This is always a tough time for me, fashionwise. It is still warm sometimes, but the blustery rain-splattered days are beginning to make an appearance too. So what to wear? Often I think I am dressed for fall, but at some point during the day, a gust will make me realize that, although I am wearing a sweater, I am also wearing open-toed shoes and a thin skirt. I just hate to go the whole hog, with tights and boots, before I have to. There is nothing worse than being wrapped and snug from head to toe when an unseasonable sun decides to grace us with a warm afternoon. Not only do woolen tights get very prickly and uncomfortable in warm weather, but it's hard to look cool with a sheen of Indian summer sweat on your face.

My usual trick at this time of the year is to wear long skirts and ankle boots with thin socks, no tights. I still wear the short-sleeved tops I wore all summer, but now I make sure I have my trusty black silk cardigan at all times. When night falls in San Francisco, no matter what season it is, the wind tunnels up and down those hills with icy precision. In fact, they say that the most lucrative industry in SF is the rapid sales of poor quality sweatshirts down by Fisherman's Wharf, which shivering tourists gladly pay forty bucks a pop for. Luckily, right now there are great fall fashions in the stores, and it is relatively easy to dress warm, stay cool, and look devastating.

In San Francisco, we are seeing below the knee skirts, knee-high boots, turtlenecks, and soft adorable knit hats and scarves in all colors. It seems plaid is back, and cashmere of course, although last year's ubiquitous pashmina is nowhere to be seen, unless it is skulking sheepishly on a sale rack, heavily discounted. Goodbye, two hundred dollar scarf, good riddance.

Color is rich and joyful this fall. Fun hues like pumpkin and lavender hang alongside classic fall standards like camel and cranberry. And a deep bright pink that I haven't seen since 1992 appears to be making a comeback. Fall fashion always strives to look new and cheerful, as if it wants to distract us from the stealthy approach of winter, "yes, the evenings are getting shorter and you just lost an hour of daylight, but look! A claret cashmere sweater and zebra-print handbag."

So why not splurge and treat yourself to a new autumn outfit. The holidays will be here soon enough and all your money will be spent on the next Pokemon-thing, Bailey's, and selection boxes. And yes, I know the January sales are a great draw, but you will have to fight through the throng, feeling stressed and wishing you hadn't eaten all those selection boxes. So seize the day. Do it now. Fall for fall.