My Tote Bag Collection Got Called Out At A Dinner Party, I Had To Defend It
I counted them on the drive home, which is a very specific kind of shame, sitting in a parking lot doing tote bag math instead of going inside my own…
Everyone Warned Me A Corset Would Be Miserable, My Experience Disagreed
Someone at the shop told me point blank that I’d regret it, said her sister wore one to a wedding and spent the entire reception “breathing like a woman in…
My Chelsea Boots Fit Perfectly In The Shop And Then Betrayed Me By Week Two
The guy at the shoe store had that specific confidence that makes you trust someone you met four minutes ago. Leather stretches, he said, patting the toe of the boot…
Bobbling Happens To Basically Every Jumper I Own And I Wanted To Know Why
I bought a jumper in November that cost more than my electric bill that month, which felt like a personal milestone, and by Christmas it had little bobbles all down…
T Shirts Shrinking In The Wash Feels Random Until You Pay Attention To Why
I used to think shrinking was basically a mood the washing machine got into. Like it looked at my favorite gray shirt and decided today was the day. I’d pull…
I Wore A Bomber Jacket To A Meeting To Test The Business Casual Rule
I wore a black bomber jacket to a Tuesday morning meeting last month, the kind with the ribbed cuffs and a zipper that costs more to replace than the jacket…
My Ballet Flats Felt Like A Mistake Until They Finally Stretched Out
I bought a pair of nude ballet flats four days before a work trip to Chicago, tried them on for exactly ninety seconds in the store, walked around a rug…
A Black Floral Dress To A Wedding Made Someone Ask If Black Was Appropriate
My sister in law sent me a photo of a dress at eleven at night with the caption “is this a NO” and three question marks, and the dress in…
A Black Dress Shirt For A Funeral Might Not Be Enough On Its Own
I bought a black dress shirt for my uncle’s funeral three years ago and stood in my bedroom feeling like I’d solved the problem. Black shirt, black pants, done, right?…
My Loafers Creased Across The Toe Within Weeks And I Panicked A Little
I bought a pair of penny loafers in a color the store called “cognac” and I called “the color of a good idea,” and three weeks later there was a…