White After Labor Day?

Linn

Linn

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For most of us in the US, yesterday marked the "official" end of summer. I grew up in the NE where we put our white shorts, pants, dresses and of course shoes and purses away until after Memorial Day.

Living in Hawaii, I bend this rule just a little but by the Fall Equinox (in a couple of weeks) my cotton and linen whites will be in the back of my closet - until next April. I'll miss this vintage purse - and plan to use it one more time:
White%20Wicker%20Handbag.jpg


I do continue to wear white tee shirts and tank tops and "Winter" white.

What do you do?

Linn
 
Since I'm not living in the US, and our Labour Day is May 1st (a day when you'd better either stay in or escape if you live in Zurich!), so I can't say much about this rule - but I think I've heard it somewhere before. But... that purse is sooooo cool! :adore:

Karin
 
i wear whatever i want whenever i want. seasons make no difference to me, but i will say that open sandals in an Iowan winter don't make sense, whether they are white or brown or red.

so if its warm out in October, i'll probably still be wearing flip flops, if its cold, it'll be my biker or cowboy boots. my boots are brown and black, generally, though, so the handbags/totes/purses i use to co-ordinate are typically darker tones as well.

i wear alot of what would be qualified as "winter white" too, but the calendar, for the most part, really has no bearing on what i wear (or not).
 
That is one cute purse. I think white symbolized the leisure class and after Labor Day - it was back to work. Of course Coco Chanel wore white year round. Imagine a fancy party on a cold winter evening and someone making an appearance in a white silk velvet 30's gown. Oh la la.
 
White velvet would have been allowed! What I'm referring to is white cotton or linen (or obviously "summer" fabric" ) clothing and white, white shoes and handbags - not off white or "winter" white - which I think of as closer to cream.

I realize that a calendar date to stop wearing white is arbitrary but I was raised with this concept, and wonder how many people still follow this, today. I do it mostly because it gives me "seasonal" wardrobes in a climate that doesn't vary very much. When I went for my walk this morning I wore pale pink shorts and a white tank top - tops don't count. I am now wearing a sleeveless v-neck top that is light apricot with periwinkle shorts - and no shoes!

I will wear my "summer" clothes until the end of the month and then I'll take out my "darker" ones. I wear khaki , tans, black and taupe year round - depending on the weight and where I am.

Linn



Linn
 
Love your vintage bag Linn. Stylish as always :) I've never heard of this 'putting away your whites' until after memorial day but I guess that's a geographical thing! :) I can't wear white at the best of times - it completely washes my complexion out. I always go for the off-white colours or neutrals in the summer months which are much kinder to my skin tone.
 
I was brought up that you don't wear white shoes, hats, gloves, or bags after Labor Day. Or white apparel that is clearly summer fabric--even if it's 95 degrees out!

I still can't quite get over that, even though where I live now it can be shorts weather until October. (Thus fretting over what to take to Vegas next week....)
 
I grew up with the rule as well, but I don't see people paying much attention any more. Except for my white canvas Keds, I don't even own a pair of white shoes, and I wear them all year. In fact, the only really white thing in my closet right now is a pair of linen slacks. Honestly, I'll probably not be wearing them again, but if I were going to the beach, I'd probably take them.

I'm in the South and tend to dress year-round in light clothes. But rules is rules, you know. ;)
 
Can someone explain this tradition to me? What does it all mean? Where did it come from? Does it apply to all age groups and genders? So many questions! :scratchchin:
 
I never intentionally don't wear white after Labor Day.... Most of my wardrobe switches to winter white when it gets colder. It is still 90 degrees in Texas so I where whatever I want! In Minnesota, it was too cold to wear a summer wardrobe after Labor Day. I guess because I grew up in Minnesota, I grew up unintentionally following the rule!
 
I love colors and just buy colors that I like. Black and white are to me sort of neutral. I like to think of them as sort of a canvas, which make the bright colors shine. I have a lot of basic black pieces (black jeans, long-sleeved tees and turtlenecks in winter - black tank tops and capris in summer) to wear with more colorful things - one shouldn't over do it after all... white doesn't exist much in my wardrobe - a few long-sleeved tees mostly to wear underneath something, some white tank tops for the same reason, and two white blouses, one short-sleeved and one long-sleeved (which I usually need for work-related event once or twice each year). But I tend to wear more darker colors in the cooler seasons - I have a lot of pieces in dark greens, purples/plums, dark reds, dark browns... and in the end it all matches nicely - with a bit of black in-between :D.

Karin
 
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