I can tell you what I missed about seasonal dressing and tried to artificially recreate when I lived in Florida: differences in texture, shape, and color.
Texture: colder seasons often mean heavier fabrics, which drape differently and may have a structure of their own. Think of suede, corduroy, thick knits. What can you wear in warm weather with so much textural appeal? Maybe lace, but good-quality cotton lace that isn’t itchy is hard to find.
Shape: realizing that boots and 1 or 2 pr of thick tights worn with a bodysuit could keep me as warm as a bulky sweater and heavy pants was revolutionary for me. It was so freeing to be able to have a body shape again in winter. Things I used to think of as “summer only”, like mini skirts, were available in winter too. OTOH, many cold weather silhouettes just don’t work in summer. In Florida, I was delighted to find lightweight knit sweaters to wear with cotton pants to mimic that classic winter shape during Florida’s winter. There was no way I could wear them in summer, which is 6 months long, there. In real winter, I can’t stand them, because I wear enough of that shape in things that actually keep me warm.
Color is less of a difference for me than the other factors, because I like intense colors throughout the year, but I probably go a little lighter when it’s warm out. I played with color a lot when trying to make a fall capsule in Florida, because it is the variable I found easiest to adjust, so I went with plumb, cranberry, and other berry colors, accented with brass and other darkish metals.
The way these play out in fall and spring, which have similar temps and maybe similar weather, is in anticipation. In the fall, I’m looking forward to my leather jackets and wool coat, so am happy to pull out my suede jacket and lightweight sweaters. The first few times I put on a big ‘ole sweater, it doesn’t feel oppressive or like it’s covering me in a negative way; it’s cozy and snuggly and great. By springtime, I’m done with all of that, can’t wait to bare some skin and wear simple cotton fabrics, so I wear things like short jackets that mimic summer shapes and (non) textures that are secretly warm. Ironically, I probably wear undershirts to stay warm in spring more than in fall, because even though I want the warm weather look, I still need to dress warmly.
And this fall? Who knows what I’ll do, lol!
ETA: just read everyone else’s comments: La Ped and Cat’s paragraphs on style give good examples of the kinds I things I wear. Joy and Anchie describe the emotional component much the same way I feel it.
