By: Jen Shoop

*Image above via ByDidem.

More answers to your burning October 2020 shopping questions (first installment here), and so many of them around practical pieces for every day wear this fall, from flats to sweaters and comfortable work-from-home knits. (Love the unfussy look above on Didem for weekday uniform — she’s wearing this Zara tee and Toteme jeans). There were so many submissions this go around, I’ve had to split this post into thirds and will answer the final questions early next week!

Q: I’m wondering if you will recommend a planner? I need a week on each page and very detailed.

A: I have liked the ones from Day Designer in the past — especially the hard cover styles because I like to keep receipts/invitations between the pages and it’s easier to write on. More recently, I have been using this undated weekly pad — I find it’s a super simple and unfussy way to keep on top of my to-dos. But for 2021, I am thinking about one of these customizable agendas from Papier. So gorgeous!

Q: For newborn photos, I’d like a wrap dress — preferably not jersey or at least not super clingy (c-section lump — in a color that goes with baby pink but isn’t baby pink – so a darker pink, purple, burgundy maybe even navy? (My son and husband are wearing navy.)

A: Would you consider a print? How darling would this pink polka dot wrap dress be with a pink-swaddled baby girl in your arms? Alternately, this is a little on the trendier/louder side, but this boho print wrap dress is incredibly chic and would look great with navy-clad men and a pink-clad baby. Also adore this navy broderie anglaise style (here is a knee-length variation) if you want something solid, or this in the solid maroon color, which has such fun sleeves — I love the way it looks paired with tall boots as shown in the picture.

If you change your mind and want to coordinate with your daughter in pale pink, this is so elegant.

Q: Shoes to wear with a brown leather skirt.

A: Chic! If it’s pleated leather like this, I would pair with a pointed toe flat like this (#goalz), this, or this. If it’s short, I would wear with brown suede tall boots like these.

Q: Christmas outfits for my 3.5 year old and 6 month old boys.

A: Cute! Love that you’re planning ahead. If you’re into plaid/tartan, there are some adorable ideas here, but here are a few specific pairings:

THESE PANTS AND THIS SWEATER (3.5 YO) AND THIS BODYSUIT WITH THESE SHORTALLS (6 MONTH OLD)

SHORTS WITH COLLARED SHIRT AND SWEATER (3.5 YO) AND SHORTALLS (6 MONTH OLD) WITH MATCHING COLLARED SHIRT

I LOVE THE LOOK OF THESE DUNGAREES (FOR BOTH!) WITH A COLLARLESS SHIRT UNDERNEATH — CHRISTMAS, BUT NOT OVER THE TOP

IF YOU LIKE STILL DRESS YOUR OLDER ONE IN JON JONS, THESE FOR BOTH

Q: A cream colored off-the-shoulder sweater for engagement photos.

A: This one is elegant with the pearl detail! This one ($69!) is also interesting/architectural.

Q: Long-sleeved dresses I can wear while teaching.

A: So much love and gratitude for you and all the teachers making it happen every day. A few dresses I like that have long sleeves, allow for movement, and manage to be both comfortable and chic:

THIS SWEATER DRESS

THIS CHIC FIT AND FLARE TURTLENECK DRESS

FASHION FORWARD AND CONSERVATIVE AT THE SAME TIME

FUN GIRAFFE PRINT SHIRTDRESS

ADORE THIS LONG-SLEEVED DRESS IN THE CHECK PRINT!

THIS DENIM DRESS!

Q: Lampshades.

A: I actually went down this rabbit hole not long ago and I ended up loving the prints and varieties at Ballard Design, especially in the modern drum shape. Reasonably priced, too!

Q: Mirrored dresser.

A: I love mirrored furniture! We have mirrored bedside tables very similar to these in our master that reflect light and make the space brighter and bigger. I love the clean lines on this mirrored dresser (on sale!) and this is elegant, too, though I might replace the drawer pulls with something else.

Q: A cute belt bag that is reasonably priced and doesn’t look like an athletic fanny pack.

A: I wear my leather State Bags fanny pack more than I ever would have expected. So chic! This classic leather style also looks much more expensive than it is — could be Tod’s or something?

Q: Cute neutral mules! Preferably pointed toe and under $350.

A: My immediate thought was Nicholas Kirkwood’s Beya mule, which are crazy chic but above your price range unless you are willing to go bold with splashy orange! (Let your shoes do the talking! I have bent boldly colored/patterned shoes into my everyday wardrobe countless times…)

I also love these loafer mules and can I convince you that the rust or leopard colorways of this pointed toe mule are “neutrals”???

Q: Tasteful, non-garish Christmas decor.

A: I shared some initial thoughts here, but the short story is that I think you can make a huge impact through holiday greenery in your home tied with enormous striped grosgrain or velvet bows (note that the ribbon colors I picked are not necessarily traditionally associated with Christmas, but if you tie it around mini boxwood wreaths hung over the backs of chairs or in windows, you will achieve a smashing and classy Christmas look. A few other holiday greenery pieces you might consider for the center of your dining room table, your mantel, your sideboard, etc:

MINI ROSEMARY PLANTS — BUY IN BOTH SIZES AND PLACE ALONGSIDE ONE ANOTHER TO PLACE ON A FOYER TABLE/CONSOLE, WRAPPING THE BASE WITH A RIBBON

THESE MOSS “TREES” FLANKING THE ENDS OF A MANTEL

WREATH FOR YOUR DOOR WITH A BIG VELVET BOW

ENORMOUS BOXWOOD GARLAND FOR AROUND A DOORFRAME OR BANISTER

MORE WHIMSICAL, BUT THESE FEATHER TREES (I BOUGHT IN ALL THREE SIZES) TO CLUSTER ON A MANTEL OR COFFEE TABLE SCAPE

MINI BOXWOODS TIED UP WITH RED VELVET RIBBON

Q: A replacement for my favorite (discontinued) Hudson Horrigan booties with a 1.5 inch heel.

A: I feel like you might like the wildly popular Isabel Marant Dicker bootie, or maybe take a plunge with me and snap up a pair of on-trend clog boots.

Q: Vintage furniture and home goods.

