If you follow our monthly feature “Your Shopping Cart,” you know we have some eerily good intel on what you all are buying, which led us to think that, as Strategist editors, we could turn the tables and highlight all the things we’ve been buying for ourselves. As you’ll notice, it’s both a blessing and a curse to be a Strategist editor; we’re picky, but sometimes we just have to get on with it. (It’s online-shopping expertise meets IRL needs.) Below, what we bought in July.
Kiki Aranita, senior editor
I’ve been a Maltesers addict since I was a little kid, and they’re still my favorite junk chocolate. When I moved to the States and tried Whoppers, I was really disappointed; those are not good malt balls. But these are small-batch, incredible malt balls that are even better than Maltesers. Monsoon took my favorite junk chocolate and made something high-end and incredible — that I’ve been making everyone in my life try — but still scratches my Maltesers itch. They’re covered in dark milk chocolate, so the best part about them is that they’re not too sweet. I first tried them in Tucson last month, finished the bag I bought then, and had to get more when I was back in New York City.
I have no problems with my skin at all. (I know — I am very fortunate.) That said, I’ve been using B3 Balm’s Lillie oil for the past five years as the final step in my skin-care routine. I’ve gone through many bottles at this point and needed to restock this month. It smells incredible, it’s not the least bit greasy, it sinks wonderfully into my moisturized face, and I reluctantly share it with my husband. I don’t wash it off in the morning because it makes my skin really supple without feeling oily — so I just wake up, put sunscreen on my face, and go on with my day.
Ailbhe Malone, senior editor
The difference between the Strategist brain and the normie brain is this: On Prime Day, I saw that the shaving cream my husband uses was discounted (it still is, but not as steeply). “I still have half a tube left,” he said. “Why would I buy another one?” I added it to the basket. It smells slightly herby (some reviews mention sage and geranium), is intensely moisturizing owing to the goat’s milk and almond milk in the formula, and, yes, because a little goes a long way, a tube will last you a few months.
Firebirds are all over London. I wanted something a little less known, so I got these track trousers, which are almost tailored; I like the front seams. They are a little bit long on me, but I like how they look rolled up, as if I’ve borrowed them from a boyfriend who plays squash.
[Editor’s note: JD Sports lists all prices in euros, so the price shown is an approximate conversion in U.S. dollars.]
Amelia Jerden, sleep writer
I like to spend a lot of time outdoors in the summer, so I have amassed a fairly large hat collection to try to keep the sun off my face. This past Fourth of July, I picked up this adorable otter trucker hat while at the Eno River Festival in Durham, North Carolina. Otters are one of my favorite animals, and the proceeds go toward protecting the river, so it was hard to resist adding this to my hat collection.
Sheep are another one of my favorite animals. And what can I say? I really love stuff with cute animals on it. When I saw the adorable sheep-themed dishes from Nicholas Mosse in Lauren Ro’s Six Bells–sales story, I was instantly enamored. While my heart said to buy a couple of everything, my wallet said to show at least a little restraint, so I settled for two small sheep bowls and one large sheep mug. But one day I fully intend to round out this sheep-dishware collection. I especially want one of these Everyday Plate Sheep.
Kitty Guo, writer
I decided to take a chance on this cactus water chilling in the beverage aisle of my local bodega, and lemme tell you: It’s good as hell. It’s similar to aloe-vera juice, which I love but is usually so sweet it gives me a toothache. The Pricklee water, on the other hand, has a very light, mild, refreshing flavor with just a hint of sweetness. I went home and promptly ordered a variety pack.
I was gifted a bottle of this, went through it in a flash, and had to go back for more. It’s definitely pricey for soy sauce and certainly not as convenient as just grabbing some Kikkoman off the shelf at the grocery store. But it’s more than worth it — it has an amazingly deep, complex flavor and instantly elevates whatever dish I use it in, from silken tofu to marinated cucumbers to fried rice.
Dominique Pariso, writer
My friend — who is a pigeon fanatic — had a birthday this month, so I picked up this cute windup toy for them. For just six bucks, the delight-to-price ratio is very high.
While I technically bought this last month, I was waiting until it finally arrived in the mail before I gave my thoughts. I’m very impressed with this ring: It’s one solid hunk of gold, so it has a very nice heft and feel without any carved-out areas (a pet peeve of mine when buying fine jewelry). I have other signet-style rings in my collection, but I love the little star-set diamond and overall shape of this one. I picked this up during a very generous sale, but the brand has another sale going on right now for 30 percent off with the code VACATION until August 5.
