Transitioning your wardrobe into a new season means a bit of adjustment, especially when there’s a sudden change in temperature. When the weather changes gradually, you feel more in control of your dressing situation. But when it’s 55 degrees one day and 85 the next, panic sets in.

Panic stricken Spring wardrobes have been quite the topic on our forum over the last four weeks as the weather changed literally overnight in some parts of America. So I thought it would be a good idea to brainstorm ideas on how to make the seasonal wardrobe transition more smooth.

Unfortunately, here in Seattle Spring is still chilly. Our daytime highs in Spring are usually in the 50’s and low 60’s with occasional days in the 40’s (between 7 and 16 degrees centigrade). But a change in outfit mix is essential because I get tired of wearing dark Winter clothes and footwear.

On days when its back in the 40’s – I wear Winter clothing. But on regular Spring days, I like to break out of my Winter clothing mode by making the following changes to my ensembles:

• White jeans: I’ve discussed this topic to death and won’t bore you with further details.
• Spring boots: Aside from white jeans with black boots, I do not like to wear black boots or booties in Spring. So I swap them out for white, cream, tan, dove grey and chestnut tall boots. I also wear apple green cowboy boots, tomato red booties, cream oxfords and yellow Converse. I might be in the minority but it’s still too cold to go sockless in Spring, which means no ballet flats or pumps unless temperatures rise into the high 60’s and 70’s (I prefer to go bare-legged with these styles of shoes). On mild Spring days, I’ll still wear knee-high boots with dresses and skirts but leave off the hose. So Spring is still generally about boots, booties and closed shoes for my style.
• Leggings: As I mentioned above, if it’s in the high 60’s and 70’s, I can wear ballet flats which means that leggings come back in on the scene.
• Denim clamdiggers and walk shorts with tall boots: A sweet look that always reminds me of Hong Kong streetwear.
• Lightweight scarves: I wear bright coloured scarves all through Winter, but in Spring the weight of my scarves changes from being wool-rich, to cotton and silk-rich.
• Shirts and blouses: After wearing warm, long sleeved knitwear for months on end, it’s nice to swap them out for button down shirts and blouses.
• Spring knitwear: I don’t stop wearing knitwear completely in Spring as I like to wear short sleeved turtle necks and lightweight cotton knitwear. I also wear very lightweight wool knitwear in bright colours.
• Spring jackets: I have a collection of fully lined, colourful cotton-rich jackets which are quite warm. I also throw in three-quarter sleeved wool jackets in bright colours and light coloured leather jackets on colder Spring days. My denim jacket starts to resurface too.
• Trench: I alternate between a cream and black trench coats instead of wearing a heavy wool coat.
• Spring coat: Sometimes I throw on a lightweight bright cobalt blue woolen three-quarter sleeve coat over a dress.
• Bright belts: Apart from bright cream, I don’t wear bright belts in Winter time. But I like to reintroduce them in Spring. Yellow, turquoise, red, zebra print and metallic shades are favourites.

How you add Spring touches to your wardrobe will vary widely depending on the climate. If you live in a warmer climate, my Spring clothing might be your Winter clothing. Just like my Summer clothing might be your Spring clothing.

How have you put the Spring back in your step this year? Do you feel panic-stricken about your Spring wardrobe? Is it warm enough to wear sandals and ballet flats with dresses where you live? Or are you still wearing warmish clothing and footwear with a Spring vibe like I am?