Black Friday and Cyber Monday Sales on Things I Like

via Unsplash

It isn't too common for a Black Friday or Cyber Monday sale to include clothing, shoes, or accessories I've had my eye on. Generally, the better sales for products in that category come after Christmas or New Years, provided the specific products I was looking at didn't sell out in the meantime. This year, I thought I'd make a list of Black Friday or Cyber Monday sales that include specific items I've bought and liked - generally available in at least slightly different colors than when I bought the item - or fairly narrow categories of items I feel I can somewhat vouch for. 

I'll keep this list updated throughout the next few days. Happy Thanksgiving to those of you in the US, or who are currently celebrating the holiday! 

Please note that this post contains affiliate links that could result in my earning a small commission - at no extra cost to you - if you click and make a purchase. Thank you for your support!

Babaa Sweaters and Lounge Sets: The Spanish slow fashion knitwear brand Babaa is running a fairly broad holiday sale, apparently through this weekend. The brand doesn't offer sales too, too often, and their products are - reasonably - quite pricey, so this is an alright opportunity if you've been eyeing some of their sweaters or lounge sets. A number of the merino wool lounge sets are on sale, through sadly the light turquoise "seaside" color I bought is sold out. That dramatically chunky No. 15 jumper I got is also on sale in a few colors, including the gray-brown "oak" color I have. Admittedly, the No. 15 jumper is so intentionally oversized and chunky that it isn't too practical, I can't layer it under any of my coats. 

Jasmine Chong Ella Silk Organza Scrunchie: This handmade pleated silk organza scruchie was a social distancing-time pick-me-up I purchased in June this year, and I think it's quite lovely and well-made. I was happy with my purchase at full price, though I know I won't likely get too, too much use from it once I'm back to working in-person. I definitely don't expect super-small brands and businesses to run Black Friday sales, though I certainly appreciate when they do. Jasmine Chong is running 20% off accessories this year, including this scrunchie (use the code HOLIDAY20). 

Cuyana Leather Totes and Cases: Cuyana has put a limited number of their leather totes and leather cases on sale through Monday, with a 15% off discount applied at checkout. K got me this set of two leather travel cases for Christmas one year. I also own the non-zipper version of their classic leather tote -  the zippered version of which is on sale - and both are good, unbranded, and very simple-looking leather tote for work. Their classic totes are nice and feel sturdy, but the leather is also very soft and pliable, which makes the bags a bit floppy. 

L.L. Bean Boots and Blankets: L.L. Bean is running a sitewide 15% off sale (with code THANKS15) that includes both the Wicked Cozy blanket I've recently become so fond of and my trusty L.L. Bean boots lined with Gore-Tex and Thinsulate. 

J.Crew Sweater Blazers: This is admittedly a set of products that doesn't get any use from me while I'm not going to the office - for now, I prefer softer, less structured sweaters - but in normal times I wear my J.Crew sweater blazers frequently throughout the fall and winter. (Though always layered under a wool-blend or down coat, these are not made to block the wind, as I personally found from wearing one out without a coat on one chilly day.) I particularly like the collarless Juliette sweater blazer (styled for work here; styled casually here) for wearing over sheath dresses as part of my "work uniform". I mostly keep the collared Sophie sweater blazer (styled for work here; styled casually here) at my office for use year-round as an "office sweater" when the HVAC system runs too cold, though I think it suits my outfits best as a more casual piece. Note that, at least when I bought them, both sweater blazers ran very large. I ended up taking a size XS in both, which is almost unheard of for me! 

As of today, November 25, J.Crew is currently running a 50% off full-price items and extra 60% off sale items Black Friday/Cyber Monday sale (use the code EARLY) that includes both sweater blazers, though some colors seem to be backordered and might not ship until after the New Year. 

In the past, I believe J.Crew has sometimes run a pretty good sale leading right into Thanksgiving and then slightly hiked up the discount percentage afterwards for Black Friday or Cyber Monday. But given the size of the discount right now, I'm not sure that's likely this year. One relevant anecdote: I specifically recall holding on to a bunch of potential J.Crew purchases to take advantage of this hoped-for increased discount in 2018. I wasn't the only one with that idea, because J.Crew's website couldn't handle the volume of customers throughout the Black Friday weekend that year, and it took me several hours of trying on and off before I could check out successfully online. J.Crew's social media accounts were inundated with a dramatically large number of complaints that year, and I was taken aback at how intensely angry people were willing to get on Twitter and Instagram, where the comments are publicly visible. 

Vince Boiled Cashmere Funnel Neck Sweater: I was just talking about how much I enjoyed this cozy, very soft (but a bit unusually fuzzy, zoom in on the most close-up store photos to see what I mean) sweater I bought last year. Sizing-wise, it's intentionally oversized, and even at a 38'' bust measurement, I still get a slightly oversized look from the size S. Vince is currently running a 30% off sale site-wide (use the code NOVEMBER30). (I feel like I  recall last year's Black Friday or Cyber Monday discount being only around 15%!) From browsing the Vince store and Nordstrom in person back in pre-COVID times, I've found that Vince sweaters for the fall/winter season generally all feel nice, thick, and soft in person. Though I'd still look carefully at the fabric composition details when shopping, because I'd prefer all-natural fibers at their fairly lofty price point! 

Alighieri Jewelry: As is typical, based on at least some of the past few years, Alighieri is running their own sale this year on a limited number of designs. This year's "Archive Sale" has the most generous discounts (more than 40%, I think) I've ever seen for the brand, though not on any styles I own. But because this is from the London-based brand's own store, prices are in GBP (and will incur a foreign exchange fee unless you're using a payment method without one) and international shipping will also be fairly pricey. 

More Alighieri Jewelry: A number of Alighieri jewelry designs are currently on sale at SSENSE and Matches Fashion, though not any of the styles I own. I've bought a slightly extreme number of Alighieri pieces over the years, and haven't seen any tarnishing with the 24 carat gold plating they use. I just love their organic, antiqued aesthetic. (I store my jewelry in a set of stackable jewelry trays with a lid from Amazon, to keep the vermeil and gold-plated pieces away from too much exposure to air. But that isn't enough to keep some of it from tarnishing, unfortunately, as most of my Mejuri collection isn't doing that well...) I'll drop my favorite of the currently on-sale designs of Alighieri jewelry into the Shopstyle widget below. 

September 2020 Shopping Reflections

September has been a strange month. 

In most ways, I'm reasonably well-adjusted to our COVID-era "new normal." Since late July or so, I haven't had any disturbances to my sleep schedule, which is a relief. The only downside is that -  probably because I now get a solid seven to eight hours of sleep a night, due to not needing to commute to the office before I start work - I can't really sleep in on weekends anymore. I haven't had more stress-induced slight tightness in my throat or chest, unlike in the first two months of COVID-19 shutdowns. As an introverted homebody, it's never been a real emotional hardship to be stuck at home, even if I'm now trying to process the daunting prospect of Americans potentially needing to continue taking serious COVID precautions through late 2021. 

But I don't feel quite like myself. At the moment - outside of the political situation in the US - I don't have any major stressors in my life. For now, I only have a reasonable, manageable workload "at the office." My family and friends are doing as well as can be expected. Yet I still find myself feeling unusually irritable at times. I also generally still have trouble focusing on reading for fun, no matter how good or engaging a book is. 

