5 Must-Have Fall Outerwear Pieces You Need in Your Wardrobe

The most important thing you want when you're building a fall outerwear collection is to know that you've got something appropriate to wear in any situation. I mean, obviously the most important thing you want is to be warm, but stick with me. If you only have a coat for your formal clothes, that's not going to look right if you try to wear it with a casual outfit. And if you've only got a casual coat, that's definitely not going to look right if you're more dressed up. That's why what you really want to have is options and options that are going to work in a range of styles from casual to dressed up and everything in between. I've put together five pieces that I think represent the perfect fall outerwear capsule wardrobe. I'll tell you what those are and show you how you can style them right after this. I'm Brian Sacawa, this is He Spoke Style, advice and inspiration to help you dress well, develop your personal style and be more confident. Now, all of the outerwear pieces I'm going to be featuring in this video are by Lestrange London, today's video sponsor. You know, when the brand approached me to work together, I started scrolling on their website and I knew immediately that one, this was going to be a great fit for my own personal style and two, that this was a brand I think you should know about if you haven't heard of them already. Lestrange London, luxury menswear brand from London. And what I love most about them is that they're focused on doing more with less. So versatility, one of the key parts of what they're all about. Basically, have less stuff, do more with it in a variety of situations, which sounds a lot like what I talk about all the time here on the channel. Their entire collection, in addition to being incredibly versatile, is focused on quality and uses only renewable and recycled materials. So they're able to reduce their impact on the environment. The fit, as you'll see shortly, is outstanding. And if you'd like to check out any of the pieces I'm featuring in this video, I've got links down below in the description. All right, so now let's jump in and take a look at my five must-have outerwear pieces for fall. Our first piece here is an all-time classic, a lightweight Macintosh. They call this the Modular Mac. It's made from a mix of organic cotton and recycled nylon. It's water repellent with a PFC-free finish, which means that no environmentally damaging chemicals were used in the process of creating it. The best thing about a Mac and what makes it so easy to style is just how simple and straightforward it is. This one has a zip up front with snap closures, which gives it just a really clean look. Two outer pockets, an inner pocket on the right, and we have another inner pocket with a zip closure. A lightweight Mac like this should be a staple of your business casual wardrobe, as well as more dressed-up office attire. Here we've got a really simple business casual look. Striped shirt, navy cotton pants, mid-brown derbies, belt, Vacheron Traditionnelle on the wrist. Pretty much about as simple and classic as you can get. You know, when I think about business casual, I always feel like it needs to have a little bit of sportiness to it. Easy way to do that is to add in a little pattern here. That's with the striped shirt, which in addition to being sporty, helps add some visual contrast to the solid coat and trousers. Now, with just a few tweaks, we can smarten this look up and dress it up a little more. First, adding a striped tie. You can pair similar patterns as long as the scale of the patterns are different. Second, throwing on a sport coat with a mini houndstooth or puppy tooth pattern. Third, swapping out the derbies for a pair of oxfords. And just like that, with a few small changes, we go from business casual to something slightly more professional. And even though this look is more dressed-up, you can still see that the MAC is the perfect finishing touch. So, this next piece here is one of my favorite pieces of outerwear for fall, and that is a quilted vest. It's got a zip up front, two outside pockets, one inner pocket. It's made with 100% recycled polyester. It's extremely lightweight, but it will keep you warm. And it's not very bulky, which is what you want, because in addition to being a great standalone piece of outerwear, it also works extremely well as a layering piece. Now, just to drive home how easily these pieces can move throughout your wardrobe and really change the whole vibe of an outfit, I'm going to start with the same foundation as the last two looks. So, striped shirt, navy cotton pants, but changing up the footwear to some suede penny loafers, and of course, suede belt to match. Over that, I'm adding the vest, and we've got another classic and slightly sporty look. And although everything here is fairly monochromatic, there are a few elements, subtle elements, that add a little flavor. Of course, stripe of the shirt is the most striking from a distance, but then the quilting of the jacket provides some texture, and likewise, the suede from the loafers. I mentioned that a vest is a great layering piece as well, and here we're going to layer it up and smarten it up with the addition of a tie, as well as the mac. This particular look is a great example of how these first two outerwear pieces can work together, in addition to being extremely versatile