There is a very specific few weeks in New York when you leave the house in a sweater, regret it by noon, need it again by dinner, and somehow end up carrying half your outfit home.
Transitional dressing is annoying. But it also happens to be our favorite time to get dressed.
Summer is easy. Winter is practical. The in-between is where things get interesting.
It’s the season of silk under knits, bare legs with oversized jackets, tiny tops under serious tailoring, and dresses that suddenly become skirts because you threw a sweater over them. It’s also when we start wearing some of our favorite Kat Zarra pieces in completely different ways.
Our general rule: don’t put the summer wardrobe away yet.
Start with something a little too delicate
One of our favorite things about transitional dressing is the contrast.
A silk camisole feels completely different when it’s peeking out from underneath a heavy cardigan or an old leather jacket. Something delicate underneath something substantial always makes an outfit feel a little more considered — without actually requiring much consideration.
The Silk Cami Tank is basically made for this. It's cut in 100% silk with our signature 14k gold-filled chain straps, so even when most of it disappears underneath a jacket, you still get that little flash of gold at the shoulder.
Wear it with trousers and a blazer to work. Wear it with jeans and a giant sweater on the weekend. Wear it under a button-down and leave approximately three more buttons undone than necessary.
The point is that your base layer doesn't have to be boring.
Let your underwear leave the house
We have never been particularly interested in the idea that certain clothes are only meant to be worn in certain places.
A bodysuit is a top. A bralette can absolutely belong under a blazer. Silk bloomers can be shorts. A chain harness is jewelry. And a caftan does not require proximity to either a pool or a vacation.
The Chain Bodysuit is one of our favorite examples. The soft deadstock stretch cotton makes it an easy first layer, while the 14k gold-filled chains do the work of jewelry.
Put a crisp white shirt over it and leave it open. Add an oversized blazer. Wear it under a sheer dress. Or just add jeans and call it a day.
A little chain showing underneath an otherwise very sensible outfit is always a good idea.
Put jewelry under your clothes
This one sounds backwards. That's why we like it.
The 14K Gold Filled Chain Harness was designed to be worn against the body, but it becomes especially good when you only see pieces of it.
Under an open silk shirt. Beneath a low neckline. Peeking through the back of a sweater. Layered underneath the Silk Cami Dress so the chains echo the lines of the dress itself.
It creates that very specific wait, what is she wearing under there? effect.
Which, in our opinion, is considerably more interesting than showing everything at once.
The bodysuit + enormous jacket equation
There are certain outfit formulas that require very little thought and somehow always work.
Tiny thing + giant thing is one of them.
The Halter Bodysuit has a plunging neckline, open back, soft stretch jersey and handmade brass hardware. On its own, it feels decidedly nighttime. Put an oversized blazer, trench or worn-in leather jacket over it and suddenly it works at 2 p.m.
Add jeans, trousers or a long skirt.
Done.
This is particularly useful during that September-to-October stretch when it's technically fall but New York is still 78 degrees for reasons no one understands.
Wear the Silk Smoke Caftan like a jacket
A caftan has a reputation for being a vacation piece.
We disagree.
The Silk Smoke Caftan and the rest of the Kat Zarra collection is sheer, dramatic and incredibly easy to layer, which makes it one of those pieces that changes depending on what you put underneath it.
Over a bodysuit, it's a dress.
Over trousers and a tiny tank, it's a jacket.
Over a slip dress, it's an extra layer of texture.
Over basically nothing, it's a completely different evening.
This is the kind of transitional piece we love most: something that doesn't really have one prescribed way to wear it.
Keep the silk pants out
The arrival of September does not mean silk needs to disappear into the back of the closet.
Quite the opposite.
Our Silk Balloon Pants are currently part of the Kat Zarra collection alongside the Silk Smoke Caftan, Silk Cami Tank and other pieces we keep reaching for during the in-between months.
In summer, they're easy with a tiny top and sandals.
When the temperature drops, add a cashmere sweater, fitted turtleneck, oversized blazer or leather jacket. The volume of the pant works especially well against something heavier up top.
This is also where transitional dressing starts to feel less like "layering" and more like simply changing the context of something you already own.
Which is the whole point.
Add something completely unnecessary
Sometimes an outfit is technically finished and still needs something.
Enter: the Shell Belt.
Made from a stretch silk charmeuse cord, natural shell and our handmade brass hardware, it can be tied at the waist, worn low on the hips or even worn as a necklace.
We love it over knits because it makes a sweater feel less… sweater-y.
Tie it around a cardigan. Put it over a slip dress and jacket. Wear it low over trousers. Layer it over something completely unexpected.
There is something especially good about a natural shell appearing in an otherwise very city outfit. A tiny bit coastal, a tiny bit strange, very Kat Zarra.
And yes, bloomers can survive fall
Our Silk Bloomers are made from sheer silk chiffon with silk charmeuse trim and a tiny pearl suspended from the waist. They're romantic and slightly ridiculous in exactly the right way.
They're also surprisingly fun to layer.
Wear them with sheer tights, a giant sweater and boots. Let them peek underneath an oversized button-down. Layer them under something sheer. Wear them around the house with socks and pretend you're in a very chic 1930s hotel.
There are no rules here.
The real trick: stop dressing for a season
We think the best wardrobes get a little blurry.
Nightwear becomes daywear. Jewelry becomes clothing. Summer pieces get tucked underneath winter ones. A silk camisole gets worn under a giant coat. Something sheer gets layered over something practical.
And suddenly the pieces you thought you could only wear for three months of the year are in rotation all the time.
That philosophy is pretty central to Kat Zarra. We design and produce our collections locally in small batches, with an emphasis on natural fibers, deadstock silks, thoughtful construction and pieces meant to move from one season into another rather than being replaced every few months.
So when the weather starts changing, don't overhaul your closet.
Just add another layer.
Preferably silk.
And maybe a shell.
