Weekend Reads for the End of September

Weekend Reads

How Everyday Tiktokers Are Making $6,000 a Month Posting Stealth Ads. (Wall Street Journal – gift link)

Dopamine Sites Sell Nothing, and People Cannot Get Enough. (New York Times – gift link)

Gen Z are shunning private equity’s restaurant takeover. (The Guardian)

Even partying is something Gen Z is optimizing. (The Up and Up ia Substack)

Women Look Better Without Clothes On. (Good Decisions via Substack)

What should a 60-year-old woman look like? (Mean Mag via Substack)

I'm so glad that boots like these are back in fashion. IMO they're a classic but now you can find great optios.

Mark: A journey to the heart of history’s largest nonterritorial empire. (Colossus)

If the US Collapses Soon, Don’t Blame Emily St. John Mandel. (Wired)

Over 70% of U.S. adults cope with fatigue, CDC finds. Why are Americans so tired? (NBC News)

Perfect pop of purple to fit into most any wardrobe this fall.

When Husbands Underfunction. (More to Hate via Substack)

A prominent dressage trainer shot a belligerent student—and now maintains that he’s the real victim. (The New Yorker)

This jacket incorporates two of the biggest trends this fall while also being timeless. And it's 25% off.

In Fighting for Every Black Child, Did I Betray My Own? (New York Times via Substack)

Prince George’s County, Md., has long been a haven for Black families. Does it deliver the schools they’re looking for? (The Grio)

The Outerknown Blanket Shirt is iconic for a reason, and rarely on sale. Today/Saturday only, it's 30% off! I think this shirt is amazing; my husband loves his so much I added it to my gift guide for men. But there are women's cut versions too!

The Pangram Backlash Unfolding on College Campuses. (The Atlantic – gift link)

The Tech Elite Is Funding an Alternative to College. (Wall Street Journal – gift link)

Rich Poor is the new Skinny Fat. (Rich Poor is the new Skinny Fat via Substack)

I've been so anti-bucket hats, but the fact that this one is elegant, water-resistant, and able to be rolled up and shoved in a pocket or suitcase has me a convert.

The unsettling rise of grandmAIslop. (Business Insider)

The Hyrox Debacle and Our Sick Relationship to Competition. (New York Times – gift link)

If you are looking for a Girl Scout that is selling the fall selection of nuts, candy, magazines, BarkBoxes, and more, my daughter has an online storefront. Cookies are the most famous fundraising product for Girl Scouts, but actually troops make the most profit off this campaign (15-20%).

And my Giving Circle with the States Project is still gathering donations to make a positive impact on the upcoming midterm elections. Thank you so much to those who have already donated; I don't benefit in any manner from this but wanted to use my platform in some way to benefit our country!

Style Inspo & Sale Alert

Blue is back, baby, and if you love the color this is the season to stock up. From cobalt to cerulean, navy to teal, ice to aqua, you'll find it and it looks great with rich neutrals like chocolate, camel, and evergreen.

puffer coat | ribbed fitted tee | striped top | sweater tee | rain boot | fleece quarter-zip | hat | mini bag | raincoat | cardigan | tote | crew sweater | slippers | quarter-zip sweater | vest | ruched top | crew sweater

Lands' End has a bunch and 40% off most of it this weekend with promo code COZY40.

DSW has $10 off $49, $20 off $99, and $60 off $199 with promo code COZYUP. DSW doesn't always have the best deals, honestly (often just a penny cheaper than other sites) but I can count on DSW to have a great selection of wide-width shoes and wide-calf boots. I'm partial to these fun wide-calf cowboy boots, these elegant wide-calf leather boots from Vionic, and this sleek loafer available in wide widths.

PAIGE has it's Friends & Family sale this weekend with 25% off sitewide. If you've been considering the Anessa, Paxton, or Laurel Canyon since my denim trends guide, this weekend is the time to get these high-quality, highly-rated jeans for less!

Evelyn & Bobbie has a sale section that includes the most popular designs of its wire-free bras and other underpinnings, just in discontinued colors or prints. It's an excellent way to save on what I consider to be one of the best brands for large busts (check out my Evelyn & Bobbie review). Ad right now you get an extra 10% off sale with code EXTRA10.

Monica Vinader, an ethical woman-designed jewelry company I personally love and own a few pieces from, is offering 25% off sitewide through the 27th. I appreciate that Monica Vinader is one of the few jewelry brands that consistently carries rings larger than a size 8. I am a fan of this sterling & diamond ring, I also have always found these bracelets so chic alone or part of a stack, and this would make a lovely gift.

Colleen Rothschild Beauty has buy one, get one 61% off, and no code is needed so try OXYGEN20 at checkout to see if you can get an extra 20% off. I have one of these in my bag, my car, my nightstand, and my dressing table; I love the smell and how well it works. I use this almost daily; I keep it on my dressing table and use under makeup or on its own as it's so effective. My skin survives winter mainly due to this; I have found nothing else that is so hydrating, long-lasting, and non-greasy. And for over a decade, I have sworn by this face cleanser for transforming my skin.

