With many of us experiencing very different fall temperatures and having varied footwear preferences, I wanted to show how one base outfit can transition with heels, sneakers, and booties that cover up the ankles. Here I started with a well fitting pair of ankle length jeans, added a chunky knit, and topped it off with a long coat (did a fun texture for the holidays!).
Ann Taylor is currently running a sitewide promo for 40% off with code BRIGHT (ends 11/23)! I wanted to get some reviews up in advance of Cyber Week while sizes are stocked, including for these two pairs of booties I’m very happy with and have shared several times on IG. I’ve always been an Ann Taylor pump devotee, but they knocked it out of the park with their ankle boots this year!
1. Blade Heel Booties (also in solid black suede)
True to size and VERY chic and contemporary for AT! The rounded square toe shape and blade heel are on trend, but also features that I don’t foresee going out of style in the near future. The overall boot makes the feet look slender and flattering, and the height is comfortable and feels like a pretty low heel for me. These aren’t a stretchy “sock” style bootie, but the shaft is still slim enough to fit under even my slim straight jeans and ankle pants with no issue. While I love the embossed croc, I wish they’d made this in a solid brown too.
See this outfit in motion in this reel video!
2. Faux Fur Coat
Insanely soft. I don’t know how they achieved this level of softness, but Nick and the kids can’t stop petting it! I had to find a more hidden place to hang my coat, after finding dried-up bits food on it from my little ones burrowing their faces and hands into the faux fur *facepalm emoji*.
This coat is a more luxe feeling alternative to the usual wool coat or puffer, and I wanted to show how easily this ensemble can go from office-appropriate to festive to casual simply by changing the pants and footwear. The xxs petite is a good fit on me with plenty of room to layer a thicker sweater. The “porcelain” color is a gorgeous creamy taupe with a hint of lavender, and pairs nicely with the pale mushroom color of this sweater. There aren’t any customer ratings yet under the Petite link for this coat, but if you click into the regular sizing tab you can see several great reviews!
3. Block Heel Stretch Booties (Black + Brown)
If you’re looking for a versatile solid black bootie, two great options are either the Blade Heel bootie mentioned above, or this one. Both have a similar rounded square toe shape I’ve been loving. The Blade Heel bootie is genuine suede with a smaller heel and more structured shaft, while the Block Heel bootie is faux suede with a chunkier heel and a stretchy “sock” shaft that hugs the ankles more closely. You can see 3 outfits I’ve paired already with the block heel booties: here with tights, here with jeans, and here with work pants.
4. Ivory Tweed Dress
Tweed, winter white, pearl and gold accents – a combo that’s right up my alley and would be a piece I’d wear at least 3 seasons out of the year if I still worked in an office. The fabric is a medium to thicker weight texture that feels substantial. The cut is gently fitted, and the fabric weight gives it structure. I like that this style is subtly festive for the holidays, but can also be worn well into spring and summer. For colder weather, I’d pair this with sheer black tights and pumps.
If a full dress in tweed is less versatile for you, check out this tweed skirt in a beautiful mix of ivory and soft colors.
5. Mock neck black top
The star piece below to me is actually the black top, which works as well with jeans as it does a more formal outfit. It’s an excellent basic that’s elevated thanks to details like the fabric choice and subtle draping at the neckline. The mock neck is not snug, not too high, and the stretch fabric has a little structure that makes it feel nicer than your average shirt. You can also see how it looks here layered under a coat with pants.
I’ll be sending back the skirt since I don’t have an occasion for it, but wanted to show the fit for my houndstooth & sequin lovers out there. I preferred this skirt to their solid black sequin pencil skirt this year – the sequin discs on the solid black skirt were too large and kept on sticking out in all sorts of odd directions, and there was no zipper making it hard to get on. In comparison, this houndstooth sequin skirt has smaller, flat-lying sequin discs and a zipper entry.
