Fall Staples: Turtlenecks & Blanket Scarves + Layering Tips

Fall Staples: Turtlenecks & Blanket Scarves + Layering Tips

Tuesday, November 22, 2016

Fall rhymes with back-to-school library crawl, no chill windchills that gets you curled in bed like a ball and mainly... a bipolar weather confused Montreal! If you live here, you probably know these photos were not taken in the last 24h as Montreal is currently covered in a thin white layer and temperatures dropped below zero degree Celcius overnight. However, I still think it's possible to get around the city without taking out that chunky wintercoat that's been laying in your closet for three seasons already. The key to surviving this weather without blending in with the non-locals and their Canada Gooses is LAYERS OVER LAYERS OVER LAYERS.

Layering opens the door to so many wearable outfits even when the temperatures hover around the zero degrees line. You can easily mix different textures and materials together to create a look that is both comfortable and extremely warm. I especially love layering turtleneck or chunky knit sweaters over various tops. When choosing a knit piece, it's important to look at the material first no matter how soft it feels.

Here are a few of the most often seen materials:
1. Acrylic sweaters are usually the cheapest and most affordable choices and come in many different styles. However, though they can feel very light and soft, they also tend to not be as warm as natural fibers (cotton, wool, cashmere). It's also good to keep in mind that alot of them 'pill' after a few washes which can be annoying as it can stick on to other clothes. If you're on a budget, I would recommend going for an acrylic blend which a good % of natural fibers.
2. Cotton sweaters are also an affordable bunch and usually more resistant to wear and wash which requires low maintenance. They can be light (if you don't get them wet), comfortable and feels better than wool sometimes if worn directly on the skin.
3. Wool is probably one of my favorite materials for knits. This grey turtleneck featured is a wool blend (wool/acrylic) sweater from Simons (one of my favorite stores to go to for sweaters in terms of price and quality) and has the softness from the acrylic and the warmt from the wool. It's perfect to throw on
4. Cashmere is the most expensive out of the three previously mentioned materials but also the best in every single aspect. It definitely is a worthwhile investment piece as high quality cashmere items usually combine style, durability and softness all in one. It's usually important to check how tighly woven a cashmere sweater is to determine its quality.
5. Other synthetic materials: Quality varies, really depends.

In this look, I styled the turtleneck under a basic black coat and obviously had to throw on another fall staple: the blanket scarf. I have to say I'm pretty grateful to whoever first made it socially acceptable to simply wear a blanket around your neck and walk out of your house. I wore the Classic Sheffield Watch in Rose Gold (36mm) by Daniel Wellington. They were kind enough to give me a promo code to share with you guys for 15% off ALL products on www.danielwellington.com/ with code "PINGGYU" valid until New Years.

 

OUTFIT DETAILS:

SIMONS Wool-blend Grey Turtleneck
ALDO Grid Blanket Scarf
CURRENT ELLIOTT Dark Blue Jeans
ALDO Black Genuine Suede Booties
ZARA Bag
DANIEL WELLINGTON Watch

Photos by Lily Lai