My Fool-Proof Fall Outfit

Although Fall won't arrive on our doorsteps until maybe another month (there are still big chances of 90-degree days the entire of September, as I was told), I'm already in the process of pulling out all my cold-weather garb again.

Back home, I didn't get much opportunity to wear jackets and, actually, pretty much any sort of outerwear, as the weather doesn't permit it. (Unless you work in a call center, where I heard temperatures can get pretty low.)

This brown Zara military-style jacket was from Fall-Winter 2007, and I've lusted for it ever since I saw it on the racks. But because I couldn't find ample opportunities to wear it should I buy it (the lining and outer shell are pretty thick, mind you), the jacket only got to touch my skin inside fitting rooms.

Nothing changed, until January 2008, when Zara went on sale, slashing as much as 50 percent off cold-weather merchandise.

I wasn't expecting to see it again, truly. When the branch of Zara I went to no longer had it on display, I assumed it was already sold. But by some stroke of fate, I went to another branch, one that didn't have it previously at regular retail price, and saw it. The jacket stood out from the pile of stuff on sale, it was as if I was meant to find it and the attractive markdown that accompanied it. I went home a happy guy.

I only got to wear it once the entire time I was in the Philippines, on my last day at work. Even then, I couldn't wear it longer than an hour or so, because it really was hot under all that cloth. Regardless, it was the first thing I put in my suitcase when the time came that I had to sort out those that I would bring with me to the United States.

Now that I know I'll have more reasons to wear this awesome jacket, I'm giving it my stylist's treatment by building an outfit around it. This is rather casual, so only wear this during the weekends with a thin scarf. Or if your office is pretty relaxed dress-code-wise, put on a nice pair of laceups and opt for darker-rinse jeans to liven up the look.

Zara jacket, Hanes T-shirt, Defacto jeans