Cheryl Shops

This is the time of year when I start to feel really uninspired by my winter wardrobe and begin to yearn for the lightness of spring. It’s also when I’m tempted to buy new things, just because I’m starting to get sick of my sweaters and boots and coats. Of course, I resolved not to buy anything new in 2020 (and to be more conscious about the pre-owned things that I do buy), so I’ve had to challenge myself to wear what I already have in new ways. This outfit is the result of much experimentation. You’ve seen all of these pieces before, but definitely not put together in this way. This is a casual look for sure, but one that I was really happy with, and as much as I hate the term “shopping your closet,” it can yield some unexpectedly interesting combinations.

Earlier this week, I shared a Valentine’s Day look, but why stop there? Here are more Valentine’s Day outfit ideas, with the caveat that you don’t have to wear them in a romantic context. These are outfits I’ve worn in the last year that have made me feel confident and feminine, in an empowered way. They’d be great on date night, but they’d also work for a night out with friends. You do you, dear readers! Some thought starters…

Full disclosure: I’m planning on spending actual Valentine’s Day in a cabin in the mountains with my friends (and with my boyfriend). But I think a lot of you are looking for date-night looks, because my most-viewed post from last year was what to wear on Valentine’s Day. So in the interest of service journalism (not that this blog counts as actual journalism!), I thought I’d share another idea for this year. Plus, I’ve been featuring a lot of pants lately, so I thought a dress might shake things up a bit. Here’s what I’d wear if I were going somewhere fancy.

The last couple of years, I've focused on gifts that you and your significant other can enjoy together. It's a nice sentiment—and one still worth pursuing—but after texting with my girlfriends today, I decided we're all a bit starved for some self-care, and so this Valentine's Day, why not take an opportunity to practice some self-love? I mean of the treat-yourself variety; this is a shopping blog, of course. ;) Here are some of my favorite Valentine's Day gifts to give yourself (sharing always encouraged).

This is the outfit I meant to post last week, however the photos accidentally got deleted from the memory card, so we had to reshoot them. It seemed like a minor catastrophe at the time, but I think these turned out even better than the originals. Anyway, there’s no particular theme to this shoot, other than this has basically been my winter uniform so far: wool coat, cashmere sweater, jeans, and boots. I know I’ve been featuring a lot of jeans recently, but I promise I have some dresses coming up soon. In the meantime, here’s what I’ve been living in.

We were just in New York City in October, but when we got an invite to a dear friend's 40th birthday celebration (that just so happened to coincide with a holiday weekend), of course we couldn't say no to another trip. So we sent Zuni off to Petcamp, hopped on a 6 a.m. flight, and touched down at JFK just in time for the festivities. Here's how we spent three days in New York. 

I've been working on a sustainability campaign for my day job and it has really opened my eyes to all of the impact we, as humans, have on the environment. Coupled with the prediction that the world might more or less come to an end by 2050, I've been low-key freaking out about the future of our planet for the last couple months. Of course, one of the worst offenders is the fashion industry, which I unwittingly contribute to by convincing you to buy stuff. I will never stop using clothing as a means of self-expression, but I am seriously reconsidering my consumption habits and, to come clean, one of my resolutions is to not buy any new clothes in 2020. I am allowing myself to shop secondhand, and to accept gifts, but I am really, really trying not to buy anything new. As you can imagine, 16 days into the year, this is already a challenge for me, but I'm hopeful that it will get easier as the months go on. (And full disclosure: I'm granting myself an exception for my birthday and if I have any significant life changes worth celebrating.) That said, there are a lot of amazing sales happening right now, and if I can't shop them, maybe you can? Here's what I'd be buying if I hadn't made this @#$%! resolution.

