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Summer 2023 Shopping Diary

A row of brownstones in Brooklyn with blue skies and green trees.

Well, my plans to blog more often this year are not really happening. Life has been throwing me some serious curveballs. There have been emergencies. Sigh. What can you do?

But I thought I’d come on here and say hi and give a wardrobe update. I started these shopping diary posts as a way to keep myself accountable. Do you find these posts interesting, though? I kind of like seeing what other people acquire. But maybe that’s just me.

** This post contains some affiliate links but was not produced in partnership with any brand. If you shop through my links, I may earn a commission. Thanks for your support.**

Wardrobe Buys

Did this summer feel worse than last summer? Memory is unreliable, but my impression is that this year in NYC was hotter and more humid than last summer. Given the heat, I was on the hunt for tank tops again.

I asked for some recs on Instagram, and ended up with three J. Crew Factory tank tops that are 100% cotton which are pretty good. I like the lightweight feel and how they don’t cling to the body. Bonus: they were on sale.

I also acquired two skirts: one was passed down from a friend. The other, as I debuted recently on my Instgram, was a long denim skirt from Muji. (It’s no longer sold, but it’s sort of like this Reformation skirt except with a darker wash.) The waist is elastic on the back of the Muji skirt. Hopefully that means it can accommodate weight changes. (See this post for more tips on shopping for a changing body.)

Lastly, I splurged on this cropped AllSaints motorcycle jacket, bought during the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale, to replace a jacket that is literally falling apart. I considered three other moto jackets, including from Madewell and Quince and will do a proper review comparing them in another post. (UPDATE: here’s the post.)

So that’s a total of six wardrobe additions from June through August. I tried to buy tank tops from an ethical brand. But for a variety of reasons (details of the garment, price points), those brands didn’t work. I tried, unsuccessfully, to thrift as well. Sometimes shopping fast fashion happens despite your best efforts. Given that I can’t wear most of my wardrobe now due to changes to my body, I needed to acquire a few things sooner rather than later. My usual tops are getting tight so I just placed an order from Everlane for T-shirts during their Labor Day Sale.

Speaking of sales, a lot of brands are holding them right now, so if you’ve had an eye on something, it’s a good time. A sampling:


Welcome Objects 2023 Wardrobe Count To Date
Additions: 16
Number of Additions That Are Secondhand: 6
Subtractions: 6

What I Read on Shopping & Sustainability

Who said recycling was green? It makes microplastics by the ton. A study found that somewhere between 6% to 13% of plastic in a recycling facility may become microplastics. Rather than helping to solve the problem of plastic, recycling might be making it worse.

Ten years after Rana Plaza, how has it impacted the industry? There’s been some change, but not enough. Not surprising.

Soft pants are here to stay. I had no idea that the term “hard pants” had originated from a tweet. Of course it did.

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