A: We have had great luck at Jayson Home, which we first discovered in our Chicago neighborhood, but which ships everywhere. How incredible is this double file cabinet?! Stunning. If you have a good sense of what you’re looking for, Etsy is a treasure trove. (I mean, this vintage peacock chair?!) And One King’s Lane always has an enormous vintage section with one-of-a-kind pieces like this regency-style nightstand.

Mintwood Home also sells beautiful pieces, like this drawered side table, that have a vintage quality to them, though they are all brand-new.

Q: High-rise, wide-leg black velvet pants for holiday.

A: So fun. LOVE a trouser for the holidays — I wore a pair of black watch tartan trousers last Christmas that I loved. Below, some velvet wonders:

D&G

BLACK MAGIC BY SLEEPING WITH JACQUES

ASOS SCORE (LOVE THE TIE WAIST)

NAVY INSTEAD OF BLACK, BUT I LOVE THE FIT/WAIST ON THESE

FOR THOSE OF YOU LOOKING FOR A MORE TAILORED FIT — CHIC!

Q: Everyday gold jewelry.

A: I shared some beautiful everyday options here, but I would add to this list the dainty layering pieces from Jennifer Zeuner (I love this delicate cross) and Dana Rebecca.

Q: A long camel coat at various price points please.

A: I love a long camel coat. Obsessed with this, this, and this for a traditional/timeless look.

Q: My 30th birthday celebration — it’ll be outside in early November — the theme is plaid and fur.

A: Happy birthday! This is so fun. How timely, too — I shared a bunch of darling plaid pieces for women earlier today. But mainly — is this not the most fabulous thing you’ve ever seen? I first saw it on fashion plate (and founder of Hill House Home) Nellie Diamond last year and I was dead.

On the fur side, a few fun accessories to consider…

THIS STOLE

THIS GLAMOROUS QUILTED JACKET

EARMUFFS

Q: Adjustable/affordable kids’ masks!

A: I have only been using Busy Bees Kids’ face masks with mini because we love them, but they are pricey. I have heard really good things about Gap’s face masks for the entire family — I like these solid-colored ones, and they are reasonably priced.

Q: A chic winter outfit (coat, mittens/gloves, etc) to pair with my new No. 6 clog boots.

A: I’ve seen them styled very stylishly with skinny jeans tucked into them and big sweaters (love) as well as with cropped denim to show a bit of leg between the top of the boot and the cuff of the pant, finished with a slimmer-fit knit. I will probably wear them most consistently with skinny jeans, chunky knits or sweatshirts, and my favorite transitional coat.

Q: I’m 5 feet tall, but want an almost duster-like winter coat with a little structure (not a wrap style), preferably in tan. I’m fine with anything up to $1,000.

A: Love this Gap topcoat style (comes in petite sizes, which may be worth exploring) and this double-breasted Mango reminds of Carolyn Bessette Kennedy. And then this Rag & Bone is tailored perfection, though not sure how you feel about the neckline.

Q: Comfy work from home clothes.

A: I hear you! My daily uniform is J. Brand photoready jeans (stretchy but flattering) and a statement sweatshirt or supersoft waffle knit sweaters in cashmere or cotton.

Mango has a lot of great cozy knits designed to be layered out right now — including this dress (almost a nightgown!), this knit jumpsuit, and these joggers (spotted on Katie Holmes!)

Finally, a trendy sherpa overshirt (look for less) with leggings.

Q: Rain boots for toddlers.

A: I love a classic Hunter rainboot in green or yellow, but this $20 pair comes in great colors too (love the pale pink). Also — don’t miss this darling $30 raincoat!

By: Jen Shoop

*Image above via Ralph Lauren, my sartorial touchstone. When in doubt, go to RL for inspiration.

**A quick headnote that CPC Kids is back on Zulily — and they have a few darling tartan longalls left as well as these duck embroidered longalls (perfect for Thanksgiving) and Christmas print ones, both of which Hill owns! Note that though other pieces of CPC Kids I have purchased in the past run small, these longalls run big. I would size down if you want for current season.

Do you send a family portrait out with your holiday cards? We have never done this ourselves though I have talked on and off about wanting to do it. I had big plans to make it happen this year but with COVID, it just fell right out of my priorities. Next year…! I know I will one day kick myself for missing the opportunity to document our life as a family in this way. I must make it happen!

Anyway — I often receive questions about what to wear for family portraits, and what I am daydreaming of right now is a Ralph Lauren-inspired tartan look for the family. (And I love the idea of having your little one tote a Steiff puppy for the portrait — my parents-in-law gave mini a vintage Steiff airedale stuffed animal when she was born, and it’s one of our family’s treasured possessions.) Below, some amazing tartan finds for the entire family:

Tartan Finds for Little Girls.

THIS TARTAN-SASHED CORDUROY DRESS

TRADITIONAL TAFFETA

CHEERY RED COAT (WOULD LOOK PRECIOUS TO HAVE A PLAID DRESS PEEKING OUT UNDERNEATH)

RED VELVET ROMPER (IN CASE EVERYONE ELSE IS DECKED OUT IN PLAID — GOOD TO BALANCE WITH A FEW SOLIDS)

TARTAN BLOUSE (CUTE WITH DENIM IF GOING THE CASUAL ROUTE)

OVERSIZED HAIRBOW

THE ABSOLUTE PERFECT BLACK WATCH DRESS — ALSO ADORE THIS DARLING CHRISTMAS PLAID DRESS

SWEETEST CHRISTMAS SHOES

THIS $10 RUFFLE-TRIM DRESS (PRECIOUS WITH CABLEKNIT TIGHTS)

Tartan Finds for Little Boys.

THIS TARTAN BUBBLE (MATCHES SISTER’S SASH)

THIS CHRISTMAS PLAID SHORTALL (MATCHES SISTER’S DRESS)

WOOL BOW TIE (TO PAIR WITH NAVY BLAZER, WHITE SHIRT, KHAKIS)

WOOL TROUSERS (GREAT WITH A SHAWL COLLAR SWEATER — AND MATCHES SISTER)

BLACK WATCH BUTTON-DOWN (OR BODYSUIT IF ITTY BITTY, PERFECT UNDER THIS VELOUR SHORTALL SET) OR RED PLAID BUTTON DOWN

TARTAN JON JON

CUTE FLANNEL SHIRT FOR A DRESSED DOWN LOOK

Tartan Finds for Her.