There are quite a few things on my holy grail list, and a shearling aviator jacket is one of them. (In case you were wondering, an Hermès Kelly bag, a Max Mara camel coat, and Chanel ballet flats are also on it.) A shearling jacket does not come cheap, however, and so I have yet to buy the real thing, especially because I haven't been sure that I can actually pull one off. Am I too old? Too traditional? Too Californian? I decided to investigate with a faux version, which is less of a financial commitment and an item that can easily be donated to charity if it doesn't work out. Long story short, I love my faux shearling enough to wear it till it's threadbare. Here's how I styled it on its first outing. 

Winter truly brings out the casualness in me, and my go-to look most days consists of a sweater, jeans, and sneakers. So it's fitting that this month's most-pinned look from my Outfit Ideas for Ageless Style Pinterest board is just that. Granted, it's a very stylish take on the basics, but it's a totally easy look to re-create, so let's do it.

Back when I worked for Gap, our first fashion campaign of the year was always a neutral one. I think part of that strategy is that it’s in between seasons, so you don’t really need anything and aren’t looking to make a major statement, plus neutrals are a nice palate cleanser after all the rich colors and sparkle of the holidays. I also find myself gravitating more toward neutrals in general, although I do like a good strategically placed print or statement piece—and that’s what this look is, in a nutshell. You could wear it nearly any time of year (minus the heavier jacket) but the zebra print makes enough of a statement so that the outfit is memorable. Zebra will probably never replace leopard in everyone's hearts, but it's a fresh alternative. Here’s how to put it all together.

I wrote 2020 for the first time today and wow, was that weird—it truly is a new decade! That said, 2019 ended just a few days ago and I’m still in recap mode. So while my year in review post from Tuesday was all about me, this one is all about you: what you browsed, clicked on, and bought. I obviously love data, and analyzing it helps me deliver more content that you’ll (hopefully) enjoy. Plus, it’s fun to see what you got! So without further ado, here’s how you shopped in 2019.


OUTFIT DETAILS: Zara blazer | H&M tee (similar here) | Free People Normani skirt | Staud Bissett bag| Golden Goose Superstar sneakers

You know how all the best-of lists come out in mid-December? Those seemed to appear so quickly this year (I’m still blaming our late Thanksgiving), but I was really thrown by the plethora of end-of-the-decade stories. How did a whole decade just happen? It feels like 2010 was just yesterday, although, to be fair, a lot has happened in my life—and in the world—since then. That said, there’s a lot that I’m proud of having accomplished, especially in the last year. I love the optimism of starting a new year, but before I jump headfirst into 2020, let’s take a look back at 2019.

Did you leave your shopping till the very last minute? No judgment. And, really, the holiday shopping season was super short this year, so cut yourself some slack. Here are five super-last-minute gift ideas—one Amazon Prime-able, and the rest can be sent electronically. So finish that shopping, pour yourself a well-deserved drink, and relax.

I spent a lot of time recently—too much, perhaps—wondering if I could pull off leather jogger pants. I finally bit the bullet and ordered a pair. They were a fantastic deal, but they made my hips look ginormous (I think I ordered a size too big). Then I tried a pair that was too small, although I loved the cut. Finally, I think I found the pair that's just right. While I would have preferred a real leather pair, I settled for vegan leather; there are just more options out there, some of which are surprisingly priced at real-leather levels. I still am not 100% convinced that I can pull these off, but that's not going to stop me from continuing to try. Here's what I wore with my vegan leather jogger pants.

'Tis the season where we all get on a plane and fly home for the holidays, so we might as well look good while we travel, right? Back in the day, my mom got me all dressed up to fly (these were also the days when you could smoke on an airplane, so clearly we're going waaaaay back); nowadays, you see people wearing everything from flip-flops to pajamas on a plane, and while comfort is definitely key, there's a way to look polished without looking like you rolled straight out of bed. As someone who travels pretty frequently, I have my plane outfit down to a formula. Here's what I almost always wear when I travel.

The older I get, the fewer holiday parties I seem to have. I remember being in my 20s and having multiple events per night in the weekends leading up to Christmas; now I’m just an introvert with no friends. I’m kidding! I still have lots of friends, but we don’t throw parties like we used to, probably because we’re too stressed out this time of year. Still kidding! Well, maybe not. Anyway, while my social calendar isn’t as full as it once was, I do have some festivities to attend, and thus I decided to treat myself to a fun new skirt on Black Friday. Here’s what I’ll be wearing to this year’s holiday celebrations.

