"I’ll Try Anything Once" is my favourite song by Julian Casablancas – and my style philosophy as of late. I’ve been swan diving into trends that I never thought I would wear, and to my surprise, many are now key pieces in my wardrobe (they haven't all been wins, of course). But vests are the autumn equivalent of wrap tops, a clothing piece that I’ve never considered and almost forgotten about altogether. After all, how warm can something with no sleeves actually keep you? I was very skeptical.
Vests make the convincing case that if you're ever stranded somewhere cold, just keep your core warm and the rest of your body will follow. That's a free cold weather survival tip courtesy of me, recent vest convert. But don't take my word for it (I wasn't even a Brownie); try them out for yourselves and let me know if they suffice in keeping you warm this autumn. Turns out those City boy finance bros are on to something. Scroll through to see why I'm ditching my jackets for vests this autumn.
Monday: The Finance Vest
By the first day of autumn, the streets of New York are swarmed with the finance and tech crowd wearing their company's customised fleece vests. Unfortunately, mine isn't R29 customised, but in the same workwear vein, I styled it with a wool skirt and blouse. I typed up an Excel spreadsheet at 100 words per minute, thanks to how free my arms now were without the limitations of a jacket sleeve. I even took even took the look for a stroll down Wall Street. I fit right in minus the pink hair.
Tuesday: The Quilted Vest
When fabric is quilted, it increases the heat insulation by 39,205,820,935%. That's a scientific fact tested and proven by me and the 30 quilted blankets I own and covet. Today was when the temps really dropped and autumn hit us fast, so I doubled up with a quilted jacket under a vest. The textures were interesting because the quilting patterns were different, and I had little piece of my bed with me with every meeting I went to.
Wednesday: The Diver Vest
This is a PSA that not all vests must have an opening in the front. I define a vest as something that is made to be layered, and those vests deserve some love too this week. Kijun is one of my favourite designers right now - they're making clothing that delightfully surprises me with how many different ways you can wear it. And as I previously mentioned, I love to be surprised by the clothing I wear.
Thursday: The Outdoors-y Vest
If a vest is built to keep a hiker warm in subzero temps, it's surely able to meet your standards while you wait 30 minutes for the next tube. They're built to insulate and the safest bet if you're in vest ing in a vest for warmth, not just layering. To keep things light, I opted for pants that have a skirt built in (dreams) so that I'm not weighed down by too many layers - I am hypothetically hiking up a mountain after all.
Friday: The Puffer Vest
Just one puff is not enough. When I think vests, my mind leaps to a good puffer vest, and this one is it. Pile it on top of a chunky cardigan with clouds for sleeves and a really good sequin dress, and it might keep you warm all the way until December, when holiday dressing season is also upon us.
Saturday: The Sweater Vest
I pushed this day off as far as I could, because knitwear without sleeves feels even more outrageous than a jacket without sleeves. They're what I imagine prep school kids wearing and spilling clam chowder on during lunch. With my school days far beyond me, I decided to go a more casual route with super comfy silk pants and a top underneath. The outfit still made me feel studious, but not studious enough to want to wear my glasses out of the house.
Sunday: The Fisherman Vest
Am I going on a safari? Fishing? Waiting in line at the supermarket? That's the great thing about this vest – it can be open to interpretation depending on how you style it. I wanted to keep it simple with a khaki trench coat. I'm a detective that just got back from a fishing trip with my dad! Let me know what persona you would embody with this one.
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