I began my F/W shopping in late July or early August, and since then have committed to seven new wardrobe additions with a couple more things on the way, and have planned a couple of big-ticket items I'd like to add for the winter.

So far:

• Two cotton sweaters (one more undecided)
• One pair jeans (one more on the way)
• Two pairs oxfords
• One pair winter boots
• One gear top

When I saw that Uniqlo was offering a long-sleeve version of its 3D knit sweaters, I had to add at least one. I've been looking for a spruce green sweater all year, so grabbed that one right away, then ended up duplicating in the marled black because I couldn't stop thinking about how good it would look with earth-tone bottoms! They are perfect throw-on with anything tops, used on work days and weekends.

I lucked into two great secondhand finds, both shoes, remarkably. One is a pair of long-discontinued Merrell Barefoot oxfords in a cool mixed-media tweed/leather construction. I remember really wanting a pair of these when they were released and couldn't justify/afford them. Finding these in their box, barely worn, and in my size no less, felt like a gift from fate that I couldn't turn down.

Then I found a pair of nearly-new chocolate brown Ugg Adirondacks, the older version. I was disappointed to see last year that Ugg replaced the Vibram outsole on the Adirondacks with a different rubber compound which seemed both stiffer and less grippy to me, so I've had my eye out for the old version. Found these on a weekend trip to southern NH. Always worth checking out small-town consignment and thrift options!

I also picked up a pair of Zuzii oxfords when I found out they were being discontinued. I've had my eye on these for more than a year, and learning they'd be going away pushed me to try a pair. Luckily, I picked the right size (final sale, yikes) and they look gorgeous. Good late summer transition shoe.

I placed the Everlane order I wrote about earlier. Ultimately, I decided to size down to my regular size in the bootcut jeans, because the larger size felt a little saggy after a couple hours wear. I also exchanged the bronze sweater for the rust version, but the one I received was damaged. Sob! New one is on the way, but I haven't been able to do a proper try-on to decide whether it's a keeper. There is so much yummy knitwear out there that it has to be LOVE for me to keep. I'm also looking forward to trying out the BR wide leg jeans that Style Fan (I think?) posted about recently. Those haven't arrived yet. I tried on some wide legs and flares at Madewell and at my consignment shop, but none were keepers.

Gear-wise, I've picked up one TNF microfleece top from a clearance rack, a direct replacement for one I had to get rid of last spring. Bonus, this one is olive! There's a down parka with waterproof shell I'm hoping to try on at REI (I visited the one in Boston earlier this month but they hadn't stocked winter coats yet). If it fits well I will probably wait 'til I have a coupon and then order it. The annoying thing about REI is they make you pay the actual shipping cost for mail-in returns -- no prepaid labels. The Boston store is 2+ hours away, which means I have to really plan in advance when there's an REI-branded product that interests me, unless I want to pay $$ to ship back things that don't work out. This could be an ideal coat for recess duty and preschool nature walks and I'm really into the chocolate brown colour! Fingers crossed.

I am also thinking this *might* be the year I buy myself a pair of Duckfeet shearling boots. I've been thinking about these for a couple years, but they are sooo pricy. They've done a big sale every Black Friday since I started paying attention, so I might buy them then and count these as my Christmas gift. I think they also sell seconds and previously-worn returns on eBay at a discount, but I'd need to be sure of sizing first.

As you can see, the unifying theme is earth tones! That's nothing too new for me, but I'm leaning into it while there's such retail variety.