265: A visit to Saks is just good fashion hygiene
Swiss lingerie, remixed The Row, and channeling young Penelope Cruz via Staud.
Three separate people I spoke to about my plan to visit Saks yesterday morning all went, “Ooooh.” Right answer. Going to Saks is more than an errand or even just retail therapy, it’s a recentering event that summons an entire persona: I smized at tourists while walking knowingly around them, levitated through floors of kinetic ideas actualized into powerfully desirable goods, and then spoiled myself with a fancy lunch at Lodi. All in a New York minute!
The department store research trip is crucial to my overarching sense of what’s happening in shopping. As an editor and a consumer living so close by, I consider regular visits good fashion hygiene, so when Saks reached out about partnering—they’re sponsoring this send, amazingly—it felt like getting a postcard in the mail from your dentist reminding you it’s time for a check-in. (Some people really enjoy the dentist, btw.)
With all the context and tactile opportunity afforded me by a visit to Saks’ iconic-in-the-truest-sense-of-the-word flagship, these are the most pivotal inspirations I’m folding into my outlook for fall.
I surprised myself by how taken I was with all the teeny bag options—they felt fresh in a way a baby bag hasn’t since the dawn of Le Chiquito. This particular styling at Loewe’s section, featuring a Mini Puzzle Fold Bag as though it’s hatching out of the slightly larger Puzzle Tote, is twisted and kind of sweet in a uniquely J.W. Anderson way.
I’ve had a lot to say about Saint Laurent lately—on the subject of the brand finding its stride in bold, clean sexiness—and its pitch for jewelry meshes nicely with this exciting turn: The resin bangle hath risen!! These jelly-like ones from the brand that I spotted in store are so new, they haven’t even made it to Saks’ site yet—YSL’s two tortoiseshell versions and a pair of earrings have though, as has this 3-for-1 from Tory Burch and a ring from Maria Black. The gold-versus-silver war has raged far too long, I’m ready to exit the false dilemma in favor of a little soft-pop adornment.
This Staud crop hits heart-racingly close to that from a ’00 image of Penelope Cruz I have seared into my brain the way that ’90s TVs of folk legend permanently bare the CBS logo in their lower right corners. It’s elegant but unboring, laid-back yet dress-up-able (Cruz wore hers on the Independent Spirit Award red carpet), and of that rare breed of stripe that dodges nautical, Francophile, or jailbird associations. I’m also just now seeing that it comes in zip-up and t-shirt versions.
I discovered something important in the dressing room at Saks…This silk taffeta The Row top, which is totally sculptural and enigmatic and inviting of build-your-own-adventure styling, can in that spirit become a galaxy-brain mini dress where smarts and hots collide. I also tried on the white version in a slinkier silk, worn best as a top, the vibe being more “powerful smokeshow attends a fundraiser dinner.” This twofer has given me a lot to think about.
A moment for CO—a truly underrated brand—and this cropped knit tee that I’d very much like to wear this week.
It’s very me to take pictures of all the shoes that trigger a strong buy impulse, only to look back and realize they’re all white, almond-toed, and featuring varying degrees of a micro-heel. But! Each with a totally unique aura, of course. Stella McCartney’s derby-like lace-up flats; Loro Piana’s Rebeccas back for another season at the forefront of my desire; Gabriela Hearst’s cheeky, Philo-era Céline-like pumps; and most surprising to me of all, these Burberry mules with textured leather in the style of a 1950s quilted bathrobe.
The best finds are always hiding in the lingerie department. Beyond the lacy bras and fantasy corsetry (love and love), I always run into those louchely minimal pieces that’d be great centerpieces in a peak summer wardrobe or luxuriating under fall knits. Hanro is basically the Swiss equivalent of the collectible Oscalito tanks I brought back from Italy, as with this pistachio camisole (such a J.Hannah color, no?) or this bra-friendly lace-trimmed vest.
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What a fun way to spend the day! I laughed about the shoe options. I do that all the time, choose and wind up actually noting they're all similar. I liked the quilted pair the best.
That Hanro green looks so good paired under all the brown suedes everyone’s dying for rn!!