Model, WAG, and Fashionista Olivia Culpo Talks Football-Forward Style and "Smart Shopping" (EXCLUSIVE)

With the air getting crisper, pumpkin spice everything hitting Trader Joe's shelves, and the urge to watch When Harry Met Sally stronger than ever, it's clear that autumn is looming and the NFL season has already commenced.

And what do we think of when we think of football season? FASHION. If there's a puzzled reaction settling into the lines on your face, I understand, but at least Miss USA and Miss Universe winner Olivia Culpo is on my side.

Model, actress (Clawfoot, I Feel Pretty), entrepreneur, and talented cellist Olivia Culpo is known for being a certified fashion girlie, partnering with luxury fashion houses like Bulgari and Dolce & Gabbana, and releasing collaboration collections with labels like Marled by Reunited Clothing and Montce.

"For fall, it's all about layering, whether you're layering socks under boots over pants, a turtleneck with a blazer, or a trench coat with a hoodie," Olivia told Distractify via Zoom, happily giving fall outfit advice. "Camel, any brown, maroons, reds, navies — all those autumnal colors are so fun to play with."

And considering she's married to San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey, Olivia finds a way to weave her love of fashion into the football season.

"For me, football — aside from fashion — is about community, good food, good atmosphere, [and] fun vibes."

In an exclusive interview with Distractify, the tastefully frugal fashionista discussed her "smart shopping tips," football-forward fashion, the joys of hosting gatherings during football season, and her partnership with PayPal.

If you take one look at Olivia Culpo and assume she's not a hardcore football fan ... you'd be absolutely right.

"I am a girly girl, so I wouldn't say I grew up with my dad on the couch every Sunday watching football, but it certainly means a lot to me now," she told Distractify with a smile.

Now the WAG embraces the community aspect of football culture.

"Football is all about community, no matter what team you're rooting for ... and just coming together to enjoy life," she said.

Olivia pointed out that when it comes to football season fashion, rooting for a team makes picking your color palette easy.

"As far as picking out outfits, I usually pick one key piece to highlight, and I build everything around that."

And because Olivia's the hostess with the mostess, football parties are her specialty.

"It is so fun to build an event around [a football game], or just a gathering, because people are really excited," she explained. "Everybody wants to dress up."

She suggested having a pre-mixed cocktail and easy bites ready for guests.

"I love a passion fruit margarita. A strawberry basil [margarita] is also really good. I also love a lemon drop, but those can be fairly strong, and they're kind of hard to pre mix because you still have to shake them if you want them to be cold," Olivia shared. "As far as food, [I suggest] finger food."

More specifically, Olivia mentioned pizza, sliders, calzones, "anything with buffalo sauce," and "anything that can cook for you." That's when a Crockpot or Dutch oven comes in handy.

Olivia described her sense of style as "pretty classic, tailored, playing with current trends, but really sticking to things that I hope will stand the test of time."

I personally wondered if her beauty pageant past influenced this passion for fashion. "The idea of having to represent a company and represent a title definitely influenced the way that I wanted to show up. And I feel like that's what fashion is all about. It's [about] expressing yourself and how you want to show up in the world," she said.

Sadly, how we want to show up is sometimes muddied by financial responsibility. Well, Olivia not only has an eye for jaw-dropping style, but she has an eye for satisfying deals.

"I'm very excited to be helping PayPal launch the debit card. You get 5 percent cash back on a category of your choice every month. In addition, you get amazing cash back offers on the app," she stated.

"I'll wish list a lot of items, and then I'll cart them all when I know the sale is happening. I also research coupon codes [and] put sales in my calendar. ... [For] things like linens or cutlery ... I always wait for Black Friday or Cyber Monday."

As far as her go-to stores, Olivia mentioned Saks Fifth Avenue, Macy's, and Zara.

"Happy shopping and check out the PayPal debit card on the PayPal app," she concluded.