I MEAN, THIS IS RIDICULOUS BUT CAN YOU EVEN?!

PLAID TOP KNOT HEADBAND OR SLIM PROFILE HEADBAND — GREAT WAY TO TIE IN WITH THE KIDS IF YOU END UP WEARING A SOLID DRESS

THIS PLEATED SKIRT COULD LOOK AMAZING WITH A MORE CONTEMPORARY-LEANING SWEATER, LIKE THIS ON-TREND CHUNKY KNIT OR THIS SCULPTURED MOCK NECK — OR EVEN THIS AVANT-GARDE BOW SWEATSHIRT

THIS TOPCOAT (FINAL DAY TO BUY ON SALE TODAY!) LAYERED OVER TROUSERS AND A SWEATER

THIS ABSOLUTELY AMAZING TEXTURED BLAZER WITH SKINNY JEANS (EVOCATIVE OF BALMAIN BUT A FRACTION OF THE PRICE)

THIS PLAID PONCHO

A MAJOR SPLURGE, BUT I’M IN LOVE WITH THIS SMART TOP — IT WILL NEVER GO OUT OF VOGUE, AND THE SHAPE WORKS FOR ANY AGE

TARTAN BOOTIES!!! AMAZING WAY TO TIE IN WITH THE FAMILY

TARTAN TWEED SKIRT

Tartan Finds for Him.

WOOL TIE

THIS PLAID VELVET SUIT IS SO DELIGHTFULLY EXTRA — I’M DEAD OVER IT

FOR A MORE CASUAL LOOK (AMAZING WITH DARK DENIM)

TARTAN SMOKING LOAFERS (SO COOL IF THE REST OF THE OUTFIT IS TONED DOWN — DARK DENIM, A SIMPLE IVORY SWEATER)

PLAID SCARF

TARTAN SPORT SHIRT

P.S. And for the dog!

P.P.S. More first hints of holiday…

P.P.P.S. What to wear to Thanksgiving and the prayer that represents the holiday best for me.

By: Jen Shoop

Images, from top to bottom, via @lespgdn, @laurenrubinski discovered via Daily Cup of Couture, and Mango (sweater featured only $59).

I have seen a fun little microtrend cropping up on Instagram: sweaters worn around shoulders or even diagonally across torso as an embellishment or accessory, and I love it.

One way to get the look? Double up on a sweater you love — I have several of Everlane’s $100 cashmere crewnecks in different colors, and now I am thinking of adding a second in a colorway I already own. (Note: for those who have experienced pilling with these sweaters, you must purchase one of these fabric shavers. They make old sweaters like-new!)

I also love the idea of pairing different sweaters in the same color but different textures that I already own to layer a la Mango (the model above is accessorizing this $60 knit with this $60 polo style sweater around her torso) — for example, I might pair my “bone” colored cashmere crewneck with my waffle-knit sweater around my shoulders. (And if you like the chunky necklaces seen above from high-end jewelry designer Lauren Rubinski, you will love this more affordable style from Perrine Taverniti. Such a chic investment for this fall. Very on trend.)

And, as shown in the photo at the top of this post, I love the idea of breathing new life into a white button-down by tying a crewneck (in the heather flax, preferably) on.

Finally, you can always let the designer do the work for you: this tie-detailed wool sweater from new-to-me label Le 17 Septembre is crazy chic.

And speaking of embellished sweaters, can we all appreciate this ruffled tie neck sweater from Marc Jacobs (marked down to 70% off) and how much this $78 steal from Madewell nails the look for less?!

P.S. Another current-season microtrend I’m obsessed with.

P.P.S. Desk accessories I love.

P.P.P.S. A love letter to the Upper West Side.

By: Jen Shoop

*Above image is The Bullfighter, by Juan Gris, but I saw some visual resonance with the book that I found compelling.

There has been serious buzz around Brit Bennett’s The Vanishing Half, which has been likened to Toni Morrison’s first novel (!). The book follows the stories of twin sisters born in a Southern Black community. One of them runs away and secretly passes as white. The other escapes an abusive relationship and brings her daughter — who is much darker than her mother, and for whom passing would never be an option — back to the town she once tried to escape.

The novel is a rich and deftly textured pastiche of doubles, mistaken and forged identities, echoes, and othernesses. We explore multiple vignettes in which we see splits, halves, “others,” some of them inevitable and others shaped at the hands of willful characters. For example, we have sisters born as twins and the inherited racial characteristics (i.e., color of skin) of the characters in this novel — that is, facts of biology that cannot be tampered with. And then we have the decision of Stella to pass as white, Reese’s gender reassignment, and Kennedy’s acting career, in which she is often publicly confused with the character she portrays in a popular soap opera. There are so many doubles and identity changes that the novel feels nearly Shakespearean. (Doubles of all kinds abound in Shakespeare — “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” is a play in a play and full of mistaken/swapped identities in particular — and there is an entire body of critical literature on the functional practice of “doubling” in Shakespearean theatre, by which actors played multiple roles, a strategic move that often enabled the audience to glean thematic connections between separate plot-lines.) But we have the sense in Bennett’s book that these doubles are not strategem but substance, so intense is her focus on the logistics of “splitting.” We look closely at the complications of passing as someone else (even the offhanded slips in tongue where Stella’s past life is unwittingly revealed), the pain of undergoing gender reassignment (from the risk and cost of testosterone-riddled concoctions purchased by Reese in back alleys to the recovery from surgery and, of course, the emotional toll all has taken), the agony of erasing a past in pursuit of a new identity. The focus on these logistics of transition are further signaled by the title: the vanishing half, not the vanished half. We are drawn to the messy metamorphosis itself, not the befores and afters. The title further calls into question the permanence of these evolutions: are the characters ever able to fully escape their first identities? Are they always in a state of vanishing but never fully vanished? This is perhaps a matter of perspective: many characters meet Reese and never know that he was once a woman, just as many never know that Stella is passing as white. But many of the characters closest in, the ones who knew the “befores,” appear perpetually engaged in the act of hunting, tracing, tracking, unearthing the “former” version of their loved ones.

