8 Untrendy Pieces Every Over 40 Woman Should Have For The Holidays
It’s the most bundleable time of the year.
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by The Candidly Team
Guys!!! We’re in the season of layering. Huzzah! Getting dressed is easy now. Our clothes just seem to arrange themselves into outfits. Every morning, without effort, we slip out the door looking like Cameron Diaz in The Holiday.
He he he. We kid.
Fall outfits, as glorious as they look in our heads, still need a bit of work to come to fruition. And the older we get, the more we realize the key to dressing the way we want to in our heads is to own some key, classic building-block pieces around which we can create exceptional outfits.
These items are not trendy. They will not look dated and sad in seven months. They’re timeless and special at the same time. And they will guide you, time and time again, to your finest fall looks.
There are 9 specific, untrendy pieces we scrambled to get our hands on this season. And here they are.
1. A Tailored Tuxedo Shirt You Can Wear To Everything
WHAT: Sanctuary New Era Tuxedo Shirt*
Why we love it: You have an event. Another one. And you want to look sophisticated but with a hiiiiint of dazzle. This tuxedo top is going to save your life time and time again. You could wear it as part of a going-out suit like THIS. You could pair it with a long, silky slip skirt like THIS*. You can even wear it with jeans. In each case, you’ll give off such a commanding, Katharine Hepburn quality, your own martini glass will get chills.
Also, when you keep your look understated and tailored, you can be more playful with accessories. So those tiny croissant earrings* or that insane velvet hair tie* get their moment to shine without looking costumey.
Price: $129
2. A Sensible Soirée Shoe
WHAT: Nisolo Luna Heeled Mary Jane*
Why we love it: Look, we just aren’t going to do a foot-mutilating shoe anymore - no matter how special the event is. This one looks like something we could have flapped around in at Jay Gatsby’s New Year’s party or swung around the floor in with ankle socks at a rockabilly Christmas Eve. Like we said … timeless. These shoes just work with every dress and length of pant and skirt. They’re so stable, comfy and minimalist enough to be modern, but they’re also just the right note of nostalgic for this time of year.
* Gifted
Price: $113 (with sale!)
3. A Meg Ryanesque Trouser
WHAT: Varley Rocio Wide Leg Pant*
Why we love it: Pair these classic pants (which are actually corduroy) with the sweater vest below and THIS* crisp button down and a blazer and poof, you’re Meg Ryan in that scene where she’s describing her dream where a faceless man rips off all her clothes. Aka the outfit we’ve thought about every day since 1989.
* Gifted
Price: $168
4. A Non-Ugly Sweater Vest
WHAT: Sézane Becky Jumper - Sézane x Lucia Vergara*
Why we love it: And here is that Sally Albright vest we mentioned. Funnily enough, it’s from Sézane, where we go for all our chic, French lady finds. But their knitwear is the stuff of dreams. We wear this jumper with jeans to daytime gift exchange things and with long skirts and trousers to evening holiday pop ups. And the compliments just roll in.
Price: $135
5. A Spacious, Post-Feast Sweater That Still Looks Impossibly Chic
WHAT: Quince Mongolian Cashmere Oversized V-Neck Sweater*
Why we love it: All we want to do is curl up in an enormous sweater most frosty mornings and piercingly cold nights. This one is pure cashmere at an amazing price, but more importantly, we look put together when we wear it, even as we feel like our slobbiest, Thanksgiving-stuffed selves. Over a turtleneck or a crewneck tee. Maybe add a sleek bootie* or a cool sneak, and we hardly recognize ourselves we’re so “feminine tomboy” (or whatever lazy-chic term describes you best).
Price: $120
6. A Stretchy Pair Of Jeans That Always Fit Superbly
WHAT: Risen Frannie Palazzo Raw Hem*
Why we love it: Black on black is always holiday ready but add a brown boot, and it makes all-black not boring. These jeans are an excellent place to start. When you see the price, you probably won’t believe us when we tell you they are the stretchiest, most flattering, BETTER-than-designer jeans we’ve ever owned. And they feel like literal pajamas. Honestly, where has this brand been hiding? If you do nothing else, just try these jeans.
* Gifted
Price: $74
7. A Festive Frock That's Actually Quite Flattering
WHAT: J.Crew Factory Tartan Mini Shirt-Dress*
Why we love it: We wrote a whole article about our desire to find a holiday dress that fits in a way we don’t loathe. We’d love it to be festive, but still chic and maybe just the sliiiiiightest bit sexy. Where are these dresses?!?! Well, this one is actually a gem, because the length makes it really leggy and modish, but it isn’t too fitted, so we truly look and feel our best. Add a pair of unrippable tights like THESE* and the aforementioned SHOE* and poof, you’re holiday-party ready and STILL deeply comfortable.
* Gifted
Price: $69.50
8. A Chic Sweat Set
WHAT: Varley Catherine Half-Zip Sweat* and The Slim Cuff Pant*
Why we love it: Listen, we are going to be lounging, cozying up, hygge-ing or whatever you want to call it A LOT this season. But our little hack for not feeling completely slovenly and like stuffing-stuffed garbage is to get an extremely cozy set instead of a stiff, mismatched pile of sweats from our Old Navy college years. This set makes us feel like adults, bundled, babied, ready-to-curl-up-in-the-fetal-position-on-the-sofa adults.
Price: $158 for the sweatshirt, $128 for the pants
Bonus: The Accessories
A Flannel Cap*: We’re not doing our hair. Why would we? This is more “fashion” anyway.
A Swaddling Scarf*: We just need one phenomenal, softer-than-heaven one to make every outfit incredible. And this is it. Forever. Done.
A Surreally Cozy Set Of Socks:* Repeat after me. All. We. Wear.
A Preposterous Velvet Bow Scrunchie*: Unnecessary? Yes. Too much? Possibly. A massive hit of serotonin every time we wear it out? 1000 times yes.
At The Candidly, we try a lot of stuff so you don’t have to. We only recommend things we truly love, and that we think you’ll love, too. All products are chosen independently by our creative team, and all details reflect the price and availability of products at the time of publication. If you buy something we link to, The Candidly may earn a commission.
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