My Latest Snag: Westman Atelier’s Vital Skin Foundation Stick.
I’ve been dying to try Westman Atelier’s heavily-touted line of cosmetics, and I finally snagged their well-reviewed Vital Skin Foundation stick. I’d never purchased any cosmetics from Credo Beauty, an online boutique featuring clean beauty products, but after hunting around, it was the only online store I could find that offered both a welcome discount (10% off with code CLEAN10) and a generous return policy, which was important to me as I’m not totally sure what color I am in the foundation. (Credo Beauty accepts returns within 30 days, even if the product has been opened and tested.) Anyhow, stay tuned — I’m excited to see whether it lives up to the hype!
P.S. More honest reviews of hyped beauty products here.
You’re Sooooo Popular: Frame’s Le Sylvie Crop Denim.
The most popular items on le blog this week:
+Frame’s Le Sylvie cropped denim, available on sale here and here. (More fresh denim for fall here.)
+This SEA-esque dress from J. Crew! OBSESSED.
+An EPIC LBD for a formal occasion.
+Ultra cute rain jacket for $30 for a toddler. (Comes in such good colors!)
+Really good floss. (No really – worth the upcharge.)
+Well-priced block-print caftan.
Weekend Musings: Music That Overwhelms Me.
In his 20s, Mr. Magpie worked for a government consultancy that routinely raffled off tickets to various cultural events to its employees. We were gobsmacked by the fact that very few employees seemed to enter these lotteries, as Mr. Magpie and I won several times. The jackpot was two tickets to the Kennedy Center to hear Wynton Marsalis perform with the National Symphony Orchestra. We were young and frivolous and did not fully understand the rarified experience we were in for — but we relished the opportunity to get dressed up, hold hands on the broad terrace of the Kennedy Center, and enjoy lukewarm white wine out of plastic cups on the red carpeted corridor between the theatres. At the time, in order to dress the part at work, Mr. Magpie had acquired several new Zegna suits and a pair of Ferragamo dress shoes; I wore a strapless Milly dress and 4-inch Jimmy Choo sandals, my biggest fashion splurge and my deepest fashion pride to date–and I felt like a million bucks. Do you remember what that feels like, as a 23-year-old? The soaring and stirring sensation of being on the cusp of everything? The Potomac River spread out in front of us, and the sunset glowed orange for us, and we turned heads, and we thought: “We are something to see.”
That night, there was a performance of Duke Ellington’s “Single Petal of a Rose” and you could have heard a pin drop in the concert hall. No inopportune cough, no throat clearing, not a single shuffling in a single seat. I watched Mr. Magpie swallow and swallow and swallow and I knew he felt what I did, and what every last person in that audience must have, too: as though the very inside of my heart was outside of my body, floating around the room on every haunting note of that saxophone.
I felt small, in a good way–the way only a sweeping piece of music can make you feel: overwhelmed by the broad sweep of the world outside that had made such beauty possible; overcome with emotion.
Every now and then, the piece materializes in my headphones while I am walking Tilly or writing at my desk, and I am arrested. I feel the same smallness: the grateful feeling that there is so much left to experience in this life.
What music overwhelms you in this way?
P.S. Another song that makes me feel all the feels.
Post-Scripts.
+This magnatab toy is such a cool gift for a three year old — mini received one for her birthday and loves it. So does Hill, actually!
+Agua Bendita’s recent trunk show for Moda Operandi is breathtaking. I actually have purchased two of their dresses and neither fit me well proportionally (and would have cost a fortune to re-tailor to my dimensions). I think they are cut for taller folks. But my goodness is this gorgeous. I predict we will see everyone wearing this swimsuit next summer. I love that suit but I am dangerously close to buying this Tory Burch at 50% off and do I NEED multiple new bathing suits. (Yes.)
+Get the Agua Bendita look for less with this, this, or this!
+Things that mattered to me at 18.
+These personalized hats are in stock!!
+Adore this striped sweatshirt. I’d wear with white jeans and Chanel ballet flats.
+Love a classic pair of heels like these. Perfect heel height, versatile color, elegant pointed toe. But do I need to be a broken record and remind you that my absolute favorite workhorse heel is J. Crew’s Elsie, on sale in black here?!
+Adore this striped tee dress. So cute with some Supergas! A reader asked on a separate post if I recommended any striped tees besides Kule, and I wanted to also flag that I own a fleet of striped tees from J. Crew! Lesser quality than Kule but usually come in good colors and cuts, like this and this.
+Speaking of stripes, love joggers like these for Hill with a little white polo on top for post-bath lounging.
+Just a reminder that Sephora’s sale is still running through tomorrow! Perfect time to stock up on pricey essentials like my beloved facial cleanser.
+Amanda Lindroth’s near-iconic wrapped tumblers are 20% off! Just add to cart and discount will appear. Cute gift!
+This remains one of my favorite dresses for this summer!
+My latest roundup of Amazon finds.
+Just ordered Hill this cool little spoon/fork set, which I think will encourage him to start using utensils.
+The Petite Plume look for less!
+Only $149 for this designer polka dot dress.