Stuff I Like - October Edition.
for when summer just won't quit.
We’ve already established that I’m 100% Team Summer, however, it doesn’t make me immune from the confusion that happens every year when October rolls around. My brain is processing pumpkin spice everything and halloween USA but here in SF we’re basking in the glory of what feels like *finally* summer. We suffer through ‘june gloom’, ‘no-sky july’ and ‘fogust’, cloaked in a thick fog that (if we’re lucky) might burn off by lunch only to roll back in by dinner. I’ve been living here for 8 years and yet I still struggle to wrap my brain around the time space continuum that is/are the climate(s) of San Francisco.
To further confuse things, our ‘summer’ isn’t always a guarantee. We were robbed of it last year (but to be fair it was also 70 degrees in January) whereas right now we’re in the midst of a heat wave. My email is inundated with fall lookbooks while the temps are hovering around 85-90 degrees. I suppose as climate change continues to shift traditional seasons as we know them this will be a reality for other parts of the country as well, but maybe we’ll elect members to congress who won’t deny that climate change is real and legislation will be passed just in time to halt the devastating effects of humanity on our planet but anyway I digress.
For October, I present to you a Stuff I Like list that reads as a shopping list of sorts, addressing this strange void known as transeasonal dressing when there’s nothing ‘trans’ about it and it’s actually just hot as f*ck outside. A list of items that will allow me to finally indulge in the summer clothes I never got to wear while also feeling seasonally appropriate to appease my very confused brain. Luckily San Francisco’s fashion is as random and confusing as its weather so I could probably leave the house in a bed sheet and be fine but I am who I am so here we are and here we go!
A High Coverage Leather Sandal
Think of it as a sandal that has so much leather/hardware it almost reads as a shoe. Last year this would have been a fisherman’s sandal for me and while I still love them, there’s something a little less prep and a little more edgy that I appreciate a high coverage leather sandal gives. It’s the ultimate wear now and wear later purchase that I want to make. They can add some weight to an otherwise bare outfit when it’s 90 degrees out and also transition through whatever fall happens to look like. I love the idea of wearing them with a cashmere trouser sock when temps get cooler as it’d provide a nice refined contrast off the chunkiness of the sandal that’s a little less grunge/granola than a traditional wool ragg sock.
wear now vs. wear later. me on the far left attempting to balance out the lightness of my outfit with some heavy hitting leather accessories. love the wear now vs. wear later styling of the woman in the middle. the cannes birks are so similar to the milanos I already have but the color alone I think justifies another purchase, yeah? If you aren’t a birks person (how are we even friends? I’m kidding) the idea of this works with any sandal where the coverage is heavy and the leather is plentiful.
different vibe but same concept. how delicious are these A.Emery sandals in brown suede?! A madewell version for half the price in black and a random pair google shopped to me that I don’t hate?
A Non-Basic Basic Sweater
Or rather, a sweater that could be worn in place of a sweatshirt…something with enough personality it can be the punctuation of an outfit but not so much personality you don’t want to wear it next year. Or the year after. There’s something I really love about a sweater and shorts moment - it’s a nice balance of ‘hey it’s going to be hot as f*ck today and yet it’s not hot yet so look at me indulging in my need to acknowledge it’s October’. Think business (fall) up top and party (summer) on the bottom. I also love the idea of a sweater and sweatpants and it’s an outfit I probably wear in the winter more often than I should admit. It’s a bit more polished than a sweatshirt (which is the point here) and looks like I put in a little bit of effort. Add in that cashmere trouser sock and it’s aces.
this photo of Brendon Babenzien, founder of Noah and head of J.Crew mens has been in the back of my brain since I saw it last year. a few non basic yet basic (ie silhouette, classic stitch etc) sweaters L to R: kule, old Sea New York, Khaite (gorgeous but also good god $$$. this one is similar minus the more modern proportion although give it a month and zara will probably have something similar) A Rugby Shirt
In my mind this does a similar thing as the previous Non-Basic Basic Sweater but is just a little more versatile and a little more wear-now. I could easily imagine myself wearing an oversized rugby on a chilly morning run and then tying it around my waist a mile in once I’ve warmed up a bit. I actually have a J.Crew rugby from about 5 years ago that I got monogrammed with my initials like the preppy midwesterner I am and I love it. Tracksmith recently launched a waffle rugby as part of their fall line and I honestly don’t know why I’ve never thought to run in one before as they’re obviously meant to be worn for physical activity. Speaking of rugby, I actually joined a team once as a way to meet people when I first graduated college and was living on my own in Connecticut. I survived one game and promptly quit the next day as I’m too much of a lover and not enough of a fighter to throw myself at people in the name of sport.
it’s so preppy and so quirky and so sporty I love it. L to R: kule (they make the best rugbies IMO but they’re also $$), madewell (generously oversized), the aforementioned tracksmith version. brooks method running short. A Cashmere Trouser Sock
There’s something about a nice sock that can really add to an outfit. It isn’t something I’m wearing now but it is something I’ll wear later, or will wear in the morning when it’s a less-than-hot-as-f*ck 55 degrees out. Cashmere might be a bit, erm, quiet luxury from a price tag standpoint so the bullseye might be more of a fuzzy knit-like trouser sock. I bought a couple wool ones from zara last year and I absolutely love them. Speaking of, wool naturally has some amazing performance properties and these could be an interesting crossover item for cold weather winter running. I’m not sure if they’d hold up to the abrasion of a running shoe rubbing on them for 5 miles but it’d definitely be interesting to try.
a range of socks. L to R: zara, quince (these are cashmere for only $29.99!), j.crew (wait and get these on sale) and jenni kayne Some Comfy House Pants (that aren’t sweatpants)
If I’m being honest this has been on my shopping list since I realized I was going to be spending a significant more amount of time at home back in May. It wasn’t super urgent and also the ones I had been eyeing were sold out and have only just been restocked so other purchases were made instead. The term ‘comfy house pants’ is subjective so in my world these are pants I can wear and still feel good about myself. Not that I don’t feel good about myself in sweatpants, I just don’t feel good about myself in sweatpants when I wear them every day.
the key to house pants being house pants is the drawstring. L to R: these donni ones are the ones I wanted that were sold out. they’re in stock now so add to cart! love these citizens jeans…made for summer but great year round! technically a sweatpant however the silhouette is more interesting, these parachute pants are nili lotan but i’ll be stalking the real real to try and get some cotton james perse ones instead. Obviously this isn’t something I’m shopping for, but rather something I’ve been craving to listen to on my runs that captures the freedom and frivolity of a summer that doesn’t want to end. It’s a playlist that doesn’t take itself too seriously that I can listen to at a volume that makes me mildly concerned about the long term health of my hearing. I put this together over the weekend and in my mind it is the type of playlist one should listen to in the midst of a heatwave in the fall when summer just won’t quit. I had a lot of fun assembling it, so hopefully you have a lot of fun listening to it (unless you don’t like female singers in which case you might want to look yourself in the mirror and ask yourself why?) I think I’ll make this a regular addition to my ‘Stuff I Like’ posts go forward so if you enjoyed it, let me know!
appropriately titled ‘girl pop running’ because all the songs are from female pop stars and apparently it’s cool to refer to anything that’s female leaning as ‘girl’ right now.
So for now, I’ll be pressing pause on all things fall (except Halloween because dressing a toddler in a ridiculous costume might just be my new favorite thing) and I’ll pick it up next month when it gets cold again, starts raining and we head into all the holidays that are best spent cozied up on the couch with a really nice glass of red wine (or tea if that’s more you).
Until then, viva la summer!