I recently was accepted into the New England boarding school I applied to, and now my family’s trying to get as prepared for the upcoming school year as possible. None of my family members are alums of schools on the U.S.'s east coast and we live in Taiwan, (which is in Asia and fairly hot the entire year) so we have little to no clue what the weather is like there. Not to mention, it’s hard to find very warm clothing made for snow here in Taiwan, since it doesn’t snow at all.
Can anyone give me some pointers on how to shop for clothes? Perhaps what kinds of clothes would suit fall, winter, and spring in New England? That would be greatly appreciated!! ^-^
Edit: @skieurope , is it possible to move this thread? Sorry, I posted it in the wrong section >.>
Congratulations and I hope that you enjoy New England. It’s gorgeous and fun. You will enjoy sledding and skiing and maybe ice skating! Depending on the area that you’re in, the weather can be quite different, more and less snow. Colder or warmer.
Check with your prep school to se if they have uniform standards.
LLBean will have many of the things you need and you can order from them. Other “preppy” clothing lines include J. Crew.
Ralph Lauren.
Vineyard Vines.
Brooks Brothers.
Sperry.
Tommy Hilfiger.
Bass
Patagonia
Hollister
LaCoste
JPress
Landsend
Count on –
Snow, potentially lots of it, but sometimes not that much
Autumns will have gorgeous leaves and your first year might feel cold. Later years your body will have adjusted. The best way to dress is in "layers". The layers allow you to adjust your clothing when you are inside and then go out. you take things off and put things on as needed. you may want to master the art of tying your sweater around your neck or your waist.
For a young man, layers might include 1) t-shirt; 2) another shirt on top for prep school this might be a button-down shirt or a polo shirt; 3) a sweater; 4) a coat, for fall a light coat, for winter a heavy coat. Some places sell coats with multiple functions (the inside comes out and can be worn as a light jacket and then goes back into the larger coat for colder weather, that sort of thing).
Winter: add more layers plus 1) gloves/ mittens; 2) good wool hat or fleece hat; 3) scarf. For really cold climates (northern Vermont or New Hampshire) invest in a balaclava, which covers the entire face. this is great if you go sledding or skiing because the wind won't sting and you can have a good time
Gaiters can cover the tops of the boots and keep the snow from going in. This is really only if you plan to go out into the snow for fun. For just walking around campus, they will clear the walks and you probably won’t need these.
Loafers or boat shoes without socks is often what's worn among the prep school set. sperry topsider shoes for example. Because: boats. Even if you personally don't sail. But check with your prep school in case they have standards.
Autumn trousers: chinos of various colors, but have at least one pair that's khaki. Several probably; Khaki shorts and a navy blue blazer (unless the school has a different idea)
You may want to wait until you get to school to order anything. Mail order is very speedy in the US! That will give you a chance to see what everyone else is wearing and what you need. You also may not want to buy too much in advance as you will continue to grow. I think my son needed a new winter jacket every year!
LL Bean boots do sell out early in the season, though, so those might be something to order in the fall. The first snowfall at our school each year always produced fascinating wardrobe choices! Flip flops?
@Dustyfeathers , where were you when I left my sunny home climate of eternal spring and moved to New England for college? I could have greatly benefited from your wise counsel!
Wait until you get to school. You’ll find plenty of classmates who will be happy to help you – and if you order online, your stuff will arrive at school in just a few days. Bring a lightweight jacket or hoodie for the cool evenings early in the fall… And wait to buy the rest when you get to school! Fall is especially beautiful in New England… You will love it here!
Be sure to get a lightweight jacket- good for summer/fall and winter/spring. Also get some good jeans. I’m not sure what your dress code will be but a good staple is to have some black or grey jeans and a pair of white jeans (In my experience). I have found old navy to have very good jeans. For lots of clothing though wait until you get there.
Agree with everyone on waiting to buy most of your wardrobe when you get to school. For winter boots, if you are interested in Bean boots you may want to order them in the next few months as they are always sold out, as mentioned above. Other popular styles are Sperry boots and Timberlands which you can get anytime online- but they are most likely on sale now!
Back in New York I used to had this great thick Columbia jacket that was my lifesaver (I usually stay in hotter climates so I am not that cold ‘resistant’… and when you are used to really hot climates… it takes a couple months to really ‘get used to it’)… So be sure to invest in at least one serious cold jacket (I personally love NorthFace or Columbia) for the winter…
@Dustyfeathers , thank you so much for the extremely helpful advice. Not sure what I would’ve done without you!
@gardenstategal , I was thinking about doing this, but wasn’t quite sure if it was the right way to go. Thanks for clearing that up for me, I’m sure it’ll save lots of time and money.
Also, I forgot to mention that I’m a girl in my original post. Does anyone know anything about how girls dress during New Hampshire/New England winters? Thanks in advance!
@jkookie , Go to your school 's website or FB page, and start looking at all those images as a fashion magazine! It’ll give you an idea of how girls dress.
I like the BootLeggers chain for good/stylish winter boots and footwear. I think it’s based out of NH or Mass. LL Bean is great, too. The flagship store is near the outlets in Freeport ME isn’t it? That’s a fun visit.
You could stop in at Bean if you plan to do revisits in the NE. At least your kid could try on the boots before you order online.
All great advice above. We live in CT – southern NE – and I can tell you that the weather is not only bad (everyone is pretty unhappy when there are still several inches of snow on the ground in mid-March), but unpredictable. We had a pretty big snowfall last October, but then much of the winter was relatively dry, and we got slammed with a blizzard in March. Spring is generally gorgeous, but last year it was very wet. Ordering is easy and deliveries come very quickly, but the OPs are correct that LLBean tends to sell out of boots and winter jackets early. Happy shopping!
