The Clothes In Your Closet #015

10 outfits for mostly lounging at home + a few ventures into the world this Thanksgiving

My (likely) Thanksgiving meal outfit. Jeans, t-shirt, sweater, blazer, gold & pearl necklace. Styled with boots & clutch, but gonna wear some cozy socks instead ;)

I’m visiting my parents for Thanksgiving this year. When I’m with them, it’s a pretty casual affair. I spend a lot of time at home, with a few expeditions into the world that include walking the dog, grabbing dinner in downtown Ashland, hiking in central Virginia, and maybe venturing into Richmond to browse on Broad Street, or stop by the Virginia Fine Arts Museum.

I like the idea of getting dressed up for Thanksgiving because it’s a way to express gratitude for my mother preparing the meal (although I think she’d rather I express that gratitude in the form of helping her cook…!), but it feels a bit contrived because we’re eating at home. I can easily poke holes into this logic—I get dressed up to go out to eat, why not do the same at home? Or this is what they did everyday in Downton Abbey, why not in modern-day life? (I can also challenge this train of thinking, BUT, there is something elegant about dressing for dinner.)

Over the years, I’ve tried to find some in-between of “I’m dressing up, but also not too fancy” for Thanksgiving. I’ve realized that the hang up for me is shoes. It just feels weird to wear shoes in my parents’ house, but shoes are often what makes an outfit feel complete to me. Like if I have to take my shoes off at a dinner party: I respect the host’s wishes, but I feel a bit naked bc then I’m not wearing the full look.

So. I decided to lean into the barefoot thing. Style an outfit that looks good without shoes.

This “requirement'“ became the launch point for all the other outfits I styled for this trip—they needed to stand alone, without any of the necessities for going out into the world (shoes, coat, bag), BUT could easily be adjusted into another outfit for an outside activity with said necessities.

Adding to my list of requirements: I’m traveling and just want to bring a carry-on. This calls for a more capsule wardrobe-centric way of dressing, but bringing it back to the beginning—Thanksgiving with my fam is a pretty casual affair, so the outfits I would typically think of feel out of place.

What I pulled together is a collection of outfits that are comfortable, but still feel put together because there’s subtle styling. I broke it down into a formula so you can recreate your interpretation for Thanksgiving (or just in general because so many of our lives fall into these specifications for dressing). Enjoy!