Katherine Gillespie, writer
I just spent a dreamlike week in Tokyo, where I purchased among many delightful things this stovetop enamel kettle that’s designed for brewing pour-over coffee. After spotting a lovely selection of them on Kappabashi Kitchen Tools Street (a very strong recommendation if you are visiting the city) and then regretting the non-purchase, I ended up picking one up from Beams on my final day.
Ahead of my trip, I repurchased this two-in-one Anker wall charger and power bank after tragically losing my original one on a big night out a couple months ago. I had been completely adrift without it and am thrilled to be powered up once more.
Bella Druckman, junior writer
If you’ve been on TikTok lately, you may have seen the long lines stretching out of the cheery pink storefront that is BonBon. I’ve done my fair share of waiting in that line to bring back Swedish delights to my sisters in Chicago and stock up on some for myself, and I can tell you that the candy is actually worth the hype. During my most recent visit to the candy shop, I discovered these delicious gummies-slash-marshmallows in the shape of a heart. They won over my own heart with their perfectly springy texture, and I ordered almost a pound of them from a different Swedish-candy retailer.
[Editor’s note: The exact candy Bella purchased is no longer available by the pound, but it can be included in the marshmallow mix.]
I recently tried out some coffee concentrate from Kloo, a new and trendy coffee brand. I became fixated on a beautiful sleek highball glass in its marketing photos and knew I had to find it for my own kitchen. My hunt for the glass began at Fishs Eddy near Union Square and ended triumphantly at CB2’s website. I promptly ordered two of them for my morning coffee and have been drinking from them ever since.
Lauren Ro, writer
Heath recently ran a 20-percent-off sale on its Coupe line, which, according to Strategist senior editor and Heath collector Winnie Yang, is a pretty rare event, so I decided to pounce after years of fantasizing about owning pieces from the brand. I usually go all-white everything (dishes, bath towels) and love my elegant workhorse Sur La Table Bistro Set, of which I own two, but I couldn’t resist the pull of something with more color and presence. After consulting with Winnie (and my husband, whose only requirement was that the plates not be too dark), I went with six dinner plates in aqua (with a chocolate-brown underside) and six salad plates in sage. They are gorgeous and hefty, and the two glazes look so nice together. I haven’t been this excited for a purchase in a long time. But I’m also irrationally worried about damaging them (even though Winnie’s vintage set is 50 years old and still going strong), so for now they are tucked away in my sideboard.
Rachael Griffiths, writer
I work from home a lot, so when Adanola sent me some samples a couple months ago, I started incorporating its comfy pieces into my WFH wardrobe. The yoga pants were a standout. They’re as soft as butter, have a comfy wrap-around waist, and are admittedly very flattering all around. I’m not usually an athleisure girl, but I so prefer working in a pair of the company’s yoga pants that I just recently bought myself a second pair so I’m not bereft when the first pair is in the wash.
[Editor’s note: Rachael’s black yoga pants are currently out of stock, but you can still buy them in navy and coffee.]
Hilary Reid, senior editor
Earlier this month, I went to Athens for vacation and happened to be staying across the street from a very charming jewelry store called Hermina. As soon as I saw the shop, which was decorated with dried coral outside and had lots of baroque pearls and yellowish 24K gold-plated pieces inside, I knew I would be buying something there. I left with this charm, a chain for it, and a signet ring. Vacation shopping, baby!
[Editor’s note: Hermina Athens lists all prices in euros, so the price shown is an approximate conversion in U.S. dollars.]
Another souvenir: a miniature shell-encrusted trinket box. I found this one at a floating shop on a boat outside the medieval city of Rhodes. The entire boat was filled with shell-encrusted boxes, trivets, compacts, and coasters. You name it and it was there covered in shells. I bought a little box similar to this one and a big shell trivet, which both remind me of antique sailor’s valentines but for one-thousandth of the price.
Ashley Wolfgang, newsletter editor
My previous conditioner wasn’t doing it for me anymore, so I bought the Verb Ghost Conditioner after reading that fellow curly-haired Strategist managing editor Kelsie Schrader swears by it. I recently brought it with me on a beach vacation, and it really did leave my hair shinier and less frizzy (which is a difficult task given the horrid humidity I can’t seem to escape). Great price, too!