Usually I spread my gift guides out over several weeks—or months, as my very organized self did last year—but if you’re anything like me, the holidays REALLY snuck up on me this year, and dear god, how did this happen?! So in the interest of Christmas and Hanukkah being less than three weeks away, I decided to lump my somewhat abbreviated gift guides into one big post. This year, I didn’t filter by recipient; I went straight to price, but included something for all genders and ages in each. Well, except for splurge gifts—those are mostly just for me. ;) So without further ado, here are my favorite gifts for 2019.

My plans to shoot an outfit post were thwarted by the rain we had all weekend in LA (yes, it does rain in Southern California), so instead, I thought I’d share some of what I’ve been wearing lately on Instagram. I used to shoot my daily outfits in the bathroom at work, but since my new job has truly terrible lighting (and the ladies’ room is always crowded), I’ve been trying to do a better job of showing more everyday looks in my feed. In case you’re still not following me on IG (yes, that was a shameless plug!), here’s what I’ve been wearing.

Back when I first started writing Cheryl Shops, I used to list all of the weekly sample sales in NYC; if you’ve been reading this blog since the dark ages, that’s probably how you first found me. Nowadays, there are many sites out there who track the sales better than I do—Madison Avenue Spy being one of my favorites—but in the spirit of Thanksgiving, I thought I’d show my gratitude to you, dear readers, by sharing the best deals on my favorite sites. Let me know what you got in the comments below!

I was compensated with free lodging and meals for this post, but all opinions are my own.

Carmel-by-the-Sea, California sounds like a magical place from its name alone, and once you’ve visited, you realize the magic is real. Conceived as an artists’ colony in the early 1900s, the town’s character is that of a village in a forest overlooking the beach, and it’s filled with straight-out-of-a-fairytale houses that all have imaginative names. (Fun fact: there are no street numbers in Carmel-by-the-Sea; residents go to the post office to pick up their mail.) The town is vigilant about preserving its beauty—trees cannot be torn down to accommodate new construction, buildings cannot be more than two stories tall, signs must be wood (or wood-like), and as a matter of public safety on its uneven sidewalks, you are required to have a permit to wear heels over 2 inches high (yes, that is an actual law!). It may sound like a lot of regulation, but the result is that Carmel-by-the-Sea is a truly special place filled with people and businesses that feel so devoted the unique character of the town. And what makes Carmel even more dear to my heart is that it’s the most dog-friendly town I’ve ever visited—in fact, all of the visitor maps note which businesses allow dogs!


Carmel is about a two-and-a-half-hour drive from San Francisco, which makes it perfect for a weekend trip (although we'd happily spend a week—or longer—there). Here’s what Sean, Zuni, and I did on our visit in November.

I was #blessed to spend a weekend in Carmel again—as you may recall, we go every August for car week, which I love, but this time was a totally different experience. For one, the town was waaaaay less crowded. For another, the weather was absolutely gorgeous; it’s normally foggy and chilly in the summer, but it was clear and crisp and surprisingly warm. I have a more in-depth post on my trip coming later this week, but in the meantime, here’s what I wore in Carmel last weekend.

My Pinterest followers have been busy repinning fall-transitional outfits, and even though it feels like winter-transitional weather at the moment, I think this is a great look to wear right now (and later). The most-pinned look from my Outfit ideas for ageless style Pinterest board looks very Bottega Venteta, but let's create it for way less (mostly).

When I was young, I had a babysitter named Carrie who was very cool in a Joan Jett–meets–Stevie Nicks kind of way. Her style was boho mixed with punk—lots of silver and black and denim—and I was pretty much obsessed with her. She almost always wore black suede boots, and in all my years of shopping, I've never found a pair that reminded me so distinctly of her until I tried on the Giorgia boot by Calla. They came in the mail last week and I literally wore them for three days straight. I channeled Carrie all weekend long, but this was the look I think she'd approve of the most.

