Suede For Fall...Groundbreaking.

Shop the high risk/high reward material secondhand for mostly under $100

A lot of you forget I went to FIT. I cared enough about fashion at sixteen years old to convince my mom to take me on a college visit to the Fashion Institute of Technology. We saw Phantom of The Opera. She bought a mug from the gift store. And it was decided. One thing my mom and I have in common: when it comes to decision making, we’re remarkably staunch.

But what does this have to do with suede for fall, you might be asking. Suede, per this canonic video of Jenna Lyons breaking down the myriad of ways silk manifests, is just the start. To call suede a trend for fall, as mentioned by countless smart writers on this platform, is like calling cashmere a trend for winter…it’s sort of a half-baked thought.

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That said, I’m not here to drag the SEO-inclined headlines I was trained to write as a freelance fashion writers only a few years ago. If the people want suede, give them suede. Enter: this letter. The material itself is elegant and rugged and high maintenance and nostalgic—all at once. It’s like wearing silk. You’re committed to a cross your fingers that neither wine nor torrential downpour finds its way to your vicinity. If it does, make like Kate Moss at Glastonbury in 2005, and tredge on, I suppose.

This video from my new friend Mandy is your suede 101. You’ll need to take care of it, which might be a new responsibility if you’re experiencing your first interaction with the material. I’m with Mandy; it’s great to practice caring for clothes—suede and otherwise. You’ll need to store in a dustbag (you have one of these in your closet, I promise) and treat before you wear.

@oldloserinbrooklynHow to care and maintain suede for fall? Groundbreaking. #suede #fallfashiontrends

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I once had a very unbecoming stain incident occur happen to a suede skirt on a date. He worked in finance and owned a boat. I wondered if the lack of artwork on his apartment walls as Brutalist or accidental. I dropped my soiled suede skirt off at my neighborhood cleaner and two days later ($70, too, just to be clear) it was as good as new…or as good as vintage. Whatever. The stain was gone and my lesson was learned: suede is not for a first date.

A girl in a suede skirt circa 2019

See, just the thought of suede is making me nostalgic? Let’s start shopping because trust me, once we start with the dating nightmares, it’s hard to stop. Here are a bunch of mostly secondhand suede picks for those familiar with the fabric and those new to the material. Everybody’s welcome :)