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I got woken early this morning by a surprise window washer, which isn’t something you want to encounter when your blinds are open. There is no way to nonchalantly slide out of bed and escape the room without notice.
It’s funny, because I was just talking about how the window washers didn’t come around yet, and I was wondering if it was because of the horrendously hot summer we had.
This week has been cooler, and lo and behold, they appear.
They usually send out a notice, though, to tell you to keep your windows shut, but they didn’t this year, unless I missed it somehow. I don’t think I did, though.
Anyway, I was out perusing the newly renovated Zara this week, and man, they are killing it this season.
If I am being honest, I found their summer stock was kind of meh.
Maybe it’s because I hate shopping for summer, so I need to be wowed. But I really think it was mediocre this year.
Their fall stuff though, wowza.
And I am not usually one to sing the praises of fast fashion retailers, but they did well.
Zara tends to do more affordable iterations of what we have seen on the runway during fashion weeks, and we had some pretty stellar shows for fall this year, so maybe that is where it is coming from.
I am a proponent of seeking out the gems in fast fashion.
You can try on a million duds, but there will always be a handful of complete gems each season that you will have for years.
I have a Zara leather jacket that I bought around 10 years ago now, and it is still in beautiful shape.
Also note that I have a small collection of H&M items that I bought around 2008 that are fantastic pieces even to this day.
It’s all about discovering the gems. My tip is to stay away from completely trendy items like bubble hems, for instance.
Those items will become dated before they wear out.
Their jackets and denim are a good place to start. I am currently stalking the faux leather jacket that I included in yesterday’s 90s minimal capsule wardrobe it has that late 80s/early 90s vibe.
It keeps selling out, so I am trying to catch it when it comes in.
Weekly Reads and Some Videos:
An incomplete list of things Jane Austen disliked.
Fallout – Season Two Teaser Trailer
Florence + The Machine Bring Back Satanic Panic On “Everybody Scream”
How to Build a Medieval Castle
These 6 Fall 2025 Denim Trends Already Earned the It-Girl Co-Sign
Hear the Long-Lost Chants of English Monks Whose Monasteries Were Dissolved by Henry VIII
What kids don’t want you to know about Gen Alpha culture
The Rom-Com Is Having an Identity Crisis
I thought we’d entered the age of body positivity. Then came ‘shrinking girl summer’
I’m a Minimalist—Here’s How I’m Styling Fall’s Biggest Fashion Trends
SHOP THE UK LINKS
Hi Sara, do you think you’ll open up any of your style services this fall? I keep checking and I see that all are out of stock. Also, would consider putting together a fall capsule for hourglass figures? I love so many of your posts and would like to figure out a way to tailor some of the options to my shape. Thanks@
Hi Marla, thanks for the comment. After my father passed this spring it kind of put life into a whirlwind so I had to pause the services and focus on one area at the moment. I also was trying to get my online secondhand fashion platform up and running for a bit of a pivot, but tariffs have put a wrench into that too. There’s a lot of behind the scenes stuff right now but I’m hoping to get it back to some form of normalcy soon. – Sara