Sunday Scoop - Fresh Fashion Reads, Independent Designers, Beauty indulgences and what's new.

Beauty news, sneak peeks, my new summer beauty favorites and teases for what is next.

WSJ looks at the recent Couture shows and highlights 5 of the looks talked about this season. A look at how Caftans became more fashionable in “Heat Wave Fashion: The Caftan Is Back, This Time With Tailoring” (gift link to read behind paywall.) From Attersee I love this mini caftan and this pleated maxi caftan. I love that the NYTimes shared the story of Margot Friedlander, the holocaust survivor and current Vogue Germany covergirl. “A Holocaust Survivor Gets a Vogue Cover” (gift link to read behind paywall.)

From last week’s poll on sock height - 38% prefer no show, 31% are open to all heights, 24% prefer crew socks and 7% never wear socks. I love that we are an inclusive and diverse group.

Independent Designer

Pepa Pombo Design - I fell in love with a post showing a dress from the new collection in Paris but looking at the ecommerce site and Instagram I’ve discovered so many gems.

• You can learn more about the brand and designer here. Launched in 1978 it is a Colombian RTW line focused on luxury knitwear. The pieces look very tightly knit with impeccable craftsmanship.

• On instagram I’ve seen some beautiful shots of Kelly Rutherford,

  Clare Vivier
  ,
  Marina Larroude
  and Ramya Giangolo wearing and looking fabulous.

• Key pieces on the site now are this leopard jacket, these party pants and this dress. I’ll keep my eyes peeled for the black knit dress I saw on Instgram for an upcoming season.

Love this Marie Claire interview with Chava Studio founder Olivia Villanti. In the article she shares some of her favorite pieces and brands as well as her own inspiration.

Little Indulgences

• Sneak peek at Celine beauty launching at the end of August.

• I was influenced by

  Gabriella Gofis
  to try these hair clips. I’ve used this simple clip for years and I was ready for an upgrade. Oh my gosh - I love! I had such a hard time selecting one color or size. I merchandised by going for a larger size in a black marble, “medium” in red and bordeaux and a small in this beautiful blue. I also ordered a barrette. While I will love wearing all the time upon opening the box (it felt like I was giving myself a present) I had a few other ideas:

  • This is a great gift for a friend. You can mail directly and know that it will arrive with a beautiful OOBE.¹ The packaging is so elegant and sustainable and if you need to mail a gift directly it will feel like a treat vs not knowing what the recipient will receive.

  • Pair this with a favorite lip gloss that feels fancy: like this with a cool applicator and a shiny silver package, upscale french monogrammed case by Buly 1803 or my favorite new case and a real indulgence by Fara Homidi and you have a perfect gift for a hostess, birthday party etc. Other lip products I love to gift are my favorite Dior Lip Glow and YSL lip products.

  • If you have a wedding you could easily gift these in your selected color for your bridesmaids along with a nice cosmetic case with their monogram. Something to reuse and treasure.

Summer Beauty

Quick look at InnBeauty Project - one thing I love and one recommendation for the website.

1. I love the bundling experience on the site. It is Buy More Save More for up to 25% off, you select the items and as an added bonus, the more you add you get the makeup kit thrown in for free (and you get to select from two different styles.)

2. Opportunity to improve: add SPF to the navigation. They have launched so many cool items in this category recently (this, and this) so make it easier to discover, build SEO² and easy to navigate to the collection.

   

Took a screen shot of this from YSE Beauty,

Molly Sims

’ skincare line, is launching a mini tote. I wrote earlier this week in Brand Crush how Merit Beauty does this - and I love as a tactic to drive higher AOV and shopping on DTC. Excited to see what YSE Beauty does with this. Plus it is a cute striped bag.

There are a few products I’ve been wow’ed by lately.

• This took me by complete surprise. I have never had an eye serum, balm or product that has actually done much. The Summer Fridays Jet Lag Overnight Eye Serum has completely transformed my under eye area. No longer dry, less wrinkles and when I put on under-eye concealer (I like this and this) it goes on completely smooth and easily. It doesn’t transform for like an hour or two, 24/7 I can feel and see the difference. This is a no skip product for me now. I am truly shocked by how much I love this eye serum and it makes me want to try the Jet Lag Mask again as I wasn’t into it the first time I tried it. I like how the brand created a duo of the two products to try together with a discount of $16.

• I’ve had the opportunity to try Hanni and I’m loving this serum rich soap*. The cocoon starter set pairs this great soap with the perfect size soap dish that looks perfect for a minimalist bathroom. For some gentle exfoliation I’ve been using this “scarf”* to exfoliate too.

• Osea body oil continues to be a repurchase for me. I just bought my third bottle. Especially fantastic in summer when I want something to absorb quickly and make my skin smooth and glowy.

• This lip pencil with this lip gloss layered on top is a winning combo. I love it and the strawberry “taste” is fresh.

• This saves my dry and frizzy hair. It is shocking how drastic the change is when I follow the directions and use. I use every other week and can see and feel a huge difference for the weeks I use it.

