Dressing for winter in Manhattan
 

My fiance and i are traveling to NYC in mid December. We have reservations at several high end restaurants, tickets to Broadway, Christmas Spectacular... we want to do this right. I also want to look the part. Does anyone know of websites showing the "mode" of the natives today? And being in the city with buildings to brace the winds, does it get as cold as say Buffalo or other parts?

Actually, the buildings do not brace the winds, rather provide enormous tunnels...

You just never know about the weather. Likely will be bitter cold with chance of precipitation. So, you'd want a very warm coat that's at least water resistent, along with very warm (but also comfortable) footwear (thicker soles for the cold pavements), hat, scarf, gloves, the works...so as to be comfortable while out and about. Underneath, however, you don't want to pile on too many layers as indoors is usually dreadfully overheated.

"Black and..." is still very usual.

Priority when dressing should be the weather, then the destination. You never know when it will be difficult to grab a cab.

It'll be cold, but nowhere near Buffalo conditions.
The mode of the natives? C'mon!

Black. Wear lots of black. Black pants, black sweater, black shoes, black dress, black handbag, black wool overcoat, black hat & gloves. See a theme developing?

If you want to &quot;look the part,&quot; please don't wear big ski jackets with bright colors or, for that matter, any color other than black (unless of course you're carrying skis). <b>Black</b>.

Locals can and will pull-off gray and brown, but don't try it. You're not ready yet. You must master black first. <b>Black</b>.

Finally, if it rains . . . yes, black umbrella. Not too big (unless you're carrying golf clubs). Nothing is more annoying than a tiny tourist-person devastating an entire sidewalk with a stupid multi-hued golf umbrella. <b>Black</b>.

What? What do I hear? Black fannypack? This is wear we draw the line. To look the part, you must swear off the fannypack. Burn them now to set the mental mood. Sing &quot;New York, New York&quot; while burning.

If you have any other questions of a sartorial nature, I'll save you the trouble. Black.

Here endeth the lesson.

Enjoy NYC!

Where are you coming FROM? If you're from S. California like me (I visit NYC about 3 times a year), you will find it miserably cold and windy in December. As the others have posted, hat, gloves, scarves - the works! BUT I suggest to wear stylish clothes underneath. EVERYWHERE has a coat check (even after hours clubs!) and you don't want to stick out like a tourist. For instance, NO SNEAKERS. No one in NYC wears them. Unless they're going to the gym. Boots are the norm in winter (as in all-purpose leather ones, not galoshes)! Denim gets mightly chilly on the skin; I'd recommend wool pants, or cords. OR a winter skirt with VERY warm tights and boots!

For the ladies...just a hint. Bring your mascara, powder, etc. IN your handbag if you wear make up. The wind can be so biting that you literally cry your make up off walking places.

Good luck and have fun!

<b>Gekko<b>
Very funny!</b></b>

Actually, hilaryg, your no-sneakers edict is no longer entirely accurate.

For guys, cool retro sneakers (Nike Cortez) and soccer styles (Adidas Samba) are all-the-rage right now. Not in high-end restaurants, of course, but definitely at clubs/bars/hip eateries etc. Must be the Williamsburg influence.

Never NEVER running shoes or any sneaker one would purchase at a strip mall Foot Locker. Unless of course you're going running.

Thank you so much. It seems like black it shall be. What about going to dinner-is it acceptable to wear pants if you are a woman?

Ugh, black black black. Too boring. Be yourself for god's sake.

People *do* wear color in the city. It's how, why, and what you wear it with that's the key.

Gekko, yes, I agree, cool, hip new Nike's etc. are totally acceptable in clubs, the village, chelsea, soho, etc. I also meant my &quot;no-no&quot; for the all-white Foot Locker type sneaks!

And YES of course women can wear slacks to a high-end restaurant!! As I advised before, something like wool not denim is the way to go (both warmth wise and fashion wise). Throw on an &quot;evening&quot; turtleneck, boots, some earrings, you're good to go!

Have fun!

Tammi, black boring? NEVER! If you're a New York City resident, Shame! Consider yourself shunned, with all its associated Amish nastiness.

Be yourself? If colorful clothes is how you &quot;be yourself,&quot; you've got more important things to worry about than matching your rainbow pumps with that fancy teal twinset you love so much.

Black is cool, black is practical, black is flattering, black is New York. <b>Black</b>.

Gekko, you're definitely a star now. A star draped in black, but still a star!

You CAN accessorize that black with some surprising bit of color, as in a blouse or scarf, and in the daytime grey pinstripe skirt or trousers are acceptable as long as you partner them with a black jacket. Brown is dramatic if you're a redhead, but you really better be able to carry it off with style.