I had meant to publish this last week, but life (and Halloween) got in the way, and even though it's November, it's definitely still fall. Plus, this trend is kind of seasonless, so it almost doesn't matter when you buy it—although now is always a good time. When it comes to bags, I'm definitely more of a minimalist—I usually don't go for a lot of bells and whistles in terms of hardware, but lately I've been gravitating toward something with a nice big buckle. It's a step above minimalist, but by no means maximalist. Here are my favorite buckle bags for fall.

The first year I moved to California, I had no idea what time of year it was until I went to a department store in late November and realized it was almost Christmas. It was sunny, it was still relatively warm…and it’s kind of like that all year. Of course, I’ve since realized that we have seasons here—they’re just very subtle. That said, fall tends to drag on for a bit, and by fall, I mean summer. So while everyone in the rest of the country is gladly breaking out the sweaters and boots, Californians are still in sandals and sundresses. But thankfully, as of the day I’m writing this, it appears true fall is finally upon us: it’s foggy again, my nose gets cold when I’m waiting for the bus in the morning, and I’m thinking about adding another blanket to my bedding. And it’s just in time, because I have a Friendsgiving dinner this weekend and it just doesn’t feel right to wear summer clothes to a very autumnal event. Here’s what I’m planning on wearing this year.

This post is sponsored by Cuddl Duds but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.

I get up every morning at 6:45 to walk my dog, Zuni, and while it's never easy, it's particularly challenging this time of year because we're awake before the sun is up. And while I'm frequently tempted to roll out of the house in my nightgown, I do manage to pull on a Cuddl Duds top and leggings, because believe it or not, there are people already out and about at that hour. Here's what I wear when I walk Zuni.

Of all the trends I'm featuring this season, this one seemed a little iffy to me...until I got my hair done a few weeks ago and literally every female stylist at my salon was wearing a square-neck top. Granted, most of them were of the slightly cropped variety, but thankfully there are a lot of square-neck tops that have a slightly more forgiving silhouette. Here are my favorite square-neck tops for fall.

I've been talking up wide-leg pants a lot lately, so I thought it's time to put my money where my mouth is. Or, to put it more succinctly, I decided to buy a pair of wide-leg black trousers. I got inspired to do so after seeing a woman wearing what I'm pretty sure is this Chloé pair on the street—the front wrap detail makes the silhouette extra unique and feminine, not to mention perfect for camouflaging a food baby. And while I do certainly have one of those right now, I don't have $1,250 to spend, but thankfully I found a very similar pair (on major sale, even) at ASOS. And let me tell you, after nearly 15 years of wearing skinny jeans, I had completely forgotten how comfortable wide-leg pants are. I've been wearing them pretty much nonstop since I got them—they look so polished, yet you can totally dress them down too. So with that in mind, here are two ways to wear wide-leg pants.

It's been awhile since I've bought a pair of leather pants, but I'm feeling confident enough that there's a major silhouette shift happening that I'm ready for another pair. This season, it's all about a wide-leg cut, either in a full length or cropped cut. The upside is that this silhouette is super-flattering; the downside is that unless you go with faux leather, it's a bit of an investment. Then again, I've had my current pair of leather pants for years, and I think of them exactly as that—an investment. Here are my favorite wide-leg leather (and faux leather) pants of the season. 

One of my favorite pieces of the last year or so has been this Free People Normani slip skirt; this is its third appearance here (you last saw it with a denim jacket) and I wear it at least once every other week in real life. It's relaxed enough to wear on the weekend and can dress up with a blazer for work, plus it's super comfy and manages to look feminine yet pulled together no matter what the occasion. Lately, my favorite way to wear it has been with an oversized double-breasted blazer (one of my key pieces for fall); here's how it all comes together.

