So You Love Sweater/Sandals season? Me too
6 tips to make the most of this weather wherever you are in the world
🔗 This is a long and rich letter today. To read in full and have a better quality of images, open it in your web browser or read it via the Substack app 🔗 ardaschandra.substack.com
In today’s letter:
a new Pinterest board for you
6 tips + 1 bonus to prepare your outfits for the sweater/sandals weather when it comes around
an invitation to a new kind of 1:1 session with me
save this post, share it with a friend, make yourself a cup of tea and follow along, you won’t regret it
“It’s a perfect day in your life. What are you wearing?”
My answer? A cashmere sweater + a pair of white denim jeans + summer sandals.
I want to disagree with those who say that the perfect weather for sweater/sandals is only happening for 3 days early Spring and 3 days early Fall!
The sweater + denim jeans + sandals formula is also good for chilly morning late April (think: you step outside your home to run errands) and golden hour early July (think: you’re going to catch the sunset after going out for dinner).
It’s definitely not March 24th in Hamburg, but better be ready than sorry.
Here is a fun experiment into your sweater/sandals weather outfit mastery.
The pitch
→ A 1:1 styling session over FaceTime1: you and your existing wardrobe on one side of the screen, and me and my fresh eyes on the other side of the screen.
Let’s imagine it’s you and me over FaceTime for a styling session — it’s intuitive, playful and inspiring. We have 60 minutes together to look into what you have, and create winning outfit formulas for your lifestyle, your body, and how you want to feel.
Today’s session is focused on planning for a “chill, modern and classic” vibe for a perfect Spring day, when the weather calls for long sleeves and bare ankles.
Your own wardrobe becomes like a fitting room, we’ll be using what you already have, bringing a fresh perspective for you to feel inspired again.
Our shared intention is to bring a new eye on what you already own, and cultivate a sense for details, figuring out what makes a combination of clothes work, how to make it work better, and make what you already own works harder!
But instead of having this session you + me over FaceTime today, we’ll use this Light Letter for you to follow along, try new things, and get excited for the sweater/sandals days ahead. You’ll also learn how to see better (and visual intelligence).
Ready?
Let’s go
→ Open this letter on your laptop to follow along, and have your phone ready to take mirror pictures of the outfits you’ll create and love, so that you are ready for this day when the perfect sweater/sandals weather hit.
→ It’s best if you have access to a full length mirror!
(Note: I can’t even stress enough how taking outfit pictures made me understand the what/how/why behind getting dressed. You’ll see. Nobody needs to see those pictures, by the way, so feel free to be yourself. Remember the Bank Of Outfits letter?)
→ Go fetch your favourite winter knitwear + your summer sandals + a pair of trusted denim jeans or trousers!
→ The Pinterest board - save it, follow me on Pinterest, etc.
What you’ll need
Essentials:
Shoes: we can’t be too strict about it, so let’s keep it to one criteria: no socks, bare ankles. It could be clogs, flat sandals, heeled sandals, mules, slides, flip flops, ballet flats. Anything you love to wear in summer and that would let some skin show.
Sweater: let’s try some relaxed, oversized but also more fitted fit. Start with what you have: chunky, fine, anything goes. Bring your cardigan options, too.
Bottoms: your trusted denim jeans or a pair of cotton pants that doesn’t look like pjs bottoms — maybe some structure or tailored elements to it.
Accessories:
Belt: a classic leather belt just in case we want more structure.
Sunglasses: bring what you have!
Bags: this depends on what you do on that jumper/sandals day, where you go, etc. A canvas tote bag will bring an element of chill, while a lady’s bag will bring an element of classic, and an oversized leather bag will bring a sense of modernity. It’s good to have them handy and see what would work the best for you.
The vibe
→ Inspired by the philosophy of Tibi, we are creating a “Chill + Modern + Classic” vibe with the pieces, the fabrics, the styling, the accessories. If those 3 words don’t quite resonate with you, try to come up with your own 3 words, and even better if you can create some sorts of tension between them.
“Slowing down doesn’t mean being slow, it just means taking a few minutes to absorb what we are seeing. Details, patterns, and relationships take time to register. Nuances and new information can be missed if we rush past them.”
The requirements
→ The vibe: chill + modern + classic — I’ll try to pinpoint where I think we have those elements in the outfits! But also: it’s subjective. It’s about how I feel these elements coming through when I’m wearing the outfit. You might disagree. Ok?
→ The focus: sweater + sandals — it’s our angle for this styling session. Again, imagine you booked a 1:1 session with questions around how to dress when the weather is a bit fresh and the sun might come out.
→ The intention: that by the end of this letter you got to create new formulas for yourself, and felt the difference between wearing your clothes (just getting dressed) and styling them (intentionally and yet effortlessly).
6 TIPS FOR A FEEL-GOOD SANDALS/SWEATER OUTFIT
#6 Roll up your sleeves…
Especially if you want to be wearing your favorite cashmere turtleneck.
Do you have one favourite winter chunky knit that you want to wear over the next 6 months? Then wear it, but show some skin: forearms!
