VIRGINIA | Watercolor leaves in amber

October mornings are cold and October afternoons are not. This is the only thing I have that handles both.

The problem with the turning of the year is not the cold, it is the swing. You leave the house at eight in a jacket and by one you are carrying it, and the alternative is a sweater you are stuck inside for the rest of the day. What is actually needed is a layer light enough to keep on, and most of what is sold for autumn is not that.

Virginia is a light matte weave, so it goes over a tee without adding real warmth, and the cuffs turn back when the afternoon catches up. The watercolor leaves run in amber and apricot with the tones bleeding into one another rather than stopping at hard edges, which is why it reads as autumn light rather than a leaf print. The cut is relaxed through the body at hip length, finished with a point collar, a full tonal button front and two hip pockets.

Why women our age keep coming back to it

• Light enough to keep on. The weave adds a layer without the warmth of a cardigan, so you are not carrying it by lunchtime.
• Cuffs that turn back. The sleeve adjusts to the afternoon instead of committing you at eight in the morning.
• Soft edges, not a leaf print. The watercolor tones bleed together with no hard outlines, which keeps it from looking seasonal in the novelty sense.
• It warms the colors you already wear in fall. The amber and apricot sit against cream, camel, rust and denim without needing anything bought to go with it.

Buy more, save more

• Buy 2 and save 10 percent
• Buy 3 and save 15 percent
• Buy 4 and save 20 percent

The discount is applied automatically at checkout.

How it fits

Virginia runs on the small side, and since this is a layer you will want a tee or a thin knit underneath it, size up rather than ordering straight. It comes in 8 through 22, and these are UK sizes, not US ones, so go by the measurements rather than the number you usually buy. The chart gives bust, waist and hips as body measurements in inches, so measure over a light top with the tape level. Between two sizes, take the larger one.

30 days to change your mind

Send it back within 30 days for a full refund. There is no restocking fee and no questions about why.

A few recent reviews

I keep it by the door from September on. Over a white tee most days.
Hilda B., Flagstaff

The amber is richer than the photo. It suits my coloring and I am fair.
Coralie R., 65

Went up two sizes because I layer. Right call, plenty of room in the shoulder.
Marva T., Boise