Heyooo friends! It’s winter!! You know, winter doesn’t officially start until December 21st? Not when we all bust out our Michael Bublé albums. So basically all of Christmas season (catch our cutie little townhouse home tour here.) is actually in the fall. SO weird. One of the reasons we moved to Denver was to experience seasons, and so far… there’s definitely seasons but Denver’s winter are PRETTY mild. Like, I don’t know if it actually counts as winter or not. Like… is this winter everywhere else and Chicago is just extra frigid??
EITHER WAY it’s kind of awesome in the sense that it’s not like so so cold that we can’t indulge in all of the adorbs winter fashions. So I’m one part crying that I never get to play in the snow and two parts celebrating in my black opaque tights and booties. YAY winter outfits!
Now, I’ve only experienced two actual winters as a grown up. Like, I legit didn’t even own a coat for the past 13 years. I had to borrow them from friends when I would travel. So I’ve had the pleasure of building an entire winter wardrobe from scratch. 😉 I would lying if I told you I didn’t love it. I live for booties.
So I have compiled a list for you here; all of the things that I have deemed my winter staples… from one overly enthusiastic winter lover to another.
Booties, Booties, Booties
I know you’re not surprised this is number one. They’re just the best type of shoe IMO. The best. Definitely one of my favorite things about winter. It’s just… an entire outfit looks different with good shoes. Amirite? You know I am. Plus, any outfit becomes a “winter outfit” with some booties.
You don’t have to spend a lot of money to find cute booties either. Every single pair I own I scored mega deal on. I’m talking like… never over $30. Deal hunting is a hobby of mine. The hubs teases me. It’s just SO. SATISFYING. to pay so little for something that costs so much!
But when my boot obsession began I opted for a black pair and a brown pair. One pair was rider style… (similar on clearance here!) I still wear them ALL the time.
and one pair were a little bit grungier in style and black. Because no matter what you’re wearing you can wear a brown or black shoe. 😉 I loved them and was pumped to wear them all over Germany.
And I was pumped to wear them around Denver (catch my beginner’s guide here) three years later.
They’re both from Target and when you live in Florida boots of any variety get shuffled to the clearance rack pretty quickly following the 3 cold weather days per year. If you don’t live in Florida, Kohl’s has an awesome deal each Black Friday.
I’m looooooving the block heel trend right now. They go good with everything and they’re so comfy and and and…
Scarves
As with aforementioned booties… throw a scarf on and you’re styled for winter. How transformative. 😉 Also, just about every retailer sells them and there’s a zillion affordable options.
Obviously I’m a mom… so I sold my soul to Target ages ago and I have a few that I love from there. Also Old Navy. And oddly enough when it’s actually cold… they’re both functional and fashionable. Would ya look at that? ;P
I’m a fan of the blanket scarf, I like that there’s so many ways to use them. If you follow any of my “style boards” on Pinterest (A. you should, and B. you probably already know that.)
Chunky Sweaters
because cozy season. I mean, if you follow any blogger ever on instagram, they’ve probably mentioned a chunky sweater or five since like September. So glad that this is “fashion” these days. Also, little kids look adorable in sweaters.
I pretty much love sweaters/cardigans/coats of all varieties because for a girl… I’m kind of broad shouldered. This sort of serves to visually break up that part of me. Not that I’m particularly insecure about it…but it’s a nice side effect.
Basic Tees
Okay, admittedly I could put this on any style guide I ever created. I live in basic t-shirts. I have a whole chunk of my closet that is just plain, solid colored, tees and tanks. It’s just, I rarely desire to have my shirt as the focal point of what I’m wearing. Accessories are way more fun.
But I would advocate for any “realistic style” advocate to have a hefty collection of them too. SO versatile. Makes my crazy mom life SO easy when basically everything I own already matches each other, and I get oodles of use out of them. As opposed to fancier/more eclectic things I might only wear once in a blue moon.
Dress it up or dress it down. I do life in a basic tee.
Shades of Denim
Once it’s cold out, you’ll probably live in jeans (at least when you’re not home in your yoga pants. I see you.) I intentionally buy my denim in distinctly different shades, so I don’t look like I’m always wearing the same thing. Honestly, my style posts are probably my my best performing and I wear like the same three pairs of jeans in almost all of them.
I also try and mix up their style a little bit, just to make things a little less repetitive. American Eagle is always always always my jean go to, and I loveeeee their tom girl jeans. And the legit have a style now called “mom jeans.” Need.
No matter how you do style I hope you found these tips helpful. I’m probably still way too over the moon about seasonable fashions and living in a place that isn’t melting hot and humid year round. sue me. 😀
Shop some of the looks below!