• Sunscreens are a daily must for me: I keep this in my car to always protect my hands, this I use on my face to make it glowy year round, body sunscreen I use this or this. Neither seem to rub off on my clothes and keep me from burning. Finally, a swipe of this on my lips when I’ll be in the sun - even under the cover of my hat.

  

🛍️ Quick note: I write a lot (too much good stuff to share!) so if you’re reading via email only, you may need to click through to the web version or read on the Substack app. I promise it will be worth it. 🛍️

Fashion Finds

• Love these two new summer dresses on net-a-porter from Tory Burch and Ganni. Both are easy and great for work, sightseeing or running errands.

• The Row Margaux E/W Clutch in the Cyprus (green) that just launched is on TRR. I noticed a few scratches on one side so likely why it is over 20% off retail.

• So many great new suede items, I think this might be a fabrication I play with a bit more this fall. Love these TWP pants. New TWP is looking amazing!

• Your favorites this week include:

  • the Away x La Ligne collab (they did a great job!)

  • Vince long shorts (has anyone seen Allison Bornstein’s “surfer nephew” look? It is so fun and she nails the styling details. These shorts + these shoes would look great)

  • the latest launch from Dorsey - perfect for luxe boho summer jewelry - turquoise and lab grown diamond.

  • Functional, easy and great neckline - plus it has pockets! This dress for travel.

  • A favorite sleep set* - use code retaildiary for 15% off your first order.

  • DÔEN Sebastiane White Skirt that was featured in the WSJ.

  • Silk skirt with lace from J.Crew (currently 50% off) and then we’ve been commenting about what we are going to call it when we wear dresses and skirts over pants (previously Skants.)

PSA - Sales & Events

• This great looking Veronica Beard knit jacket looks polished with denim - I love how they styled it on the site. With code Fireworks2024 it is under $300. Veronica Beard currently has a 25% off all sale with the Fireworks2024 code.

• I’ve been using my Clare V Black Rattan crossbody a lot this summer and it is on sale now.

• Hill House Home has a 20% off sale. I own a couple of Ellie Nap Dresses and love them. Use code 20Happy4th.

• Larroudé is having a great sale and I spied these fun satin mary janes in slime green that would add a punch to any look. Also, I appreciate the biz strategy behind refunds on sale items being store credit. An improvement from a customer service standpoint vs final sale but justifying a sharper sale price for the retailer.

• If you love handbags, super into bag charms (yes please!), want to play and in the DC area, go check out this bag charm party with

  Heather
  . Evite details here - event is on July 10th.

Substacks to Scroll

• Loved learning more about

  Joyce Lee
  from
  The Essential List
  by
  Laura Nuyen
  “The Essential List 12. Joyce Lee’s Summer Favorites” Warning, you are going to want all of her favorites.

• If you are looking for chef recommended restaurants when you travel you need to check out

  The Relisher
  by a Condé Nast Traveler contributor.

• Love

  Thrift Epiphany
  recap and dive into the history of bias cut and some thrifted gems.

Reflecting on 1 Year on Substack: A Journey of Growth and Connection

Wow, what a year it's been! June 28,2023 I took a leap and moved Sarah's Retail Diary to Substack. What started as a simple idea in 2019 to share retail and fashion insights with former coworkers and my network has blossomed into something truly special. You can read my first ever send here.

When I first hit 'publish' on Substack, I had 393 subscribers that I migrated over from my previous platform. Now, a year later, we're over 5,000 strong! What I really love about Substack is how we can have a dialogue about the stories and exploring trends together.

I love how we chat about the latest fashion brands, dive into marketing trends, and share retail stories. Your comments, ❤️, tags, and shares mean the world to me. You've turned this little corner of the internet into a lively hub for all things retail, fashion and beauty.

Thank you for being here and making this journey so rewarding. Here's to many more conversations, discoveries, and spiraling on trends together!

Now, let's get back to what we do best – talking fashion!

Like this….Heinz x Kate Spade for some fashion with flavor.

Enjoy your Sunday Scoop. xx

Sarah Shapiro

What’s Next

Enjoy your July 4th! I assume many will be taking some time off to relax, travel, spend time with family and other activities offline. I’ll look to do one send next week likely before the 4th with any important fashion, beauty & retail news.

Catch up on Sarah’s Retail Diary:

❤️ To let me know you appreciate the Sunday Fashion News.

📧 Maybe even share with someone else who would enjoy.

📱Find Sarah’s Retail Diary on Instagram

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You can email me at sarahshapiro@substack.com with any requests or thoughts too - I’d love to hear.

FYI: I use affiliate links where applicable which means I may get a small commission from things you buy (at no cost to you.) Thank you for supporting my work and trusting me. Love that we can enjoy Fashion & Retail together in this space.

Items marked with * have been kindly gifted by brands. Thoughts, selections, and reviews are my own.

1. OOBE = Out Of Box Experience

2. SEO = Search Engine Optimization. Improves search on Google etc.