*Image above via La Vie Style House — as I mention below, I’m dying to invest in one of their stunning statement caftans this summer. I loved how many questions below were thinking ahead to warmer weather! So am I. I’ve organized some early warm-weather-season finds here.
Parts I and II of this series for this month here and here!
Q: Chanel-style jacket or cardigan.
A: Love this look. A few finds:
SANDRO (40% OFF)
REBECCA TAYLOR (ON SALE FOR UNDER $200)
MANGO MAGIC ($69!) — CUTE OVER STRIPED TEE
MAJE (LOVE THE BOW)
Q: Wedge espadrilles for summer. (Wishful thinking!)
A: Castaner! They are elegant and well-priced and come in various heel heights. This one is very Grace Kelly in Monaco and how saucy are these? And this gorgeous pair is 70% off!
Q: White sneakers to wear with jeans to look like a cool UES mom.
A: I’ve been seeing a lot of Veja (<<specifically, this pair has turned my head) and New Balance (one of the chic moms in pick-up line wears these with wide leg crop jeans regularly — tres tres cool). I also think Supergas are timelessly chic in a European kind of way.
Q: Brown boots!
A: The profile I’m drawn to at the moment (partly/largely inflected by my entirely pedestrian lifestyle) are boast kitten heels. Love these suede ones, which are perfect with the boho Ulla vibe or just with jeans (imagine with white jeans!), but these are so uptown chic and polished. Alternately, Khaite is one of the hottest labels out there at the moment, and these slick suede ones do not disappoint.
If you’re more of a block heel gal, these LRs are timeless, as are these Alexandre Birmans (<<on serious sale) — and if you can bear a slightly higher heels, j’adore these croc ones.
For something more casual, I wear my No 6 clog boots most days of the week. They are SO warm and so interesting to look at with a casual jeans look. And if you’re a combat boot kind of girl, these are chic and well-priced!
Q: Breezy maxi dresses!
A: Oh yes. Love a good maxi. For this upcoming warm weather season, I am eyeing this dress from Juliet Dunn, this statement from Mie (top contender for my June birthday), so many of the playful and beachy patterns — like this one — from well-priced label Playa Lucile, this Faithfull or this Peony (love a good polka dot), Innika Choo perfection (I own and treasure several of her pieces), LemLem, this Etsy score, and this wondrous white maxi from Ulla (70% off!). I would also love to invest in one of the ridiculously gorgeous caftans from La Vie Style House or Pippa Holt.
A heads up: mostly midi-length, but Net-A-Porter has a ridiculous selection of heavily discounted dresses and tops from Faithfull that breathe summer easiness.
If you need great sandals to go with your maxis, consider these or these!
Finally: check out my friend Elise’s boutique, The Golden Edit, which is full of breezy, vacation-ready scores, like this stunning pink tiered dress, which I would wear with Hermes Orans and a topknot, and this floral dream from Loup Charmant.
Q: Valentine’s day pajamas for children.
A: These are selling fast everywhere, but here are some darling ones that, as of the time of writing this, are still available. I also organized all of the Valentine’s Day finds into a boutique here!
Q: A kids’ table for legos.
A: This one ($100!) is super clever because you can flip the surface to have a Lego mat on one side and a plain white tabletop on the other depending on activity, and it has built in storage bins! If you’re looking for a more versatile play table, we have this one and it’s well-made and unfussy, and I love the seating that comes with this set!
Q: Decor for a little girl’s room.
A: Some super cute finds here and here, and some great organization ideas here. A couple of recent finds to add:
THESE BOW FINIALS AND DRAWER PULLS
THIS RATTAN CHILDREN’S CHAIR (!)
MONOGRAMMED PIQUE PILLOW COVER
Q: Basic, comfortable dresses to dress up or down.
A: My forever go-to in this category are shirtdresses in denim, oxford stripes, navy, or white. These simply never go out of style and can be re-styled a trillion and ten ways. I wear them with pearls and heels to buttoned-up events and sneakers to the playground, throw a silk scarf around my shoulders and add big shades for a ladies’ lunch (sigh, remember those days), slip into with leather slides to head to the museum, etc. They are the cameleons of my wardrobe! Even my patterned ones have long lives. I have been swooning over the patterned styles from Evi Grintela and itching to add to my collection of HVN. And, just, YES. I can just as easily see myself wearing these with heels as with white Supergas!
