Sincerely, Me

Ahhh, autumn is upon us. The leaves are starting to change, the cravings for hot apple cider have started, pumpkins and mums are everywhere and the crisp cool nights reunite you with the snugly sweaters you have missed for the past six months. By now you are sick of shorts, sundresses and sandals and are begging for a wardrobe change. What are you going to wear transitioning into fall?

Saying tweeds, sweaters and boots are "fall trends" is about as unique as saying floral prints and pastels are "in" for spring. This year something in particular has gotten press as being fashion forward for the 2013 fall closet that has many traditionalists twitching. White.

My grandmother would smack me upside the head with the heel of her Ferragamo if I sported white after Labor Day, but apparently this year, that rule is being amended. White jeans, jackets, sweaters and dresses are being shown as transitional pieces to wear straight through the holidays.

Don't worry; I am as shocked as you are! I sincerely hope that even if it is a trendy color this season that we don't see any white shoes hitting the pavement. As an aside, white shoes should be reserved for babies, little girls, brides and nurses.

As someone who has been dressing women for many years, of course I have seen what are considered traditional trends fall by the wayside. Let's take, for example, wearing black to a wedding. It used to be considered an insult to the bride and groom, but now it is very common and widely accepted. You know that when a kind of dress reaches acronym status that there is an all access pass for any event.

Now, I am guessing that some of my more traditional readers are thinking that I must be referring to "winter white" as it is as classic as wearing navy in the spring and black for formalwear. Though I would wholeheartedly agree with the above, I am not referring to winter white. I am talking paper white, egg white and milk WHITE.

Upon learning of this trend I did a little test run in my own wardrobe. Guess what? I put together some unexpectedly fabulous fall ensembles. For example, I took a white (ok, it could have possibly leaned more toward eggshell) shift dress that I wore to a spring race meet and put black tights and tall suede boots with it and….it was stunning. Then I put my white, ankle length jeans I have been sporting all summer with tall, chestnut brown boots, a chunky sweater and plaid wool scarf in front of the mirror. Again, it was good looking and definitely something I would wear. Who would have thought I could get through this fashion exercise and admit that the trend won?

So my advice to you this fall…step out of the old time fashion sense box and experiment with something new. You just might be shocked at how good it feels to be a rule breaker and trendsetter at the same time. Sorry Grandma, times are changing.