All the clothes I bought this fall
Hi friends,
I’m back with another shopping list. I hope this brings you as much voyeuristic pleasure as it brings me shame. All prices include tax and shipping.
I hope you’re wearing something decadent this winter. Stay warm my loves,
Brittany
SEPTEMBER
My bag requirements are thus: a sling bag so my hands are free to stay in my pockets, big enough to hold my essentials and small enough to prevent overpacking, soft and collapsible so that I can comfortably plop it on my lap on the train, leather, organic in shape, cheap enough that I don’t have to coddle what is my most practical, workhorse item, and most importantly, not a New Directions tote bag.
All these characteristics but one are embodied in the Lemaire croissant bag. Starting at $1,195 for the smallest size, the Lemaire croissant is the pinnacle of the “investment basic.” Without knowing anything about the brand, most people probably wouldn’t give it a second glance—the height of luxury. I used to have a bag just like it in high school. It was brown and made of that plasticky kind of leather used for car seats and cost me everything I had at the time, which was probably $10. The price of the Lemaire bag is to feel as if spending over a thousand dollars for a bag is easy. I do not have easy money. What I do have is time that isn’t worth much to anyone else, which I can spend on hours scrolling on eBay to eventually find not a dupe for the Lemaire croissant bag ($30), but the bag I used to have, in black.
My favorite bras for my big naturals are the Romy bras from Journelle ($80 x 2). They were having a sale, so I bought one in nude and one in black.
No-show socks are OUT. Ankles are not to be seen. We’re back to Victorian mores. I bought a pack of Hanes white tube socks ($8) to wear with my jeans and sneakers.
Every six months I get a conviction to sew. I got into watching ASMResque fabric store showcases on Youtube, and one had a printed silk square by Rachel Comey ($20) which had been used to make sheath dresses. I bought one with the idea that I could sew it into a The Row ascot bag dupe. Didn’t end up buying a sewing machine, but it will make a nice oversized scarf.
I was convinced by gen z influencers on Youtube that I needed some fall “essentials”: a vintage red leather trench ($58) and a vintage wool gray pleated skirt ($28), which I found on Poshmark. The trench looked awful in person (more car seat leather), and I sold it to Beacons Closet for more than I paid for it, even after their cut.
Other Poshmark purchases were a navy button-up silk shirt by Lilysilk ($28), yet another black tank from Vince ($24), and the Rachel Comey Clipse Dress ($51), which was too cheap to pass up. Surely I will wear it next summer, I thought, having not learned my lesson after this past wedding season.
I wanted some new rave/party wear so I picked up a black Girlfriend Collective high-neck sports bra ($28) from Nordstrom, plus a brown mesh long-sleeve shirt from Free People ($40). From a clothing swap, I got a pair of Nike parachute pants (free!!!) that look great with the very warm black Uniqlo U Ma-1 Blouson-Bomber ($53) that I found on Poshmark. Uniqlo U is a specialty line for Uniqlo designed by Lemaire.
My white whale for many years was the perfect pair of silver leather pants. And !!! the most beautiful silver leather pants from Simon Miller ($164) surfaced on The Real Real. But they were expensive, and I hesitated too long, and then someone else put them into their cart…. TRR will hold items in your cart for 20 minutes. I clicked the refresh button on the website every 60 seconds for 18 minutes until they were available again, then scooped them up before the other buyer could (sorry).
TRR is gonna charge you $13 for shipping regardless, and I am stupid enough to buy more things to make the cost “worth it.” I also added a cream Deborah sweater from Acne ($62) and a pair of black Monroe pants from Steven Alan ($29) to my cart. The Deborah used to be the hottest girl in town; I’m shocked I got one for so cheap.
Maybe I shouldn’t count my Davinci clogs by Troentorp ($100) because Boris bought them for me, but I wanted to mention them because I love them so much.
The Strategist directed me to a Nine West dupe of the MNZ Olympia wedge ($34) on sale, making it my first ever purchase from a New York Magazine recommendation, despite reading their shopping guides for years. Purchased in black but the other colors are fun.
OCTOBER
I have finally found my perfect travel outfit: a white tee shirt, jeans, and vans. While I don’t feel amazing in this ensemble, I don’t hate it either–it doesn’t warrant a thought. To prepare for a trip to Italy, I bought a new 5-pack of white Hanes boys tee shirts in XL ($10) from Amazon, and a Vince long-sleeve shirt ($33) from Poshmark to wear in the modest Italian churches.
While in Italy, I was persuaded to purchase a vintage suede leather jacket ($98) by Mark, an enabler. The jacket was in terrible condition which only got worse when I brought it back to New York and burst a seam by simply moving my arms. Cost an extra $25 to repair.
Jacket aside, I did come home with some excellent vintage finds: a fiery orange linen wiggle dress ($30), a sheer viscose button-down ($15), a red cashmere sweater ($30), and a baby blue cashmere sweater vest ($10).
I went to a charming and eccentric doll shop in Rome the size of a postage stamp that also had a stunning collection of handmade sterling silver jewelry. They look like they were made by Sophie Buhai but cost a fraction of a fraction of the price. I got a simple pair of hoops ($35). a complicated pair of hoops ($65), and a necklace with a big heart pendant ($55). Heart pendant necklaces are very trendy. Or at least they were a few months ago. Trends move like mosquitoes these days.
I tried on a vintage black Pelle leather jacket ($40) in Rome, but it was too big. Once home, I bought the same one but in my size on eBay, but sadly it still doesn’t look quite right.
Also bought some orangey-red Paloma Wool mittens ($32) at a deep discount from Bona Drag.
NOVEMBER
I went to Sao Paulo on a work trip over Thanksgiving. Didn’t buy any clothes. The new shops carried mostly neon pantsuits, and the one vintage store I found was lovely, but alas, I didn’t find anything for myself there.
My only Black Friday pickups were a pile of socks from Maggie’s Organics ($65.25 total). Their cotton socks are lovely but their merino wool socks are heavenly. Found out about them from Ruby Redstone. A very practical recommendation from her; surprising considering her style is so outlandish, but something I appreciate about it is that it is practical for her. I find her approach to casual dress with lace, frills, tie-dye and sequins inspiring.
I was sent a Poshmark offer for an H&M linen button-down shirt and shorts set ($18) and perhaps because I am already longing for summer, I accepted.
The Isabel Marant quilted, reversible coat ($115) that I’ve been after for years popped up on TRR at a third of the price I’ve seen on other second-hand sites.
