This year I went to five weddings and two bachelorette parties across four different countries. (I was actually invited to seven weddings, but there was some overlap in dates, and some logistically impossible travel to a fourth country.) Next year is looking similarly full: The first wedding invite of 2025 has already come through — along with a slew of 40th-birthday parties. Throughout these weddings — and in fact over the past three years of wedding seasons — I’ve relied on a pair of outrageously comfortable black velvet platform sandals from Geox.
I’ve worn them while very pregnant at a wine-bar celebration in Farringdon, and while trying to do some chair-based choreography to Destiny’s Child’s “Say My Name” at a wedding in Hackney. I’ve worn them to a Catholic church wedding in the very southern tip of Ireland and while scampering a half-mile from a reception in Cardiff to the bride’s house-party after-party (carrying a floral centerpiece and a bottle of wine).
I grabbed my pair for £25 at TJ Maxx — they don’t seem to exist online anywhere, but I’ve found some options here, here, and below. If you spot any more in the wild, let me know.
My other wedding staples are the below Aspinal handbag (the chain detaches, and the handle is big enough to hold in the crook of my arm on the dance floor), and the Revlon One-Step (just say no to awful hotel hairdryers).
If you’re considering the Aspinal, wait for a sale — I bought mine for half off.
Some other stuff on my mind:
I spied these traditional Romanian bowls in Middle Lane Market the other day. I bought some when I was visiting my middle brother (who lives in Transylvania with his wife and son) last summer. “Aha!” I said to the shop owner. “Romanian bowls!” “They’re Bulgarian,” he replied. My brother said that they’re probably culturally shared across the two. Also on sale at Toast!
After five years of working from a dining chair, I caved when I saw the discounts in the Herman Miller Black Friday sale. I bought the classic Setu — 25 percent off, and my posture is 125 percent less prawn-like.
I recently moved house, and am on a mission to find some non-awful ceiling lights for our living room. We have two ceiling roses, so I’d like pendants. My budget won’t stretch to a Noguchi Akari (and I don’t think it will suit my 1900s Edwardian London house), but I like the look of these habitat ones. I don’t think they will ship to the U.S, so these are a good alternative if you don’t live in the U.K.
Lastly, some tabs I have open. I love Irish academic and author Emma Dabiri, and I love Alex Monroe — so I am very taken with this update on a traditional Claddagh ring.
I don’t need any more flappy shirts, but also I don’t think I can live without this one? I own two other shirts from With Nothing Underneath and they fit so nicely — they never gape at the chest no matter the cut, and they tuck very well into trousers and skirts.
Would very much like this Judy Chicago print. Feels like a psychedelic take on the Rite of Spring.
Keep considering this made-in-Spain sweater that Jo Goddard shared in her newsletter a few months ago. I am fearful of color, but I think this poppy-red could persuade me away from the navy option.
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