Cheryl Shops

My dad was always a hard person to shop for, and I'd always complain about and agonize over what to get him for Father's Day (and for his birthday, and for Christmas...). Of course, now that he's been gone for two years, I'd do anything to have to buy him a present again! Long story short, if your dad is still around, I hope you show him how much you love him, whether that's sending him a present, doing a socially distant drive-by, or breaking all the rules and giving him a big ol' hug. And if you're in need of gift ideas, read on. 

How quickly everything changes. A week ago, when we shot this, it was chilly and had been raining (which is very rare in May); today, as I'm writing this, it's gorgeously sunny and in the upper 70s. All of a sudden it feels like summer, and I'm here for it. I know I'm not alone in thinking what a crazy year this has been so far: I took my laptop home on March 13th, thinking I'd be working from home for a couple weeks; I just found out last week that my entire department will continue to do so until Labor Day. Long story short, nothing is certain, and the only constant is change. So with that in mind, I thought I'd try something new, e.g. a pair of pointy-toe white ankle boots. Anything that gets me out of my house slippers is a good thing, right?

It's no secret that retailers are hurting right now. It's also probably no surprise that nearly everything is on sale right now. And it makes sense: we haven't been going anywhere, so we haven't really needed anything to wear, hence we haven't been shopping. (Not to mention, stores have been closed for 2+ months.) Also, many of us are furloughed and/or unemployed right now, so maybe shopping isn't the best idea, to be honest. BUT, if you have disposable income and want to make sure that the stores and brands you love don't go out of business, who am I to stop you? Here are my favorite items on sale now, plus more stores with amazing deals below.

Back in March when I was in France, I wanted to shop...but I didn't, at least, not to the extent that I thought I wanted to. At the time, there were several factors: for one, I was sticking to my sustainability resolution (e.g. buying only the items I really, really wanted). For another, even with the VAT refund, full-price prices were still pretty high. But the real underlying reason I didn't shop very much was that COVID-19 was just starting to break, and when things are starting to feel very uncertain, the last thing you want to do is spend a bunch of money on stuff you don't necessarily need. I have no regrets about what I didn't buy in Paris (god knows, I bought enough as it was); that said, I made a mental note of things to pick up if I found them on major sale, and it didn't take long for me to find this Ètoile Isabel Marant tiered midi skirt at a price I just couldn't pass up. Long story short: I love it. Here's how I've been wearing it.

Sunny and 70 degrees one day, raining and 40 degrees the next—sound familiar? It even snowed in parts of the country last week, which just feels insulting in May. Dressing for spring weather always presents a unique set of challenges, but one that I'm up for. So while many of us are still sheltering in place, parts of the country are starting to open up, so that means no more sweats, people. Here are some spring transitional outfit ideas to wear until the weather fully commits to summer.

Sheltering in place has made me reassess a lot of things in my life. For one, I've discovered the wonder of online workouts, which I now do every morning, much to my (and my wallet's) delight. For another, I've realized I'm actually not a bad cook, that I enjoy cooking, and that most of the time, what I cook is just as satisfying as ordering takeout (but when I do order takeout, I make it really count—like mind-blowing pizza or a super-juicy burger). I've also been taking a hard look at my wardrobe; I recently stripped out about 50 items that will soon be making their way to my Poshmark closet. What's left are things that I really, truly love; that I feel good wearing; that feel true to who I am right now. And something that will always feel right to me is the classic combination of a blazer, white tee, jeans, and heels. The proportions may change, but the components will always be the same. So let's break it down.

While I haven't necessarily been pinning a lot of athleisure, I take comfort from the fact that this month's most-repinned look from my Outfit ideas for ageless style Pinterest board is somewhat dressy. It gives me hope that one day we will stop wearing sweatpants and we will put on nice things again. That said, there's a certain ease to this look—you would not be uncomfortable in it. So let's put it all together, and maybe you can event try something like this at home.

When I was younger and I had an item of clothing that I really liked, my mom would encourage me to buy it in multiple colors. At the time, I found this to be embarrassing and eye-rolling, but now I realize that 1) I was a teenager and found everything embarrassing and eye-rolling, and 2) my mom realized how hard it was to find good clothes, so she was doing me a solid by pointing this out. So, at the ripe old age of 42, I am finally not ashamed to buy things I love in multiple colors. In fact, I'm going to do it more often.

Here we are in May already and Mother's Day is just a few weeks away. With stay at home orders still active in much of the world, most of us won't be celebrating in quite the same way. I usually go home to Chicago to visit my mom, but even if you live closer to yours, it's a big bummer to not be able to celebrate in person. The silver lining is that since we're all in the same quarantined boat, it kind of makes shopping for Mother's Day gifts a bit easier. So here are my favorite gifts for Mom, with a stay-at-home (and supporting local businesses!) theme. Send one (or all) to her and make Mom's day.