Long haul flight to Europe -- cardigan dilemma

[slidergirl]

I like both of them - can't go wrong.   I love wearing scarves when I travel.  I can take it off if I want or am getting too warm.  I'm also a T-shirt wearer when I fly and will layer over it.  I tend to run warm, so it takes a bit for me to get cold enough to wear a sweater.   I like my sweaters/hoodies on the oversized side, too.  

 

 

[cruisemom42]

1 hour ago, slidergirl said:

I like both of them - can't go wrong.   I love wearing scarves when I travel.  I can take it off if I want or am getting too warm.  I'm also a T-shirt wearer when I fly and will layer over it.  I tend to run warm, so it takes a bit for me to get cold enough to wear a sweater.   I like my sweaters/hoodies on the oversized side, too.  

 

 

 

Yeah, I'd wear some type of t-shirt under the sweater that's "ok" to wear by itself just in case the sweater has to come off... I guess that's one more reason why a scarf is good. You can still use it to tie the outfit together minus the sweater. 

 

I thought I ran "warm" but I guess not so much compared to the posters who've responded. On most flights it seems to me that the cabin goes through various phases -- some warmer, some cooler.  I like to adjust as needed, but I do usually need at least a light sweater. (I prefer not to use the airline blankets and I don't bring my own....)

 

[clo]

5 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

Thanks everybody for the ideas/comments/suggestions!

 

Of course, Eileen Fisher just happened to have a pop-up sale this weekend, and I saw a merino box-top sweater that I had previously had my eye on for a great sale price. It's a pullover, not a cardigan, but pullovers seem to rule the market this year and last, and at least in my mind, they go well with the EF joggers.  I ordered a size up to make sure it looks intentionally oversized....  I do love EF merino as it is light and generally pretty durable.

 

I also ordered two colors to see which works better. While waiting for them to arrive I put together these ideas based on the different colors. All the pieces (except the sweaters) I already own, or own something quite similar. What do you think?

 

 

 

 

In the second outfit I was trying to NOT use a scarf since I find them a little fiddly on a long trip. (I know I could always take it off and I probably would....). But I have the exact scarf in image #1 and just think it would tie the whole look together. In outfit #2, the Chan Luu beaded ribbon/scarf can be worn as a necklace or wrapped as a bracelet...

 

 

 

I assume you get TSA Pre-check so they won't make you take off your shoes.  I'm not sure I any longer even own any lace up shoes.

[clo]

1 hour ago, cruisemom42 said:

(I prefer not to use the airline blankets

Why is that? 'Course I do prefer the ones in the front of the airplane 🙂

[cruisemom42]

10 minutes ago, clo said:

I assume you get TSA Pre-check so they won't make you take off your shoes.  I'm not sure I any longer even own any lace up shoes.

 

Yup. I do. 

[cruisemom42]

25 minutes ago, clo said:

Why is that? 'Course I do prefer the ones in the front of the airplane 🙂

 

Good question. I'm not a germaphobe so it's not that. They just have an icky hand-feel to me. And they are static generators.

 

Edited to add: And yes, the ones up front are nicer. I use those on the RARE occasion....

Edited September 30, 2019 by cruisemom42

[GrammieK]

6 hours ago, Anita Latte said:

 

DS goes to school now in London...so I have been there all of twice now LOL...but because I don't often wear scarves, I have paid attention to people wearing scarves in London...because I like the look a lot, but get annoyed by them. Anyway...what I observed was that people were very practical with their scarves...and they would often remove them in restaurants and sometimes coffee shops too. Not just winter style scarves too...

 

I saw ladies drape them over their chairs...drape them over their handbags...tie them around the handles of their handbags...or just untie them and tuck the ends down their sides like the opening of a cardigan, if it was a long scarf.

 

This is all dependent on the scarf shape...but all in all...I saw very practical adjustments made throughout the day and in all circumstances. The women "worked" the scarves. I'm not much of a fashionista so I'm not well versed on much...but I've usually thought of a scarf as a necklace alternative...and something a bit more static in my outfit...and so I had a hard time wearing them...but since feeling the freedom to work the scarf and not worry so much about it being just so...I've had a lot more fun with it...seems less fussy to me now...it's a very helpful tool.