Oh Gekko, you are my hero!

<i> she writes, sitting at the desk in her black turtleneck and black jeans</i>

Hey Gekko, are you the one who makes commercials for Geico car insurance?? Black and green go well together.

I'd recommend silk long underwear--very light, very comfortable, and warm.

Gekko...you're cracking me up here...we need to get together on a Sunday at Havana Central for the buffet! LOL

But seriously, main thing is dress in at least one main black item (which is my general rule of thumb.) In other words, a black dress shirt with a tan skirt and boots, or black slacks and a navy shirt, this can all be done, you don't need to be in head to toe black. I've done it but I also hate looking like everyone else! I'd rather have one item that's another color. (just no vibrant green or orange, and definitely no polka dots or stripes!)

The buildings actually cause draft tunnels so it can be colder and since Manhattan is surrounded by water, it does get pretty damn cold. Make sure you have a hat, scarf, gloves, the works!

Slacks (tailored black wool) are just fine for high end restaurants, along with stylish, but very comfortable, black boots underneath. If your wool slacks are lined (as most are), highly recommend silk longjohns. In the cold weather, lining fabric is very cold against your skin, and the silk longjohns are the perfect (and elegant) extra layer.

Unless you are traveling all over by private car or limo, you'd suffer dreadfully outdoors in a short skirt, stockings, and strapping high heels.

Note that one item of color is perfectly acceptable, such as a gorgeous cashmere sweater in your favorite (and most flattering) color, though, black is probably &quot;better&quot;.

If you wear black, it's the bottoms, not the tops, that should be so--NY'ers wear so much black because clothes get dirty pretty quickly in the city!

My advice regarding the wether would be to check weather.com a few days befoire you go and see what the temps are. Generally, anything in the 30- 40's is usually quite bearable, but below that, combinied iwth the winds, it is quite necessary to do a comlete bundling, and I once it got below 20 I usually wore tights or long silk underwear under my pants to keep warm (and that was just walking 6 blocks to work).

Enjoy!

I didn't say wear rainbow pumps... just not all black. There's nothing wrong with a splash of red. etc.

Have you never seen Sex and the City? Not that I dress like that, but that show is worshipped my fashion enthusiasts. And they rarely wear all black.

I'm just saying dress to your own individual style! NYC has ALL kinds of styles, so it's riduculous to say that everyone should and does wear all black.

Tammi, of course <i>in principle</i> I agree with you. But we're not giving advice to natives. We're offering our wisdom to neophytes who want &quot;to look the part.&quot; I don't feel comfortable suggesting to Liebelilly that they showcase their individual style on their 1st visit to Manhattan . . . until they master <b>black</b>.

And who do you know in the city that actually <i>dresses</i> like Carrie Bradshaw? It's homeless chic with designer labels, more a joke on us than a serious effort to move product (with a few notable exceptions, almost exclusively accessories, which we can discuss another time).

Liebelilly, unless there's feathers, neoprene, or leg warmers involved, you simply can't go wrong with black.

Okay, all together now, in unison (with echo): <b><i>Black</i></b>.

I happened to see someone dressed just like Carrie from Sex in the City two nights ago.
Of course, she was picking up men on the corner by the bus station, but she was decked out in a wonderful array of see through, colorful shoes and tops. I don't remember seeing any bottoms.
Gekko-<b> Black</b>

To quote what I thought was one of the funniest lines I ever heard on a sitcom, &quot;Everyone in NY wears black - until something darker comes along&quot;!

There have been many a December with spring-like weather, but in general, I would say 30-40s, certainly not cold like buffalo or windy like chicago. The building do generate heat, so even if there should be a little snow (highly unlikely), it general melts before it hist the sidewalk (unless it's very heavy).

It is fine to wear sneakers (but not to high end restaurants), look in the window of any trendy shoe store and half the shoes are sneakers. There are many fashionable (and comfortable) sneakers and shoes out there.

And yes, a woman can wear pants, most do. In general NYC is quite casual and colors other than black are acceptable (but stick to dark colors, especially with slacks). Radio City and Broadway theater, dress just has to me neat. I see people wearing blue jeans to theater all the time. Maybe not to a saturday night opera at lincoln center, but to a theater matinee, no problem. Even in high end restaurants, nice (dark) slacks are fine. Only a handful require jackets for men.

For last weekend's trip to NYC, I packed all black. Black jacket, black suede jeans, black turtlenecks, black boots, black walking shoes, black dressier pants, black tote bag. Plus one spice colored jacket. Couldn't stand to be in black all weekend.

So Gekko did I get it right? Sure seemed like I did. But I have to say that I noticed a lot of dark brown too.

