The weather in Ontario, Vermont, New York, Michigan, Maine, Minnesota, Wisconsin and North Dakota, for instance, is muggy in summer and can be frigid cold in winter. This post shows how how six fashion experts dress stylishly for these extremes. Learn how to dress for continental humid weather.
- The Challenge to Dress for Continental Humid Climate
- Muggy in Summer, Creepy in Winter
- A High Pressure System with an Attitude
- Style and Fashion Bloggers’ Secrets How to Dress for Continental Humid Weather
- Grace Liang, Michigan
- Ellen LaFleche Christian, Vermont
- Linda Cassidy, Ontario
- Amber Desilets, Ontario
- Deborah Boland
- Susan Liberatore
The Challenge to Dress for Continental Humid Climate
What do Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, New York, Michigan, Wisconsin, northern Minnesota, and eastern North Dakota have in common besides some great fashion and style bloggers? They have the same warm, humid continental summer climate. There is a notable amount of rainfall year round – even in the driest month. The monthly mean temperature of the coldest month is below the freezing point. All months have a mean temperatures below 71.6F (22oC). At least four months have a monthly mean temperature exceeding 50F (10oC).
Muggy in Summer, Creepy in Winter
From a dressing point of view, this region has two serious challenges. The humid warm summer means lots of muggy days. In winter, humidity creeps everywhere. Add temperatures around freezing to the mix and/or wind – you have the perfect recipe to catch a cold or feel just miserable. It is obvious that
Dressing in style for the weathers is a challenge. Click To TweetA High Pressure System with an Attitude
As if these weather conditions weren’t enough, the Canadian High produces a really cold dome of frigid air. Once in a while, the high gets an attitude and moves to the south. The polar vortex shuffles cold, dry air into the areas of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, New York, Michigan, Wisconsin, northern Minnesota, and/or eastern North Dakota. While moving over the Great Lakes the dry, cold air loads up water vapor and heat from the lakes surfaces leading to strong snowfall downwind of the lakes.
Style and Fashion Bloggers’ Secrets How to Dress for Continental Humid Weather
In this post, I feature five fashion and style bloggers over 40 who look stylish no matter what the weather throws at them. I lift their styling secrets and explain why their looks work for continetal humid weather. Thus, when you live in this region or have to visit for work or go there for vacation, you can easily adapt them to stay warm in style.
Grace Liang, Michigan
Grace Liang is the fashion and lifestyle blogger behind Color and Grace. She is a petite who loves colors and wears them. Color is always a great idea during winter to up the mood of yourself as well as the people around you. When everything is just shades of gray a pop of color goes a long way. A great way to stay visible over 40 and as a petite.
Grace beats the summer office outfit challenge in feminine dresses, of course in color. The light yellow doesn’t heat so much than a black dress would do. The cut helps her to look polished, but stay comfortable. Who needs a clinching body conscious dress when the mercury hits 100F (37.8oC) and relative humidity is in the 90s?
Ellen LaFleche Christian, Vermont
Ellen blogs at The Socialite’s Closet. She lives in Vermont, which has beautiful valleys and hills. Ok, you may call them mountains, but I am a bit hesitant given that Alaska has the highest mountain of North America. Like in the lake areas summer days can be very muggy and winter snowy. Ellen goes for casual separates to beat the heat. In winter, she goes for a casual puffer anorak styled with jeans, wool sweater and boots. This style is perfect for the rural country side in this green state.
Linda Cassidy, Ontario
Linda is a lifestyle and fashion blogger north of the Great Lakes. She blogs at A Labour of Life. As you can catch from the spelling of her blog’s name, she lives in Canada. Her style take to work with the crazy muggy summer weather is to pair printed sun dresses with a blazer and sandals for an office appropriate look. This trick keeps her office appropriate, stylish, and comfortable in the chilly air condition at work. On the commute to and from work, she can peel a layer off and is ready to meet with her hubby, friends or adult children in the beergarten of a local brewery for dinner.
Linda of A Linda Cassidy from A Labour of Life in a denim shirt dress over layering top with belt and faux fur vest, tights and no fuzz booties, gloves and a tote. Photo courtesy to her
Like in summer, Linda use layers to adjust to nasty chilly winter weather. She looks warm and comfortable, but relaxed and stylish in this multiple-layer outfit. She creates vertical lines to give the illusion of height and to look slim. More on styling cold wet weather outfits in this guide.
When layering it is key to keep an eye on creating vertical lines to not look like a dumpling. #agelessstyle #layering Click To Tweet
Amber Desilets, Ontario
Amber is the fashion blogger at Canadian Fashionista. She tends towards neutral pastels for her winter outerwear in a posh casual style. These colors feature the winter skies of the North. The furry jacket is perfect to fight chilly winds.
What is more North American than wearing a little white eyelets cotton dress in summer. Amber wears a casual romantic style with straw hat to protect her beautiful brunette hair from heating up and comfortable wedge heel sandals. Wedge heel sandals are great for summer. They remain comfortable when your feet swell from the heat and you can join your friends going to a beergarten without having to worry about your heels. Wedges are no problem to walk in on a lawn or even gravel. Smart styling.
Deborah Boland
Deborah Boland is the stylist and CEO of Fabulous after 40. She authored several fashion and style books. She also lives on the Canadian side of the border. Deborah was one of the first bloggers who reached out to me when I started blogging in 2013.
She beats the muggy weather in a classic with a twist to casual style. The top hugs the body in the right places to show off her great shape, but is loose enough to not clinch. The studs on the sandals give the look some edge in a very positive sense.
Like her summer look, Deborah goes with casual classics with a twist in winter. Her burgundy over-the-knee boots are stunning at any age and are the icing on the cake of this classic parka with skinnies and boot winter look.
Susan Liberatore
Susan of is a forty something stay-at-home mom who enjoys dressing, and blogging. She is the voice of Ava Grace’s Closet. During hot muggy days, she opts for outfits in light colors. Light colors just don’t heat up so strongly like black does. She also seeks the shadow. This casual posh look with a white with black polka dots top is another great look to “survive” warm muggy summer days.
In the cold time of the year, Susan stays true to a casual posh style with sweaters, denim, over-the-knee boots, and a warm coat. A faux fur collar is a great alternative to wearing a scarf. She styles outerwear with a fun balloon hat and red gloves. On gray, chilly winter days, a pop of color is always a great idea. It ups not only your mood, but also serves to lift the mood of the people you meet.
P.S. Like this post on weather related outfits? You might also like to read how fashion bloggers of the Pacific North West look stylish in their rainy, windy weather. Or when staying with hot weather take a look at how these Texan bloggers beat their weather challenges in style.
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Photos: Courtesy to these women
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