I'm sometimes tempted to describe life these days by saying that a "veneer of unreality" hangs over everything, because life changed so drastically and so quickly from the old, pre-COVID normal. With that, I feel like my judgment and ability to make decisions - whether about small, relatively un-serious things like shopping or about bigger, important things like future job transitions and career development - simply isn't the same as what it used to be. I'm probably being overly dramatic to describe life in the "new normal" this way, but I just can't shake the feeling that I don't feel like myself, because things are currently so sad and strange and - politically speaking - more than a little scary. 

Please note that this post contains affiliate links that could result in a commission, typically a few cents, for me if you click. Thank you for your support!

Turning back now to the lighter topic of shopping: If you read my recent "COVID-era staycation" money diary, you've already had a spoiler for this month's post. I've long been a fan of the London-based jewelry brand Alighieri, designed by Rosh Mahtani. One of this month's purchases is an Alighieri design I'd been thinking about for a long time. During the six-day period covered by my recent money diary, the brand had a surprise one-day sale and I just couldn't resist. 

Fashion - (TOTAL: $411.12)

• Cuyana French Terry Boatneck Sweatshirt, deep ocean - $85.00 - (sold out, other colors available) - These days, I'm really into the idea of matching lounge sets, something I'd never before had any interest in until COVID-19 caused me to start working from home full-time. There aren't a lot of bright teal sweatsuits out there, and the "deep ocean" color of this Cuyana set was what first caught my eye. (I have a bit of a thing for teal, to put it lightly.) I ordered a size L because I like a relaxed fit for things I wear around the house and because of where my chest measurement lands on Cuyana's sizing chart. I think I'd have done better with an M instead, though, because the cotton-modal-spandex blend has a very soft, comfortable stretch. The boatneck, slight balloon sleeve, and back pleat details also magnify the oversized feel even more. Put all those together with a sweatshirt that's already a little big on my short-ish frame, and it starts looking a bit too oversized in the mirror! But I decided to keep this anyway since it's still comfortable, I'd only ever wear it to lounge at home, and none of the details make it less functional for that purpose. 
• Cuyana French Terry Tapered Lounge Pant, deep ocean - $95.00 - (limited sizes available) - I got a size M in this based on the size chart, and that's the right size for me. The lounge pants in this Cuyana set are more typical-looking, I don't think there are any unusual design details, unlike with the sweatshirt. The cotton-modal-spandex material is, again, very soft and comfortable and quite stretchy. I'm not sure, however, that this particular material is better - whether in terms of comfort and function, or durability - than the cotton-polyester-spandex blends commonly found in sweatsuits these days. The cotton-modal isn't very warm, even if it's soft and nice to wear. I've only been wearing this set off and on for two weeks and have only washed it once, so it's too early to say if the material is actually durable or not. (In the past, I've sometimes found modal to start looking worn out sooner than some other materials with regular machine-washing.)
• Alighieri Fractured Cloud Necklace - $231.12* - I've been interested in this particular Alighieri necklace design for quite a while. I just think it's really cool looking, like a wax seal on a letter! For a few months, this design was out of stock on the brand's website, but it popped back earlier this summer. I was still going to hold off on purchasing this necklace because I don't wear much jewelry while I'm social distancing at home. But when Alighieri announced their surprise one-day sale on Instagram, I couldn't resist. The design is as beautiful as I thought it would be, the pendant has a very intriguing, organic shape. 

*Indicates that price includes international shipping charges. 

Do you have any favorite lounge clothes for wearing at home? How has your September been? Maybe I'm not the only one who feels like a "veneer of unreality" hangs over everything now, with all the uncertainty associated with long-term COVID-containment policies in most places and jurisdictions, and with all the other not-so-great things happening in the world. 

Money Diary: COVID-era Staycation, Part 1

Approximately once a year, I get inspired to write a money diary post in the Man Repeller format (focused on that week's spending only, without additional details about overall finances like at Refinery 29). I've done a 2018 "atypical week" money diary (part one, part two) and a 2019 "slightly more typical week" money diary (part one, part two). And now, with COVID-19 and everything else that's been going on, here's part one of a 2020 money diary! (I was definitely also inspired by Luxe's recent COVID-era weekend money diary.)

This year's money diary covers a six-day period. There's no point extending the diary to a full week, because the days immediately before and after this six-day period were both extremely boring, with no spending or outings further away than our apartment building's lobby. Heck, there are already two no-spending days in this diary, which was unthinkable for me in pre-COVID times! 

During the six days covered by this diary, both K and I were technically not working, and were instead enjoying a staycation. Though you'll see I still needed to do some work, some of it billable and some of it not. Until late August, I hadn't taken any vacation time in 2020. My supervisors at work encouraged me to take some time off, even if one can't go many places without potentially needing to do a two-week quarantine afterwards, pursuant to New York state law. 

For my part, I've always enjoyed staycations. I'm even known to take an extra vacation day after a trip is over, so I can relax at home a bit before returning to the office. (K prefers not to do this, as he doesn't think it's a great use of a vacation day. He'd rather head straight back to work!) 

But, well, I obviously also miss normal, pre-COVID times, when we'd have been able to freely use our vacation time to, say, go to Taiwan and Japan, as we were about to do in April. Maybe in late 2021? I can only hope...

Wow, a no-spending day! I didn't have a single one of those across my 2018 and 2019 money diaries... 

We sleep in a bit, as is typical for us on the weekends. I wake up around 10:00 AM, a bit ahead of K. Once K is up around 10:30, I start making brunch. I use the oven to cook Trader Joe's frozen hash browns and make an egg scramble on the stovetop with cheddar and chopped-up Trader Joe's "garlic herb" chicken sausage. (That's not my favorite flavor, the "spicy jalapeno" - which isn't actually spicy - is better, but they didn't have any in stock on our last Trader Joe's trip two weeks ago.) I cook and K cleans after the meal.  

December 2019 Shopping Reflections

As expected, I made a few Black Friday sale orders for myself this year, some of which I kept. In fact, all of this month's purchases came from Black Friday (or Cyber Monday) sales. After that, I didn't really do any more browsing or shopping in December. As I've mentioned during other hectic periods at the office, there's a level of busy that causes stress-shopping, and then there are other levels of busy beyond that, where I don't have any energy left for shopping, or for browsing online shops. 

Next year, I think I'll stop being quite as rigid about keeping track of my shopping wish list on Pinterest. It's been a useful and fun tool for me, and I'll continue to use it in a similar way in 2020, albeit more casually. I don't think I want to feel like I need to commit to having pinned every single thing I eventually buy to the board for at last a few days - or preferably several weeks or months - before I actually order it. In the end, I just don't particularly enjoy having strict rules for myself! Flexibility, within reasonable limits, is key.

After all these years of blogging about my shopping decisions and then spending a year utilizing this more regimented method of tracking my shopping list, I feel like I now know my tastes and preferences very well, enough that I don't need to go to any special effort of planning out my purchases in order to make reasonably good shopping decisions. I know what I like, I can reliably predict what I'll wear frequently, and I also have a pretty good sense of a lot of things that definitely won't work for me because I'll find them annoying or too far out of my comfort zone.

Please note that this post contains affiliate links that could result in a commission, typically a few cents, for me if you click. Thank you for your support!

