*Image via.
My Latest Snags.
Mainly excited about this knit dress I ordered from Sezane! I mentioned this a few posts ago, but I don’t normally do knit dresses and this one literally jumped off the screen at me. So fun and different, and love the idea of it paired with suede boots or ballet flats.
P.S. Just updated “my closet” with a bunch of my more recent wardrobe acquisitions!
This Week’s Bestsellers.
A gorgeous preview of the holiday season, if you ask me. I love the black gown so many of you bought!
01. BLACK HALO DIVINA GOWN // 02. J. CREW MINI DRESS // 03. TARGET BRASS CARD HOLDER // 04. J. CREW SLIPPERS // 05. AMAZON DINNER NAPKINS // 06. KAREN MILLEN COAT // 07. SAM EDELMAN FLATS // 08. NUTCRACKER STICKER BOOK // 09. RECHARGEABLE TRAVEL MIRROR // 10. TARGET TREE SKIRT // 11. CARA CARA TURTLENECK DRESS // 12. BODEN WRAP COAT // 13. TARGET HIGH RISE JEANS // 14. TOTEME RAIN BOOT //
Weekend Musing: Fall Shrinks into Winter.
Earlier this week, I looked out the front window and realized fall was shrinking into winter. The once-bushy-and-boastful tree standing outside our window, just yesterday alight in a showman’s orange and red, had withered away, leaving bare its stick figure, all knobs and bark. Is it my inborn East Coast Puritanism speaking, or do I like the bracing tonic of winter? The way it dims the light, strips bare what was once full, and reminds me of the strong, corded strength beneath? I reflected on this the other day and decided that part of winter’s appeal stems from the Catholicism in which I was raised. I cannot think of the winter months without immediately flashing back to the cold corridor in my parochial school, where we would line up on the stained blue carpet to sing “O Come, O Come Emmanuel” each morning of the Advent season, the overhead lights flicked off by Sister Teresa. That hymn is so haunting, so expectant — the somber march of the faithful through a long dark — and strangely moving to be sung by the young, clear voices of grade schoolers. I knew this even as a child, absorbing its seriousness whole. Do you know how snakes digest their meals in their entirety? That was the Advent experience for me: I grasped its bulky solemnity and promise, feeling rather than understanding the experience of huddling, in whispers, in the dim hallway, as we’d watch the white burn of the candle flames on the wreath. The memory now sits in my center, balancing the freneticism of the holiday season.
Post-Scripts.
+Currently in my cart: these turtleneck bodysuits, for tucking into trousers and high-waisted skirts this winter. Available in more colors here.
+Suddenly drawn to all things metallic. It started with these straight-leg jeans (size up and look for less here) and now I’m eyeing this ribbed metallic turtleneck. Just such an easy way to communicate “festive” without all the bells and whistles. Like, you could pair the turtleneck with jeans and velvet flats and look like the lowkey-cool picture of Christmas. You can get the look for less with this Boden!
+A cute, simple Advent calendar if you like to do the gift-a-day thing like we do.
+If you’re still looking for something to wear to Thanksgiving and usually lean more casual, you must consider this Alex Mill cardigan with a great (comfy) pair of jeans. PERFECT.
+Speaking of Alex Mill: lots of discounted goodies from the brand at Outnet. Yes and yes!
+I need this hat.
+Sephora’s sale ends Monday. Did you get anything? All my picks here.
+Black tie Christmas dreams. Also, this. And on the more affordable end of the spectrum: this. Swoooooon.
+These fur-trim loafers are CHIC. You might recall I wore a similar pair all last season (mine are no longer available).
+THESE are the stretchy legging-pants several Magpies wrote in about when talking about the best travel day outfit.
+I bought Mr. Magpie one of these adorable incense smokers last year and it was such a treasure to have out on the kitchen counter (we put it on top of a small cakestand to elevate it / make sure it didn’t just blend in). Again, the Catholic in me, but I love the smell of incense. A Magpie also shared a few weeks ago that she likes to gift these cute log cabin style incense smokers with the incense inserts and it totally achieves the same effect. Such a cozy, sensory way to celebrate the season.
+I put this off for way too long and only a year or two ago bought a bunch of ornament organizers. SO helpful.
+Did you know Jenni Kayne makes candles? Apparently they sell out every year!
+Cute fruit bowl for a countertop!
I love your musings! I too have a weighty Catholic center anchoring me through this season. I love O Come O Come Emmanuel, though the one that stands out form my childhood is My Soul In Stillness Waits. I have an advent specific playlist for the candlelit evenings before Christmas proper. I love the smell of incense in the air, those moments of anticipation. The fast before the feast.
Love the idea of an advent playlist! One to consider adding: “In the Bleak Midwinter,” performed by Choir of Clare College, Cambridge. You can find it on Apple Music. I listened to this the other day and felt rent in two — in a good way. I was plucked right out of the jostle of my routine into a prayerful headspace. beautiful.
xx