You can already feel it can’t you? That transitional weather is slowly creeping in changing the way we dress from light, bright and breezy to something a little more complex. September style starts with battling the chilly mornings that are a taste of weather yet to come and ends with sometimes sweltering summer-like temperatures that remind you that fall hasn’t *quite* started yet. So, how do we dress for that? Transitional temps are always tricky but you’ve come to the right place, friends. Our look of the month is a replicable, easy way to decode September's super confusing dress code to help you find the styles you’ll be wearing all month long. Alright, let’s get started.
THE THEME: LAYERS
So as we all know, North America is a pretty big continent and temperatures can be super different from place to place. But here at Levi’s®, we think of everything, so we have three (count ‘em THREE) looks of the month to cater to whatever weather you have in your region. Both looks follow the same theme though so even if you’re somewhere in the middle you can still feel confident in your look. The theme for September is layering. ‘Why layering?’ you may ask. Well as we mentioned, temperatures in September are–to put it lightly–a mixed bag. You can go from too cold to borderline sweating in the blink of an eye. So the solution to that is making sure that you have enough lightweight removable layers to always be one step ahead. Tossing on a sweater or peeling off a jacket are your keys to comfort here.
And while that in and of itself is pretty intuitive the hard part here is coordinating all these different layers so you look and feel put together. Before we break down our looks of the month let’s take a moment to talk about basic color, pattern and texture coordination rules.
COLOR
Time to break out the ol’ color wheel cause we’re gonna get just a little technical here. So the most foundational color theory is based on our understanding of colors as arranged on the color wheel in a circle. At the top, we have our first primary color yellow. Then in each corner, we have our other two primaries blue on the left and red on the right. You don’t have to worry too much about what “primary colors” means, just know they’re like the elements of the color world; you can’t make them by mixing any two other colors. Next, we have our secondary colors–basically the outcome of mixing any two primaries. Red and blue make purple, red and yellow make orange, and yellow and blue make green. Each of these secondary colors is arranged on the wheel in between their two primaries.
Phew. Ok so the reason we went through all that is basically this: when putting together an outfit with multiple colors, you want to pick colors that are either next to each other on the color wheel or across from each other, or in the same color family i.e. primaries always look great together and secondaries always look great together.
PATTERN
Mixing patterns is a little less scientific than the whole color spiel we just went through. The general rule of thumb is this: if you’re going to mix patterns you want to make sure that each pattern is represented in a different scale. So for example, if you have a subtle small stripe on your t-shirt, you can mix it with a bold oversized plaid in your layering flannel over the top. This is definitely not a rule, but we’re also a fan of mixing an organic natural print like a floral with a more geometric regular print like a windowpane or a stripe. The interplay of the geometric and the irregular is just cool looking.
TEXTURE
Mixing textures is really not that complex. There aren’t necessarily rules per se. So instead we’ll offer more of an endorsement. In lieu of color or patterns, textures are a great way to add visual interest to an outfit. Think of the impact a fuzzy sweater or a satin-y shirt has on a look. It can totally take a simple outfit or basic silhouette to the next level.
THE LOOKS
LOOK 1
This layered look is a little funkier. Vintage-inspired flare jeans immediately up the ante with their dramatic silhouette. We double down on the drama by layering on two oversized tops. The first is a classic white button-down. You’ve been wearing them all summer as a top layer over an easy tank but this fall we’re doing something a little different. Next, we added a fuzzy ombre sweater with lava lamp vibes–you know, to match the ’70s energy coming off the bell bottoms. Stacked heels complete the look.
LOOK 2
We can’t think of a more quintessentially Levi’s® layering look than this one here. Right off the bat, we start with a graphic tee with our logo front and center. The ringer style design puts a pop of color at the neckline. Next we add a healthy dose of denim up top with a light wash Western Shirt and down below with a medium wash relaxed fit straight leg jean. We love the denim on denim in contrasting washes so much–we added a third denim piece into the mix. Enter: An oversized slouchy trucker jacket, just because.
LOOK 3
These lightweight layers are super easy. Case in point we start off our look with a classic white t-shirt. Simple enough. Next, we added long flares in a high rise to really make those legs the focal point (the heels don’t hurt either). A fun sweater vest adds some warmth without adding too much warmth, but more importantly, its fun multicolored knit adds a little personality to this look. We finish things off with a full tuck and a belt to really highlight that waist.
Love these layered looks? Shop more of the September Look Of The Month here.