I'll continue to blog about my monthly shopping, of course. I enjoy using this blog as a shopping diary, and I like being able to look back at my monthly shopping budget posts to analyze how my habits have changed over the years.

Fashion - (TOTAL: $738.58)

• Mansur Gavriel Large Tote, black/ballerina - $489.94* - Longtime readers may recall there was a time I was about to purchase this exact item as a splurge-y new work tote. But after seeing it in person, I decided to get the Coach Rogue in dark denim instead (long sold out, limited colors available). The Mansur Gavriel vegetable-tanned leather is unusual, it's quite stiff and can feel a bit plastic-y, and some say it feels a bit cheap or low-quality as a result. (I've also read that there may be issues with how some of their bags are constructed.) Despite these arguable problems, I've remained fond of the idea of the Mansur Gavriel large tote in vegetable-tanned leather, precisely because it is so stiff and structured. I like very large tote bags, but because I'm on the shorter, curvier side - I'm barely 5'3'' - big bags tend to overwhelm my frame. I personally find that a more structured bag - like this tote - can look less awkwardly oversized on me than the same-sized bag in a more slouchy or floppy leather (say, the Cuyana classic tote, or even the Cuyana structured tote). Still, at full price, this bag didn't feel like a good value. Then I saw it on sale at SSENSE during Black Friday, and the rest was history, even though the discount was ultimately fairly modest. 
• Alighieri "Flashback" Earrings, gold - $161.14* - (sold out, available in silver) This was a more impulsive purchase than the tote - which was, admittedly, still a bit impulsive - because I didn't have any history of considering this specific item. As longtime readers know, I'm almost absurdly fond of Rosh Mahtani's work with her jewelry brand Alighieri. I already own three necklaces (including the Jaja and the Initial Spark) and a pair of earrings, and I still have a few of her other designs on my long-term wishlist, all of them necklaces. So these earrings were definitely not part of my plans, at least until I saw them in SSENSE's Black Friday sale section and ordered them along with the Mansur Gavriel tote. 
• Naadam Cashmere Tracksuit Jogger, timber - $87.50 - I mentioned this purchase in another recent post. Earlier this fall/winter season, I'd been thinking about a pair of cashmere sweatpants - so that I could feel fancy, even if they're not necessarily more practical or warm than other sweatpants - but never seriously enough to add anything from that genre to my Pinterest shopping list. Well, these happened to be one of the items discounted 50% off during Naadam's Cyber Monday sale, and I ended up being unable to resist. I do enjoy these very much so far, and I find them comfortable enough to wear as pajamas. (My skin's never been prone to itching from wearing wool or cashmere.) I've been wearing these frequently for a few weeks, and there has been a moderate amount of pilling, but that's expected for cashmere. 

*Indicates that price includes sales tax. 

For each of this month's purchases, I was able to stack fairly generous Jewel cash-back rebates on top of the Black Friday discounts, for a total of nearly $34.00 back. As usual, I don't factor cash-back rebates into my accounting of my total shopping-related spending in these posts, since I won't actually receive the money until several weeks or months down the line. (If you're interested in trying out Jewel as a first-time customer, please feel free to use my referral link to sign up: We'll both get an extra $5 after your first purchase.)

And yes, I must admit that these Black Friday/Cyber Monday purchases were all on the impulsive side. None of the items I'd been looking at and planning for more seriously, and in the longer term, were really on sale during Black Friday this year. I guess it's consistent with my experience in past years, that Black Friday isn't generally an especially good time for fashion-related shopping: The more basic, staple fall-winter items that I've been eyeing for a while usually won't be on sale until after Christmas. I'm definitely a bit sheepish about how impulsive all of this month's buying decisions ultimately were, though I've been putting each item to fairly extensive use so far.

I hope that everyone has been having a good holiday season! Although things were busy for me at the office right up until the day before Christmas Eve, I've also been able to spend a lot of time relaxing with my mom and my sister, who visited me for the holidays here in NYC. We saw Moulin Rouge on Broadway, which was an extremely fun show. Best wishes to you all for the start of 2020!

Outfit Post: A Slightly Unusual Look

Necklace: Alighieri "La Fortuna" necklace

Necklace: Alighieri "Initial Spark" necklace

Jacket: J.Crew "Juliette" Sweater Blazer, size XS

Dress: Elizabeth Suzann "Ella" slip dress, size M (discontinued)

Shoes: Marc Fisher "Chang" loafers

Now here's an outfit I'm not sure I'll repeat: I originally wore it out of the house with a pair of black tights on, and it felt like a strange, extremely conservative-looking outfit from the waist down, since all the more modern, slightly edgier-looking details were only visible from the waist up. (I also wore my Alighieri "Surreal" earrings, which are the biggest pair of earrings I own, though they're not actually that big.) I still enjoyed wearing this outfit, it's very comfortable and relaxed, but it does feel like an unusual look for autumn weather. Silk slip dresses are just too associated with summer in my mind, and the dress does look a little odd with tights on underneath.

Please note that this post contains affiliate links that could result in a commission, typically a few cents, for me if you click. Thank you for your support!

This post also serves as a spoiler for this month's shopping reflections post, as this Elizabeth Suzann ("ES") "Ella" silk slip dress - recently discontinued - is new to my wardrobe. The company has now replaced the Ella series with two sets of designs, the round-neck "Polly" and the v-neck "Petra" families. I've had an Ella silk slip dress pinned on my main shopping list Pinterest board for most of this year, but I don't think I would have been ready to order one anytime soon. At the moment, I have plenty of other summer dresses in my closet that are all in fairly good shape, including ES's linen Georgia dress from June. It was only when I saw the brand's announcement on Instagram that they were discontinuing the Ella items that I decided to move forward, as it was "now or never." I received this dress just after I got back from my recent vacation. 

Adding to the relative conservativeness of this look, I had my hair up in a loose bun held in place by one of those Ficcare hairclips that I've been using all summer, since I bought them in June. I always feel very buttoned up when I wear my hair that way. (It's a very easy way to style my hair for work.) 

So yes, I'm not sure I'll be wearing this outfit again during the cooler seasons. I really wanted to try wearing my new ES Ella dress out, and this was the only way I could think to do it now that it's starting to cool down here in NYC. We're currently having a few weeks of trench coat weather here. 

September 2019 Shopping Reflections

Since the last time I discussed my workload, things at the office have continued to become ever more hectic. Urgent international business trips are involved, though not for me at present - for which I'm grateful, because I have plenty to do here in NYC to hold down the fort for the team.

Separately, as you'll soon see, this was also a month in which I indulged in some extremely nice things for myself, continuing last month's trend. There are days when work-related stress makes me want to shop much more than I otherwise would. (On those days, I've generally been unable to find anything else I actually want to buy.) Then there are the days when I'm so mentally exhausted at the end of the day that even browsing online shops and daydreaming about pretty clothes is - quite frankly - too taxing to contemplate. (On those evenings, I mostly just watch random Youtube clips.)

The juxtaposition of these experiences has given me some food for thought regarding various lifestyle, money management, and career choices that I might make in the future. The nice things are - there's no denying it - really hecking nice. To use the KonMari parlance, they spark some joy for me. (Because I'm a bit materialistic and really enjoy having beautiful things to wear.) And I work hard to "earn" these indulgences, both in terms of hours billed and in the way I manage the rest of my finances. Among other things, I continue to make student loan payments totaling $3,950/month, every single month. (I have around 27 more months to go at that rate.) Additionally, I'm still contributing to my savings in similar proportions as last year.