If it’s not yet clear, I was flat out astounded by Bennett’s dexterity in constructing a text that felt as though it rippled with doubles and echoes. The narrative was tautly-written in that sense, though the prose at times belied that complexity in its accessibility and seeming straight-forwardness, itself a feat. It was an easy read, the story moving quickly and compellingly in approachable prose–but the meat will stick with me for some time.

What did you think?

Post Scripts.

+What I’m reading this fall.

+Audibooks I’ve particularly enjoyed recently: Ruth Reichl’s Save Me the Plums and Bess Kalb’s Nobody Will Tell You This But Me. I love listening to memoirs narrated by the authors themselves — their voices, intonations, expressions give so much away! It took me a minute to warm up to Reichl, but my God is her food-writing transcendent. I could listen to her talk about French food forever. It’s absolutely sensational, in every sense of the word–you see and taste the food with her artful language, which is both (paradoxically!) precise and imaginative. Unbelievable. I learned a lot, technique-wise, listening to her talk about food. Kalb’s book is basically a love story between herself and her deceased grandmother, and it is heartbreaking and tender and has a message that bears repeating in 2020: “If the earth is cracking behind you, you put one foot in front of the other.“

+These woven accent tables would be such a chic and inexpensive way to outfit a guest bedroom with two bedside tables — see how they’ve done that in the second picture? When Mr. Magpie and I were outfitting our home in Chicago, we de-prioritized the guest room, investing in high-traffic, heavy-use areas like our living spaces and mini’s nursery. This would be such an affordable way to “finish” a guest bedroom and make visitors comfortable.

+I’m bowled over by some of the new designs at CB2 — this lacquered linen console table and this pedestal table (daydreaming of this in a formal entryway — wow wow wow) belong in the pages of Architectural Digest! Wow!

+Small things, like lucite napkin holders to contain my cocktail napkins (always obsessed with Caspari brand), bring me joy.

+I can’t stop daydreaming about this cardigan. Like, who even would I be wearing it? Same goes for this very-not-my-style shacket from IRO (look for less with this) — but could I make it mine, pairing with my Alexandre Birman kitten heel booties and skinny dark jeans?! OOO.

+This shawl collar pullover for a little boy is so good.

+OK, I am officially dead over these feather trees. Going to add to the winter wonderland I’m setting up on my sideboard in my dining room.

+This knit vest totally caught me off guard: it’s again not even my style, really, but I gravitated towards the coffee brown immediately, imagining myself pairing it with a crisp white shirt or layering over another knit.

+A spectacular fall dress, and a chic suggestion for Thanksgiving.

+Can you even deal with this bunny puffer snowsuit for babies?! Oh my goodness.

+Amazing, sophisticated topcoat for under $100. Love the shape. Would look nuts with a tall boot. (Some of my favorite boot finds for fall here.)

+Crushing on ribbed knits at the moment, and this dress looks like heaven for a weekend spent at home.

+Musings on running.

By: Jen Shoop

Has Black Friday come early this year?! So many insane sales this week!

First, a little note to let you know I updated my Amazon/Target Deal Day post, as some items had sold out and I found a few extra amazing scores — namely:

ORIBE SHAMPOO SALE

CHILDREN’S NEW BALANCE SNEAKERS FOR $25!!!

THE REVLON ONE-STEP SOLD OUT AT TARGET, BUT AMAZON PRICE-MATCHED AND IT IS STILL AVAILABLE HERE FOR UNDER $30

And, not on sale, but Amazon just re-stocked some Nintendo Switch consoles, which is pretty much the ultimate Christmas gift for kids/teens. (They have been sold out everywhere!)

Two other sales you need to know about: J. Crew has marked down some of its current-season outerwear to ~50% off…

CLASSIC BOY’S FIELD COAT FOR $44

THIS REVERSIBLE SHERPA COAT FOR GIRLS COMES IN GREAT COLORS (LOVE THE COCA COLA RED!)

THE LIBERTY-TRIM WOMEN’S BARN JACKET IS UNDER $80!!

Last but not least, COS Bar is running a Friends & Family promotion: $15 off $100; $40 off $200, $100 off $400, and on up. This is a perfect time to score a little break on rarely-on-sale beauty brands like Westman Atelier (I adore their foundation stick), Cle De Peau (you know I’m in a committed relationship with their concealer — just the best), and Augustinus Bader.

P.S. Coffee, hiking, and musings on my own ipseity.

By: Jen Shoop

Gucci’s recent Liberty collaboration has alighted the hearts of grandmillennials everywhere, especially in the form of the crossbody above (I’ll take these shoes, pls and thank you). Below, sharing some favorite fall floral finds either featuring Liberty London textiles, or Liberty-esque prints:

PRETTY LIBERTY KNOTTED HEADBAND (UNDER $20 — ALSO LOVE THESE ONES, BUT THEY ARE MORE SUMMER-APPROPRIATE)

HORROR VACUI TOP — GET THE H.V. LOOK FOR LESS WITH THIS J. CREW STEAL

MAMA SWEATSHIRT

THIS LIBERTY COLLAR COAT (I THINK I NEED THIS AFTER ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATION)

SO MANY DOEN PIECES THIS SEASON — LOVE THIS WITH SNEAKERS OR FLATS

HAND EMBROIDERED LAVENDER SACHET (SWEETEST GIFT!)

Liberty London/Liberty-Esque Finds for Children.

THIS BEYOND ADORABLE BOW BAG — GREAT GIFT FOR A LITTLE ONE FILLED WITH PRETTY BOWS

NURSERY LUMBAR PILLOW

THIS SWEET OVERSIZED BOW (YOU CAN FIND SIMILAR ON ETSY FOR LESS, BUT I LIKE THIS SMALL BROOKLYN-BASED BUSINESS, TOO!)

