White Is Still a Fall Color
Last week, I made the case for mules and clogs as the perfect shoes for this awkward stretch between summer and fall. This week, I’m thinking about another way I like to make that transition: keeping the light colors and changing everything around them.
I’ve always loved white and cream, but there’s something especially good about them in early fall. Rather than putting away the white jeans and lighter-weight pieces that have been on heavy rotation all summer, I like to ground them with richer colors and textures.
Right now, that means chocolate brown.
There’s something about white or ivory paired with chocolate suede and leather that feels very September. The lightness keeps the outfit from feeling too autumnal, while the deeper brown adds just enough warmth and depth to make it feel like the season is changing.
And I think that’s the best kind of seasonal dressing: you don’t have to change everything. You just have to change the context.
A white tee with a chocolate suede bag feels different from the same tee with a woven summer tote. (Or reverse it - a summer woven tote feels different with a cream sweater than with a white tank.) White jeans with brown mules feel different from white jeans with sandals. An ivory sweater and white denim suddenly feel much more fall when you add a deep brown belt or shoe.
The clothes can stay familiar. The accessories do the seasonal work.
The Idea
This is the kind of transitional dressing I’m most interested in right now: taking what you already own and finding a slightly different way to wear it.
Keep the white. Add the chocolate. Let the combination carry you into fall.
And this is also why I’m particularly excited to bring back our Chocolate Suede pieces for ABBY ALLEY. Chocolate suede is one of those materials that makes everything around it feel a little more fall, while still being incredibly easy to wear right now.
I’ve been thinking about this color for exactly this reason, and I can’t wait to see it paired with all the white and cream already in your closets.
The Chocolate Suede collection returns September 8th. :)
The pieces pictured here are a few of my favorites for creating this look. You don’t need all of them, or even any of them. The point is the formula: start with the light, familiar pieces already in your closet, then add a little chocolate brown through your shoes, bag, belt, or sunnies.
White/Cream Foundations:
Pleated Trousers (or these in a denim fabric)
Tee (white)
Tee (ivory)
Chocolate Accessories
One More Thing: Add a Third Color
I love white and chocolate on their own. It’s a combination that feels classic, chic, and easy.
But if you’re in the mood for some color, there’s a way to do it in a way that still feels minimal and timeless.
This is something I’ve learned from following Amy Smilovic (founder of Tibi) and the way she thinks about color. Rather than treating color as something you either wear or don’t wear, I like thinking about it as a way to add depth and dimension to an outfit.
So what colors pair well with this chocolate/white/cream outfit formula?