 

Anita,

 

i think  the women in Europe are just born stylish while "we American gals" have to work at it!

 

glad you enjoyed London. It's my favorite city, or at least top 5

 

k

[clo]

15 minutes ago, GrammieK said:

"we American gals" have to work at it!

And maybe work too hard. 🙂

 

I'd say London (not England) is likely my least favorite European (and other) city.

[GrammieK]

To each his own....guess it's good  we all have choices!

[Anita Latte]

55 minutes ago, GrammieK said:

 

Anita,

 

i think  the women in Europe are just born stylish while "we American gals" have to work at it!

 

glad you enjoyed London. It's my favorite city, or at least top 5

 

k

 

I think that urban people in general are more stylish. I've been a suburbanite for the majority of my life...so I see a marked difference in style from what people typically wear around the suburbs vs the urban setting. I think when we go to Europe...we end up in that urban setting and so we associate the urban stylishness with Europe. But I will agree that I feel like there is an effortlessness about style in the very few European cities I've been to that is generally lacking here in the States.

 

I happen to be in the London lover camp, too. I have really enjoyed both stays there. It may help to have the school connection there...we end up going places and doing things that probably aren't on the typical tourist radar.

[clo]

13 minutes ago, GrammieK said:

To each his own....guess it's good  we all have choices!

Curious.  What are a few cities that you don't like as much as London?  I just find it crowded with so many non-English 🙂

[clo]

2 minutes ago, Anita Latte said:

so I see a marked difference in style from what people typically wear around the suburbs vs the urban setting.

That's a very good perspective.  Having lived for over 20 years in San Francisco there was certainly a 'way' of dressing.  It fed my already fledgling 'less is more' way of dressing.

[cruisemom42]

London:

 

1. British Museum (could just stop there, but....)
2. Covent Garden
3. Fortnum and Mason food hall
4. Regent's Canal
5. Theatre
6. Wonderful exhibitions
7. Scones and clotted cream

 

[clo]

29 minutes ago, cruisemom42 said:

London:

 

1. British Museum (could just stop there, but....)
2. Covent Garden
3. Fortnum and Mason food hall
4. Regent's Canal
5. Theatre
6. Wonderful exhibitions
7. Scones and clotted cream

 

But my question is:

 What are a few cities that you don't like as much as London?

[2BACRUISER]

9 hours ago, clo said:

And maybe work too hard. 🙂

 

I'd say London (not England) is likely my least favorite European (and other) city.

I'm British from the North and i have to agree London is awful and its our capital. Dirty place. Prefer Florence in Italy or Barcelona in Spain.

 

[cruisemom42]

7 hours ago, clo said:

But my question is:

 What are a few cities that you don't like as much as London?

 

I wasn't the one you posed the question to. I don't tend to 'rate' cities; each is unique to me. I always look forward to going to London. I'm trying hard to think of cities I would be less happy to revisit -- maybe Madrid, maybe Bangkok, definitely Bucharest...

[Anita Latte]

2 hours ago, 2BACRUISER said:

I'm British from the North and i have to agree London is awful and its our capital. Dirty place. Prefer Florence in Italy or Barcelona in Spain.

 

 

I don't want to completely derail the thread...but funny how our experiences vary our outlook. By comparison to many large metros in the US...London is quite clean. I wouldn't call it dirty at all. Granted...I have not ranged far and wide in London...and my experience, as everyone's is, is limited to where I have been...but comparing where I have been in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Denver, Dallas, Houston, Atlanta, Philadelphia, and New York City, to name a few...London is much cleaner.

[GrammieK]

I don’t really rank cities according to likes and dislikes. I am a complete Anglophile!  Downton Abbey, Henry the VIII, Tower of London. Weve been to all the major sites and love them all!  

 

After a DNA test thru ancestry.com, I learned my ancestors are a portion British. That only incited me more. Last trip we saw Les Mis at the Queens theater. 

 

Ive had great tours, great meals and great times with friends. What’s not to love?

k

[clo]

53 minutes ago, GrammieK said:

 

After a DNA test thru ancestry.com, I learned my ancestors are a portion British.

