088: Shopping the Simonett sale from inside the house
088: Shopping the Simonett sale from inside the house
Plus Alaïa at Moda, Loewe x Howl's Moving Castle, and a Lisa Says Gah sale-on-sale.
First off, thank youuuuuuuu to everyone who came out this weekend in outrageous New York weather to celebrate the launch of our Deep Winter Issue (how appropriate).
Sincerest gratitude to our gracious host Colbo, to ETI for the endless kibbeh installation, Quinton Mulvey for the music (I’m still listening to the playlist, which you can follow along with here), and Yola Mezcal, Vivanterre, and Ghia for the gorgeous drinks, which we enjoyed down to the last drop.
I had so much fun…and I think…we need to do more of these…
In the meantime, though, I am predictably back to shopping. My latest acquisition is this Jil Sander Mini Goji bamboo bag in tan (I influenced myself through our editorial, apparently) that I wore to the event with the most insane and perfect asymmetric Viktor&Rolf skirt from Ending Soon.
This week’s guest, Simonett Pereira, is also responsible for some purchases I’m about to make. My shopping cart at her store is positively fecund with imminent buys—and you’ll understand more once you read our conversation below.
What’s new
I can’t even fathom what an absolute dream it must have been to be invited into Pieter Mulier’s Antwerp home that he shares with partner Matthieu Blazy (!), where the designer recently hosted the FW23 Alaïa show. The brutalist-yet-busy interior made a novel backdrop for the collection’s equally enthralling standout pieces—several of which have been made available for pre-order on Moda Operandi: the circus-legged balloon pants, for one, and this compressible duvet coat, for two. Lastly, the brand’s heart-shaped Coeur bag has been iterated in silvery brass, and is an instant grail for collectors of the style.
If the first strains of piano in “Merry Go Round of Life” bring you to your knees, or your favorite Christian Bale role is his voiceover of a certain louche, lackadaisical wizard, you probably already know about Loewe’s final collaboration with Studio Ghibli, a tour de force of more than 150 pieces inspired by the film Howl’s Moving Castle. From the shamelessly sculptural Moving Castle pouch to more subtle interpretations of the magical animation, such as a buttery black peacoat dappled in raffia feathers, the collection is steeped in visual and tactile wonder to inspire everyone from the boldfaced otakus who live among us to the wry nostalgists who appreciate a well-crafted collector’s item. There are more such gems to be found at MyTheresa, where pieces such as a polo sweater bearing a fluffy-hatted Witch of the Waste abound. The price range of this collection is pearl-clutch-inducing, but the sheer enchantment exuded by each piece cannot be ignored.
Usually, I can think of few things less romantic than gifting your lover some old-world affect from Gohar World. Rather, these are precisely the items I’d love to give or receive more among friends. The bulk of brand’s Valentine’s Day capsule—of lace doilies, hankies, tissue box covers, and toilet roll holders—make great “thinking of you” tokens, if you feel like seizing the occasion to show you care. But the collection’s piece de resistance, a $600 Patrician decanter, is unfortunately so stunning that it defies any price-oriented criticism. If the season aligns with anyone’s third wedding anniversary, this may be glass to seriously consider.
Mansur Gavriel has introduced a new bag—the Upcycled Woven Bucket Bag. And rather than feel like a Bottega derivative, the pinched-top tote takes on a classis Mansur silhouette, that of its OG Bucket Bag, and brings it a market feel. That the latest bags are made using leather factory scraps is a clever perk.
In its new initiative, Black/style@Nordstrom, the department store spotlights several Black designers who make everything from nail polish to woven bins to midi dresses. Nordstrom also pledges to purchase 10 times more goods from Black-owned businesses by 2030, but in the meantime, you can shop a dynamic curation of pieces such as chubby gold Khiry earrings in a shape inspired by traditional calfskin water jugs and a set of two periwinkle champagne glasses by Estelle Colored Glass, the perfect host gift for the next midwinter dinner party you attend.
COS has teamed up with pan-African brand Yeboah on a capsule titled “Metamorphosis.” Most of the collection runs under $200 and includes charged-yellow checkered wool coats, dye-pattern track jackets, and drapey knit hoodies; the most wearable intersection of elegant tailoring and at-home clothes.
