An Angeleno's Winter Travel Guide

BY DEEDEE BARRIE

As a SoCal native who was born and raised in Los Angeles, cold temperatures were never something I had to worry about. Usually around November, no matter how cold it gets, a light hoodie will keep you warm for the rest of the day. Unless you wake up extremely early at around 3 a.m., you generally don’t need to wear anything too thick or heavy. 

When I decided to study abroad in London, the excitement of going to a new place was the first thing I thought about. However, now that I’m in the middle of preparing to leave, I’ve come across a problem: what do I wear for cold and rainy weather? I started keeping up with the weather in London and realized that my light sweaters and crop tops would not be making the trip. After taking a good look at my closet, I knew I’d be needing a lot more than I thought. I set out to look for long sleeves, coats, rain boots, beanies, and a warm scarf.

Image Source: Evening Standard

Coats, sweaters, jackets, or hoodies?

Because I’m such a fan of anything Uniqlo, I began my search with the coat. There I was at The Bloc in Downtown looking through all the Uniqlo coats when I noticed something. Why aren’t there any coats with a hood? Or jackets that are warm enough without having to layer up? I’ve looked at many stores, and I still haven’t been able to find anything that’s right. I’m aware that at this point, a puffer coat is probably my best bet, but I’m not a fan of overly big coats. I’ll either have to buy a warm wool coat from Uniqlo and wear a light rain jacket underneath or settle for not leaving the house without an umbrella. If puffy or heavy outerwear is not a problem for you, I’d recommend looking at places like Columbia, The North Face, or Patagonia. 

Long sleeves, tops, etc.

I was walking around The Grove looking for tops when I decided to go into Alo, and it was probably the best choice I could´ve made. I managed to find thin heat-retaining polyester long sleeves with a hood. They´re thin enough that they can be worn as a base layer under any shirt and provide the added warmth that I’ll definitely be needing in London. Here’s a tip- invest in turtlenecks! We don’t wear them enough in LA because of the hot weather but they’re warm and can definitely be styled many ways. As you can tell, I’m obsessed and had to return to Uniqlo for their Heattech long sleeves, which are also designed to retain body warmth. I absolutely had to have one of those! 

Image Source: Alo

Rain boots

For boots or shoes for the rain, I found that UGG had a good selection of water-resistant boots in many styles. Honestly, I’ve never had to wear rain boots because of our blessed year-round sunny weather, so I’m leaning towards more low-key styles instead of the rubbery boot look. I took a trip to Nordstrom and found a lot of different rain boots (it was kind of overwhelming??). Even after spending hours in a department store, I still wasn’t convinced by any of them. It wasn’t until I looked online that I found exactly what I was looking for. I ended up going for the Converse Chuck Taylor All Star Lugged 2.0 Counter Climate Sneaker. It’s a little bulkier than the Converse I’m used to but It’s still a good middle ground between normal sneakers and huge rain boots. Chunky shoes have also been extremely popular right now so I can’t wait for them to get here!

Image Source: Converse

Beanies & Scarves

When I started looking for a scarf, again, I was leaning to thin yet warm styles. Although chunky scarves are in style (anyone else noticing a pattern here with chunky everything?), they’re just not that comfortable to move around in when you’re on the go. I also found that overly thick knitted scarves can sometimes be a little itchy around the neck. Luckily, I stumbled upon the Solid Cashmere Scarf. The scarf is Nordstrom brand and is 100% cashmere. Another scarf that I almost picked up, although chunky but extremely warm, was the Barefoot Dreams CozyChic Lite® Infinity Scarf. Barefoot Dreams is known for their quality when it comes to keeping you warm. While I wasn’t convinced because of the fit, I did purchase their CozyChic Lite® Beanie which I wear all the time now! For more on the perfect winter accessories you’ll need this season, you can check out this article.

Image Source: Barefoot Dreams