Q: Godmother dress for First Communion this spring!
A: Congratulations! What a special honor. A few pretty spring frocks that are Church-appropriate and feel elegant for the occasion:
For a more conservative setting, this Shoshanna strikes me as very Charlotte York.
Q: Setting powder or setting spray that makes makeup last.
A: I haven’t tried it myself, but have heard excellent things about Charlotte Tilbury’s Flawless Setting Spray. She sells it in a travel size for $20 that you can test without investing in a full bottle.
Q: Everyday affordable napkins with a busy pattern to hide stains. Etsy or small vendor preferred!
A: The organic cotton ones from this Etsy shop are a best-seller. I also like these blockprint ones and these ones from Amanda Lindroth. This Etsy seller sells bundles of chic, inexpensive printed styles, too!
Q: A matching sweat set from Amazon. (I have a gift card there!) Maybe tie-dye…is that still in?
A: Hmmm. I’ll be honest: I feel a little bit like the tie-dye sweatsuit belongs to March 2020 and that we should leave it there for awhile. My favorite sweats ever are by Monrow, which Amazon carries (sweatshirt here). Haven’t worn myself, but this Amazon brand gets solid reviews and comes in good colors (the pink!) Not part of a sweat set, but these jogger/sweat hybrids get great reviews and I’m eyeing a pair for myself.
If you are willing to shop elsewhere, I’m loving the color paletting and offerings in J. Crew’s new leisure collection — this pretty pink set! Or this set in the blue! I also love this affordable gray knit set (the sleeves!)
Q: A special but comfortable rehearsal dinner dress at the River Cafe! I’m the bride!
A: Congratulations! A few rehearsal dinner dresses I love at the moment that also look very comfortable:
THIS ULLA (TO DIE FOR) OR THIS SLIGHTLY LESS FORMAL ONE
CAN’T STOP LOOKING AT THIS FLORAL LSF
Also, these shoes (!!!!!)
Q: Refreshing our glassware. Still using everything from our wedding registry over 13 years ago.
A: I so hear you! We replenished our drinking glasses a year or two ago and it felt so grown up. Here are all my favorite glasses!
Q: Outfits for summer 2021 — I’ll be getting engaged so aiming to look presentable each day.
A: OMG. I love this attitude. I also very well remember that stage of waiting for the ring…anyhow, last summer, I lived in loose boho dresses from Hill House, Loretta Caponi, R. Vivimos (great budget option — I wore this, this, and this A LOT), SZ Blockprints, Mi Golondrina, and Innika Choo. What I love about these dresses is that they require no effort to throw on, are highly comfortable, and make you feel put together!
My other suggestion is to stay on top of your hair and nails game — ha! I like doing the Gel Couture colors from Essie at home because the color actually lasts about a full week without chipping (and I use my hands A LOT at home)…and blow-drying hair with the trusty old Revlon One Step whenever you shower. I promise you will be very happy you have manicured nails and good hair the day you get engaged — there are lots of pictures!
My sister swears by the Honeydew star seeker jogger sets. She gifted my other sister a set for Christmas and now she’s a convert too. They have tons of different solid colors and patterns. you can get them at Shopbop and Nordstrom but they carry some patterns on amazon for your reader with with Amazon GC!
Oh, cute!!! Thanks, Jen! I am into this!
I love a good white sneaker! I have and adore the Supergas your mentioned. They traveled with me for 6 weeks in Europe and were comfy as ever. My current favorite is the classic adidas Stan Smith style. They’re incredibly comfortable and very reasonably priced. Last time I was shopping in a store (pre-covid), I tried on the Veja shoes since they are so trendy, but found them incredibly stiff and uncomfortable. Maybe they just need to be broken in, but I opted out of trying.
Hi Melinda – Yes, agree! Mr. Magpie’s owned a few pairs of Vejas (as has my daughter) and they definitely have a breaking-in period. They are SUPER stiff at first and I get why that’s a turn-off!
Love my Supergas, too!!
xx