June 2021 Shopping Reflections

I'm publishing this shopping reflections post a bit ahead of the actual end of the month because I'm pretty certain the list of purchases I will receive and make a final decision on in June is already set in stone. As you'll see, this was a month of shopping for jewelry for me. 

There's admittedly a huge asterisk on this month's shopping list because I technically have two customized - to make the dress a little longer or shorter to suit me - made-to-order summer dresses in the pipeline, both of which are final sale due to said customizations. I've never been that consistent about whether I list my made-to-order pieces in the month I order them or in the month I receive them. I can't figure out which approach makes the most sense!

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Like I previewed in my recent post about summer dresses, I decided to get a Linenfox slip dress in sea green customized to a shorter length, given that I'm at least four inches shorter than most of their models. I also saw Heinui's Instagram account post about a voluminous knee-length summer dress in a delightful green on white print (sold out for now), and I decided to order that too, this time customized to a longer than default length so the hem has less risk of blowing upwards and causing a wardrobe malfunction, due to the regularly-encountered wind tunnel effect while walking around in NYC. 

You're probably going to think I'm a bit silly because one of this month's purchases - an extremely fancy one, no less - was very directly inspired by the relatively understated costume design choices on HBO's Succession. Specifically, in a scene or two around episode seven or eight of the second season, Siobhan "Shiv" Roy - the only daughter of the main family at the center of the show - briefly wears a set of small diamond hoops, and so here we are. Her character's jewelry choices are intentionally more conservative than the already quite understated average on the show and are definitely not meant to grab attention. So it's probably a bit weird to be inspired by something she wore!

And you may think I'm even sillier after you learn that I also recently made a significant fountain pen purchase, for a pink Pilot Decimo, in part because I thought I saw Shiv use one in an episode at the tail end of season one. (We're not currently subscribed to HBOMax so I can't double-check and confirm this detail now.) I was probably going to get myself a Pilot Decimo sometime this year regardless, but I would probably have bought it in blue or purple instead, had I not thought I saw the pink one in an episode of Succession. 

Fashion - (TOTAL: $630.16) 

• Mejuri Pavé Diamond Midi Hoops - $517.16* - I also got $19.00 cash back from Ebates/Rakuten to partially offset the cost of this purchase, which I haven't factored in to the price I listed here. These feel like a pretty exact visual match for the small diamond hoops I think Shiv wore in a few brief scenes in season two of Succession (though again, because we're not currently subscribed to HBOMax, I can't go back now to confirm). In hindsight, because I'm still planning to wear face masks indoors except when seated at restaurants or bars for the foreseeable future, it isn't the best time to buy earrings that are not studs or small huggies. Face mask straps or strings definitely can get caught on these open hoops, so I have to be careful when slipping my mask on or off. I think these are really pretty and classic, quite dainty though also not too small to be noticed. I can't really vouch for whether they're the best value because I'm not too knowledgeable about shopping for fine jewelry. These earrings are solid 14K gold and diamond, so the price point is significantly higher than for Mejuri's gold vermeil jewelry.
• Lingua Nigra Shower of Faith Mini Fringe Pendant Necklace - $113.00* - I've mentioned being interested in Alicia Goodwin's really beautiful and intriguing jewelry designs a number of times over the past year, but I wasn't really in the market for jewelry for most of the past few months until I was fully vaccinated and starting to move more freely out in the world again. (She also has an Etsy shop.) I was originally interested in this "Shower of Faith" Mini Fringe design on a pair of earrings instead of a necklace, but I realized that more dangly earrings are too far outside my comfort zone for them to be the right choice for me, especially while I still need to take a mask on or off somewhat frequently throughout the day. This necklace is really pretty, it's unique and interesting while still being something I could wear with my business casual work outfits. The mini fringe pendant is not too heavy, so assuming that it's essentially identical to what's used on the earrings, I probably could have managed the earrings even though I'm not used to wearing more dangly or heavier ones. 

*Indicates that the listed price includes taxes and/or shipping fees. 

So that's it for this month, though you already have big spoilers for what July's shopping reflections post will look like. With this month's very substantial jewelry purchases, I think this is the year I finally start separating out my jewelry spending from my spending on other wardrobe categories when I do my year-end analysis posts - or other larger analysis posts that go beyond the month-to-month shopping reflections - like I mentioned I was thinking about back in July 2019. 

How was your shopping month? I think you can see that my shopping habits are starting to return to something like my pre-COVID era "normal," now that I'm fully vaccinated and NYC is essentially fully reopen. Also, am I the only person who has even been inspired to buy something based almost entirely on seeing a movie or television show character wearing (or using) something identical-looking, even if only in an extremely brief and relatively unimportant scene? It'll make me feel a little less silly if I'm not the only one who has done this before!