The new Helmut Lang has hit stores, and SS23 is looking good. Tailoring takes center stage, with some smart, women-at-work vests and three-piece suits showing off the brand’s technical prowess, while sheer skirts and stretchy, thin cottons deliver some welcome ease.
Born from a single cookie bag, Puppets and Puppets’ latest realistic food bags expand on the chocolate chip with bananas, fried eggs, and bejeweled biscuits affixed to simple boxy cases that look not unlike those kate spade Sam bags we threw ourselves at in the ‘90s.
Ganni’s “Joyride” collection, set in motion at Copenhagen Fashion Week last September when models clad in these pieces rode bikes down a pier as the sun set, is available to shop a day early for those of us with our ears to the Magasin. Electric turquoise, gentle denim, and classic leopard print recur in forms such as a cowboy boot, puffy blouse, and canvas coat with a dramatic collar. The clarion call for an early return to spring dressing has been sounded.
Marc Jacobs’ prodigal zoomer child, Heaven, has linked up with Kiko Kostadinov in another of its never-ending chain of collaborations. The capsule tries to get scene-y and pop-punk-y, but is most successful when Kostadinov’s sculptural sensibility takes the lead, as it does with a plaid miniskirt crumpled like a paper napkin or an argyle sweater vest with fake-out “sleeves” that tie like a scarf at the neck.
Mads Nørgaard has teamed up with Icon Visions for the fourth time in the “Iconic Classics” capsule collection. Army-inspired trousers read “icon royal” across the butt in a reinterpretation of 2001’s Punk Royal cargo pants favored by Kylie Minogue, while long-sleeved tops and maxi dresses are cut in such deep “U”s across the chest that a bra can become a statement piece when layered underneath. Everything is very aughts, and it’s all made of 100% wool produced in Denmark.
Muscly bodies writhe across tops and shorts in Pol Anglada’s capsule for JW Anderson, with illustrations of beefcakes wrestling each other juxtaposed against prim, preppy silhouettes like a polo or camp shirt.
Encore, Cecile Bahnsen’s new “patchwork collection,” takes fabric scraps from past seasons and fashions them into the brand’s signature lightweight silhouettes. The strappy open back of the Ruth Dress and the sweeping peplum of the Selena Top are highlights, though every piece up for preorder is stunning (and sustainable).
There’s also: Nike x Tom Sachs reunite with the General Purpose Shoe, a woven brown sneaker that’s almost drab in its minimalism, but in precisely the Tom Sachs, focus-on-one’s-art way; Patta’s SS23 collection offers up sherbet-colored hooded sweaters and reflective jackets stamped with peace signs; Aries complicates the classic Juicy Couture velour-and-bling combo with psychedelic, sun-bleached patterns and contemporary cuts; the new Ami Alexandre Mattiussi x Puma drop lands on SSENSE for high-necked fleeces and chunky sneakers with dizzyingly funky, thick laces; Bianca Saunders masterfully molds leather into the “Maggoty Shoe,” not at all as gross as it sounds, and into other simple, clean-lined accessories like wallets, jackets, and even a leathery chair; and each piece in the Eastpak x Undercover capsule, including the compellingly comely tri-pocket backpacks is printed with the motif: “Chaos/Balance”.
What’s on sale
Lisa Says Gah is offering an extra 30% off its sale selection until February 12th, with 10 pages of mostly wintry wares to comb through. This week, we talked to Simonett Pereira about the necessity for a going-out top to pull us through the rest of this winter’s indoor activities, and there are a few sub-$100 candidates like this this fluttery blouse or this puffy number that would layer gamely with the requisite turtlenecks (perhaps a mesh one from Ganni?) and puffer coats. Also on sale are non-LSG brand gems like a watermelon-colored Zoe Schlacter blanket and chocolatey suede clogs from Matisse.
While it doesn’t ever feel quite right to see The Row on sale—let alone hosting one on its own site—the obvious opportunity it presents outweighs the uncanny, apocalyptic energy contained in the mere fact of the atelier extending a modest discount. Men’s and women’s RTW, accessories, and shoes are down to half off, with sweet bags starting under $400 and those funny “kids” tees for under $200.
