*Image above via Mary Ellen Becker — absolutely swooning over this stunning entryway. Maybe the prettiest Christmas vignette I’ve seen this year?! Brava!
My Latest (Soon-to-Be) Snag: Bag Strap.
I have been hunting for a chic bag strap for a little gray teddy-textured pouch similar to this that I have so that I can wear it as a crossbody on school drop off days, and I am swooning over the options at Parker Thatch. I cannot decide between this pink/red stripe, this Gucci-esque style, or maybe this patterned one?! All of the stripes are so fun and eye catching. I need help — which one should I go with?! I’m leaning towards the pink/red.
P.S. Chic bags and chic phone slings.
You’re Sooooo Popular: A Feathered Button Down.
The most popular items on le blog this week:
+This feathered button-down (daaaaamn!)
+One of my favorite dresses I purchased this fall, now marked down to under $160. Super flattering, super comfortable, and in a breathable, lightweight material.
+Our living room rug. I always get questions about this! Great neutral but with a print/interest.
+I swore by this body tonic while pregnant and have converted at least two dozen expecting moms to its magic. I think that stretch marks are hereditary but this was still unbelievable for relieving the dry, stretched, uncomfortable skin on my belly!
+Great treat for yourself: fun house slippers.
+A fleece turtleneck sweatshirt!
+A cashmere turtleneck, 60% off.
+Gorgeous bath mat for under $20.
Weekend Musings: Signature Scents.
Do you have a signature scent? My mom is a big proponent of switching out perfumes every few months while my mother-in-law has worn Dior’s J’Adore for as long as I’ve known her, and I can’t think of my elegant grandmother without remembering her signature Houbigant Paris Quelques Fleurs scent (which my youngest sister now wears in her memory!)
I’m somewhere in the middle, having gone through phases of wearing one scent exclusively, testing a sampling, and now having firmly re-entrenched myself in Narcisco Rodriguez’s For Her scent, which continues to be my favorite scent (on me) of all time. I’ve worn it on and off since college (when I mimicked the chicest girl I knew by wearing what she wore — Chanel Coco Mademoiselle — for a spell, which smelled far too mature for me TBH) and I love the way it is both soft and feminine but spicy — j’adore.
Mr. Magpie hasn’t worn cologne since his early 20s but — is this weird? — I love his natural smell. He always smells clean? I don’t know how, but I married the cleanest man on earth! A reader recently wrote in requesting cologne suggestions and I came up dry for this reason!
What is your signature scent? What scents do you love?
Post-Scripts: Teddy Headband.
+Cutest teddy-style headband for $10! Much more reasonable than the $65 Loeffler Randall headband we were all gunning for…
+This beaded gingham baguette bag is giving me major Carrie Bradshaw vibes and I kind of dig it. Are we headed back toward late 90s fashion?
+OMG these bell and bow placecard holders!!!
+I ordered these exact taper candles for our holiday table and they are the prettiest shade of muted moss green.
+Amazing statement shoes for 60% off.
+Perfect birthday girl trousers. (WOW WOW WOW). And a perfect birthday girl dress. (WOW WOW WOW WOW). Both on sale!
+If you need a small, last-minute gift for a little one (or a stocking stuffer for your own), these are amazing.
+Cutest toddler slipper booties.
+Now this is a clever investment — works for any birthday at any age!
+Giving me Shakespeare in Love vibes, but modern-grandmillennial-chic? Perfect with tall suede boots.
+I feel like I want to live in this for the week between Christmas and NYE.
+This LSF dress is stunning…and 70% off.
+Gorgeous oversized lidded basket. Great for hiding toys in a communal space!
+Precious removable wallpaper — I’m thinking this would be insane in a little girl’s bathroom, or even her closet…or maybe lining the back of her bookshelf? Reminds me of TBBC’s Belle Meade Bow pattern!
+Speaking of bows: these leggings!
+Might have to buy these now and set aside for next year’s Thanksgiving table. Also love these botanicals!
+This dress is so fun — and looks delightfully easy to wear.
I love talking about fragrances! I’m like some of the other readers who have commented — I tend to wear the same scent for 2-3 years and then move on. I think my first ‘real’ perfume was Ralph Lauren Blue (I think that’s what it was called? It came in a blue glass bottle) Dolce & Gabbana Light Blue and Lolita Lempicka followed closely thereafter, and remind me of high school — soooo late 90s/early 2000s! In more recent years, I have been a devotee of MCMC, which is based in New York — and, over the past 5 years, of DS & Durga. DS & D Coriander is my signature scent, but I also love their Debaser.
Thinking of bag straps — I’ve had great luck with Clare V.’s straps, too! I own the multicolored woven crossbody strap and wear it with a black woven tote. She has a lot of fun options in terms of straps!
