Let’s be perfectly honest.
I’m a teacher. I work with little (ie…messy) kids all day. I work in a very old musty building which explains a LOT about my allergies/sinus infections but that’s a whine for another day. I’m not exactly the best candidate for fashion advice.
I’m likely to steer you wrong. Like…totally wrong. Not Keds-and-ankle-jumpers-and-wooden-beaded-school-charm-necklace wrong. More along the lines of dark colors, easy machine-washable fabrics, and forgiving silhouettes. Fine, I’ll admit it. Cardigans and hiking pants. HIKING PANTS, people.
This is the part where I hope my principal never realizes I have a blog and never reads this post. I’m about to spill some mom/teacher fashion tea.
1. Fall pants (also perfect for winter, spring, and summer, but go along with it)
Columbia Anytime Outdoor hiking pants. They look like real working girl pants. They have pockets. They can’t be destroyed. They have stretch fabric. They wash one gazillion times and the black is still black. Buy these and thank me later. I have blue, grey, and of course, black.
2. Half zip cozy sweaters
We have a local boutique that sells a ton of clothing through Facebook. They have 2 store fronts but the bulk of their success is this nifty “comment, sold” feature on FB. My first week of October, I scored some great finds for fall.
3. Cardigans
I have a confession. I don’t love cardigans, but cardigans love teachers. When the kids are boiling but we are freezing, we all have a “school sweater”. When you need pockets for all the things kids give you to keep, score! When you ate the cafeteria Taco Tuesday and all that rice is now blowing you up like a blimp on Thanksgiving Day? Throw a large sweater over yourself and keep on going.
Also, these look fabulous with skinny jeans and boots. We all know the loophole in wearing colored skinny “jeans”. We have the pants argument ready and nobody is the wiser when you have a long cardigan that hangs down your legs. 
4. Leggings with boots or ballet flats
Going along with the fall basic girl stereotype, which I strive to achieve, is leggings.
Let’s talk about these.
Ladies, please hear me on this. Flesh colored leggings are NEVER a good idea. The only way they might be a good idea is if you wear them under a DRESS. I don’t care how thin you are. I don’t care how little body fat you have around your midsection. Flesh colored leggings need to go away. Google it if you must.
Rant over. Now, fall fashion begs for leggings and boots. If you work in a place that frowns on leggings with all your assets and lady town showing, then please do all of us a favor and buy long tunics, CARDIGANS, etc to work with those boots.
Speaking of leggings, I hear those Nike workout tights you already have in your closet work double duty with a long flowing shirt and cardigan. Unless you raise your shirt and show the Nike band, nobody knows any different. Layer appropriately and you can make miracles happen with things already in your closet.
These are just a few ideas for bringing in the fall. Those of us in the south, we enjoy maybe 6 weeks of fall before we are bundled up like a snowman. At the time I’m writing this, the high is 91. I weep. Seriously. I’m dying for fall weather.
Happy Thursday!
