I do think summer is a time to change outfits more often. For example if we go to the beach or go boating or go for a long walk, I'll get sweaty. So we come home to shower and change to go out somewhere. Or if coming home isn't possible, I'll bring a change of clothes because I don't like staying in a wet bathing suit or sandy beach dress.
Winter - not so much. However, I will often change again to go out at night. I'll go from smart casual to smartER casual.
A lot of times it depends on my shoewear. If I'm running errands during the day, that calls for flats. But if we are then going out somewhere in the evening where I want to look a bit snappier, I will change outfits so I can wear heels. This often requires different jeans, at very least. Likewise, if I've been wearing heels all day but the evening's activities involve lots of walking on cobblestones or my feet need a break, I may change my outfit to work better with flats.
I suppose it also depends on the weather too. If the day has been such that I have been driving around in a car popping in and out, a car-length coat is fine. But later if we are going to be walking around braving the elements, I may change outfits so that my outfit works better with a longer, warmer coat.
If I've been to the office but later we are going out to an art opening, yes, I will change because conservative officewear seems out of place at a trendy art opening - and probably more importantly, vice versa!!!
If it's a weeknight other than a Friday, and I've been working from home all day or dressed up just to pop out and run errands/pick up the kids/go to the grocery store, and we are planning to go out and socialize, I am apt to change into something that I might wear had I been in an office all day, since this is what my friends who are meeting us after work will be wearing.
If it's a Friday night, I am apt to change to dress down, not up, because my friends all dress down on Fridays. Still smart casual though - just a little more casual for example I tend to wear knit tops and flat shoes on Friday nights. Actually it's least likely I will change outfits on a Friday because what works for day usually works for night too.
I guess you could say I dress for the occasion. DH and I were talking about that Friday night, in fact. He wanted to know why I wasn't dressed to go out when he got home. I told him I would take only 5 minutes to get dressed because I already had a range of outfit ideas, but I didn't know what we were doing yet. We had a range of possible ideas for the night, but hadn't yet settled on a game plan. Since he basically wears the same uniform every day, he thought that was silly.
But then I explained about how ever since I was a child, I have had this phobia about dressing inappropriately for an occasion. For example being the only one in pants when all the other women are in dresses. I cannot be comfortable in situations like that. I would rather be overdressed than underdressed, but my goal is always "appropriately" dressed. So some of the things on his list of possibilities would've called for a graphic tee, jeans, cons (going to see a band) whereas others called for something snappier and trendier (going to an art opening or the theater).
