Growing up in the south we were always told “you don’t wear white after Labor Day.” I never knew what would become of me if my white sundresses and white linen pants of summer rolled over into the corduroy and flannel line up of autumn but like most rules, I believed in this blindly and never questioned my elders.
The truth, as I have discovered from my dear friend Aly who is a Manners and Etiquette teacher, is that the “No White After Labor Day” rule is antiquated and no longer applies to modern day life. In the early 1900s, the wealthy wore white in the summer to separate themselves from the working class who still had to work in the mills and factories and thus wore dark colors in the summer. Once the summer officially ended, the wealthy would return to the city and thus cease wearing white vacation attire.
Since we don’t define ourselves into two class systems and due to the invention of air-conditioning allowing you to cool down in the summer months regardless of your attire, this rule no longer applies and we are all free to wear white all year long.
My go-to white for fall is a cardigan over top of a white dress. Here are a few other white items I have found and love. These overalls look so fun as a daytime alternative to yoga pants. Speaking of pretending to work out, I love to dabble in pickle ball and this white tennis dress is affordable but looks very chic. Puffy sleeves are still popluar for fall and so I already picked up this long sleeve shirt and this quarter length shirt. And since its still so hot in charleston and probably will be late into October, this white tank with jeans would be the sweetest girls day out outfit.