DARLING CRIB SHOES

ANYTHING FROM DONDOLO’S FALL GARDEN COLLECTION, BUT ESPECIALLY THIS BUBBLE

SLIM HEADBANDS — PERFECT FOR LITTLE HEADS

JACADI ALWAYS DOES BEAUTIFUL PIECES IN LIBERTY FABRIC — LOVE THIS FALL DRESS, THESE PRECIOUS TIGHTS (!), AND THIS BODYSUIT

POPPY BLOUSE — PRECIOUS UNDER A DENIM JUMPER

I AM SWOONING OVER THESE HANDMADE LIBERTY BUNNIES, LOVIES, AND BLANKETS — PERSONALIZABLE AND TOO PRECIOUS

PRETTY FLORAL BEADED NECKLACE — I FEEL LIKE MINI WOULD OBSESS OVER THIS

FITTED CRIB SHEET

SWEETEST THREE PACK OF CAMISOLES FOR LAYERING UNDER DRESSES (I GENERALLY PREFER STARK WHITE ONES FROM FEATHER — SIZE UP — BUT THESE ARE SO DARLING!)

BISBY DRESS OR LEGGINGS

LIBERTY HAIR CLIPS

SWEET DECORATIVE SUITCASE FOR STOWING BARBIES/DOLLS/DRESS-UP

QUESTION EVERYTHING DRESS, ESPECIALLY WITH PINK RIBBED TIGHTS

EVERYTHING FROM THIS AMAZING ETSY SHOP, BUT ESPECIALLY THIS DARLING ROMPER (THANKS TO A READER TIP FOR THIS SHOP SUGGESTION!)

P.S. On thought followership.

P.P.S. Musings on silence.

P.P.P.S. More recent children’s finds here.

By: Jen Shoop

*Image above of supermodel Adut Akech Bior, looking impossibly chic while possibly pausing to lock in an Amazon Prime deal, which today includes a discount on the Apple Airpods she’s wearing above.

**ED NOTE: This post has been updated on October 14th to remove items sold out or no longer available as a deal.

Mainly, I’m here to say that my beloved Revlon One-Step Volumizer and Dryer is on sale for all-time low of $29. You can read a full review here, but — hand to the heavens — I swear it has been one of my chief coping tools throughout this pandemic: I always have beautifully blow-dried hair on its account. I will be buried with this thing. Ha!

The BEST curling iron is also on sale at Target for $27. It comes in different barrel sizes (and I own several), but I like the 1.5″ for the beachy waves I usually use the iron to achieve. My mother turned me onto this brand when I was in my teens and I have owned my curling irons now for TWENTY YEARS and they never fail. They heat up quickly, are easy to maneuver, and just work forever.

And speaking of hair care, I also added one of their Pantene Pro V shampoo and conditioner bundles to my cart — extra 25% off!!! I love Pantene Pro V. It is my second favorite haircare brand behind Oribe (which is $$$$, but the Gold Lust Repair formula is currently on sale as a part of Amazon’s Prime Day!; I haven’t tried this formula but I’ve tried several others and especially like their “Magnificent Volume” collection). So I often toggle between using fancy Oribe (which smells like heaven) and Pantene Pro V to assuage my guilt — ha! Anyhow, added this set to my cart to keep in our linen closet. Can’t resist the discount.

Target also has some toys and games on sale for 25% off: I just bought mini this Hungry Hippo game for Christmas, kinetic sand is a fun idea if your children have never used it before, and — of course — what toddler girl doesn’t love a Frozen doll? I know there is a great debate over Barbies (a few moms I respect will not permit them in their houses!), but I fall on the pro-Barb side. My sisters and I used them to create elaborate stories in our youth and I see mini doing the same. I consider them a slow-burn toy.

Over at Amazon, a few discounted items to know about:

1 // Boos Block. (ED NOTE: This is no longer on sale as of 10/14 but still an incredible investment/gift idea.) This is the BEST cutting board and would make a great gift for your meat-loving, cooking-obsessed husband (or wife). We own a few Boos blocks but this one is wonderful because of the groove around the edge, which catches any drippings from the meat (Mr. Magpie always lets his meat rest on this specific board for that reason) and also prevents your mise en place from rolling off the edge! Truly one of our most-used items in the kitchen. Great investment in your cooking life, and amazing gift. Plus — they are beautiful!

2 // Stasher Bags. Not a fantastic price break, but I use these all the time with my children (and myself, too), and the discount was compelling enough for me to add a few more to my cart. A weird thing I love: the colors are great and they help me quickly grab the correct snack for the correct child from my diaper bag. We toss them in the dishwasher to clean (“draping” them over some of the prongs on the top rack to keep them open) and then leave them to dry inverted on Boon drying grass.

3 // Nuk Learner Cups. These are, in my opinion, the best cups for the transition from bottle to sippy cup.

4 // Zutano Booties. Another baby must-have I’ve documented countless times on le blog. These are the only cozy baby booties that truly stay on and stay put! Love that they are easy to launder and they hold up well. Select colors/sizes marked down to $15.

5 // Apple Airpods. I mean, these transformed my daily life. I’m not kidding! I love to use these when I’m making calls to schedule appointments, reservations, etc, because I can sit at my computer and work with my hands-free and without having the conversation blasted on speaker in my apartment. I also use these whenever I run errands or walk Tilly to listen to audiobooks — never a wasted moment! A great gift for yourself or a loved one. (This + an Audible subscription for Christmas = *chef’s kiss.*)

6 // Legos and Picasso Tiles. Forever favorite holiday gifts — especially the Legos! My two oldest nephews are Lego-obsessed, and they are considerably less expensive than usual right now.

7 // Schwinn Balance Bike. Mr. Magpie and I are planning to get mini a bike for Christmas, and this Schwinn in pink is currently marked down to $70…

8 // New Balance Kids’ Sneakers for $25!!!

P.S. It’s just a good week for sales I guess.

P.P.S. Things that make me feel good about myself.

By: Jen Shoop

Ed. note: This post was accidentally published yesterday morning — apologies for its disappearance and now phantom like reappearance today, its original intended publication date.

********

The Uses of Sorrow

Someone I loved once gave me

a box full of darkness.

It took me years to understand

that this, too, was a gift.

