Friday 4 March 2011

Battling cold weather in pants


While it's still a bit cold here in Greece, let's get this post out of the way. I'll start:

It's no secret to the regular readers of this blog that I don't like pants. I find them restricting, uncomfortable and unflattering for my figure compared to skirts and dresses, at least most of the time.

My girl Sal also shares my strong feelings on pants. Hers were so strong, she had to divide them in two parts. Divide and conquer, they say.

However, every rule has exceptions. For example, I actually own a couple of pairs of jeans, but they are either wide-leg boyfriend jeans or dark wash, stretchy and high-waisted. Nothing worse than bending over to reveal more of your lower waist than socially acceptable, no? But my jeans only get worn a few days per month. I have also experimented with harem pants, but let us not get into the "are harem pants hideous or not" debate for the moment being...

Our problem here is the cold.

So, when you spot a pair of 100% wool slacks, in oh-so-cute-in-a-librarian-kind-of-way herringbone pattern, lined in satin all the way from waist to knee and on sale for a mere 6 down from €35 you dare not say no. Snagged 'em in a fraction of a second, in a Bershka store, during the winter sales, four years ago.

So, how to wear those pants?
DSC02400s
This is the basis. Boring it may look, but excessive layering was out of the question. A dress over pants might look cute or edgy in some cases, but not good with wool slacks. Not to mention that it would probably be totally inappropriate for a professional look. Good thing my pants were already lined to the knee, so that can count as an extra layer.

Lined pants also mean no itchy wool fabric touching my legs! Always a good thing. As from the knee down, thick socks help a lot in both battling itchiness and the cold.

Having my bottom part covered (literally and metaphorically) I decided to top it up with a plain black turtleneck, thick enough not to need any more layers. Well, maybe a bead necklace for some colour, but you know me, can't do plain. My only problem?

Again, the itchy factor.

Like many people out there,
I find most wool or wool-mixed knits irritating. I try to beat this by always wearing a long-sleeved t-shirt underneath (can't seem to escape the layering, it seems) but part of my chest and neck still touch the sweater. Itchiness alert!

My solution? Wearing a soft scarf between the offending sweater and my poor, sensitive skin like that:


Small trick I'd like to share here... I tend to tie most of my square-shaped scarfs into a circle by doing a simple knot between two opposite corners.

That way, I can go through the entire day without them slipping away and me having to readjust them all the time.

Add my trusty plain black BADILA coat, which I had since I was 16, and some simple ballerina flats, I'm ready to face the crisp morning air.
black coat
Wool slacks, black mohair sweater and patterned scarf, BERSHKA. Purple fabric-covered bead necklace, Toi&moi. Black wool coat (11 years old) BADILA. Black flats, CAMPER.

This post is the third - and probably last one - in a series of "battling cold weather" posts. See how you can do so also in a dress and in a skirt.

11 comments:

M said...

simple & elegant props!

Anonymous said...

Εχεις πάρει ένα βλέμμα απίστευτο στην πρώτη φωτό! Το παvτελόνι το λατρεύω και με το παλτό φαίνεσαι πολύ κομψή. Ψάχνω κι εγώ για flare! Για να δουμε!

Vixen said...

I totally get you, I myself have the same problem with wool clothes, they're so itchy!Will definately try your tip!Very nice outfit to battle the cold weather!

Fashionitsa said...

Λατρεύω αυτού του είδους τα παντελόνια. Τόσο πολύ που δεν με νοιάζει αν τσιμπανε.

Και τόσο φτηνό... θέλω να φύγω από το γραφείο και να ξεχυθώ στα Bershka!

Anonymous said...

I may hate pants (thanks for the shout-out!), but those are some pretty stellar slacks, lady!

daisychain said...

I did a similar post yesterday! Love those trousers x

Penny said...

po po to latrevw to blog su!!!k exw akrivws to idio provlima me to mallino panteloni!agorasa prin 2 xronia ena apo ta benetton k zitima na to exw foresei 4 fores...

Call me M said...

Πολύ ωραίο το σύνολο σου!
Και το παντελόνι, σου πάει απίστευτα!
Μήπως να το ξανασκεφτείς και να αρχίσεις να φορας πιο συχνά; :)

blue roses said...

hilarious.... and a nice compromise.

i hate pants as well, and generally not even the cold can deter me from my skirts.

http://dallianceswithsuitsandskirts.blogspot.com/

Sofia.g. said...

So chic!

http://filmwardrobe.blogspot.com/

caramellitsa said...

τελειο το blog σου!!!
πολυ ωραίο σύνολο!!ειδικά το παλτό ;)
ψάχνω για ελληνίδες bloggers και έπεσα πάνω στο δικό σου τυχαία!! χιχιι
εννοείται οτι κάνω follow :DD
αν θες και εσύ το blog μου είναι
caramellitsa.blogspot.com