Style Scenario: The First Stormy Day of Fall

What are you going to wear? Sometimes it’s good to look at a few suggestions then add your own tweaks and ideas. That’s what these are for. The long, hot, & dry summer has come to an end (at least, technically summer is over.) And storms may be brewing. That’s good news for those that like layers and outerwear, but bad news if you’re made of sugar. You are not made of sugar of course, but walking into work, or, a coffee shop for a date soaked to the bone isn’t ideal. Here’s one way to dress for those early fall storms, without looking like the Gorton’s Fisherman.

The Lightweight Mac: GAP Cotton/Nylon Mac – $70.80 w/ START ($118) Brilliantly simple. The Cotton/Nylon navy shell does a decent job of keeping water out, while still being light enough to prevent overheating. Always on sale. Full review of what appears to be an identical coat from last year can be found here.

The Gloves: Orvis Unlined Lambskin Drivers – $89 Look what’s back. A perfect pair of gloves for fall. No insulation here, but the lambskin cuts the wind and keeps your hands dry while offering just enough ventilation. Picks up a great patina over time.

The Sweater: UNIQLO Extra Fine Merino V – $29.90 ($39.90) Thin. But in a good way. These things hold up shockingly well for how lightweight they feel in your hands and on your body, but that makes them easy to layer and perfect for when it’s not too cold out. Lotta colors to pick from. If Navy is too obvious a choice, try a more true-blue or the dark green.

The Watch: Helgray Silverstone – $379 Fast looks with an interesting power train. It’s a Quartz, but it’s Seiko’s Meca-Quartz chrono that uses some mechanical chronograph bits to give that function a real snappy feel. Comes with both a stainless band and a leather band. Efforting an in-person review (and giveaway?) in the coming weeks.

The Shirt: GAP Clean Chambray in Grey – $35.97 w/ START ($59.95) The look and texture of a chambray shirt minus the clunky weight many seem to carry. Button down collar. Always on sale.

The Pants: Lands’ End Straight Fit Moleskin 5-Pockets – $39.99 ($79) Good ol’ dense moleskin. It’s a fabric that once you get a pair of pants or a blazer in, you’ll wonder what you ever did without them. Straight fit and on sale at Lands’ End.

The Belt: Banana Republic “Antique Cherry” Leather Belt – $55 Currently a “BR Pick” so not up for codes quite yet. One of the better looking belts BR has come out with in a while. Brass, roller buckle bet and a nice maroon shade of leather.

The Shoes: J. Crew Kenton Leather Cap Toe Boots – $248. A new arrival from J. Crew, and thankfully they’re not slapping that red-brick sole (from their bucks) on their boots this year. Goodyear Welted. NOTE: The original suggestion here was Clarks Desert Boots, but feedback was that the crepe sole on those is just too slippery in wet weather. I’ve never had that issue with mine (maybe I’m not alone?), but, better safe than having you guys sliding all over the place. I mean, they are called desert boots after all. Perhaps in the rain ain’t their strongest suit.

The Umbrella: Totes Wooden Stick Umbrella – $20 Bigger then one of those tiny micro-umbrellas, but not some huge golf umbrella either. Big enough for two people to huddle under. Looks great, costs… not much.