Snakeskin print is the trend that just won't quit—I featured it back in spring, and also last fall. And while it may never replace my first love, leopard print, I think I'm finally ready to add some snake print to my wardrobe. I think the coolest way to wear it this season is in an ankle boot—there are all shapes and colors too, from metallic silver to pink. Just to clarify, these are generally snake-embossed leather, not actual snakeskin boots. Here are some of my favorites for fall.

My wardrobe is mostly neutral by design—it's more interchangeable that way, however I do enjoy an occasional, well-placed pop of color. Red is strong color that takes a bit of boldness to wear, but I love the confidence it inspires. I had a red blazer that I loved, but it was literally unraveling and unsalvageable, so I decided to replace it. The one I ended up with has quite a backstory (keep scrolling) but I love how casual it is in spite of its strong color. True, you can rock a red blazer with black trousers and feel like a total boss, but I love how approachable it feels with jeans and a T-shirt. Here's how I wore my new red blazer on the weekend.

I wear a blazer pretty much every day, to the point that I worry about turning into Suze Orman (although it would be nice to have her financial savvy). But a blazer is the one piece that instantly makes anything I'm wearing feel that much more pulled together. This season, I'm all about the plaid boyfriend blazer, the longer the better (bonus points if it covers your bum, so you can wear it with leggings). It's obviously menswear-inspired, but with details or colors that make it softer and more interesting. Here are my favorite oversized plaid blazers for fall 2019.

I’ve always been a big fan of knits on my upper half—what’s not to love about a good T-shirt or sweater?—but have only recently gotten into them on my lower half. Since knits can be clingy, and since you may or may not want to draw attention to certain parts of your lower half, dressing with them can be quite a challenge. But the guideline is simple: emphasize what you want to, and draw attention away from what you don’t want to. The best part: wearing knits on knits is incredibly comfy and cozy, but can look polished too. Here’s how.

Since Monday was officially the first day of fall, now we can talk about fall fashion, which is my favorite season for it. I mean, what’s not to love about cozy sweaters, comfy boots, and an overall feeling of hygge? I am really excited to share my favorite fall 2019 trends—so excited, in fact, that I’m going to try something new and kick off my fall shopping guide with a preview of everything I’ll be featuring. The best part is that all of the items can be worn together to create one amazing (and age-appropriate) fall look. Here are my must-have trends for fall 2019.

How many leopard-print skirts is too many? Asking for a friend. And by a friend, I mean me. Actually, don't answer that question. This most recent acquisition is my fourth leopard-print skirt—I have a short one, a midi one, and a green knee-length one—and I swear, it's totally different than the other three. For one, it's bias-cut, so it has a slip-skirt look. For another, it has a more cheetah-like print than the others. But most importantly, I love it and I will certainly wear it, so who cares. Here's how I wore it to work last week.

Putting an outfit together is something that has always come naturally to me, hence one of the many reasons I write this blog—and hopefully it's something that you, dear readers, find helpful. However, I occasionally get stumped by certain items. Rockport sent me this delightful (and very comfortable) pair of hot pink suede sandals, and I truly couldn't figure out what to wear with them. They looked too matchy-matchy with pink or printed dresses, and they just looked wrong with jeans. I was at a loss. Thankfully, we all get by with a little help from our friends, and when I saw Nancy's post on her last summer outfit, all of a sudden I knew what to do: pair them with a soft green cargo pant and classic white shirt. 

This post is sponsored by Chuckit! but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.

As the owner of a dog who LOVES to play fetch, National Fetch Day is unofficially every day at my house. But officially, October 19th is the big day, and it’s about more than just playing fetch (although that is a big part). National Fetch Day is all about getting outside, meeting other dog owners, and, most importantly, playing. So what better way to celebrate than with Zuni’s favorite toy, the ChuckIt Launcher?

It's been a minute since I've done a "get the look" post, but my Pinterest followers have been busy pinning this neutral look from my Outfit ideas for ageless style board. And coincidentally, it's another one focused on wide-leg pants—are we on the verge of a major silhouette shift, or is there just something effortless about a wide-leg cropped pant? I can't answer that, but I can re-create this look while it's still warm enough to wear it.