Identitá is everything you want from an Italian shoe brand: bonkers quality and craftsmanship with verging-on-garish heel height and use of color. I personally fell for it upon discovering these knee-high wedge boots with a perfectly tubular shaft, but scattered through its 50% off sale are countless other “it’s not so serious, guys” styles to pair with rhinestones and a whiny drawl.
Rentrayage—the upcycling brand whose exact denim-lace skirt Julia Fox and I both recently wore—is having a fairly generous sale. Up to 60% off on site are scrap-fabric joggers and sashed jeans, hourglass blazers and elegant tie tops, plus an assortment of surprising home wares.
Further reductions to Our Legacy’s sale make its collection of stalwart basics, like a sheer, milky party top, perhaps to layer under a smart woolen tuxedo jacket, all the more compelling. This crisp cotton turtleneck and techy camisole to wear underneath it all are also eye-catching.
The Aeron winter sale has unlocked an extra 10% off stock already whittled down to 50% with EXTRA10. Full of slouchy knit tops and huge, boxy wool coats, this sale is the antidote to midwinter wardrobe stagnation.
Act Series’ site-spanning, up-to-60%-off sale includes everything from prim lace-up shoes to romantically pointy-toed Mary Janes to the platonic ideal of a Chelsea boot, all for around $200 or less.
Dual-wielding sales, Hanrej has both an archive sale, buzzing with metallic jewelry like this perky bee pendant, and a sample sale with necklaces featuring rhinestone-studded ocarinas and dragon teeth—perfect for both the sophisticates and the Legend of Zelda nerds among us, as well as the select few who bridge that gap.
Bevza’s archive sale recalls Grecian mythology, with charming sailor t-shirts and drapey dresses just as alluring for those who would rather play the siren. The knit iterations of seafarer-wear have detachable collars and chunky ribbing that plays with structure and fluidity like a boat riding the waves.
There’s also: Satta’s subdued mountaineering gear and cozy cabin knits would please Lemaire and Merrell fans alike, and an appealing selection is 20% off right now; balletcore can be done the legit way sourcing leotards and tights from Dion Davis-approved Capezio—use MOVES10 for $10 off orders over $50 and MOVES20 for $20 off $100+; and there’s a 50% off offer on a selection of rosy-hued puffer coats from The Very Warm with HISANDHERS.
Simonett Pereira is her own style twin
An insider look at what to get from her store Simonett’s unprecedented sale.
Simonett the store is so acutely curated it feels too good to be true. Until you meet Simonett the person. Simonett Pereira is as daring and well-dressed as her Miami-based boutique would suggest, bringing a certain sensibility to the clothes she wears that exceeds the designers’ own scopes—the truest hallmark of great personal style. On the eve of yet another era for her brand, Simonett stopped by Magasin to share some of her favorite things to buy from the shop—which is largely marked down to wholesale prices, to make room for everything new on its way.
L: So, I have the site up right now and it's looking so beautiful. Everything is very fun and interactive and all the images are so gorge gorge gorge. S: Yeah, I feel like we needed a revamp of our website, because we launched it in 2019. We periodically made a couple of changes, but it was definitely overdue for a little facelift. And now that we're doing Casa Simonett and we have a studio, it's just so much easier to make all of that content in-house. It makes the customer experience so much better because we have that continuity and there's new content more often. I’m really excited about that.
L: Yeah, that's very cool—not to immediately get off topic but I'm so excited about Casa Simonett, can you speak to that a little bit, what your plans are around that? S: Honestly, for right now, it's still a work in progress. We haven't really set in stone what direction we're going to take with it. Some of the projects that we have in mind are creating homeware and maybe even furniture pieces for the home and then also having a curation of pulled objects from different artists. Similar to what we do with the fashion department. Obviously, keeping it super fun with more obscure brands that don't have a lot of visibility or distribution yet. We want to do collaborations with different artists and have some exclusive pieces. And then, Casa Simonett is also a studio so people can take photos—we also shoot all of our content here. It’s a series of things. We’ll see where it goes.
We started off with this idea that I had because I felt like as I got older, when I reached my early 30s, I realized that I was spending all my money on home stuff. And I was like, “This is what I care about now—furniture is what I gush over.” Similarly to when I started Simonett. I was in a situation where I loved all of these super unique pieces, great art-centric furniture, art-centric objects, all the things that I loved but couldn't really afford. Or rather, a lot of one-of-one, made-in-Italy pieces that were not very accessible.
