As the Fall season settles in and "Cuffing season" comes to an official start, Summer is swiftly becoming a distant memory, along with linen sport coats, seersucker suits and salmon colored slacks. By the way, cuffing season is the part of the year where otherwise single people, sequester a temporary mate to cuddle or "cuff" with during the cold fall and winter months. I get pretty bummed about summer leaving (no not because of cuffing season, i'm off the market for good), like that feeling you get around 5 o’clock on Sunday, when you realize the weekend is officially over. With some guidance from SUITABULL, you’ll be set for the Fall... Cuffing and all!
Fabric
Time to trade in the linens and cottons for leather and wools. As the weather gets cold, break out the full wool suits, sports coats and slacks! Wool is much thicker than cotton, so it’ll keep you nice and warm when that cold air starts to bite. It may still be too early for wool outerwear, but it’s worth keeping a nice light Top coat on deck. Just don’t become the guy wearing a full length wool coat on a 60 degree fall afternoon. People will think you’re an exhibitionist. If you do wear one, don’t tell ‘em that SUITABULL helped you out. For those dress down Fridays, swap out the wool topcoat for a leather or suede, bomber or motorcycle jacket. For formal events, it’s officially velvet season again! Velvet dinner jackets, velvet accessories and velvet loafers are officially in play! Take it up a notch at that cocktail party, wedding or night on the town with some velvet.
Layers
One of my favorite part of fall is layering, next to wearing velvet.
Layer 1--Cotton t-shirts still work during the Fall season.
Layer 2--You’ve got options. Cotton dress or casual shirts are good all year round, but for the extra crisp days, grab a merino wool turtle neck or Crew neck sweater. Sure you may think you look like a poet, but it’s appropriate, considering that your fashion is your art!
Layer 3--The next and best layer, consists of waistcoats and v-neck sweaters which can get tricky so stay with me. Waist coats are best complimented by light weight sweaters (crew neck, v-neck and turtle neck), as well as button up shirts. V-neck sweater in their versatile nature may be worn over button up shirts.
Layer 4--The sport coat or Cardigan, seals the deal. A sport coat may be worn with any of the layers individually, (except with a t-shirt because that’s just wild) or can be worn with all of the layers to keep from having to wear a top coat. The cardigan should contain a thicker fabric than sweaters mentioned in layer 3 and may be paired with layer 2 items only. This also helps to avoid wearing a coat. Because let’s face it, one of the most annoying parts about the cold season is covering up your best threads with a coat!
Colors
The bad news is that all of those bright, vibrant tropical colors, that only came in the 64 Crayola crayon pack when you were a kid, are out of season. The good news is that fall colors are here and they’re much easier to identify with a simple trick. All you have to do is look up! And no, God isn’t going to shout down and give you the colors of the season. Although he’s definitely capable, I’m referring to looking up at the trees, specifically the leaves. They change from Green, to Auburn Orange, to Red, to Yellow, then Brown, before they fall off and hit the ground. Gents, those are your main Fall season colors, along with gray tones and deep blues which are universal across seasons. Apply these colors with caution. We don’t want you to look like a Jack-o-lantern because you became too ambitious. Apply the grays, and browns to the majority coverage pieces, like trousers, waistcoats and blazers, and reserve the reds, oranges, yellows and greens to your sweaters and turtlenecks. Solid base colors for turtle necks during this season also include black, brown and cream.
Footwear
Now that the needle on the thermometer has dropped just a bit, it’s time to break out the Fall footwear.
Dress boots are huge during this season, especially in suede. They cover up you ankles on those cold mornings while adding a bit of sartorial spark. Dress boots include Chelsea, chukka and wing tip boots (hi-top versions of the wing tip shoe). Look for both leather and suede varieties in chestnut brown, tan, burgundy and blue.
Velvet Loafers are not for Summer! Good thing it’s Fall, so you’re safe. It’s still not too cold to go sockless too! Pair these with a tux for a wedding, or with any chic/cocktail party dress code event, for the win.
Headgear
The weather change creates the perfect environment to catch a cold, which is why a hat can be essential to your style and health. Convert those straw/lightweight fedoras meant for the beach into the felt variant. You may also accompany your wears with a tweed or herringbone messenger cap. Keep the comb or brush on deck to get rid of that hat hair once you're inside!
Until the warm weather makes a come back like Michael Jordan (#23 not #45) my hope is that you’ll live your best moments in the Fall season, while sporting the smoothest style and the confidence to match!
Stay SUITABULL guys.