–Mary Oliver

This poem is difficult. Sometimes I think that I try too hard to assign meaning to the sorrows of life, as if grief must have a purpose. I am forever chastened by a reader who once wrote that she had given birth to a stillborn child, and that she could not — would not — allow that God had intended that. Some things just happen, she said. And what to say? The only possible human response was to sit in grief with that reader, and not say all the things that I usually say to buoy myself and my Magpies. To nod, and to cry, and to listen — to make dignified space for the breadth of her loss.

But then I creep back, peering my head around the corner, finding umbrage in the promise that we survive 100% of our bad days and that I believe there is a plan — even sometimes if that plan feels self-constructed — and that it is too difficult and despairing to live otherwise. So though I bristled at first at Mary Oliver’s words, thinking singularly of my friend E., rejecting the idea that her passing could in any way be “a gift,” I think I will let them hang with me for a minute.

A bit dark to share on a Tuesday morning, but —

Just to say, in case you need permission, that it is OK to feel your way through things, to find yourself landing on different sides of the coin, to live in a semi-permanent state of ambivalence. If it took the brilliant Mary Oliver “years” to understand the contours of her own sorrow, it is sure to take me a lifetime.

P.S. More reflections on Mary Oliver here and here.

P.P.S. The sense of an ending.

By: Jen Shoop

I asked you over Instagram what you were shopping for and loved all the replies! It sounds like many of us are in the market for winter coats and boots, and who doesn’t love a classic camel (as seen above — get the look with this, this, or this, which is on my longtime lust list, and pair with a fun red sweater). At any rate, I had so much fun shopping for you. Below, my answers. If you don’t see your question answered, more coming in Part II in a few days!

Q: Patterned/plaid wool coat — polished silhouette but fun pattern.

A: I am in love with this black watch tartan topcoat — I am all in on tartan this winter. Can’t get enough, and the price is great. I also swoon over this cheery checked style, this tailored houndstooth Smythe (wow), and this textured Mackage. And though not patterned, these two come in such great colors and with such fun details, I had to include: this bow-embellished RedValentino (the color is too good!) and this textured LSF.

Q: Fall/winter dresses! Don’t want to wear jeans for the rest of the year this time.

A: Bravo to that! Here are a few great winter dresses:

MIDI-LENGTH TURTLENECK STYLE

THIS HOUNDSTOOTH STYLE — EASY TO THROW ON WITH BLACK TIGHTS AND BOOTIES

THIS WILL BE MY THIRD WINTER GETTING A TON OF USE OUT OF A GANNI LEOPARD SMOCKED MAXI (CURRENT SEASON STYLE HERE) — EASY AND COMFORTABLE AND CHIC, ESPECIALLY WITH THESE BOOTIES

FOR SIMILAR REASONS, DRAWN TO THIS PYTHON PRINT

RIBBED SWEATER DRESS

DRAWN TO SLOUCHY KNIT STYLES LIKE THIS — SO CHIC WITH TALL LEATHER BOOTS

ALWAYS LOVE AN ULLA STATEMENT LIKE THIS WITH CROC/BROWN SUEDE BOOTS

Q: A hearty boot that’s a step below the bean boot with grip but style for winter.

A: Marc Fisher’s Izzie boot! So chic. Have been eyeing these for myself. Kind of a less clunky version of the very trendy combat boot, and love that sherpa detail! Alternately, my No. 6 clog boots. (Look for less!)

Q: Black suede booties — feminine but practical for everyday.

A: I absolutely love a kitten heeled suede bootie — so delicate and chic. I own this pair from Alexandre Birman in a different color and it is THE BEST. (50% off!). I own multiple pairs of Birman shoes and the quality is exceptional. This J. Crew pair is similar but only available in suede in a cypress green color (very chic too!). I also love the profile and heel height of these slouchy ones from Aquatalia (on super sale, and I know a lot of Magpies LOVE this brand). If you like a chunkier heel, these Acne ones are slick.

Q: A dress for family photos like this McQueen that isn’t $2000!

A: Ooh – love its elegance and simplicity. This Stella McCartney is similar in structure (different neckline) and marked down to almost 70% off. I also love this elegant COS style, though its in a seersucker fabric that may not be right for the scene you are setting (since you were drawn to that McQueen in wool!)

Q: Wedding guest dresses for fall!

A: I got you covered! I would also add this statement. Wow!

Q: What are your suggestions for a cotton-loving second grade teacher heading back to school? (Thermal long-sleeves? Trousers? Shoes/boots to teach in?) I am a woman of substance. I do believe that I am not the only one.

A: God bless you! Hoping for a smooth transition back.

For wardrobe, I would buy a few favorite pairs of pants that fit super well in different silhouettes in basic colors: I own and love these in ivory frost, these pixie pants are like dressed-up leggings, and then these bow-front cords are super fun, and if jeans are permissible (I’m not sure how you feel about them as a teacher!), a pair you love. Then mix in a few lightweight layering pieces, a classic button-down or two, and some statement sweaters and mix and match. For shoes, I think a great everyday mule like this, this, or this (so fun) or this would be dreamy for comfort and could go with any of the pants above.

P.S. One way I love to breathe new life into pieces I already own — add on-trend accessories like a wool headband or statement collar.

Q: A dress for my son’s Baptism in an outdoor garden Church ceremony.

A: Ooh, congratulations! #Goalz would be a boucle coat dress like this, which you could pair with tights (Gucci would be extra) and heels and layer under a wool coat if necessary (J. Crew always does great classic styles like their Lady Day for winter, although this in the ivory/beige color is amazing for the price). Alternately, a structured knit dress like this is gorgeous, or an on-trend houndstooth shift (alternately, this), which could be worn with elegant tall boots. Finally, Sandro always does fantastic ladylike-but-not-too-prim dresses, like this beauty. Stunning!

Q: A birthday gift for my 30-something sister.

