attaining winter wardrobe nirvana

Last Sunday's high temp was 15, with a wind chill of -18. Complete with wind gusts up to 55 mph. It was, uh, a little chilly for a morning and afternoon full of chores in an unheated barn. 

But my layering game was on point. Not once was I cold (even in my fingers and toes), nor did I have to peel off any layers. It was the nirvana of winter wardrobes. 

picture from eBay, but a google search returned a whole host of sellers

I started with a base layer of thin-but-fleecy Mopas leggings underneath my Kerrits winter riding pants (the best, for serious). My aunt snagged these leggings for our whole family from a street vendor in NYC and I LIVE in them now. Seriously comfy and cozy! They are one-size (and stay in place perfectly!), tho amazon also carries a plus-size variety. 

Last fall I hit up Marshalls (same parent company as T.J. Maxx, Home Goods, and Sierra Trading Post) to grab a bunch of seriously discounted technical running or yoga type shirts. These make excellent base layers (esp when combined!) and are usually long enough to tuck in easily.

why pay $42 to buy from Jockey when you can find it at Marshalls for $12??

pink running shirt w/thumb holes (can't remember the brand) is my go-to base layer

These are great bc they wick away sweat and insulate my core. After seeing Sunday's forecast I went back to get an extra layer - still from the active wear section, but thicker and more sweatshirt-y (while still being that technical type material) with a high neck, quarter zip, and fleece lining. Also with the thumb holes bc those things are perfect under gloves. 

Toss on a regular hooded jacket and a carhart on top of that, and the upper body is set. Fleece cap under the jacket hood, thin infinity scarf to protect my face, and thin fleece gloves under leather work gloves and my head and hands were cozy and DRY all day. (Noticing a trend here? There's a layer of fleece for pretty much everything haha).

Then for the feet: regular old knee high socks as a base (and to hold down the leggings), then these crazy fuzzy socks my stepmom gave me for christmas. 

according to google, Dick's Sporting Goods sold these, but might be out of stock

They are SUPER thick and fuzzy, and probably won't last for more than a season or two... 

look at that fuzz!

But they are super warm! Top those off with some insulating SmartWool socks under my Blundstones and we're all good!

Definitely a lot of layers - but none of them are particularly bulky (except the carhart and fuzzy socks), so I didn't feel like I was slogging through mud all day. Hopefully this will be the last time I'll have to combine all these elements together for the year, tho each individual piece will probably stay in rotation through spring. 

What about you? Now that it's mid-Feb many of you have had a chance to really test out your winter layers - anything that stands out as a wardrobe staple for future years?