But this financial state of things is fleeting. Most attorneys who start out in biglaw or biglaw-ish do not spend their entire careers there, and I'm ultimately pretty certain that I'm one of them. My own personal ambitions are such that I would very much like to be on another government pay-scale for a good long time again someday, starting sometime towards the end of the next decade or so. I hope to have children, and to prioritize saving for and spending on their education, the way my parents did for me, and K's parents for him. Both K and I also hope to always be in a position to extend some financial support to our parents - and potentially to some of our extended family - as needs arise.

Please note that this post contains affiliate links that could result in a commission, typically a few cents, for me if you click. Thank you for your support!

It's clear to me that, with all those financial and career-related choices that I would like to make, I won't always be able to indulge like this. Compared to all those other priorities of mine, the ability to indulge in fancy clothes, shoes, and accessories for myself does not rank all that highly. (Though I must also admit that I value the ability to shop for nice things more than most. Thus, I can probably always be expected to make more room for it in my budget than many other identically situated people would.)

Fashion - (TOTAL: $819.16)

• Alighieri Initial Spark Necklace - $332.07* - As I mentioned in July, I'd been mulling over a few options for a new Alighieri necklace, and was particularly interested in ones with a longer chain like this Initial Spark and some versions of the Odyssey. Given that this is my fourth Alighieri piece (I also have the Jaja necklace, the La Fortuna necklace, and the Surreal earrings), I'm clearly obsessed. The artist behind the brand, Rosh Mahtani, is brilliant, and I love her organic, antique-inspired designs. This necklace is exactly what I expected, with a longer chain that works well for the size of the pendant. The only detail I find slightly distracting - and this is not the fault of the design; it's likely not avoidable with any necklace around this length - is that the pendant clinks against my desk somewhat often when I'm seated at my computer. That doesn't stop me from wearing it to the office, though! 
• Vince Boiled Cashmere Funnel Neck Pullover, marble - $419.17* - Vince seems to bring this sweater back every year, in a slightly different set of colors. I've been interested in it for a while, ever since I noticed that my preferred size and color combinations were sold out by Black Friday last year. (This marble shade is the only lighter-colored neutral available at most retailers this year, except at Shopbop, which has it in gray.) As it's still quite warm in NYC, it's going to be a long time before I can wear this sweater outdoors. It's really soft, and I like the color. This sweater is a bit intentionally oversized around the body, but not excessively so. I got it in my usual S for more relaxed knitwear designs. Given that I have tons of nice sweaters, including from earlier this year, this should be my last new one in 2019.
• Marc Fisher Chang Loafer, black leather - $67.92* - I grind down my spring/summer shoes remarkably quickly, and as I mentioned in July, my supply was really starting to dwindle. Since then, my M.Gemi Felize driving moccasins (similar) are now on their last leg. It'll probably only be another few wears before there's a hole in the side of one shoe. My gold glitter Sam Edelman loafers continued ripping along multiple seams, and are now done for. Because it felt like there would be several weeks before I could pull out my ankle boots, I was getting desperate to add another pair of spring/summer workplace-appropriate shoes to my wardrobe. When I saw Michelle's recent post featuring these and her comments indicating that she liked them, and then I saw a good price at Nordstrom Rack, I bought these almost immediately. They fit true to size. The design is a touch more narrow than the Sam Edelman Lior or Loraine loafers, but not enough for me to size up from my usual 7.5. Right out of the box, these were comfortable to wear for an entire day, including on my walking commute. I realize now that they didn't make it onto my Pinterest shopping list before I bought them, though other things on the list make clear that I've long been thinking about more loafers. 

* Indicates that the price includes either shipping or sales tax. 

The prices on these items, particularly the sweater and necklace, were technically all reduced by Jewel cash-back rebates (referral link: if you sign up as a new user through my link and start earning cash back, we both get a $5 bonus). Because Jewel currently offers generous cash-back rates from Vince and Matches Fashion, I got around $16 back on the sweater and $23 back on the necklace. But, as always, I don't factor cash-back rebates into my monthly shopping posts because it wouldn't be consistent with how I do my personal accounting; I don't record them in YNAB until the cash back is actually paid out, which happens some months later.

How was your shopping month? Does work-related stress make you more interested in shopping? And if it does, is there also a level of work-related stress that causes the shopping urges to go away again, maybe because there's simply not enough extra time or energy one can spare to think about it?

Changing my Mind: On Trench Coats

I've debuted a new page, "Shop the Sales", accessible from the navigation bar at the top of my blog. Inspired in part by how Kathy and Luxe share sales, I've decided to maintain a page for sale finds that are related to things I have purchased before, or that I have seriously considered purchasing at some point in the past. I'll keep updating the widget over time, generally at least once a week, based on new sale finds and/or to remove outdated listings. I'll occasionally flag certain sale highlights in new posts. 

Please note that this post contains affiliate links that could result in a commission, typically a few cents, for me if you click. Thank you for your support!

Current sale highlights include Matches Fashion and Net-A-Porter's discounting that APC Clare dress I mentioned a while back, which, between the two sites, is on sale in almost its entire size range. SSENSE is also doing a big sale that includes a number of Alighieri pieces, including coin necklaces like the Il Leone and the Kindred Souls. I don't think I'll be shopping for jewelry anytime soon, but I was sorely tempted by the Flashback and Trace of a Tear necklaces. 

*****

Looking back over the years, my feelings about trench coats as a wardrobe staple for myself have gone through a few reversals. In the beginning, I was quite skeptical, mainly because of weather patterns here in NYC. As I complain often, we generally get only the briefest flashes of balmy spring or fall weather, sometimes just one or two lovely days that truly feel like a comfortable spring or fall, before the harsher temperatures of summer or winter quickly start setting in, leaving us with as little as two or three weeks of reliably trench coat-friendly temperatures each season. 

But then I got my current trench coat, the Everlane Classic Trench (discontinued, current version with a few design changes), and it really grew on me. It's still a big part of my wardrobe today, in any time of year that's a suitable temperature for it. Currently, the Everlane trench continues to be my only jacket or coat that's particularly well-suited for those all too brief weeks of in-between temperatures around spring or fall. The next best candidates in my wardrobe, that J.Crew collared Sophie sweater blazer or those collarless Juliette sweater blazers, don't block the wind on the cooler days in that range, and are also a bit too thick and heavy for the warmer, sunnier days.

I even liked my new trench coat so much, that, when I thought about my vague hopes to someday splurge on a fancy designer purchase, once I felt like I'd earned it, I no longer wanted a handbag (though that's mostly for lack of seeing any bag design I liked enough). I started wanting one of those classic Burberry trench coats instead. Those coats really are extremely, almost unthinkably, fancy by my standards, whether it's the mid-length Sandringham or Westminster, or the longer-length Kensington, all of which are $1795-plus at full retail, several multiples over the next most-expensive single piece of clothing I've ever purchased for myself (specifically, the Ted Baker midi-length wrap coat, at ~$418 when I bought it on sale). Nor have I ever tried one of the Burberry coats in person. I suspect it'd be hard to find a good size for me, maybe enough that I wouldn't be able to bring myself to buy it after all, because I've heard that they all have a super-slim fit through the chest.

