Rachel’s Recs: October Edition

Jennifer DeWitt
Sep 24
3 min read

If you’d told me two years ago that I’d be standing here recommending a carefully curated collection of beiges, taupes, and browns, I would have laughed you right out of my color-coordinated closet. Me? The woman who once staged an entire headshot photoshoot with Harry Styles as the inspiration? Writing love letters to neutrals?

However… October is the month that reminds us that subtlety has its own kind of drama.

It doesn’t announce itself the way September does, all back-to-school energy and fresh starts. It settles in quietly, like a really good guest who knows exactly when to bring the wine and when to just sit on your couch and talk about nothing. The air changes—not dramatically, but just enough that you notice when you’re standing in your closet with a completely different mindset than you had in July.

This is when I reach for the pieces that feel like a deep breath. The ones that work as hard as I do but don’t need to shout about it.

I’m talking about those buttery suedes and soft wools that somehow manage to be both structured and forgiving. Denim that’s lived-in enough to feel like an old friend but polished enough for actual adults to wear. Knits that make you look pulled-together even when you’re running on four hours of sleep and your third cup of coffee. (Not that I would know anything about that.)

And before you spiral thinking you need to abandon your entire wardrobe for a beige intervention, let me be clear: I’m not renouncing color. I’m just acknowledging that sometimes, the smartest thing you can do is build a foundation that lets you add color when and where you want it. Think of neutrals as the supporting actors that make everything else in your closet work harder. A cobalt blue sweater from last month’s True Spring Tuesday is going to look even better with these cozy, quiet pieces.

October is also boot season, which, let’s be honest, is the real reason we get excited for fall. With each new pair I buy, I fall further and further into the delusion that THIS will be the pair to end all other pairs. (They never do, but I will continue to keep the dream alive each year.)

The truth is, dressing for October is about embracing the in-between. It’s too early for your heavy coat but too late for your summer whites (outdated rule, but I respect tradition). It’s warm in the afternoon sun and chilly by the time you’re walking to your car at 6 PM. So you layer. You get creative. You rediscover that denim jacket you forgot about and realize it’s somehow better than you remembered.

If you see me in head-to-toe neutrals this October, I haven’t lost my personality. I’ve just realized that sometimes the most interesting thing you can wear is something that doesn’t try so hard.

Besides, Thanksgiving is next month, and I’ve already got my eye on a burnt orange situation that’s going to make up for all this restraint.