I did that also and discovered that I'm as boring as I look.  English, Irish, Scottish.  I prayed for even a tiny drop of exotic 'blood.'  🙂

[cruisemom42]

Sometimes likes/dislikes are simply personal and visceral. It's no real diss on the city, IMO.  It can depend on the time of year and weather, the interactions you have (or not) with locals, where you stay, and even how well your impressions match up with your expectations.

 

Like GrammieK the anglophile, I am unabashedly a lover of ancient history and particularly ancient Roman history (though Greek and Egyptian are also in my wheelhouse...). European cities that 'feed' my love in some way are always a hit with me. I'm far less 'crazy' about Northern European capitals than Mediterranean cities (including North Africa and Turkey), for example. But good museums, art, and architecture do a lot to win me over as well.  Asia is a different proposition but also a place I find very interesting for the same reasons -- rooted in ancient history/culture. I am less interested in the Americas and Australia/NZ. They don't fit into my "ancient world civ" perspective. 

 

Rome is my cultural home. It is dirty, crowded, miserably hot in summer, rainy and chilly in winter, and public transportation can be maddening. Buses catch fire with regularity. Graffiti is notable (as is corruption) and sites are often not well maintained. Food can be indifferent in the tourist areas (unless you know where to go), and restaurants are willing to scam naive tourists. And yet, I love it there.  

 

 

[Floridiana]

Rome will be our destination in October.

 

Airplane clothes for me: comfortable long pants,  t-shirt, cardigan, an essential scarf, slip on shoes or walkers/sneakers. Shoes must be comfortable and go with all casual outfits. Color combinations depend on the pants. I also avoid white because something bad always happens to it.

 

I really like the outfit with the scarf because of the scarf, but I would not wear a sweater, really prefer a cardigan for temperature adjustments.  The scarf acts as blanket near my face and neck.

Edited October 2, 2019 by Floridiana

[cruisemom42]

I received my EF order yesterday, and it looks like I'm going with the gold sweater.  Interestingly it is a bit more oversized/longer than the red one (color is called 'radish' and that's pretty accurate), even though they are the same size. Also, despite my protestations, the overall outfit concept just looks better with a scarf than without one...  The gold color is close to what I'd call French's mustard, lol. It's not my favorite color in the world but it's one that is supposed to be in my 'color family' and the scarf helps tone it down a little as well.

 

Now on to my next dilemma which is --- what to pack for daily walkabouts in Rome.  Last time I was there at the end of November/early December, it was a week of nearly solid rain. Yes -- the Tiber flooded and some (underground) sites were closed.  So I have a very good, waterproof raincoat, as well as two road-tested pairs of shoes for walking...

 

 

[clo]

10 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

the overall outfit concept just looks better with a scarf than without one

So you do this just for yourself, right?  Cause you do know, of course, that there's not a single person on that airplane cares or notices?  Right?

[cruisemom42]

9 hours ago, clo said:

So you do this just for yourself, right?  Cause you do know, of course, that there's not a single person on that airplane cares or notices?  Right?

 

Thought this was asked and answered in post #19?

 

I enjoy planning every aspect of travel, and I like fashion. It's funny, but I've run into a lot of people in my life who seem to feel that a "serious" academic or someone intellectual should somehow be 'above' caring about how they look. Personally I see no contradiction in someone putting together a well-curated travel wardrobe in addition to a 60-page reference document on the houses of Pompeii. 

 

I say we should all stop slotting people into niches: If someone is a complete Roman history nerd and also au courant with this year's trends, that's what makes people interesting and three-dimensional. 

 

 

 

[Hoyaheel]

I will always notice what you are wearing and what car you drive. Got the car genes from my father. Not sure who passed the fashionista on to me - I think my paternal grandmother (who wore a very fashionable miniskirt to my christening ;-)

 

And also luggage. Esp carry-on luggage. I have an obsession. I love air travel for the people watching!!

 

[and if 20some years of education didn't drain that out of me, nothing can! ;-) If you enjoy it, it's not frivolous!]

Edited October 4, 2019 by Hoyaheel