individually. I like how the layered vest adds some sportiness here, even though this is a more professional kind of look. I think it's a good match, particularly with the tie, since it does have a bit more of a preppy feel to it. Quilted vest is great for casual styles as well. Here I've got it styled with a tan turtleneck, some medium blue jeans, a pair of Chelsea boots, speedy on the wrist, and some classic Clubmaster sunglasses. For me, turtleneck plus jeans plus quilted vest always equals a great fall outfit. It's got a little bit of a rugged, outdoorsy feel, but also some sophistication via the turtleneck and the Chelseas. Great for a weekend brunch or taking a walk to look at the beautiful leaves. So keeping things casual here with the next item, an olive green work shirt, known as the 24 Overshirt. It's made with a thicker stretch cotton, which is 100% organic. It's got a snap up front, snaps on the cuff, a single breast pocket, and two side pockets. It's extremely functional. It can be worn either as a shirt or a jacket, though personally, I prefer it as the latter, which is exactly how I'm styling it here. Light wash jeans, classic athletic sweatshirt, oxblood boots, and Arabic dial Seiko 5 on the wrist. For any overshirt like this, I do look for one that is a little roomier, so I am able to layer it over a sweatshirt like this or a thicker sweater. And I typically wear this if I'm doing a workout in the yard or something, so the roomier fit gives me the freedom of movement that I want and just keeps it more comfortable in general. Next, still keeping a bit of that rugged vibe, but prepping it up just slightly. Just a plain white t-shirt underneath and then some suede penny loafers along with some cream colored socks for a very, very little nod to Ivy style. You know, a lot of times you might wonder how you can do something different with jeans, you know, other than like a classic minimal white sneaker, which I'll admit is often a go-to of mine. And a pair of suede loafers is an easy tweak to make. I think it looks more considered, maybe a little more quote unquote advanced, and an interesting contrast with the ruggedness of the over shirt. Must have fall outerwear piece number four is a half zip sweater. This one right here is made with 100% extra fine merino wool. Now that description of the fabric might make it seem like this, you know, wouldn't be substantial enough as a piece of outerwear, but this is thicker than what you would think of as a typical layering sweater and definitely has a good amount of heft to keep you warm. Styling wise, it's quite simple. Of course, there's a zipper right here and the collar has a really nice piping detail around the edge. I consider the half zip sweater to be one of those essential pieces when it comes to dressy casual and business casual attire. And I've styled it very much in that mold here with a simple white button up, khaki cotton pants, suede tassel loafers with a tone on tone sock combination, and the Cartier Tank Americaine on my wrist. Super simple and classic look that does have a sporty feel to it, thanks to the zipper. One other thing to point out that I really love about this particular sweater is the collar. A lot of half zips have a more stand up collar, but I prefer the style and feel of the turned down collar here. For our fifth piece of outerwear, we have the all time classic casual staple, the hoodie. But this hoodie is different from any other hoodie you've probably seen before. It's made with super soft organic cotton, but it really does feel much more like a jacket. Part of the reason is that it's lined, so not only are you getting some extra warmth, but you've also got two inside pockets, which are very practical. And of course, it's got the two outer pockets as well as a breast pocket, which I think is a really nice styling detail and practical as well. So here is a really classic casual hoodie outfit idea that is so easy to throw together. Just white t-shirt, light wash jeans, white sneakers, but keeping it a little more interesting on the wrist with my Heuer Carrera Blue Dreamer. So although this is a hoodie, it doesn't really wear like one. Because it is lined, it's got a little more structure and heft. And the addition of the breast pocket, I think helps elevate it as well. Definitely feels more grown up and luxurious than your regular old run-of-the-mill hoodie. One thing I want to note about this particular piece from Lestrange is that it is a little more form-fitting. I'm wearing a size medium here, which is the size I got in everything else, and it does have a little bit of a slimmer profile to it. This is the large, and you can see I have some more room, though it is a bit longer. So if I was going to keep this one, I would just roll up and tuck under the bottom whenever I wore it. So the idea of doing more with less is an idea that I think is great to embrace when you're building your wardrobe, or any part of it, like your outerwear collection, for example. Now, if you've been thinking about completely revamping your wardrobe and building something truly versatile from the ground up, but aren't totally sure where to start, check out that video I've got linked right over there, because I made it just for someone like you. I take you through the 25 basic items you need to have to have you covered from casual to dressed up, along with many outfit ideas to illustrate just how versatile it is.