At Casa Simonett, what we're looking to do is bridge that gap and make these cool pieces a little bit more attainable, working with as many sustainable materials as we can. I started that practice just making stuff for the studio. I realized how much fun I had, it was all very DIY, but we could make shit! We started putting some stuff together. We've made a bench so far. We have some chairs that are coming in next week for the living room area. None of these are ready to commercialize yet, they're still prototype level, but this was our first step in that direction, to get our hands dirty and start producing some pieces.
L: That's so exciting. You're onto conquering this whole new territory, similar to how you set about conquering fashion with the same ethos. It's been a really amazing journey to watch and shop and follow you since the [brand’s previous name] Style Mafia days. S: I think because I've been doing this for so long and I've kept it very small scale, I haven't really wanted to become this massive brand that just pushes out fifty collections. I’ve had so much more fun with keeping it boutique. In order to keep doing new things, I've had to innovate a little bit. It's crazy how personal Simonett is to my own life. I started Simonett with our own collections, my own brand. We were designing in-house, we were doing all of it. But I also really admired the work of other people.
I feel like I've always been more of a curator, a creative director, than I have been a designer. And that translated into my wardrobe. People would ask me, “What are you wearing?” and a lot of times it wasn't all Simonett. That's where I got the idea: People really love what I'm wearing. Not just what we make, but also the different brands I’ve curated. We launched this in Miami because it felt like nobody else was doing anything like that in the city, so it felt really fresh to bring the independent design world into a city that previously didn't really have access to that other than on Instagram. So, it's been very personal. I’ve based the ways I’ve shifted the company off my personal experiences. I had a new, profound interest in making sure that I was cozy in my house, a true Taurus through and through. That gave me the idea to do Casa Simonett. I’d love to have a little touch point in the different areas of people's lives that are important to me that revolve around design and aesthetics that feel expressive...
L: What were some of the first brands that you brought on when you expanded past Simonett the brand and became Simonett, the multi-brand store? S: The first brand that I ever brought on was Tigra Tigra, they're based out of LA, it’s my friend Bailey’s brand. She produces everything with a collective of artists abroad, in India and Africa, I think. She works with women who work in factories with zero electricity. It's actually super crazy, she's very sustainable but I love that she's not in your face about it, greenwashing everything she does. It's just the way it is, but it's not promoted as much, which I think is really beautiful. I fell in love, love, love with her pieces, and it worked out, because we had the opportunity to open up our first pop up in Miami, and at the time, we only had one collection. It was our spring/summer collection, and I felt like there was so much more of an opportunity to display different pieces because we had that space, so that gave us the idea, why don't we also just bring some accessories and some things like that from other brands?
I found one of [Bailey’s] bags on Instagram randomly, it was insanely beautiful, hand beaded with all these really fun motifs and a little silk sash. I was like “Hey, we have this store, we don't really have other brands yet but we love your stuff!” She responded right away, and we made a little exclusive. It took off from there. Tigra Tigra was one of the first brands. Gimaguas was another early brand. We were actually one of their first wholesale stockists. In the beginning, we were focusing a lot more on brands that had zero distribution. I felt like that was the goal. Obviously now that's harder to do because of Instagram and how accessible everything is. Helmstedt was another early brand, it’s based out of Copenhagen. All of the prints are hand-painted. We had a very artisanal approach, we still do actually, with Chopova [Lowena] and Levens, who makes earrings made out of hand-blown glass and ceramic. Celebrating artisanal practices and creative ingenuity is at the core of how we select our merchandise.
L: How many brands would you say you work with, if you had to guesstimate? S: We have around 55 brands right now, last time I checked. I don't know if that's changed, but somewhere around that ballpark. As we started growing the multi-brand, we moved to a bigger space for our physical store and that incentivized us to bring in different brands. People were really loving the fact that they couldn't really get this stuff anywhere else and we got so much positive feedback on the multi-brand concept of the store versus just having our own in-house label that we started expanding. L: What are some of your best sellers, brand-wise or piece-wise, if you have any that people keep coming back for? S: One of our best selling pieces this year has been the Coperni Swipe Bag, people just keep buying it. Every time we restock it, it just sells out again. We have one on sale right now because it has a little bit of a scratch on it as it was our store sample but yeah, that bag does really well. From Simonett, the sweater sleeves, it's crazy—we designed those back in 2019 and we still sell at least 5 to 10 of them every day. It's crazy that people still love it. I think it's because it's such a staple, a piece that you could just wear with anything. People like that they can wear something super forward from, say, Chopova, and then just throw the sweater sleeves on.