If you speak Tibi, it’s the balance between Big, Slim and Skin:
“Stylistically speaking, striking that just right balance between proportions is the secret sauce. It’s really that simple: mix something big with something slim, and show a bit of skin for breathing room, whether it’s a rolled-up sleeve or a flash of ankle. It’s not that all-big or all-slim is bad style, but it’s not your style; anything singular in point feels too superficial to you.” — Tibictionary
In this outfit:
Big: the oversized chunky turtleneck sweater (and I sized up for extra room) (chill) (best purchase of Fall ‘21)
Slim: the elongating silhouette given by the leather tote bag (chill) + the white denim jeans (straight leg) (classic) + sweater tucked in for more length on legs (the ratio here is 1/3 sweater + 2/3 legs)
Skin: showing the forearms, rolled-up sleeve (chill)+ the cut-out leather sandals (modern) (best purchase of Spring ‘22) + sleek hair in a bun to show more neck (classic)
When choosing new sandals, get a pair that doesn’t have a contrasting sole. It’s more relaxing for the eyes. I would add to cart this pair, all black or this one if I wanted a new shape
#5 Sweater over your shoulders
Is there a black top you like?
Let me introduce you to The Only Black Top I own: a cropped merino wool sweater from 2016. It feels weird for me to wear it, but as black has a protective (vs. projective) quality, sometimes that’s just what I want. If you’ve been here for a while, you know that I’ve been living in shades of white for the past few years…
I brought the black top because… ‘sweater over the shoulders’ will make it great.
The idea here: to bring some light closer to your face. Wear your darker top, and wrap a sweater in a lighter color over the shoulders. Make it look effortless, let the sweater fall on your shoulders.
I love the overall color palette here: beige, black, tan. Can you recreate this?
Big: the sweater over the shoulders (chill). Slim: the black top (classic) + the chino trousers (classic) + the crossbody bag (modern). Skin: not much showing, just the top of the feet with the ballet flats (classic).
#4 Rebrand a cardigan into a sweater
Do you have a cardigan that you are not wearing enough? Let’s rebrand it into a sweater here.
Big: a slightly oversized denim jeans with a slight ballon leg (classic/modern). Slim: the fitted cardigan turned into a tucked in sweater. Skin: the bare forearms (chill)+ the cut-out heeled square-toe sandals (modern).
Adding a leather belt is definitely adding structure. It’s also cutting the straight line created by the cardigan’s button and the zip fly. It’s now directing the eye to the belt buckle. The sandals in the exact color as the cardigan is creating an echo, so that the top and bottom parts of the body don’t feel disconnected.
#3 The white T-shirt as a point of view
Do you have a white t-shirt, with a high crew neck? Did you notice the white popping up in the previous outfit? This too was intentional. It brings some light closer to your face.
With this outfit, the same cardigan as seen above is now rebranded as a jacket, effortlessly belted and open (now it’s modern), but over a white t-shirt (classic), and with the rolled-up sleeves again (chill).
White denim jeans, non-stretch, straight leg (classic) gives us some structure, a feeling of stiffness — and the crispness (?) of the white: now it’s here to balance out the extra softness and vanilla creaminess of the cardigan (chill + modern).
The shoes aren’t really sandals, but they let some skin show. I’d definitely wear this on a perfect sweater/sandals day.
#2 The wrong-shoe theory
Using a pair of shoes to create an element of unexpected — also called “wrong-shoe theory” is what we’re up to here.
“Flip flops are Birkenstocks for people who don’t wear Birkenstocks” declared
in the peak of Summer ‘22.Do you see what it does? It relaxes the silhouette, and it maximizes the skin element in big-slim-skin. Love it, or hate it, but at least: try it! I’d say: it’s good to have a pair of flip flop to bring everywhere you go or leave in the car for just-in-case scenarios (I got mine here, keep an eye for restock)
The formula here: the white t-shirt that is slightly visible at the neck (classic) + the thin and yet oversized cashmere sweater with rolled-up sleeves (chill) and half tucked-in + my most comfortable and relaxed denim 501 (number 4 on this list) and also left extra long on purpose (chill + classic) + a black leather tote bag with a slouchy feeling (modern) + the flip flops as ‘wrong-shoe’ (could they be giving a modern element because it’s unexpected? For sure)
#1 A sweatshirt is still a sweater
If you see me in the neighbourhood, this is most likely what I’ll be wearing.
Do you have a (grey) jersey sweatshirt you love but think it’s too loungewear/cozy/sporty? Perfect. Wear it also outside of your home: it will bring the chill element to your outfit. Let your white crew neck t-shirt pop, see #3). But don’t be lazy (like me), and iron your sweatshirt and denim jeans.
Do you have any kind of basket/raffia bag? Use this instead of a canvas tote bag (I got mine in Mallorca, with leather straps!! save the spot) next time you run errands.
What are the sandals you’ve been reaching out (physically and mentally) the most while reading this letter? Wear those with your trusted pair of denim or cotton trousers, and you are good to go. This will feel and look like you — and nobody else.
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Bonus tip! The body lotion!!
This tip was brought to me by
— she said something like cream your knees! Cream your feet! Cream your ankles!! I thought: of course!! Now it’s the time to get your skin ready for this sweater/sandals weather! Add to cart!Wow! That was awesome!
Not that I am reading your mind, but if you are thinking: “wow, that was really cool… if only Ardas Chandra could come over and help me figure this”, then send me an email (hit ‘reply’), I’ll send you the details of how to work with me re: how to work with me to make your wardrobe work for you, en avant-première (before I make this offering public) (yes it means you’ll get a special rate!).
That’s all I have for you today (and that was a lot, I know)! Thanks for reading!
Infinite Blessings,
Ardas Chandra
To book your 1:1 session, email me at ardaschandra@substack.com and I’ll send you the details of this offering + pricing.
I love sweater/sandal weather! You have totally inspired so many new outfits for me. I am a sandal girl through and through. Love the black ones you linked here too!!