The Strategist Haul: What the Editors Bought in October

I’d heard good things about Megababe’s natural deodorant, so I grabbed a stick of the brand’s Smoothie Deo a few months ago. (It was the only one at my local Urban Outfitters, and I needed it.) I liked the formula, which neutralized my body odor, but the fruity fragrance wasn’t my favorite. So when I ran out earlier this month, I picked up the Geo Deo instead. It’s just as good at combating odor as Smoothie Deo, and I much prefer the eucalyptus-and-cedarwood scent.

I wanted to re-create this look from the Miu Miu x Church’s collaboration, but it’s surprisingly difficult to find sheer tights in fun colors. I finally tracked some down at a dancewear company called Jule. They’re footless, but they’re basically the same blue-green shade. They do have a back seam, which takes a little skill to get straight, but I’m hoping to pair them with my new Veda x Reformation leather skirt soon. I also bought them in a mauve-y purple that’s equally nice.

I know, objectively speaking, that $23 is a ridiculous amount to pay for mouthwash. But as a lover of Marvis toothbrushes and toothpastes, I’m in the target audience for this. The words strong mint on the bottle are a little lie. The mouthwash has that nice tinglingness, but I don’t smell like I just downed a tin of Altoids! And my breath has never been better.

I like a silly little thing, and this is a silly little thing. It’s nowhere near Christmas, I’m not a real “Christmas person,” and still, I bought two of these North Pole–themed glasses in the tree shape. (An Anthropologie manager told me the juice glasses are a big hit.) It actually looks as though each cup is covered in tears, which is something I can get behind as more of a Halloweenhead myself.

It’s been nonstop drizzle in London for the past two weeks, so my flatmate and I have spent October evenings cozying up and starting Game of Thrones from scratch. For our nightly endeavors to Westeros, I’ve been brewing up cups of Whittard’s salted-caramel hot chocolate. It’s thick and creamy without being at all sickly and is the perfect post-dinner sweet. I’m definitely going to gift a pot or two to friends this Christmas.

I’ve been on the hunt for a cozy quarter-zip for a bit now. A few weeks ago, I found this old story Liza Corsillo wrote, and while I’m skeptical of buying clothes from Amazon (I’d never done it before!), she had me sold, especially given the affordable price. Lauren has a couple too, it turns out. Thanks to their advice, I got the “pepper” shade in a size small (it’s kind of hard to parse out given that these are in men’s sizing and the measurements seem to vary from color to color, according to the reviews). It arrived the other day, and it’s supersoft, has an amazingly worn-in look and feel, and fits well — it’s roomy but not oversize — except for the length, which is longer than I want. Liza hemmed hers herself, and mine was delivered to my tailor recently so he can do the same.

One of my favorite Brooklyn stores, Front General, opened a second room to shop in. I stopped by the other day and perused its now-even-larger selection of vintage Levi’s. The third pair I tried were simply too good to walk away from: they’re the perfect length, soft, and the exact right amount of faded, and they make my butt look great.

I’m cooking an ambitious meal this weekend with two dear friends to go through several pounds of fish, and we will also be using a lot of Kewpie, the king of mayonnaise.

I’ve been hunting for knee-high boots since last fall but just couldn’t manage to find anything that fit my very specific, very nitpicky criteria: subtle heel, no hardware, genuine leather, and a rounded square toe to accommodate my wide, bunion-afflicted feet. Then, a few weeks ago, I walked into Assembly’s LES storefront and spotted these Tubo boots from Hopp Studios. The moment of stepping in and zipping up was near magical; the boots ticked off everything on my checklist, were comfortable to wear right out of the box, and featured a sleek, streamlined silhouette that I knew would pair well with pretty much anything in my wardrobe. Though they’re certainly pricey, I didn’t think twice before whipping out my credit card and wearing them out of the store.

I usually DIY my Halloween costume as best I can, but if I need to buy it (or parts of it), I try to pick quality items I can (hopefully) re-wear in a non-spooky setting. But because I’m based in Minneapolis, where temperatures are already dipping below freezing, I need to opt for the warmest available option. This year, my boyfriend wanted to fulfill his childhood dream of being Gotham City’s bat-inspired protector, which meant I could become the comic’s anti-heroine with nine lives. I decided on this catsuit from Skims, and next week, I can pair it with an oversize sweater and my parka when we go Christmas-tree shopping.

I also snagged this Zara Home mirror for a discount on Marketplace in the 63-by-35-inch size. I thought I’d wanted something even wider, but this is perfect for my space and doesn’t make me look hideous, as my previous mirror did. The real hero of these secondhand purchases, however, is Lugg, which is basically a man-with-a-van app. It charges a flat fee for the truck and under $2 per minute for labor. I’ve used it several times in the past few months. It’s a game changer.

This is one of the best things to have during Northeast winters when your kid’s main conveyance is a stroller. It’s so warm I find the kid usually doesn’t need a coat on cold days if they can stay in it while we’re outside. We had given our old one away, which I regretted pretty much immediately. I had been planning on getting a replacement and was happy to find it on sale for Prime Day.

On the topic of New York–centric products … I picked up this ceramic cup after spotting it in the MoMA Design Store gift catalogue. I’d always loved the classic design of the plastic-coated coffee cups I get at diners and bodegas, so it was cool to see a more reusable version. This month, I’ve been using it to drink my morning coffee, and during the holidays, I’m definitely going to gift it to my friends who live in New York. I think it’s a charming reminder of the everyday, familiar items we come across.