More recently, though, as I've started finding that I only wear my Everlane Trench coat open and unfastened these days (partially because it's been fairly warm for spring, and also because the waist tie has always been fiddly, it regularly slips down my waist on its own, or even unties itself if I've only tied a single knot, and the belt is just barely long enough to tie a bow), my tastes in trench coats have shifted again, towards less traditional, less structured trench coats that omit some of the classic design elements. The trench coats I'm thinking about now are often made of softer, more flowy-looking and drapey materials, many of them without any buttons at all. With those features, I think they could look a bit more "intentional" when worn open. For instance, in the photo above are two colors of the same Club Monaco Claudine trench on the left and right, the blue is also available at Shopbop. The middle one is a possibly misnamed Mango "classic trench with bows" that doesn't appear to have any bows anywhere.

Given that I've only suddenly become interested in this general look in the last two weeks or so, I think I may actually be far behind the curve when it comes to this particular trend. I can't find all that many coats with this look in stores right now, in colors that I like, and I remember that it might have been easier to find similar coats a year or two ago!

And well, maybe by writing a whole post about these less traditional trench coats, and pinning a bunch to my Pinterest wishlist, I'll find that this whole thing is a passing fancy that I forget about in short order. In any case, the spring season for wearing coats like this is fast coming to a close in NYC, it'll almost certainly be completely over in the next two or three weeks. Also, I suspect this is a fairly trendy look that might not age well. Even so, I also think I'd enjoy wearing this type of coat because it feels more relaxed and a bit less structured or fussy than the classic trench coat look. (Recall how eagerly I sought out "almost" blazers and jackets for work that'd be less structured and less closely fitted than a standard blazer.) We'll see if this sudden craving of mine ends up going anywhere, or if it's one of the ideas I end up discarding after it's sat on my Pinterest shopping list for a while, as has happened a few times since I started being more regimented about how I track my shopping plans this year. 

Outfit Post: First Signs of Summer (and the Madewell Medium Transport Tote)

Necklace: Alighieri "Jaja" Necklace

Top: LinenFox Kimono Top, milky white, size S/M

Dress: Grana Silk V-Neck Slip Dress, size M (old version, current)

Shoes: FitFlop "The Skinny", light brown, size 7 (old, limited sizes)

Bag: Madewell Medium Transport Tote, english saddle

Bracelet: Coach hinged bangle (old, similar or similar from Kate Spade)

And just like that, it's starting to feel a bit like summer here in NYC! I'm actually a bit surprised we had such a relatively long burst of more spring-like weather this year, I've been wearing my old Everlane Classic Trench (discontinued, current version with some design changes) for most of the last month and a half, which is a bit more use than I normally get out of it each spring. We might have only another week or two, however, before the really miserable hot, humid, and muggy weather starts setting in. 

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My LinenFox Mona Top order finally arrived in the mail late last week! Their basic shipping option doesn't come with tracking information, so it was a mystery to me when it would arrive, until it was actually here. After it was made to order and shipped, which took around four weeks from when I bought it in early April, it ended up taking around two-and-a-half weeks to get from Lithuania to my apartment. I had done a lot of online browsing between all the popular linen shops on Etsy before deciding on this top. I liked the look and shape of it a bit better than that of the similar NotPerfectLinen "square" top. (I do slightly wish that LinenFox had a wider range of colors though, the way NotPerfectLinen seems to.)

I'm quite pleased with my new top! The linen feels nice, I haven't found it scratchy. As with many other white tops these days, particularly with a fabric that's light enough to be comfortable in our hot and humid NYC summers, this top is a little, but not overly, sheer. As you can see above, a faint hint of the black dress I'm wearing underneath is visible in the sunlight if you really squint to look for it, but the black fabric isn't showing through too badly, in my opinion.

The size S/M of this top is, in keeping with the design, a bit boxy on me, as it's meant to be, and I think it's the right size. On me, it's a bit more cropped and boxy than it looks on Elaine, because I'm likely quite a bit wider around the bust (which can pull up the front hems of some tops and dresses a bit), and maybe have a slightly longer torso. For reference, I'm 5'3'' with legs slightly too short for some non-cropped petite sizing pants and a mostly "regular" sizing torso for tops and dresses, and I measure around 37''-27''-37.5''. If I were to buy another one of these tops, I think I might consider asking them to customize it by adding just a bit of extra length to the body. As it is, this top might be just a little too short on me to easily tuck into skirt or pant waistbands that hit at my natural waist (I could do it, but the top might be somewhat prone to slipping out, or might look a little odd to me). I do think it looks good when untucked though, like in this outfit.

And I know, I know, I totally said I once ordered the Madewell Medium Transport Tote and sent it back because I just didn't need another leather tote, so one might be surprised to see it here now. But after K got it for me for Christmas, and after trying it on in person again, I've changed my mind and found that I actually really love it, and that it fills a different enough niche from my other tote bags.

I've been carrying the Medium Transport Tote as my work handbag almost every day for the past month and a half, and I've found it very functional. (But do keep in mind that I don't have a work laptop anymore and rarely need to bring papers home, so I generally don't carry much.) This bag is very light, so my shoulder doesn't get antsy the way it sometimes does with my other favorite work bag, the noticeably heavier Coach Rogue in dark denim (old, current colors). It's really a perfect size for me in that, unlike the Rogue, it's just big enough to comfortably accommodate a medium-sized stack of letter-sized papers and a letter-sized notepad, though it probably won't fit a large binder. I particularly like the look of this bag when I carry it by the adjustable long shoulder strap like in the photos above, it's comfortable to do so throughout my entire walking commute (please note that the strap is not quite long enough, even when adjusted to the maximum length, for me to comfortably carry this bag cross-body, that could be a downside for some).

My only small quibble is that the top-handle straps feel just a touch too short for me to comfortably carry it tucked under my shoulder sometimes. It's alright and comfortable-ish to do so, though still a little short for my preferences, when I'm wearing lighter clothing in spring or summer, including my trench coat, but might feel like a bit of a squeeze if I had a thicker wool-blend or down coat on. One other potential quibble for some, though it's actually a plus for me, as I like the look of patina-ed and aged brown leather, is that when seeing it on other people (whether out and about or on social media), I've seen that this "english saddle" shade may change color and take on some noticeable wear and tear over time. I'm actually eager to see that happen with mine! The only other potential complaint I can think of is that the leather on the entire Madewell Transport line of bags can feel a bit dry or stiff in comparison to the softer pebbled leathers I usually prefer for handbags (like that of the super-squishy "classic" Cuyana totes, which are in the same general price range). 

2018: My Year of Somewhat Excessive "Joy" in Shopping

2018 has been quite a shopping year for me, to say the least! Although I track my fashion-related purchases and spending monthly, I'm not always good at keeping an eye on the big picture as I go along. It's only now, since November, that I've started looking back and feeling a bit sheepish, like I've probably shopped too much.

In total, I spent $4016.51 this year on 45 items (3 secondhand, all others new) for my wardrobe, as broken down further below. As a reminder, my total shopping expenditures for the past several years, since I started tracking, are roughly $2729 (2015), $1945.99 (2016), and $2883.13 (2017). I generally exclude activewear, sleepwear, underthings, and socks from this count, partially because I find them terribly boring, and mostly because I don't have a particular problem with overbuying them. Those are all negligible expenses most years.

