The colder months of the year bring with them a seasonal joy: the exuberance of powder-soft snow, adorable rose-tinted cheeks of children who worm their bodies into winged snow-angels, deep fireside chats over steaming hot cocoa…
As a native Southern Californian, I experience none of this. This is my mental image of what winter would be like if I came from a quaint family who made their home in the French Alps. Just let me have this.
My only conciliation during anticlimactic Southern California winters is that the slight temperature drop (70 degrees over 85? I’ll take it!) gives me the excuse to wear my favorite footgear ever: boots. I also comfort myself with the idea that Starbucks seasonal drinks will always come, even if snow never will. It’s the little things.
I know I am not alone in living in my boots during the winter. Being as they are a daily part of my outfit (yours too, I am sure), I have to find ways to switch them up. Here I present two outfits styled around two different, but equally lovable boot trends: the mid-calf and the combat boot.
Casual: Mixed Prints and the Mid-Calf
There is an art to mixing prints without looking like several abstract paintings fused themselves to your body. Admittedly, that would be awesome and also terrifying. No, the key to mixing prints is to pick complementary colors in your printed clothing items and to wear other neutral items to balance the contrast. This is where the boots come in; the casual pairing of mid-calf boots and jeans, along with a forest-green military jacket helps offset the different prints in the blouse and scarf. The complementary magenta base of the scarf works well with the blue blouse, as well.
Too bad it was not even cold enough to be wearing that military jacket. Sometimes we do funny things in the name of fashion, like be sweaty.
Girly-Edgy: Floral Dress and the Combat
This outfit could be called mixed print part two, but at least I switched it up with different boots and a dress! The combination of the feminine fit and flare dress with a floral pattern is balanced by the edgier combat boot. I love the look of bare legs and a combat boot; the only drawback is if you are like me and have the irrepressible desire to be confident in your ability to bend over without flashing your polka-dotted underwear, you rarely wear mini dresses without tights. This day was a special occasion. I do it for you readers, also for the boots.
Floral ankle tattoo that complements the floral pattern on your dress optional. Well, not really optional for me, being as it is a permanent part of my body. It’s not like I got that tattoo solely to complement floral patterned clothing. (Maybe.)