I think that that also has dictated where we plan to take Simonett once we relaunch it. Our in-house label is on pause right now. We are relaunching our first collection for spring/summer ‘24. What we've learned through this process of having the multi-brand and our own store, is that we just want to focus on wardrobe staples. Really well made, good price points, and just leave the theatrics, if you will, to the multi-brand curation that we have. L: That makes sense, to focus on the glue between all of these pieces… S: When we're trying to style these things, everything is such a statement. We try to dial those things down and make them wearable.
L: Simonett is very skilled at finding and highlighting those statements, and I think that the way you dress personally reflects that. How does your wardrobe (Simonett the person) interact with your inventory (Simonett the store), are you wearing these pieces as well? Do you have a separate style? S: I definitely wear everything from the store. I made a pact in the middle of last year that I wasn't going to buy a single thing that wasn't sold at our store, aside from maybe a pair of shoes or something that we can't stock because it's one of a kind.
It's a direct reflection of my style. I think that one of the most unique things about Simonett is that if you really look at the vibe, even from the brands that have bigger stockists—retailers like SSENSE or Neiman's, they do carry these brands that we carry—but our selection is usually the pieces that the designers also love the most but that sometimes get canceled from the collection. We get the funnest, more alternative pieces that are a little bit more bold. I think the way that we're able to do that is because of our size. If you're a huge, multi-brand retailer, you have to think about the bottom line all the time, and it’s not that we don't, but because we're so boutique, we're able to have this really special vibe that people appreciate. They're like, “These are the pieces that we wanted.” Those are the pieces that I can’t shop anywhere else.
I don't have a Kim Kardashian-sized closet. I know that some people think that I do. But I don't! We usually have a store sample which is the one that I'll wear and then we'll mark it down. But also, I have to be honest, a lot of the things that I wear on Instagram are very different from what I wear at home. I'm wearing a really beautiful sweatsuit right now that I’ve repeated throughout the week.. L: That's a very reasonable balance to strike in one's life. What pieces that are in the store right now do you find yourself wearing the most? S: Almost all of my favorite pieces are on sale right now—80% of the site is on sale. We're just now getting the first deliveries of our resort and spring/summer collections. One of those is the Kwaidan Editions Slip Skirt. It's a nude-colored latex slip skirt, high-waisted, and every time I wear it I feel like the most badass person. It's funny because you could dress it up and be in a look—I wore it to the Balenciaga show at the stock exchange in New York before their campaign internet drama—but then I've also worn it with a fitted white cotton top and black boots, and it feels so polished. It’s also super flattering, it makes your butt look really good.
L: I just pulled it up on the site, and I love that it has this little hardware detailing over by the slit side. S: That’s the best part. It's so cute. So elegant. Another thing that's really cool about it—I don't know if this was intentional, I'm assuming not, but it makes it even more special—my personal piece that I own has developed this kind of patina on it. I don't know if that's characteristic of latex or not, because I've never owned a latex piece before. But it looks really cool. It makes it a little more imperfect, and it kind of reminds me of one of the furniture pieces that we made for Casa Simonett in a rustic steel that has also developed a patina. I love it even more now.
The Colorblock Tencel Top in Purple, a super simple top, is another one, and it’s on mega mega sale. It’s like $59 right now and comes in a purple and a mint. The purple is so good. I have red hair right now, and with that purple, it looks incredible. And it's the softest fabric I've ever felt in any top. I've worn it like three times this month. It has little thumb holes, and that makes me feel so cozy and safe for some reason. L: It's also not a very aggressive purple. It’s a soft, inviting purple. S: I feel like it doesn't really get noticed as much just because it's so simple compared to the showstoppers that we have. But I love that piece.
