Reader Request: London Calling

Hello ladies - I hope everyone had a nice weekend!  For the first time in a long time, I didn't have anything that I had to do and it was wonderful.  I watched movies, ran errands, and made strawberry champagne cocktails just because I felt like it.  And now it's back to the grind, and back to reviving my poor little health and fitness routine since a super stressful 8 weeks has led to a 5 lb weight gain.  I will be doing no shopping until September 13th when Target gets Missoni items and I'm back to my normal size, so until then I must make do with shopping for other people.

Luckily, I have a few reader request emails waiting for a writeup, and I've been super excited about this one from Beth, who is moving from San Antonio, TX to London.  She needs a fall to winter wardrobe, and wants to stock up on basics before she leaves since the UK can be pricy.  I'm so envious of her situation, since not staying in London after my college internship is one of my big regrets.  I'm hoping to make it back for an extended period of time one day, but my stint there makes me oddly qualified for this request.  That said, here's what I learned and what I think Beth should bring with her:

London Accessories-Outerwear by cardiganjunkie featuring leather booties

Since Beth and her husband don't plan to have a car, she'll be doing a lot of walking.  That means some serious shoes.  I will say that I didn't have any idea how sturdy my shoes needed to be since in Texas we walk from the car to a door and back again.  A lot of my (cheap) shoes either fell apart or hurt my feet, and I have learned my lesson.  Since Fall and Winter are boot season, I think Beth needs a great pair of flat riding boots as well as a stylish pair of waterproof boots for the inevitable rainy days when she has to make her way across town.  I highly recommend Corso Como boots for durability and comfort, and found a great pair of lined rubber boots that don't look like wellies.  She will also need a pair of foldable flats for her commute to work (Gap city flats for the win!), and a great bag to hold her heels, and some reading material for the train.  She'll also need a couple of coats - knee length and hip length options - to keep things interesting since she'll be wearing some sort of jacket pretty much every single day.  (Plus, if she's like me, she may go around announcing that it's cold while everyone else laughs at her because we don't have proper cold in Texas until January)

London Outfits - Fall by cardiganjunkie featuring a knit jacket

As far as clothing goes, Beth will probably want to wear a lot of layers.  I like thin layers to better fit under coats, such as blouses and cardigans with a scarf.  I picked some colorful cardigans, some pretty blouses, a sweater coat, some thin sweater tunics to wear with leggings (or jeggings, if she is that type), a drapey dress in a rich fall color, and some basic work trousers.  Everything can be mixed and matched, and she'll get a lot of mileage out of every item.  I'd also caution against going too crazy and stocking up on clothes because the transition from car culture to pedestrian city usually means weight loss (at least it did with me - until I got home).  If Beth needs more later, she can have all her US purchases shipped to a friend or family member and then shipped over.  However, all the amazing stores in London will make that unlikely!  I'm so jealous that she'll get to shop at Uniqlo, the flagship Topshop, and find cool indie designers at the markets on weekends.

I also think Beth should start a blog so I can live vicariously through her adventure!   What would the rest of you recommend for someone making the transition from Texas to London?