Save the Date(s), This Barbour Coat
Adding extracurricular activities to your schedule + more.
I hope you are sitting somewhere at the beach right now. As I mentioned, I have a lot to share and many events happening this fall. First: I am thrilled to announce I will be having a trio of jewelry trunks at GOOP. I kick off my GOOP tour in NYC on September 13th and 14th, then travel to Brentwood CA September 20th and 21st and finally Marin CA September 27th and 28th. I have new designs so stay tuned, plus more details to follow on these events, and more events in October to come.
I am putting together my Fall Favorites to share next week and am dividing it up into city clothes and weekend/country clothes. That said, this Allerston Barbour jacket is on my weekend/country list and I was going to wait, but then it already sold out in black on the Barbour site so yikes! I prefer the dark sage color below which I found at Bloomie's.
Last fall, I had a Barbour saga, if you can call it that. I ordered the Catton style, but then I listened to my family who said it was too preppy and sent it back. Then I decided to hell with my family (I think I only listened to them, because I was questioning it myself), tried to buy it again, but it was sold out everywhere. You can get it now, however I like the slightly longer length and simplicity of the Allerston. I bought sizes 4 and 6 to see how roomy it is, and the 4 is plenty loose, even with a sweater underneath. At this point, I am probably skipping out on buying a cotton field jacket, but an OG waxed jacket is a classic.
A writer from Bloomberg Pursuits who was writing a piece on hotel logo merchandise reached out to me on Tuesday to ask if I would discuss the topic. (The article is here, though you might have to sign up to read it.)
Anyway, I like hotel souvenirs; last summer I brought back a La Posta Vecchia tote and the most divine candle Sofia Coppola collaborated on for her father’s hotel, Palazzo Margherita, in Bernalda, Italy. I will be sad the day it’s finished, because it is a reminder of an amazing trip.
Apparently, to some, hotel to merch is dead, which I read last night on fashion insider Lauren Sherman’s blog (she was agreeing with another writer who wrote about the demise of hotel merch). Oh well, I am happily passé. While I do understand that people posting their hotel swag on social media (show offs will always be show offs) and the proliferation of hotel/designer collabs might feel as if we have reached saturation point, I think most of us buy hotel “merch” because it is a souvenir of time well spent. And, as one ages (I speak from experience), nostalgic memories are quite enjoyable. I will never forget the salmon pink bath towels and bath mat my mother brought back from the Ritz Paris. She also has a sweatshirt from Bishop’s Lodge, a small, old school hotel in Santa Fe where my husband and I got married in its tiny chapel almost 32 years ago. I didn’t get a sweatshirt then and now said hotel is an insanely fancy Auberge Resort. I wish I had, but my mom has promised to give me hers. Things change, but hotel souvenirs can have the effect of Proust’s madeleine. Nothing is going to yuck my yum.
On a nothing to do with style note. Many people I know—a daughter, friends, hair gurus etc. have been discussing their new attempts to learn or perfect another language, try a sport or an artistic hobby. Fall is going to be so busy for me, but I am now inspired to try some extracurriculars that will add a little depth, and hopefully some knowledge, to my life. As my friend joked last night after saying she was getting into pickle ball, studying French and wanted to do something else that it was akin to aspiring to the life of a socialite of yesteryear. True, the Babe Paley’s of the world did have all the time in the world to pursue these kind of activities, but they also did with an intensity that I think few people do today. Their knowledge of French Impressionism or say the Roman Empire, mastery of different languages etc. was deep. They were curious as hell. And I wonder if our phones haven’t made us less curious in a way that actually changes one’s life.
So, on that note, I’m going to swap out podcast listening time to work on polishing up my French (my friend is using Babbel, my daughter Duolingo). I meant to take tennis lessons this summer (I grew up playing), but it didn’t happen. And I want to learn how to draw.
How about you? I would love to hear any new ventures/outlets you’re trying or tried. I could even cull all your ideas/suggestions into a post….or if anyone else is in on this, we could create a challenge so we actually commit to trying out these new hobbies. Just a thought.
Enjoy the long weekend!
x
Jennifer
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Just grabbed the Barbour, as I've been lusting after The Row Frankie (but it's not going to happen) and I love Barbour jackets anyway, and maybe the OG's are better anyway. I'm committed to getting good on throwing pottery on the wheel, and I've been practicing everyday, with some lessons scheduled ahead. YouTube has incredible videos as well. After reading Heidi's comment, I'm going to borrow her idea for entertaining because I'm getting bored with being with friends and just talking politics which has been going on for such a long time, and hasn't been (until now) exactly upbeat or hopeful. So many fun games for adults. Thanks Jennifer (and Heidi)
Jennifer, Perfect timing of a post! Just purchased some basic watercolor materials to try my hand again. Goal is to just start this weekend. I took a weekend course a couple decades (??!) ago but never finished the course due to work and travel. I haven’t tried painting with any medium for many years. Will view some videos online to start me on the basics with the goal of painting some lemon groves based on a photo from a recent Ravello trip.