The Best of Sale

Lots of feelings about shopping plus some very good Toteme, Khaite, Row, and Jil Sander.

Two weekends ago, my husband surprised me with a trip to the Rose Bowl flea market. So sweet - but as soon as I got out of the car and started walking towards the vintage clothing booths, I got this insane feeling I haven’t had since my days of shopping sample sales in New York. It was totally unhinged competitiveness - like my heart started beating 10x faster, and my palms started sweating, and I felt like I NEEDED EVERYTHING BEFORE SOMEONE ELSE BOUGHT IT. I don’t know how to describe it, it was manic almost. I eventually had to stop going to sample sales all together because I’d be overtaken by that feeling and buy a ton of random shit that 9 out of 10 times wasn’t even in my size.

Also, when I was living in New York, still getting dressed to go to the office, during the months of online sales I’d get the same feeling - like THE DEAL OF A LIFETIME IS WAITING FOR ME IF I JUST CLICK THROUGH ALL 89 PAGES OF DISCOUNTED SWEATPANTS AND HIDDEN HEEL SNEAKERS. It was a feeling that I can fix whatever’s going on by buying a magic thing. If you read my letter on Friday, you know I’m in the middle of a cosmic spiral. But I’m finding other ways to cope, besides shopping. At the Rose Bowl, I resisted the zillion campy vintage tees on offer in favor of one $35 antique French cotton night dress.

Lately, I try to get the one thing every season I really want, rather than scrambling to fill a void later on. My sale scrolling is more leisurely and pleasant, rather than desperate and frenzied. Despite doing a newsletter that is, at least in part, about shopping, I actually shop very little. You’ll notice I wear and post about the same pieces week after week, I just wear them in different ways. I’m not, nor have I ever been, a trend gal. I believe in things that are good and useful whether they’re $30 or $3,000. I also really believe in wearing your clothes. I’m a reformed indiscriminate shopper (hoarder) - now I’m pretty deliberate.

Because I don’t really need anything, but also because I’m human and I like to mindlessly browse, I started compiling open tabs of particularly nice things that are still available on sale, and thought I’d share them here. Hopefully y’all find some of these things useful.

NET-A-PORTER

From NAP, I found largely minimalist wardrobe stapley things - a LOT of Toteme, Khaite, and The Row.