Then there’s the See You Sunnei Patch T-Shirt, also on 60% sale. It doesn't really say much on the website, I will admit. It's modeled on a man just because we didn't shoot that in-house, and the brand provided imagery. But that top is really great. I wear it with white painter’s jeans, it’s a very simple look that I like. Another one I love is the Off-Shoulder Overlay Ribbed Sweater, that one's super chic. I really love its material, great price, great for layering, and a great styling piece for a lot of the bottoms that we have. I wear this a lot with my Tigra pieces. I have this multicolored, high-waisted culotte kind of pant from them with snaps on the side. This is what I like to wear with that because it tones it down. You can wear this with anything, honestly. L: It solves so many weather-related problems…Everyone right now wants to look hot, but it's still winter. I think the “going out top” is being revived, and this is exactly the silhouette that people want because it's cozy and comfy and shows a little skin at the same time.
S: I've seen different types of people wear it, like our friend Alex who shoots a lot of our stuff and is our stylist, she has big boobs and it looks amazing on her. And then I’m super flat chested but I have broad shoulders, and I'm always very self-conscious of wearing off-the-shoulder things because of that and, honestly I don't know how, but it just works. L: I think I'm gonna have to get this one, seriously. S: I swear, it's really good. There's so much product on the site right now that things can get lost. There's so many little icons.
Another good one is the Coperni Explorer Trousers. They’re from a past collection, their fall/winter ‘22 collection. We just marked them down to like 50–60% off, I think. These fit insanely well. If you want the “hot girl” aesthetic, this is it. Your butt looks so good in these and they really elongate your legs. The bottom has these small buttons that you can open so it's like a flared leg, which always looks so good with a pointy shoe or even just a sandal or boot. And the little satchel situation is cute. It kind of gives “makeup artist” in the best way. Like, I'm doing stuff. I’m ready to go. L: She's booked and busy.
S: Exactly. There’s also the Isabella Etou Onyx Necklace. This brand is based in Korea. I feel like they are just more under the radar, they never really got big on press relationships and things like that, so the name isn't really recognizable, but their quality is incredible. Everything they do is just so meticulously done and the fabrication is perfect. I love this necklace. I’ve worn it both traditionally, just on cleavage with a black blazer—it makes me feel like a rich mom or something—and then I've also worn it the other way around, down on my back when I've done an open-back moment. It's also really beautiful that way. It's super elegant.
What else… the Sunnei Peso Leather Bag in the green and white combo. So, so amazing. We weren't able to mark it down deeply like we did with a lot of the other pieces just because the sheer cost of this bag is very significant given the fabrication—I think Sunnei makes some of the best quality bags of all of the vendors that we carry. They pay a lot of attention to detail. They're a bit of a mess in terms of production and deliveries and everything, but I can see why. They're just actual creatives at heart, and maybe they struggle with the operations side of things because they put so much emphasis and so much detail into their design that it's special. This is me speculating, but I’ll allow it for their product. L: They have really incredible silhouettes. I have a bag from them and it's something that I'm in awe of. It's funny, it's kind of like a gym bag or like a bowling bag but slightly too small. It’s very quirky. I’m Googling it… it’s the Bauletto Bag. S: Oh, yeah, that one's gorgeous. We have one of those on sale as well, all white on white.
In terms of shoes, I love the Low Classic Raw Edge Mule in blue. These are another one that never really got their moment for some reason. I love the silhouette. The fabric is so soft and beautiful. And they have that raw-edge detail, like an overstitch situation, and a square toe. For $200, that’s a great deal. They’re great with black pants and a white t-shirt. Super simple. This is more like what I wear during the week. I feel like I need to have something that speaks to who I am, but like I need to be comfortable, and this is it.
L: This is what you can wear when you're actually building Casa Simonett and doing the work and growing the brand and, like, being a real person who has a whole business to run. And then you can kind of wear the other stuff when you're a Hot Girl About Town. S: We have something for every girl. I feel like I’m 10 different people. My neighbors must think there are twins living here. One day, I leave my house looking like a disaster, oversized everything, nobody cares, and then other times she pulls a lewk. You never know what you're gonna get, It’s very dependent on my mood. I feel like that's something that could be seen in our curation.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
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With contributions from Em Seely Katz