Clothes (20 pieces) ·      10 cardigans ·      5 dresses ·      2 pairs jeans ·      1 jacket ·      1 shirt/blouse ·      1 sweater

Shoes (5 pairs) Jewelry (9 pieces) ·      4 necklaces ·      4 pairs earrings ·      1 bracelet

Accessories (11 pieces) ·      4 pairs tights ·      3 handbags ·      2 scarves ·      1 wallet ·      1 pair gloves

I probably should have anticipated that I could easily overindulge when I set myself up with so few rules and guidelines this year, especially when one of the three guidelines was the extremely open-ended suggestion that I rediscover "joy" in my shopping. The other two directives sounded strict on the surface, the first was a general budget of $250/month, or $3000/year (which I've sailed right past), and the other was the goal of buying fewer total items overall (which may have been a silly thing to set when that's not a metric I actually keep track of directly, though it's easy enough to go back through my records and calculate the number). Unfortunately, I've never been great about sticking to more quantifiable, concrete limits to my shopping if I feel that my finances are otherwise well-managed.*

Incidentally, and I'm fairly proud of this, I'm now up to making ~$3500/month in student loan payments (resulting in full repayment approximately 3.5 years from now if I maintain that rate). Sadly, I still owe ~$142,000 in student loans (refinanced for 2.6% interest), and have a net worth in the negative five figures, after approximately 15 months of repaying those loans in earnest while also adding to my savings and investments (after roughly two years where my efforts were a wash). Alas, law school is a heck of an expensive undertaking!

Seeking "Joy" in Shopping

It may sound absurd for someone with minimalist-ish aspirations to focus on getting "joy" from shopping as their main goal for an entire year, but that has always been the focus of my particular brand of wardrobe-related minimalism-ish. Ideally, I'd maintain a small and tightly-edited wardrobe of well-loved pieces that I'm thrilled to wear, and then I use them until they're so worn out that they're no longer presentable. Then I'd replace them with something I hopefully enjoy just as much, rinse and repeat. (Plus, when I buy things that aren't quite what I actually wanted or had in mind, I end up dissatisfied and wanting to shop again and again for something else that's closer to whatever ideal item I was thinking of in the first place, as I alluded to recently.)

Actually getting to that small and tightly edited wardrobe is much easier said than done, of course. All these years, I've felt that my work wardrobe needs are a major obstacle. I have a much harder time editing my work wardrobe, there are lots of things I hate wearing (almost all blazers, for instance), but I still need them sometimes, particularly for court. I'm also much more fickle about items I buy solely for work, buying many iterations of things (like all those sweater blazers) to try and find a happy medium of items I think are comfortable, that I enjoy wearing, and that fit in well and are proper for the more conservative business-casual dress codes that govern the NYC-area white collar workplaces I've experienced in my career thus far. I used to joke that law firm business casual dress codes here are "casual business casual", because a lot of women associates are fashionable and push the style envelope a bit at the office, but the general NYC law firm business casual dress code is still quite conservative, relative to business casual dress codes in many other cities or industries. At the end of the day, we still have a lot of rules, some of them quite restrictive.

The main reason I set that "rediscover joy in my shopping" goal for 2018 was that I felt terrible about several mistake purchases in 2017 that I was never going to wear before I resold them. I'd thought I was completely over making such mistakes, given that I hadn't made any in 2016. Knowing myself and my habits, it seemed like the easiest way to solve the problem (given that I expected to have a solid handle on my finances otherwise) was to give myself more freedom to buy things I truly loved, and that brought me joy because they're beautiful and make me feel awesome when I wear them.

And I do hope that people won't think unkindly of me for taking great joy in beautiful clothes or accessories, that people won't think me excessively materialistic in a way that casts doubt on my overall character, or something. Longtime readers can probably guess that I have a few insecurities about this general thing. I'm always self-conscious about how lots of people out there could, from either the minimalism or frugality perspectives, be critical of someone who gets as attached to or excited about material goods as I sometimes am, and who spends accordingly.

Please follow the link below for some thoughts on my best and worst purchases of 2018, and my tentative plans for next year's approach to shopping, which will hopefully be more restrained. Also, best wishes for the new year to all, and thank you again for reading along here at Invincible Summer!

November 2018 Shopping Reflections

Before I begin with this month's shopping budget post, let me just say, I have had some thoughts about Black Friday this year. We'll see if I ever get to writing about it, or if it ends up being one of my many ideas for blog posts here that I sit on and mull over until, all of a sudden, it's been a year and it would just be strange and untimely to go back and actually write it and post it. It's a far less weighty and important topic than so many of the other ideas I've had that are still waiting in the queue, so I guess the chances of my ever actually writing that Black Friday 2018 post are quite low. I definitely don't have any particularly special or revolutionary ideas about it, that's for sure.

For now, I'll just say that, as a purely practical matter, I'm largely on the same page as Luxe about Black Friday: It brings sales (and I like sales and track them closely), but it isn't typically something I get too excited about. There are, after all, so very many sales all year round, and many of those other sales at other times of the year give me better value for the items I'm in the market for when compared to what pops up around Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

One other thing that's part of my complicated feelings about Black Friday this year: I'll confess I felt some anger start bubbling up whenever I chanced upon something online that made it clear the author saw themselves as being above Black Friday and being above all those consumerist fools who shop during it (like this Buzzfeed thing, what relevance do photos from a decade ago have to the here and now?). More than almost anything else, I dislike snobbery and elitism (it's part of what motivates my strange, recurring complex about whether I'm being judged by others in my line of work for wearing modestly priced suits and work clothes), and I see elements of both in many a lofty statement or "hot take" about Black Friday.

Fashion - (TOTAL: $448.08)

