What to Wear in San Diego in December

Pack for the hours after dark. NOAA's figures for San Diego International Airport give December an 18.9°C / 66°F afternoon and a 9.9°C / 50°F night, with 1.67 inches of rain on about 6 days, twice November's total. The sun sets at about 4:45pm all month, and every fixed plan starts near it or after it: December Nights runs in Balboa Park until 10pm on the 4th and 5th, and the Bay Parade of Lights sets off at 5:30pm on the 13th and 20th. NWS San Diego's climate memo adds the wind: "Santa Ana winds commonly occur between October and February with December having the highest frequency of events." So pack leather over a knit, trousers that close at the ankle, and one skirt for the holidays.

The capsule

1. 
   01

   Olive-green cropped leather jacket, spread collar, zip front

   Parade of Lights boats set off at 5:30pm on 13 and 20 December, about 45 minutes after sunset, and head for the pier at Cesar Chavez Park before turning toward Coronado. You watch from the shore as the air slides toward 10°C / 50°F. Olive leather stops the wind a knit lets through, and cropped to the waist it clears both the cargo pockets and the skirt's waistband.

2. 
   02

   Mid-grey crew-neck knit sweater, ribbed hem

   Nights average 9.9°C / 50°F, and December Nights keeps Balboa Park open until 10pm on the 4th and 5th. A mid-grey crew knit under the leather jacket carries you through the last hours of that; on its own it covers a 19°C / 66°F afternoon in the shade. Grey sits under olive, navy and black without a fight, so it goes with every bottom here.

3. 
   03

   Navy long-sleeve button-down, band collar

   Start the day in this. A navy band-collar button-down handles 19°C / 66°F on its own at noon, then goes under the grey knit once the sun is down at about 4:45pm. With no collar points, nothing crumples under a crew neck or a zipped leather jacket. Button it to the top and add the gold chains for a dinner in Little Italy.

4. 
   04

   Khaki-olive cargo parachute trousers, drawstring waist and cuffs

   Gray whales show off Cabrillo from mid-to-late December, and the National Park Service names the heights around the Kelp Forest Overlook and Old Point Loma Lighthouse as the best places to watch. Khaki-olive cargo trousers take a phone and a folded map in the pockets, and the drawstring cuffs close at the ankle when the bay air drops toward 10°C / 50°F after dark.

5. 
   05

   Plain white chunky low-top sneakers

   December Nights runs from noon to 10pm on Saturday the 5th, ten hours on Balboa Park's paths and plazas. A chunky white low-top on a thick sole is the shoe for that, and for the Holiday Bowl at Snapdragon Stadium at 2pm on 28 December. White keeps the cargo trousers and the black skirt from reading heavy, and it stays visible in a crowd after dark.

6. 
   06

   Slouchy tan leather shoulder bag, gold hardware, tassel charm

   One bag that swallows the knit. A slouchy tan leather shoulder bag folds a grey crew in beside your phone at 2pm, when it is 19°C / 66°F, and hands it back at five when the sun has gone. Gold hardware matches the layered chains, and tan is the single warm note against olive, grey, navy and black.

7. 
   07

   Layered fine gold chain necklaces

   Christmas falls on a Friday this year, and the holiday dinners cluster around it. Layered fine gold chains turn the navy band-collar shirt into a dinner shirt, since there is no collar to fight them, and they finish the grey knit over the black skirt just as well. They weigh nothing, cannot crease, and travel in a sunglasses case.

8. 
   08

   Black satin bias-cut midi skirt

   This is the holiday piece, and one is enough. A black satin midi cut on the bias moves as you walk, takes the grey knit or the navy shirt over it, and goes under the olive leather jacket when a Christmas-week dinner ends at 10°C / 50°F. With the white sneakers it also handles December Nights, where you are on your feet until ten.

A suggested look — Khaki olive relaxed cargo parachute pants with large side pockets and drawstring waist, Navy long-sleeve button-down shirt with band collar, Multiple fine layered gold chain necklaces, Multiple stacked gold-tone bracelets and bangles.

What to avoid

• A winter coat — 19°C / 66°F afternoons leave it over your arm
• Sandals after dark — the Parade of Lights starts about 45 minutes after sunset, by the water
• Suede — rain on about 6 days leaves water spots
• A full-size umbrella — only about 3 days clear a tenth of an inch
• Whale watching in the first week — NPS dates the gray whales from mid-to-late December