Also, that sequined Markarian dress is TO DIE FOR! Love it so much.
xx
I’ve heard SUCH good things about DS&S. Would love to make it to that small scents shop Carmen mentioned to check some of them and a few other smaller labels out!!
Ugh, Markarian!! They are killing it!
xx
Ooh, yes, Aedes de Venustas is an amazing spot!
Also, completely forgot to mention my favorite masculine scents! Comme des Garçons makes some of my favorites, especially their collab with Monocle (the hinoki one in particular!) I’ve also had good luck with the indie label CB I Hate Perfume (funny name, but they have lovely scents!)
xx
I go through phases with perfume, usually wearing one for a few years and then switching to another. My very first perfume was Curious by Britney Spears! Gosh I must have been 13 or 14?
The more recent ones I’ve worn are the original Chloe, Balenciaga Paris, Aerin Amber Musk, and Kate Spade Twirl. For the last two years I’ve worn Chloe’s Nomade and have no plans to change it!
I find I can go right back to where I was if I smell the perfume I was wearing at the time. At my previous job, I wore Amber Musk and am transported to the office I worked in whenever I smell it. Most scents become irrevocably linked with a person or place for me. I find it hard to wear scents I associate with friends or family members too – my mother especially. Her perfume just smells like her 🙂
Oh, I so hear you, Britt! Some of my scents even take me back to a specific room in my house with a specific memory/conversation attached! Such a powerful evocation of memory!
xx
I have worn Diptyque Eau Rose since I was 16. I remember consciously deciding I needed a signature scent (I think inspired by the bygone Matchbook Mag, which I religiously regarded) and here I am, still wearing it. I have a few other rose scented scents I rotate in for different occasions or moods; Chloe “Roses de Chloe” and Le Labo Rose 31. Funny story- I also unashamedly collect Le Labo Rose 31 body wash and bar soap en masse anytime my family or I are at a Fairmont hotel. The Fairmont’s toiletries are all Rose 31 and because Le Labo is so notoriously pricey I make all my family members request more soap from the concierge over the course of the trip to keep my stock full. I always laugh at my earnest father, “Yes, hello, could you please send up more of this marvelous soap?”
Ah, Matchbook Mag, RIP! I loved that e-publication. Love these rose scents — so sophisticated and timeless! — and also love your dad calling Le Labo “marvelous soap”! It truly is. I used to travel to San Francisco for work quite a bit and routinely stayed at the Fairmont there, which is where I first discovered Le Labo. I remember ordering their shampoo and conditioner on my phone while checking out in the hotel lobby! It smells INSANE!
xx
Hi! I am intrigued by birthday girl trousers, but link is broken. Please be printed silk pants for adults!
Hi! So sorry — here they are!
https://fivestoryny.com/products/chloris-sequin-wideleg-pants?utm_source=pinterest&utm_medium=social
GORGEOUS.
xx
I love the Gucci-esque strap. It will look great on a brown bag too. I tired to order the feather shirt but sadly my order did not get filled!
Cheers to the weekend!
Agree!! So chic!! Happy weekend, friend!
I’ve worn the same perfume for at least 10 years now. I never tell another woman what scent it is if she asks. She can’t go walking around smelling like me!
My doctor once asked me what perfume it was (he’s a male) so I told him thinking he wanted to buy it for his girlfriend. Well, the next time I saw him he had a gift for me and it was the perfume! If the men like it, I’ll keep on wearing it! Ha!
Oo I love the mystery of this!! Oo la la!
Ooooh, that red/pink strap is very cheerful (which is what we all need to get us through winter) but I think I actually vote for the patterned one! Can’t lose regardless.
Whenever my mom babysits, I catch a whiff of her perfume on the baby after she leaves. I love the evidence of Mimi cuddles while I was gone!
Too sweet. I love that about my mom, too — even though she switches up her scent, I love that she always applies enough that it lingers behind her, on her scarf, on her coat, etc. xx
I love the early Annick Goutal scents, especially L’eau d’ Hadrien and Eau de Charlotte. Penhaligon has discontinued my favorite scent of theirs-Violetta. I’ve seen unopened bottles of Violetta on eBay selling for upwards of $1k! My father created a perfume for Liz Taylor for the first scented movie, The Scent of Mystery, a brilliant idea that flopped madly at the box office, bankrupting our family and restricting my perfume budget. But if you enjoy sampling new scents before investing in full bottles, you may already know of the beautiful small business Aedes de Venustas in the village. They also let you order seven tiny samples of anything in their inventory for something like $20. Larger online perfume sellers also offer samples, but this beautiful tiny shop is a joy to visit and patronize. I hope they survive Covid.
Wow – what a fascinating (and difficult) backstory about your father’s scented movie concept! You really know what you’re talking about in the world of scents! I remember visiting Annick Goutal in Lyon when I studied there — the shop was exceptionally beautiful, and the scents matched the presentation. Will definitely make a visit to Aedes de Venustas when I can!
xx