I’m currently training for the Chicago Marathon, which means most of my mornings are dedicated to hot and sweaty runs. I’m embarrassed to admit it, but two weeks ago my impossibly sweaty 14-mile run left me with the worst chafing of my life. (It literally wrapped around my entire waistline.) With no end to this heat and humidity in sight and 11 weeks of training to go, this painful experience finally inspired me to buy some chafe balm, and I’m never going back! It’s helped heal my wound, and I thankfully haven’t experienced anything close to that sensation since.
Jeremy Rellosa, writer
I think Ikea is the best place to get actually-good-smelling candles that are also affordable. This month, I got a few of these candles that are supposed to smell like a Scandinavian forest. Its woodsy, citrusy notes remind me of Norden’s Ojai candle — one of my favorites — and while the Ikea candle is more subtle, they both smell surprisingly similar. I think I found a dupe!
I am a sucker for New York–themed apparel and memorabilia (I’m a company man — what can I say?), and I’ve had my eyes on this snapback from the vintage clothing store Fantasy Explosion for a couple months. The store’s hats usually sell out fast, so I snagged it as soon as I saw it was restocked.
[Editor’s note: This hat is indeed sold out again, but you can periodically check in on stock yourself like Jeremy did.]
Winnie Yang, senior editor
I finally finished the over-one-gallon jug of this bodywash a little more than four years after I got it, and I still love it enough that I’ve committed myself to another four years of it. That’s really saying something, since I was previously the type who always had a queue of different bath products going. My 8-year-old loves this bodywash, too.
I’ve been using a few Living Libations products since spring and had been looking for an excuse to try some more, so when I saw the brand was having a sale, I picked up another face oil and this little acne ointment. I was hoping (and yet also skeptical) it would do something about some hormonal cystic acne that has been plaguing me a year-plus postpartum and have been pretty impressed by how much more effective this has been than the usual OTC treatments and pimple patches I’d been trying. It is pretty intense-smelling: My husband says it makes me smell like an herbalist or apothecary, but I’m taking that as a compliment.
Brenley Goertzen, junior writer
I’ve wanted to try products from Frédéric Fekkai’s brand for a while now, so when I saw this on sale during Prime Day, I decided to go for it. I went for this sulfate-free shampoo made for color-treated hair. I’m not a natural blonde, and I get regular highlights to cover my darker roots. I’m hoping this formula helps to prevent brassiness and color-fading between my appointments. So far, I like that it lathers easily and leaves my hair feeling supersoft after a quick, rough dry. I also appreciate that it doesn’t contain silicones, meaning it doesn’t weigh my hair down.
I love having a big pasta salad in the fridge during the warmer months, and this dressing mix is my absolute favorite. My boyfriend introduced it to me, and now we always have a small stockpile at home. It ties all the mix-ins together, from cucumber and chickpeas to cherry tomatoes and mozzarella pearls. We also like to add pickles. Club House is a seasonings brand you can find only at grocery stores in Canada, so I was thrilled to find a seller on Amazon. In the past, our Canadian relatives would bring us a handful of packets when they visited. I know it’s a lazy person’s purchase, but I never get sick of this zippy dressing. It tastes like summer.
Jenna Milliner-Waddell, associate editor
Earlier this year, I splurged on a Nordic Knots rug in the color “brick.” Included with it were maintenance instructions that said not to use a vacuum with a rotating brush, which is exactly what I have. I was not going to buy a new vacuum after spending hundreds on a rug — and I also wasn’t getting on my hands and knees with a flat nozzle attachment — so for months I used my vacuum as it’s intended but not without the canister turning completely red afterward. About a week ago, I was browsing on Muji and saw something called the Cleaning System Carpet Cleaner, which is essentially just a lint roller you can pair with its telescopic handle, and it hit me that this is exactly what I needed. I’ve used it only once, but the combo of shaking out the rug and gliding this over the top to pick up lint (while remaining completely upright) has my rug looking good as new.
The Strategist is designed to surface useful, expert recommendations for things to buy across the vast e-commerce landscape. Every product is independently selected by our team of editors, whom you can read about here. We update links when possible, but note that deals can expire and all prices are subject to change.
