Everyone, at some point in their lives, has heard the most famous fashion rule: “no white after Labor Day.” So where did it come from? As with most rules and old wives’ tales, no one can really agree on its origins. However, there are three theories that seem to be most widely accepted.
1. Summer is hot, and white traps less heat. White fabrics, especially in the early 1900s (when the rule is thought to have originated), were typically made of lighter material. However, this seems too simple to warrant a fashion faux pas.
2. The upper classes of the early 1900s would escape to summer homes and resorts during the warmer months, where the fashionable uniform became lighter (and therefore whiter). Labor Day marked the end of the summer and the return to the cities and darker closets.
3. The early 1900s began to see more upward mobility from middle classes. The “old money” wealthy created these fashion rules as another way to separate themselves from the “new money.” So that, as a Mental Floss article put so well, “if a woman showed up at the opera in a dress that cost more than most Americans made in a year, but it had the wrong sleeve length, other women would know not to give her the time of day.”
After those compelling arguments, how could you ever wear white after Labor Day?
1. Because Coco Chanel, a fashion icon of her time and ours still, wore white all year. Her white suits were a wardrobe staple, even during the rule’s heyday.
2. Because “winter whites” is too beautiful of a trend to give up. White wool coats give any outfit an instantly elegant update, and a cream sweater with dark or riding jeans is the coziest winter uniform.
3. Because why not? Fashion rules are meant to be broken, and you should have fun with fashion. Besides, as W magazine agrees, it’s become more of a meme than a rule anyway!
Explore all your options – your closet will thank you!
Sources: http://emilypost.com/advice/wearing-white-after-labor-day/, http://content.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1920684,00.html, http://mentalfloss.com/article/12424/why-cant-you-wear-white-after-labor-day, http://www.wmagazine.com/story/white-after-labor-day-meme-john-oliver