Summer to fall style: Chocolate brown dress | Cotton Cashmere Cat Hair

I love the month of September. Not only are there a ton of fun things happening in Boise all month long, it’s my birthday month! And the weather is usually amazing all month. You get a mix of hot summer days and cooler fall-like days. Crisp morning air reminds you that fall is right around the corner. This year, we started the month with record heat (bleh), but it looks like we are back to normal for the foreseeable future.

Other than the heat, the wildfire smoke has set in. There are countless fires burning throughout Idaho and also Washington, Oregon, and California that are all impacting us. It’s not unusual for September to be smoky, but that is definitely the worst part of the month. Hopefully the Idaho mountains get some snow soon to give us a relief from the smoke and to help firefighters get the fires contained and controlled!

I also love September for the fashion: summer to fall transitional style is my favorite! I get to wear both summer garments AND fall garments. Or, like in the case of this outfit, I wear fall colors in an outfit that is decidedly summery. This is the perfect warm weather fall outfit: a chocolate brown dress and coordinating accessories in complementary fall colors.

Quince tencel jersey mini swing dress | Cotton Cashmere Cat Hair

Warm weather fall outfit with chocolate brown dress | Cotton Cashmere Cat Hair

How to Style a Chocolate Brown Dress for Fall

I’m wearing the Quince swing mini dress in brown, a really fun dress that can be worn for at least three seasons (spring, summer, and fall), but summer to fall transitional style is when it really shines. This chocolate brown dress is lightweight and overall really easy to wear and style. It hits me above the knees and features slightly cutout shoulders, which makes it difficult to wear with a regular bra (I’m wearing a black sports bra here; would love any recs you have for racerback regular bras, especially if they’re wireless). Pockets would make this dress better but you’d probably be able to see them through the fabric.

Here are my tips for styling a chocolate brown dress for fall!

1. Wear dark-colored shoes

In fall, it feels weird to still be wearing my light-colored footwear (with a few exceptions, mainly involving some sort of special event like a wedding). Even though these black shoes I’m wearing are sandals, the fact that they’re black makes them perfect for this transitional period when the weather is still warm. And yes, black and brown totally work together! Once the weather cools down more, black flats and loafers will make their appearance, and then black boots.

You could even have a monochrome moment and pair your chocolate brown dress with chocolate brown boots! Play around with color combinations; for example, you might have a pair of olive green boots that look amazing with chocolate brown. I personally do not like wearing brown and grey together, but that’s another option if you like that look!

2. Carry a dark-colored handbag

Since you’re wearing dark-colored shoes, make sure to carry a dark-colored handbag! If you’re someone that needs to match your bag to your shoes, by all means. I’m wearing black sandals and a black crossbody bag in this outfit because it’s the easiest, and black and brown can totally go together if there’s enough contrast between the colors. You can also mix things up and opt for a handbag that doesn’t match your shoes but that is still a dark, fall-like color, like olive green or burgundy. Navy blue would also look nice but I would personally opt for non-black shoes if I were to carry a navy bag.

3. Add accessories in fall colors

To make your chocolate brown dress fall outfit even more interesting, add accessories in colors other than whatever color you selected for your shoes and handbag. Here, I’m wearing an olive green baseball cap. The third color adds some much-needed interest (a la the fashion “rule of 3”) and fun to an otherwise fairly one-dimensional outfit. A belt might also be a fun option, especially if your chocolate brown dress is billowy.

Once it cools off more, think about what colors you could incorporate through outerwear, including leather jackets, suede jackets, blazers, etc. Tights are another cool-weather staple accessory when skirts and dresses are involved.

Do you own a chocolate brown dress, or maybe even some other fun chocolate brown garment? How do you style it for the fall? I’m excited to have this fun dress in my wardrobe!