A: Ooo! Happy birthday to her! A few fun presents at $130 or under:

WEEZIE SHORT ROBE (LOVE AND LIVE IN THIS)

TRENDY HEADBAND

CHIC CHINOISERIE MELAMINE PLATES (OBSESSED)

GORGEOUS BLOCKPRINT BLOUSE FOR FALL

A LITTLE POT OF LA MER FACE CREAM (COMES IN MINI SIZE) WRAPPED UP IN HUGE BOW

CASHMERE SLIPPERS

CHIC LINER COAT

STYLISH BOOK PLATES AND A FEW OF YOUR FAVORITE BOOKS

AN ELECTRIC TEA KETTLE AND TEA FROM A FANCY PURVEYOR

A SET OF FLUFFY MATOUK TOWELS

A NAP DRESS

Q: A chic work bag — professional but not boring. I’m heading back to work after baby #3.

A: Congratulations! I would recommend Cuyana’s structured leather tote. So polished and great quality for the price, and you can get it personalized, which I think is so chic. Clare Vivier also does great, chic totes with interesting details and Paravel’s Atlantic tote is smart. Pricy, but Anya Hindmarch always does gorgeous handbags. And I think you’d win the envy of the entire world with a Bottega tote. Bottega is so in at the moment!

For something with a little more flare to it, this Little Liffner bag is amazing — sophisticated but fun — and if you won’t need to carry a laptop, any of the Lee Radziwill bags from TB are ultra-covetable.

Q: A bag that can fit a laptop that also closes.

A: Cuyana’s zip top tote! I used mine for work a lot. Fits your entire world. Only downside is that it’s not structured. Depending on the size of your laptop, this Clare Vivier could also work (love the bag strap). And then Stoney Clover’s totes (newly available in seasonal corduroy) come in fun colors and can be personalized with letters/patches.

Q: A baby play mat.

A: People love these configurable foam tiles (the edges can be positioned upward to keep babies from rolling off) and this reversible style has almost 2,000 five-star reviews.

Q: Affordable black knee-high boots.

A: I love these and these. Both would be so elegant under floaty fall dresses. And I love the profile of this OTK pair (on super sale).

Another reader asked for the same thing, at all price points, so here are a few on the high-end side that I love: these Loeffler Randalls and these from Paris Texas.

If you’re after a slouchy style, consider these.

Q: A dress for my sister’s rehearsal dinner in November in the Midwest.

A: Yay! Congratulations to your sister. Depending on the dress code, some of the dresses here might work. If not, here are a few others I love, at varying degrees of dressiness:

THIS ANIMAL PRINT

THIS TUNIC STYLE

THIS DRAMATIC PAISLEY

THIS FALL-READY ULLA

Q: I remember you wearing a long-sleeved blush shift dress with Gucci tights to a shower while pregnant. I’m also expecting and would love to recreate the look. Where was the dress from?

A: So flattered by this inquiry! The dress was from Banana Republic (non-maternity, but fit worked with bum) but a few years old. You can recreate the look with this sweet puff-sleeved dress (such a steal and so pretty). I might size up one size just to be safe, or order both your true size and one size up to compare and ship back whichever doesn’t work. I wore black Gucci logo tights but they appear to be sold out now — would also have worn these ivory ones! Would look precious!

I also love this white shift dress and this ivory Victoria Backham — both would look great with those ivory Gucci tights and would likely work well with a small to moderate sized bump.

Q: Gifts for my mom/mother-in-law for helping with our upcoming pandemic mini-wedding.

A: I love to give Herend pieces as special thank yous / mementos of particular occasions, if your mother/mother-in-law might appreciate that kind of thing. (I know it’s not for everyone.) This XO set is so sweet, as is this bow box. I also love the idea of gifting a set of coupes to “toast” the celebration (also love these), or a pair of special pearl earrings or a cashmere wrap you could give them to wear on the day.

Q: Boots like the pair in this picture.

A: She is wearing these! You can get the look for less with these.

Q: Paris Texas python boot look-a-likes in brown.

A: Sam Edelman! I’m also impressed with their croc pair, which looks a lot like Paris Texas.

Q: A chic backpack that fits a computer. (Does that even exist?)

A: I love my quilted MZ Wallace backpack. Use it more often than I thought I would and it definitely fits a computer. I like to wear it when I’m wearing basically all black everything else. I have also heard good things about Senreve, and I believe you could fit a laptop in there. Finally, I love this canvas and copper style!

Q: A cute clutch to carry to weddings (eventually).

A: OMG where have you been all my life. I am constantly almost buying clutches with nowhere to go. Below, clutches I am drooling over:

MANSUR GAVRIEL’S CLOUD CLUTCH (SO VERSATILE)

REJINA PIYO’S KNOT BAG

CULT GAIA’S PEARL CLUTCH

VANINA BAG

FOR BLACK TIE — THIS BOW BAG (BUT ONLY IN THE BLACK; I FEEL LIKE THE OTHER COLORS MAKE THE BAG LOOK CHEAP)

By: Jen Shoop

*Image above via Anine Bing, and her show-stopping coat is on sale!

Woohoo! Shopbop’s Fall Event is here — 15% off orders $200+; 20% off orders $500+; 25% off orders $800+ with code FALL20. If you’ve been waiting to pull the trigger on that Thanksgiving dress or that pair of fall/winter boots, voila l’occasion. A few items I am swooning over:

THIS $100 EMBROIDERED BLOUSE IS CALLING MY NAME

PERFECT PLAID WOOL STATEMENT COAT (LOVEEE — AND WELL-PRICED)

LOVE THIS CUT OF DENIM FROM AGOLDE (I OWN IN THIS WASH) – WEIRDLY FLATTERING; I WEAR WITH A POINTED TOE PUMP AND A BLOUSE TUCKED IN

THIS DRESS IS ABSOLUTELY BEYOND BEYOND BEYOND — WINTER BRIDES REJOICE (PERFECT GETAWAY DRESS)

ON-TREND SHACKET — LOVE THAT THIS ONE GIVES ME LADYLIKE CHANEL VIBES; ALSO LIKE THIS MORE LUMBERJACK-ESQUE STYLE

FALL SNEAKERS

IT’S ALL ABOUT CHUNKY CHAIN NECKLACES THIS SEASON, AND I ADORE THIS STYLE

YOU KNOW J’ADORE

A TIMELESS DRESS YOU WILL USE FOR DECADES IN EITHER THE WHITE OR NAVY

P.S. And OH GOSH the 25% off event at Maje is ending tonight and I cannot deal with this sweater.