This weekend only, M.M.LaFleur is having its Private Sale Event with over 200 items at a limited discounted price. My personal pick? This top, which is on sale for $80 and can be under a suit, with a skirt, or even with a pair of jeans as a chic going-out top. That pale blue is perfect with dark denim, black, navy, chocolate brown, teal, ivory… and works all seasons of the year.

Through the 27th, Chico's has 40% off your highest price item and then 25% off the rest of your purchase. Where Chico's really shines is with jewelry and accessories: the quality is stellar, and the design is often right on trend. My picks:

• Chico's rocks statement cuffs that look expensive and are comfortable. This cuff in gold or in silver (or this one for a smaller version) looks like it's from a chi-chi designer. This cuff (here it is in silver) looks just like one J. Crew has. I would buy two of these and wear them with simple black dresses or a fitted turtleneck this winter and look chic AF (I have similar I got a decade ago from Ann Taylor but they're losing stones so I may replace with this one). And whip them out each winter or special occasion. And if I didn't own my silver cuff, this is pretty stellar.
• Brooches are big this season; I collect Chico's brooches and they are always wonderful. Put on your winter coat or the lapel of a heavier-weight blazer. I love this one, this one, this one, and this one.

See/Hear/Read

I went to dinner with a few friends this week and we were talking TV shows and what we're watching. The Shards was meh but the style was fab, MobLand is good but not joyful, Lioness is stellar but also not joyful (I am not watching but K is), Project Runway was a bummer this season, none of us finished the last season of The Bear… what's good?

One friend reminded us that The Gentlemen is back (Netflix) with Season 2 and I got on that this week, watching two episodes. Starring Theo James as Eddie, the Duke of Halstead, and Kaya Scodelario as Susie Glass, it's hard to remember what happened last season as it was so long ago and there was no recap.

But to refresh your memory, Eddie's dad died and left Eddie, not his older brother, his family estate. And Eddie finds out that the estate includes a large weed empire run by the Glass family. Eddie and Susie become business partners and witty banter/sexual tension “work spouses” as they deal with drama after drama while building their empire.

Season 2 is more of the same, but the fashion is even better. Susie's earring game is on point and she just throws around Chanel bags and towels like they're from Tarjay. Eddie's mom, played by Joely Richardson, is also a style diva and there is so tweed and check and wool sweaters and silk scarves and well-cut suits and perfectly blotted red lipstick I swoon.

Book-wise, I finished The Calamity Club by Kathryn Stockett. I enjoyed it, especially the character Meg, but it was nothing revolutionary. It took place in Mississippi in 1933. Different women affected by the Great Depression, what they did to survive not just the financial strains but the ones on women: the laws and legal acts done on so-called promiscuous and feeble-minded women, the lack of jobs, rights of mothers, racism, etc. However, it was all done in a way that was almost too easily digestible.

Some of the “bad” people were almost like caricatures, so opaquely bad without much depth into why. Descriptions were detailed in some ways, but others there would be a sentence halfway through the book and it would radically change the picture in my mind of that character.

I'm writing this after looking at a TikTok a friend texted me; after that video I scrolled and saw one of a Law & Order SVU episode that was truncated with “Die With a Smile” by Bruno Mars and Lady Gaga playing in the background. And the way those TikToks sort of summarize things so tidily without providing the ending and that sountracky-sweeping song in the background… that's how The Calamity Club felt to me. And that's why I didn't DNF; I needed the ending even though it was a bit surface.

I am currently listening to the audiobook Cherry Baby by Rainbow Rowell. I have no idea where I heard of this book, but at some time I put myself on the list on Libby and my time arrived this week. When the book started, I wondered if this was erotica (AKA don't listen to this on speakers unless you're alone). But as it continued, I saw it was a novel about a woman (Cherry) in her mid-30s who is living a very relatable life, which includes relatable and descriptive sex scenes.

Cherry Baby is not a dramatic or exciting story, but it's comforting, and as someone who is 15+ years older than the protagonist who has a close friend who is separating from her spouse, I enjoy how it's not fast-paced or chaotic or dramatic or full of twists and turns. I also find the narrator to be extremely good, adjusting for the voices of men, women, older, and younger.

Do know the protagonist is in a larger body; I appreciate that it is as much of the story as it would be if you were her. What she wears, how she wiggles up onto a hightop chair, how her jeans dig into her waist, how it's a factor when having sex, when meeting men, how she's treated at work, etc. I also don't feel this will be some BoPo book where she suddenly gains all this confidence and pride in her body; it's just something that affects her life and that of her siblings but she isn't fighting to change with disordered eating or acts and it hasn't stopped her from knowing she's beautiful and wearing clothes that bring her joy.