When Sophie decided to go to school on the East Coast, I knew we were going to have to get serious- about winter gear! Those of us who live on the Left Coast tend to be wimpy about winter weather. So I’ve got a few tips for where to score good winter gear for Californians. A few lessons from my years living in NYC as well….
Get yourself to the North Face Outlet!
I did a lot of research and North Face coats seem to be the most practical and trendy for East Coast college kids. (Because let’s be honest, trendy matters more than practical to an 18 year old!) The North Face Outlet in Berkeley is a great first stop for winter gear for Californians. In fact, I think we headed there a day or two after we sent in the deposit for her college in Boston. And good thing we did! The store was packed, even in early Summer, with what I can guess were other East Coast-bound Californians. For the best selection, I am very glad we headed there first.
There are similar outlets in Gilroy and Livemore, if those are more convenient.
North Face Outlet, 1238 Fifth St, Berkeley, CA 94710
Next Stop: Uniqlo
Winter gear for Californians would not be complete without a mention of the Heattech items at Uniqlo. The only reason I know about Heattech is because I follow fashion bloggers on the East Coast-otherwise, there’s really no reason to need thermal tees, leggings and socks in Moraga 🙂
A couple of things to keep in mind: Uniqlo in general runs a bit small, but you don’t want to go oversized in thermal underwear. After all, you’ll likely be wearing at least 2 additional layers on top. And buy enough so you can have a pair or two in the wash. They aren’t super expensive, but it really does seem to work. I wore Heattech socks on our recent Boston trip, and they really were nice and toasty.
You’re gonna need boots
I don’t know about you, but I am SUPER picky about shoes. I really can’t tolerate shoes that don’t feel great from the get-go. The days of “breaking shoes in” are over for me! And Sophie seems to be of the same mind. So we ordered oodles of boots for her to try on. Honestly, the best resource here is going to be Zappos- they just have such a huge selection and every size imaginable. And of course their return policy is the gold standard.
So buy what you need from Zappos, or find what you need there and order your preferred color elsewhere. With boots, I’d go with whatever your running shoe size is- and don’t forget to pick up some socks too. I ordered a few Heattech socks for Sophie and put a few Smartwool boot socks in her Christmas stocking. Smartwool socks are the best!
Smartwool snowflake socks, $27
Scarves, gloves and hats
You will need all of these things. But a piece of advice- especially when buying for teens- don’t spend a lot of money on cashmere scarves, high quality gloves, and cute angora beanies. I mean, you can spend a lot of money, but recognize that these are the items that get lost, a lot. So we bought a box full of hats, gloves and mufflers, and none of them were terribly expensive. And I told Sophie to try to keep up with them but not to sweat it if she lost a pair or two. She’ll always have a spare or two in her dorm room dresser.
Pom Pom hat, $15
Cashmere “feel” scarf :), $15
Recognize what’s an investment and what’s not
There will be plenty of time for Sophie to discover the joys of gorgeous Italian cashmere scarves and pretty leather gloves. For now, she has a great pair of boots and a 3/4 length puffy jacket to see her through Winter 2023. I imagine we’ll need to replenish the gloves, socks and other items. But I’ll report back on that next year!
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