P.P.S. If you saw another post published at 5 a.m. this morning and then retracted — I apologize for the snafu, but I accidentally scheduled the wrong post to publish today! It will reappear tomorrow. Sorry!

By: Jen Shoop

My high school girlfriend Amelia* visited me briefly when I was studying abroad in Lyon, France, and we together endeavored to take a day trip to the alpine town of Annecy, France, where the order of the Visitation — the nuns who had established our high school in 1799, making it the oldest Catholic girls school in the original thirteen colonies — had been founded in 1610 by Saint Frances de Sales and Saint Jane de Chantal. We went out of some vague sense of obligation: “we’re so close, we might as well–“, as if our parents or our former school headmaster might scold us for not visiting given our proximity, and because we both understood one another to be practicing Catholics, and because I was at that time desperate for the familiar. I had attended Sunday Mass at Sainte Croix de Lyon every Sunday since arriving in Lyon, and the Church was at that time too poor to afford heating, and it was a particularly cold winter. So I would stand in that Gothic cavern dotted with the sparsest of churchgoers, the hum of the priest’s voice echoing against its eaves, shivering in a full-length wool coat. If I am honest, half of the time, I would leave feeling more adrift than ever, the language a barrier to my participation and the barren pews a reminder of my solitude. I could not comprehend the Church’s desertion (wasn’t France a Catholic nation?) and I would wince at its unseemly positioning alongside a fitness store and across from a seedy-looking restaurant, wedged in among the stone edifices of the street, as though unremarkable. I strained against the narratives these details spoke, longing for something else. There were some Sundays where the sun would shine through the stained glass, and I would remember my youth and myself in the rhythms of the liturgy: after all, I still knew when to stand and when to sit; how to receive Communion; how to say Amen.

This journey, then, with Amelia, was a hopeful excursion. We chatted gleefully about everything, sharing brioche sucree on the train, and I was relieved by the constancy of her sense of self, the shared parcel of memories we could mine together (besides attending Visitation for four years and spending countless weekends together, she had come on several trips with my family to a timeshare my parents then had in Hot Springs, Virginia), and her familiar, sharp inquisitiveness. She was much smarter and better-read than I was, and I found her company thrilling though humbling–a good thing for me at the time, cocky as I was about my own intelligence. In high school, she would ask earnestly for my opinion on esoteric books by Walker Percy and the copy of Thomas Merton’s The Seven Storey Mountain that she had leant me and I had not been able to wade through, and I was always flattered and embarrassed by her searching eyes as I’d stumble through my reactions to them. We were young and hungry. I recall floating a juvenile literary theory about narrators and readerly affections at which she first gamely nodded her head and then — upon my second airing of it — simply said: “Yes, you’ve said that before.” So it was a meaningful trip, this one to Annecy, in that I was in search of reassurance of both the intellectual and spiritual ilk.

On our way there, we stood huddled in one of the train cars. I can’t remember why we were standing — it must have been either a too-crowded car or perhaps a local train with a standing section for commuters — but at some point, we both observed a mother piercing her daughter’s ear with a needle across the narrow galley. We made eyes at one another, at this bizarre happening, and struggled through a conversation that continually elapsed into distracted silences.

“And so…” she would say, after twenty or thirty seconds of quiet had pooled between us, “What…how are your parents?”

When we finally disembarked in Annecy, we burst into nervous laughter.

“What was that?!”

“Of all the odd places to pierce your daughter’s ear…”

“I can’t imagine that needle was particularly sterile–“

We meandered through the rest of the day, visiting the Basilica of The Visitation and lingering in the vestibule until we found a habit-wearing nun who we stopped and to whom we shyly explained our pilgrimage. She was warm, placing her hand over her heart, thanking us for the visit, blessing us. Her response felt like a bridge back to all I knew to be good and right in the circumscribed world in which I lived.

We then strolled through a small museum connected to the basilica and at some point, I said:

“This day has felt so unreal because of that mother piercing her daughter’s ear.” She nodded, and then she said: “I know. I keep waiting for the day when I can be like a grown woman about these things. Like, Elaine would be able to move on.”

She was referring to my mother, and I knew exactly what she meant: the nodding sense of perspective that age affords, the ability to see strange things and not be entirely flustered by them, the leathery toughness of knowing yourself and returning to that truth no matter how wild the winds.

We walked on in companionable silence, digesting the day.

I think of that surreal train ride often, of the way I was drifting through my life at that point, self-alienated from everything I had grown up with, and it feels like an elaborate parable. I was moving while seeking stasis, and the endpoint was a Basilica in the remote Southeast of France and the sharp awareness of just how far I was from my mother.

*Name has been changed to protect privacy. I love you, “Amelia!”, even and especially for taking me down a peg for my crudely-shaped narrator theory.

Post-Scripts.

+More memories from this intense period of self-formation while studying abroad here and here.

+When Mr. Magpie came to Lyon…

+Have heard great things about these bath blocks for little ones — filed away as a potential gift. More great Amazon buys here.

+Female friendships and the things that matter.

+An exfoliator you must try.

By: Jen Shoop

*Image above via SEA, featuring this sweater.

I already shared some of my favorite exaggerated collar pieces for this season a few weeks back, but I have recently come across a brilliant way to nail the trend by repurposing what you have in your closet: a detachable collar that can be layered with your favorite existing knitwear. Behold:

THIS $80 LR STATEMENT, AVAILABLE IN PRACTICAL WHITE OR WHIMSICAL FALL FLORAL

LE LION’S FABULOUS COLARETTE

S.E.A. MAGIC

THIS DRAMATIC PEARL STATEMENT FROM ZARA

THIS $23 ASOS SCORE

I would pair all of these with a simple cashmere crewneck!

P.S. A few other attached collar options I am obsessed with at the moment: this dramatic Vita Kin top, this Topshop knit, and this pilgrim chic dress I featured yesterday.

P.P.S. Some great sale scores at Shopbop.

P.P.P.S. Fleeces you need for fall.

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