• Alighieri Surreal Earrings - $195.20 - This month is a bit of a capstone to what's proven to be a year of getting obsessed with and buying jewelry, generally more expensive costume jewelry. These Surreal earrings have been one of my favorite designs since I first learned about Alighieri, so when I saw that they were part of the limited selection that was discounted for the brand's 30% off Black Friday sale, I jumped right on them. These are definitely sizable enough to make a bit of a statement, and are a little outside of my comfort zone with earrings, as someone who typically only wore pearl studs for years. They're actually not too heavy, though. Like all of my other Alighieri pieces (including the Jaja necklace, which is now on sale at Ssense for a much better price than I got), these earrings are beautiful. In terms of my minimalism-ish, I don't feel too bad about the jewelry I buy from small, artist-owned brands, as I'm supporting the artist and her work directly. (In addition to the Alighieri pieces I bought for myself this year, I also got the Porcelain and Stone Small Uni Necklace as a birthday present from my mom.) 
• Mejuri Dome Bracelet -$80.75 - As for my Mejuri purchases, which I got for 15% off during their Black Friday sale, they were also items I'd been thinking about for a while. I love the look of this bracelet. The clasp is a little fussy, sometimes one side of it loosens up during the day, but it's not fussy or impractical enough to make it distracting or annoying to wear, I don't worry that the bracelet will fall off or anything. One thing that I do notice every time I try a new Mejuri item, they're always smaller and lighter than I expect, which isn't the fault of the brand, I'm probably just inexperienced with buying dainty jewelry. 
• Mejuri Dome Hoops - $50.15 - A while back, I had ordered the Mejuri Bold Hoops to try, but returned them right away because they weren't quite as bold or weighty on me as I'd hoped. Among other things, I generally don't like "huggie" style hoops, where the entire hoop opens and closes when taking the earrings on and off, I just find it odd. They also weren't the right size for me and looked awkward, my piercings are a little too high on my earlobe for them to look quite right. So when the Black Friday sale rolled around, I knew that if any Mejuri hoop earring was going to work for me, it was going to be these Dome Hoops instead, and I really liked them once I received them. 
• J.Crew Juliette Sweater Blazer, burgundy - $74.00 - Well, I did say I'd probably get this as soon as I saw a 40% off discount or better, which eventually happened in the days leading up to Black Friday. And then on Black Friday, they switched it up to a 50% discount. I've pretty much already said everything I could possibly say about this item, including when I photographed it in an outfit a while back.
• Sam Edelman Lior Loafer, gold glitter - $47.98 - (other sale colors here and here) - This exact shoe from Nordstrom is old out, but the similar "Loraine" design is still available in gold glitter for a similar sale price at Lord and Taylor, and also at Zappos for a higher price. (As Elle mentioned, Nordstrom  is the only retailer to order this Sam Edelman shoe in the modified "Lior" design.) I bought a pair of Sam Edelman loafers in black leather in May, and they've become one of my favorite shoes. On that pair, the leather is extremely soft and a bit more "squishy" than on any other pair of leather shoes I've tried on in recent memory, which did make me worry about durability, but I haven't had any problems yet despite not babying them. These were, no doubt, an impulsive purchase. As I mentioned in March this year, I've long had an on-again, off-again interest in gold glitter flats, but had never seen any that fit the look I had in mind (I was envisioning a pair of ballet flats, or maybe a pair of smoking slipper-inspired flats). When I saw these glittery ones from Sam Edelman in a design I knew would work for me, and for a great sales price, I decided on a whim that I should get them, even though it's also not exactly the look I'd been thinking of. 

Did you shop any Black Friday sales this year? Am I the only one who gets oddly upset sometimes by some of the more judgmental Black Friday narratives out there? I don't know what it is that's making me  unusually sensitive about it this year!

Thinking About: Weighty Gold Jewelry

It's no secret that I've had a jewelry phase recently. By now, because of my sudden and intense obsession with Alighieri, which resulted in purchasing two pieces in two months, I've spent enough that it's unlikely I'll be buying anything else in that price range (or upwards of it, but that was always a given) for quite a while, unless I cut clothing expenditures significantly in coming months. Still, jewelry has long been a category I window shop and plan for, sometimes for years, without actually buying anything (mainly with that opal ring I've been thinking about since 2015), so I might as well keep up that tradition. At the very least, it doesn't hurt to look and admire, but not buy!

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Lately, I've developed an interest in what I call (for lack of better or more accurate phrasing) "weighty" gold jewelry, items that, while fairly simple in design (though with a bit of interesting or unusual detail), have a bit more substance or texture to them, a bit more weight or boldness than a lot of the smaller, super-dainty pieces that have been popular (i.e. most of Catbird's catalog), though they don't quite rise to the level of being "statement" pieces or particularly "big", at least when compared to some of the louder jewelry I've been interested in and worn in the past. This new interest of mine is mostly in earrings, bangles, and rings rather than necklaces, though I suppose the J.Crew Chain Tassel Necklace from two months back could also count.

This isn't a category I've ever really shopped for, so I don't know the market well. I would need to do lots more research to know what I actually wanted to get, and for how much. So the things I've been looking at while window shopping are completely random, from a range of wildly different price points, and may not be from the best or best value places to shop for anything in this genre.

I've never had an interest in hoop earrings before, for instance. I generally wear the same pearl studs every day, including to sleep, and only rarely switch to a pair of small dangle earrings (from Porcelain and Stone) on special occasions. In the distant past, on occasions when I wore anything bigger, I always worried that the earrings would get tangled in my hair or on my scarves, and I found them fussy. (With bigger earrings, or ones that dangle down too low, I start getting paranoid and worrying about outlandish and unlikely accidents, the earrings getting caught on something and causing injury.) Still, I've now become very taken by the idea of small, but not exactly dainty, hoops. The closest thing I've seen are the Mejuri Bold Hoops, or their Dome Hoops. In fact, I'm quite taken by the entire Mejuri Dome collection, which also includes a bangle and rings (all pictured above, with some of the other pieces named in this post).

As for bracelets, I have this simple gold bangle from Coach, a Christmas gift from K's mom, and I adore it, it seems to go with everything. (There's nothing similar in stores now from Coach, the most similar thing I've seen is one of Kate Spade's simpler bangles.) I'm also quite fond of the idea of bangles with similar heft and thickness, but an edgier design, something like Meghan Markle's Shaun Leane Tusk Bracelet (which she wore here, but with diamonds, and it's definitely not at a price range that's amenable to being impulsively purchased!), or the Mejuri Dome Bangle. Rings are probably the category I have the fewest opinions about, because I never wear any (and again, I've been balking on one particular purchase in that category for years now), and so I'll probably also never actually get one. I do like the look of signet-style rings though, particularly the Alighieri False Promises Ring. (Their Wreckless Pursuit Ring is also cool!)

The widget below contains some other random, mostly costume jewelry (except for one pair of thicker gold hoops, which are fine jewelry from Saks Off Fifth) choices that also sort of fit the general look I'm thinking of. It was actually surprisingly difficult to find items that had the right look, particularly with a costume jewelry budget constraint in mind. Anyway, I don't know the jewelry market well at all, so I'd need to do considerably more research before I actually thought about buying anything, and these are not things I'm currently actively shopping for. 

Where do you shop for jewelry? What are your favorite styles of earrings or bracelets? Do you prefer silver or gold-tone metals? I personally think the look I have in mind here lends itself a bit more to gold jewelry, though I'm probably biased because I generally have a strong preference for gold-tone metals over silver or white metals on me. I guess it might be because my skin has warmer undertones!

August 2018 Shopping Reflections

Oh dear, this ended up being an unexpectedly shopping-heavy month. And to add insult to injury, some of my choices won't be terribly popular, and were at least partially the result of poor planning, which isn't great. Let's break it down.

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This month started out well enough. I'd mentioned how obsessed I was with Alighieri jewelry, enough to buy another piece shortly after my first, last month's Jaja necklace. It was an extravagance, and also an unusual choice for me, as I've previously balked at buying another significant piece of jewelry for years. Regardless, I was supporting an independent artist, and her work is unique and beautiful. So long as the purchase fit comfortably in my budget, no big deal! Then, something I wanted months ago, a particular color of that Nordstrom cashmere and silk wrap I liked so much, was finally on sale, so I snapped that up. Both of these things were a natural corollary to something that was already a well-loved favorite, so that all seemed fine. 

Then I indulged in a few impulsive buys, but it wasn't that many, and in categories I don't really impulsively buy from anymore, namely skincare and jewelry. (Well, jewelry has possibly become a slightly impulsive area now, so I should be a bit more cautious going forward.) I'd gone to the new Muji near Bryant Park to look for more of those acrylic storage drawers I use for skincare and makeup (pictured). Despite the units being 50% off, when I saw that they discontinued the velour inserts for jewelry they used to make, which I was also after, I quite frugally declined to buy anything. But then I saw the Deciem store next door, and you can guess what happened. Oh, and on the last day of the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale, I ordered a pair of those cubic zirconia studs recommended by Feather Factor. 

