I’m not going to lie to you and tell you that I’m a mega-fashionable person. Honestly, I’m not. However, one of the key strategies I’ve found to wearing clothes I love to wear, is finding pieces that a) fit really well b) are comfortable and c) match a heck of a lot of other stuff in my closet. I’m all about combining fashion and function, because there’s no reason that you shouldn’t be able to have both. With that in mind, I came up with a list of a few pieces that have become staples in my wardrobe because they cross off both the ‘comfy’ and ‘trendy’ boxes on my list. Maybe they’ll give you some inspiration for new fall outfits to try!
1. A dark wash jean jacket
Light wash denim is great, but honestly, I love dark wash denim more—and that’s probably because goes it with everything. What I love about jean jackets is that they’re comfortable but they also have structure (which is super awesome when you’re trying to look somewhat put together). Sometimes that’s what you need on top of an easy T-shirt, legging, sneaker combo, especially if half of your classrooms happen to feel like the Arctic and the other half feel like they’re on the Equator. Plus, on days you want to opt for leggings but don’t want to look too sporty, a jean jacket can add an extra bit of style.
2. Pointed-toe ballet flats
2. Honestly, I used to hate ballet flats and pointed-toe anything. They just seemed too stuffy and boring for me to want to wear them on the daily. I don’t know when exactly, but sometime in recent years, ballet flats became super cute. They’re all fun and flirty with bows and ankle ties and I can’t get enough. And that’s 100% true. I have at least five pairs of ballet flats in my closet at school. And that’s just at school. Anyway, pointed-toe ballet flats have become my favorite go-to shoe if I ever need to dress anything up—you can pair them with jeans and a cute sweater, or you can throw them on with a blouse and dress pants when you have to dress professionally. They’re so easy, and honestly, they’re so much more functional than a pair of pumps.
3. Simple T-shirts
Never underestimate the power of a good T-shirt. You’re probably thinking that I’m crazy for even putting something as simple as T-shirt on this list, but hear me out—there are so many possibilities when it comes to a casual V-neck tee in a solid color. The possibilities are actually endless—dress it up with a glitzy necklace and a bomber jacket, or look super relaxed with a chambray shirt and scarf layered over the top. You have so many options for how to style a good T-shirt, and it’s definitely worth taking advantage of. Plus, styling T-shirts any which way is great for maintaining some fashion sense while also being insanely comfortable.
4. Joggers
I don’t know about you, but when joggers were first introduced as a trend, I was skeptical. They’re just fancy sweatpants, right? As a leggings girl, I’ve never really opted for buying sweatpants, except the ones I sleep in, so the thought of buying fancy everyday sweatpants seemed so foreign to me. Yet somehow, I gave in. And I would strongly advise that you do, too. Joggers have a fashionable edge to them that normal sweats don’t, but they’re so comfortable at the same time. It’s a win-win.
5. Baseball hats
I’m not an athletic person, but I love baseball hats. They’re so easy for days where you’re donning second day hair or just don’t have the energy to style your hair before your 8 AM. Throw on a pair of joggers, a simple tee, and top it off with a baseball hat and you’re all set for class with so much time to spare (meaning you can sleep in that extra 20 minutes, hooray!) If you’re not super into the sports thing, and you don’t have a team-oriented baseball hat lying around, ball caps are being sold everywhere at the moment. Suede ball caps are really in right now (I’ll probably need to invest in one myself), so you don’t need to hop on a sports bandwagon in order to rock this trend.
Obviously you’re not limited to these suggestions in your comfy and stylish fashion endeavors, but maybe they can help you kick start a new fashionable and functional era for your wardrobe.
ALL PHOTOS BY CORBYN JENKINS