a great description of what went down, but if you want more details just drop me a comment and I can try to do it more justice than that! 

I linked all of these outfit details plus more summer to fall transition perfect pieces in the “shop” widgets above and below, so be sure to check those out if your brain is already fall outfit dreaming even though that summer sun’s holding strong! And it’s ok summer lovers… just let fall wash over you and embrace my way of life. Sooner or later I’ll have my cozy, comfy fall way! I kid I kid… kind of.

Shop The Post