Well done, Bennnie, you got it right! (Well, I haven't seen your spice colored jacket, but I'll presume that's a muted color and not a reference to the Spice Girls.)

Regarding the dark brown -- as I observed &amp; opined in my original post, one will see much brown and gray in the City, but one must first master black before venturing out into the non-black universe. Perhaps you're ready on your next visit, perhaps not. We'll let you know.

Come back soon!

Put it this way....I'm my office where the theme is business casual. I have on tan pants, a brown and tan shirt and black shoes. When I don't wear at least one item in black, I will stick to the naturals and basics. (tan, khaki, white, navy, brown, olive.)

What it boils down to is you can't go wrong with slacks / long skirt, boots and a nice blouse or a dress in black or neutral colors. One item in a bright color is fine, but make it a blouse or a dress or some accessory. Although I remember an episode of Sex and the City where Carrie argued with her boyfriend at the time that no NYC woman wears scrunchies in their hair unless they're going to the gym. LOL

I once saw an episode of Oprah (must have been on maternity leave) where a &quot;stylist&quot; advised women to only wear clothes in a color that Mercedes used for their cars. Black, dark blue, beige, white and gray. Always struck me as funny but pretty darn good advice.

Gekko - the spice colored jacket probably would not have met with your approval (nor would the Mercedes stylist have approved). It was kind of a fall shade of peach. Probably a little too much for NYC but what the heck. Sometimes you just got to break the rules.

I stopped worrying about what to wear in New York when my tour guide from Big Apple Greeters, a retired career woman from the Upper East Side, showed up for the tour wearing orange shorts and low-top Converse sneakers.

Fall shade of peach?!? Would that be a burnt nectarine, perhaps? You're frightening me, bennnie.

Always fun to break the rules . . . but then you must be willing to deal with the consequences. Incarceration. Banishment. Howling laughter.

Liebelilly, if you're still with us, I hope you get the picture. My job here is done.

One should not worry that, wearing ALL black, one will look &quot;like everyone else&quot;.

Like Bennnie, who reported &quot;For last weekend's trip to NYC, I packed all black. Black jacket, black suede jeans, black turtlenecks, black boots, black walking shoes, black dressier pants, black tote bag. Plus one spice colored jacket. Couldn't stand to be in black all weekend.&quot;

Almost no one sticks to ALL black.

However, when looking around in those &quot;high end&quot; restaurants, the most elegantly dressed lady will be wearing ALL black. (Sometimes, it's the hostess.)

Gekko wins the prize for most dead on accurate post.

Black rules.

Re: dressing for the weather I am not sure anyone has taken good enough care of your feet.

To me warm feet and head is the most important thing, and to have warm feet the single most important thing is: thick rubber or, better, latex soles on your boots or walking shoes.

A lot of companies make these now. I'd pack short or higher boots, depending on wardrobe for the daytime, in black for sure -- leather or suede or nubuck is fine; and - most important SPRAY THEM with spray froma shoe repair sotre that makes them waterproof. 99% of the time this is adequate in relation to any snow or slush you'll have to deal with.

But no kidding: a layer of leather between your foot and the pavement really isn't enough for warmth (apart form the cushining benefit of rubber/latex).

Money to burn - check out Arche.

On the warm foot topic:)
There is a Canadian company that makes wonderful leather boots and shoes that are waterproofed, lined with either faux fur or flannel and are just about the warmest and most comfortable winter shoes you can find. They are also stylish and not that expensive..I know they are in Nordstroms, I think they are in Bloomingdales.

Scarlett,

Are you thinking of Le Canadienne. They are in Nordstroms as well as Lord and Taylor.

Scarlet, are talking about the ever so comfy (aptly named) Uggs?

Ugg is an Australian company. I love Ugg boots! I wear them almost anywhere all winter long. It's true a good pair of boots like that goes a long way toward keeping you warm. Get them in black of course. :)

Hey:

As a woman who goes to work and lives in on the tiny island of Manhattan here are a few winter tips:

December: Dress coat should be black wool or black down coat (cut cutely) with faux or real fur. Coat should fall just over top of boots if wearing a skirt.

Black tailored slacks or pencil skirt, you could get away with charcoal gray. Slim, simple boots or shoes.

Nice belt, simple necklace, nice earings. Some color could play here but have to know how to balance properly

Tops: You can play with color here. Nice rich, deep burnt rustic orange, browns, wine..

If you scared of color then just use them in your nice simple handbag, scarf, or gloves to compliment the black.

Good luck

Oh! Duh!! I forgot to give the name!
They are called Santana :) sorry~

What will happen to me if I wear my wool navy mid-calf coat to NYC in the winter? Will I be scorned automatically? Buying another coat is a serious expense.