For this week’s site specific Study Abroad post, I’ll be focusing on four western European countries: France, Germany, Italy, and Spain.

Before I share all of the awesome information some of the wonderful CF readers as well as some of my own friends have given me from their experiences, I want to make three quick notes:

• All of the information here is taken from advice I have received–it is not a binding set of rules for how to dress in these locations! These are simply some helpful suggestions on what articles of clothing have proved most functional and worth valuable packing space for those who have traveled abroad.
• Because of the nature of these posts–which are trying to cater to such a large crowd of people going to all different places within each of these countries–I am forced to generalize. However, I do understand that fashion is different not just in the different countries but also in the different regions of each country. Therefore, please feel free to correct me or add more detail in the comments if you think your specific location within these countries follows different fashion “rules” or subscribes to a different way of dressing!
• I know I said last week that each country would have its own section, but I found that much of the advice I received was similar for all of these countries! While I am not saying there are not differences in style between these countries, I think a big part of this is that they generally have similar climates. Therefore, I grouped them together in the categories, but pointed out what country the source who gave me each tip was from. I also tried to include tips that were country-specific in as many of the sections as possible!

Now, on to the advice!

Table of Contents

Dress Your Best

France is known for being pretty much THE fashion capital of the world, so you’ll want to bring out your best pieces to look stylish in this country! Italy is perhaps France’s biggest rival for world fashion capital, while Spain and Germany are also known for having very stylish women walking the streets.