October Moodboard: Fall Prep

It’s not until October that fall really starts to feel a little more official to me. The calendar has turned, the days are getting shorter, and even if Southern California weather is still taking its sweet time, I’m ready to start shifting into the season.

My monthly moodboards are a loose collection of what’s catching my attention lately: food, fashion, fun, fitness, and whatever else lines up with the month’s theme. For October, I’m leaning heavily into fall prep, with a few expected and unexpected favorites for the season, plus one very curious rugby shirt that sent me farther down a rabbit hole than I ever expected to go.

Moodboard

A little of everything seems to be on my fall style radar this year: rugby stripes, argyle, plaid, waffle knits, and, somewhat unexpectedly, a renewed interest in olive green. Hmm, I wonder what’s fueling that? And it goes without saying, all things pumpkin spice, spooky, and sweet.

The rugby shirt was a recent find, and while I bought it because I liked the look, it ended up giving me much more to think about than I expected. More on that rabbit hole in a minute.

Argyle, on the other hand, has been on my radar for years. I’m always keeping an eye out for the pattern, and this gray cardigan with navy and mustard diamonds was one I found last year. It feels very October to me and is exactly the kind of piece I’m looking forward to wearing as fall rolls around.

Plaid is also one of those quintessential fall/winter patterns that I happily embrace this time of year. I especially like it in skirts because it gives you the seasonal feel without requiring a full-on flannel moment. The misalignment of the plaid would normally drive me crazy, but here it adds to the overall design rather than detracting.

Waffle knit is less about pattern and more about texture. Something about that slightly chunky texture just feels so cozy once the weather starts cooling down, even if Southern California is still only flirting with the idea.

And then there’s olive green. It has moved back onto my radar in a bigger way lately. I’ve always liked it, but this year I’m noticing it more, wearing it more, and apparently planning around it more than I realized. More on that as October rolls on.

This isn’t the last you’ll see of any of these style picks. Each one will be making another appearance in an upcoming October post, so consider this a bit of a preview.

The Rugby Shirt Rabbit Hole

A rugby shirt had been on my style wish list for a while, so imagine my delight in coming across the one I’m wearing in this post. It’s even better than what I’d hoped to find. The color combination of navy and brown is fabulous for fall, and the black floral embellishments truly tickle my fancy.

Later, I went looking for an online listing (I’d bought it at Marshalls) so I could grab a clean product image for the blog. When I couldn’t find one, I went to Google and typed: “women’s blue and brown striped rugby shirt.”

That’s when I found what appeared to be the exact same shirt listed for sale on Poshmark. Same stripes. Same collar. Same embellishments.

Except that one was labeled J.Crew. What? That didn’t sound right, so I checked the label on my shirt. Mine was Nanette Lepore. So down the rabbit hole I went. Join me on this little journey, if you’re so inclined.

At first, I continued with Google, where I searched whether Nanette Lepore had copied J.Crew. The AI-generated answer sounded remarkably convincing. It identified the J.Crew shirt, tied my Nanette Lepore label to a particular manufacturing group, and then explained that the two shirts had likely come from the same factory, with leftover fabric or excess production eventually being relabeled for the off-price market.

It all sounded quite reasonable. There was just one problem. It wasn’t supported by what I found next.

At this point, I switched over to ChatGPT to continue my search for more information. I copied the information Google had provided into a chat, thinking that I might use this garment duplication story as the basis for a future blog post. However, ChatGPT had a different explanation and ironically pointed out “how quickly an AI-generated explanation can turn a few real clues into a very tidy story that it cannot actually prove.”

Huh? Was the pot calling the kettle black? 🤯

Anyway, back to the rabbit hole. ChatGPT suggested that before accepting Google’s explanation, I should compare the actual garment tags. That seemed reasonable enough. The J.Crew version, style CP551, appeared to be from its 2025 holiday collection and originally sold for $118. A Poshmark listing showed that this version of the shirt was made in India.

The tags on my Nanette Lepore shirt had different information. It had its own style number, 7K1T102, an MSRP of $88, and was made in China. Well, there went the “same factory, same assembly line” theory. The shirts still looked remarkably alike, though. Same navy and brown stripes, same cream collar, same black floral embellishments. Even the placement of those embellishments looked quite similar.

At Marshalls, I had paid $24.99 for the shirt, and the store tag showed a “Compare At” price of $40. By now, I was fully committed to this rabbit hole, so I also started looking into the number codes on the Marshalls tag. That didn’t provide a definitive answer either.

I was still left with a lot of unknowns, but there were probably more plausible explanations than what Google had offered. Maybe the design came from a common supplier. Maybe one version inspired the other. Maybe there was some licensing or manufacturing arrangement behind the scenes. Or maybe there is another explanation I never found.

It seems that the two shirts may share some sort of design or sourcing connection, but I couldn’t prove exactly what that connection was. What I do know is that I started out looking for a clean product photo and ended up comparing style numbers, manufacturing countries, registered numbers, retail prices, and off-price tag codes, while also wondering about the ins and outs of the garment industry.

All because of one rugby shirt.

Fall Food

Fall prep isn’t happening only in my closet. It’s showing up in my kitchen as well, and I’m just about as excited for that shift as I am for sweaters and boots. Fall food isn’t necessarily heavier, but it does seem warmer, spicier, and a little more comforting. Pumpkin, cinnamon, soups, roasted vegetables, baked dishes, and all the things that suddenly sound better once the evenings cool down.

Pumpkin muffins are one of those things I really start to think about once October rolls around, and I’ve made them often enough to know they deserve a spot in the moodboard. I’ve included the recipe as a printable PDF below in case you’d like to give them a try.

Download the Pumpkin Muffin Recipe (PDF)

Who’s In The Mood For Fall?

For my first official fall look, I’ve paired the rugby shirt with wide-leg jeans, brown loafers, and a soft blue suede fringe bag. The denim keeps the outfit casual, while the brown shoes pick up the darker stripe in the shirt.

October is shaping up to be a mix of patterns, textures, colors, and foods that harken back to everything I enjoy about fall. There’s argyle and plaid, a renewed interest in olive green, pumpkin muffins in the kitchen, and a rugby shirt that turned into a much bigger story than expected.

And since several of these style picks will be showing up again in upcoming October posts, you can consider this moodboard a bit of a preview of what’s ahead.

So tell me, what’s putting you in the mood for fall this October?

Stay well and let’s keep in touch! Subscribe, follow, friend, pin … all options are available. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

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Note: This is an unsponsored post; however, some or all of the links to clothing items may be associated with an affiliate program, where I earn a small commission for each purchase at no additional cost to you.