The more awkward things to explain, given my longtime goal of more minimalist, ethical, and conscious shopping, is the rest of it. It was only in mid-August that K and I confirmed the actual dates for our trip to Japan. And then I learned that the weather in Tokyo and Kyoto when we're there can be expected to be at least as warm and humid as it has been here in NYC recently, i.e. summer clothing weather. And I don't actually own enough casual summer clothes to last the entire two weeks of our trip, if I only take items that still fit me and that I like or feel comfortable wearing. (On our previous long trips, to places in East and Southeast Asia in summer weather, we've always stayed with family in the middle of each trip, and were able to do laundry, so I only ever needed a week's worth of summer clothing before.) 

I don't like summer clothes as much as fall/winter ones, and only really get to wear casual clothes on weekends. Thus, I've been perfectly happy spending my summer weekends wearing the same two or three dresses over and over, and I'd never felt there was a gap in my closet until now. With little more than four weeks before our departure, there wasn't enough time to try out one of those linen shops on Etsy like NotPerfectLinen or a made to order brand like Elizabeth Suzann. I looked through Ebay, Thredup, and Poshmark for casual dresses that would suit (mostly secondhand J.Crew or Madewell) and didn't see anything I wanted for the right price, and so... I ended up at Old Navy. Funnily enough, Luxe just wrote about this exact scenario, about almost impulsively buying something from Old Navy for a trip, except in her case she decided not to. 

Fashion - (TOTAL: $401.30)

• Alighieri La Fortuna Necklace - $264.00 - This particular Alighieri item isn't currently available from any US-based retailer, or from any of the foreign retailers best known for quick shipping to the US (i.e. Farfetch or Ssense). I bought mine online from Mille, a boutique in Minneapolis, but I seem to have gotten their last one. This is my second Alighieri purchase, and I still have nothing but good things to say, both pieces are absolutely beautiful. With this purchase, I've exhausted my jewelry budget, unless I dramatically cut clothing expenditures to compensate. 
• Nordstrom Silk and Cashmere Wrap, pink silver - $59.40 - (sold out, other colors) Because I loved my first one so much, I've been keeping a close eye on this, to track when they put it on sale (rarely, at seemingly random times, a color or two at a time). In May, they put a nice pale pink on sale, but I saw that I preferred this cooler-toned "pink silver" shade instead. Fast forward to now, as soon as they put "pink silver" on sale, I grabbed it right away. These silk and cashmere wraps are lovely and floaty, but also extremely thin and prone to snags. Because I don't like feeling overheated, and have a down coat with a knit collar that zips up to the chin for truly cold days, these light scarves are plenty warm enough for me for most of winter, though I don't think most other people would feel the same. 
• Nordstrom Cubic Zirconia Earrings, 2 ct tw - $29.90 - Not too much to say here, except that these are sparkly, and also modestly priced during the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale. I normally wear a pair of pearl studs from Amazon (many options, including with sterling silver or 14k gold posts) day in and day out. It's been years since I've done anything else with my earrings for everyday wear, so I was tempted to get something to mix things up with. (I recall that Jess and Lea also have these, and we generally all seem pleased with them.) 
• Old Navy Sleeveless Tie-Neck Shift Dress - $10.00* - This is a solid-color version of a printed rayon dress I bought a few months ago, which has been in my three-dress rotation for weekends this summer (along with the older version of the Grana V-Neck Silk Slip Dress and a Madewell cotton-silk blend dress I bought secondhand). I also wear that dress and a cardigan to work sometimes, on our casual (but no jeans) Fridays. So this was an easy choice when I found myself needing more summer clothes that fit me for my trip. One thing I've noticed about rayon is that when some items are line-dried, they initially look a bit stiff and wrinkly, but once you shake it out a bit, the texture goes back to normal.
• Old Navy Tassel-Tie Flutter-Sleeve Shift Dress - $24.00* - Note that, while it isn't clear from the store photos (it's more obvious on the white version), this one has a sort of "babydoll dress" silhouette, hanging straight out and down from a point right above the bust, i.e. it's something that could easily have that "boob tent" effect I sometimes mention as a thing I avoid. Except that this dress is also a bit slimmer and less flared out than many other dresses of the type, so it ends up looking more like a shift dress, and I think the flutter sleeves also help balance out and prevent that tent-like effect. It's a linen-rayon blend.
• Old Navy Relaxed Lightweight Cap-Sleeve Shirt - $14.00* - This shirt sort of looks like the Madewell Courier Shirt, though the cotton-rayon blend is softer and flowier than the light 100% cotton Madewell tends to use. (And it's not as intentionally oversized as the Courier.) A year or two back, I'd tried on a striped Courier shirt very similar to this, but sent it back because the Courier was not flattering on me, making my entire torso look as wide as the widest part of my chest. This softer material and slimmer-fit shirt suits me better, though it is still has a relaxed fit. I also ordered a 100% cotton version, but it fit more awkwardly, and the buttons gapped (a common issue with cotton button-downs on bustier figures). 

* Indicates that price per item is an estimate, due to the way the discount was calculated by the store. 

Beauty and Skincare - (TOTAL: $26.50) 

• The Ordinary Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1% - $6.50 - I'm just about the last skincare fan I know to finally try The Ordinary. It's so affordable, with an emphasis on key active ingredients, that I think almost everyone who likes exploring new skincare would want to try them at least once. This is the only one of the three products I've tried so far. I'd thought it was breaking me out, but later determined that the actual culprit was the CosRx Aloe Soothing Sun Cream. I'm going to try this again, but haven't yet had a chance to. 
• The Ordinary Alpha Arbutin 2% + HA - $10.00 - Both niacinamide and alpha arbutin are supposed to be good for fading dark spots. Post-acne hyper-pigmentation is the main skin issue that I'd turn to over the counter products to help with. (Acne is a much bigger skin problem for me, but I now rely on prescriptions to control it.) It'll probably be a while before I get to this, as I'm now very slow with testing new products. 
• The Ordinary AHA 30% + BHA 2% Peeling Solution - $10.00 - Out of the three products, this is the one I'm least likely to be able to easily incorporate into my current routine. After being on a newly more minimalist routine on a dermatologist's orders, and going back to nightly use of Retin-A Micro, my skin's far more sensitive now! A few months ago, I tried re-incorporating my previous CosRx BHA products (previously, the BHA Blackhead Power Liquid and BHA Returning A-Sol were a good one-two combination for me as part of my morning routine), but now that I'm back to using Retin-A Micro nightly, my skin can't handle daily use of BHA anymore. That likely means that a weekly peel like this product may not be a good idea either... That's the thing about skincare marketing though, people with problem skin always hope a new product will magically make a huge difference.

Have you tried the Ordinary products? Did you like them? Is your wardrobe big enough to keep you outfitted for a long-ish trip in any given climate? With winter clothing, I wouldn't need half as much, and am totally set, as I wear most sweaters and jeans several times between washes, possibly for several weeks. I get quite sweaty and gross in summer, however (especially in the armpits, ick, and the clothes get smelly), so most summer dresses and tops can generally only be worn once before needing a wash. I should have foreseen this situation earlier in the summer, when I would have had more time to shop more carefully for a new summer dress or two, or a new top, but well, that didn't quite happen.