Last weekend, we traveled to Kansas City for my nephew's wedding. Yes, I am old enough to have a nephew getting married. No, I will not shut up. Anyway, Kansas City is known for being ridiculously humid this time of year, but thankfully we lucked out with hot but not terribly muggy weather. The trip was a bit of a whirlwind, but we squeezed in as much quality family time as possible. Here's what I wore.

Taos Footwear provided the the sneakers in this post, but the content and opinions expressed here are my own. 

I am very late to the sneaker party, but better late than never, right? Lately, I've been wearing sneakers with everything from jeans to skirts, and I especially love how they look with a midi dress. I've been trying everything from designer brands to actual athletic shoes, but the sneaker I've been wearing nonstop lately is the Star Sneaker by Taos Footwear. They look like a classic canvas sneaker, but on the inside, they're so much more. Read on for what makes this shoe so ridiculously comfortable.

Labor Day is a weird time of year to shop. There are often amazing sales, but they’re usually for summer styles—and can be the bottom of the barrel at that. Granted, summer still technically lasts for another month, and in many parts of this country, maybe longer than that. That said, I love a good sale, and I really love passing along a good deal to you, dear readers. So to make your Labor Day sale shopping even easier, here are 10 things that I love—and have featured here on Cheryl Shops—on major sale.

I bought this long cardigan during the Nordstrom Anniversary sale and took it to Sweden, thinking I'd need it at night. But since we were in Europe during a heat wave, I didn't get the opportunity to wear it until our very last night. Thankfully, there have been plenty of opportunities to layer it on since we've been back in San Francisco; I pretty much lived in it last weekend in Carmel, but I wanted to show it in a more transitional way too. Thankfully, it goes with nearly everything. Here's how I wore this long cardigan to dinner last Saturday night.

36 hours in where? Exactly. The entire trip began when my friends and I saw this year’s Outstanding in the Field lineup. Last year, we had traveled to Burgundy, France, for an OITF dinner there, and we had so much fun, we decided to do it again this year. Except we picked the dinner at Kaseholm Castle in Tomelilla, Sweden, outside of Malmo (where IKEA is headquartered). That’s how Sean and I ended up building our trip to Stockholm and Copenhagen—our final destination was Ystad, Sweden, where we met up with six friends (!) for a two-night stay, including the dinner. It was filled with friends, food, and most importantly, fun. Here’s what we did in our 36 hours in Ystad.

Carmel-by-the-Sea is one of my favorite places in California, not to mention the world, so I always jump at a chance to go, even if it’s for Car Week. As I mentioned last week, August weather in Northern California can be all over the place, but we were really lucky last weekend with warm-ish weather; in years past, I’d been bundled in jeans and sweaters. Well, I was still wearing sweaters—it’s Northern California after all—but at least with dresses and skirts this time. Here’s what I wore last weekend in Carmel.

After four days in Stockholm, we hopped on a quick Norwegian air flight to Copenhagen, and while I liked Sweden, I loved Copenhagen. The city feels more modern and yet more old-world European at the same time—I think the two sides are integrated more harmoniously. Plus the food is amazing, and I felt that the Danes have an overall zest for life, which I appreciated. It probably helped that they were having record-breaking heat while we were there, with (rare for them) temperatures in the 80s. If I had to do this trip over again, I probably would have shaved a day off of Stockholm and added one to Copenhagen, but hey, I guess we'll just have to go back (which I would absolutely do in a heartbeat). Here's what we did in our four days in Copenhagen.

When people think of California in the summer, I’ll bet they think beaches, sunshine, and sweltering temperatures. That may be true for much of the state, but it’s generally not the case in San Francisco. We do have beaches and the sun usually appears for at least an hour or two, but in the month of August, the temperatures are anything but sweltering. Welcome to Fogust, when the inland heat hits the cool ocean air and blankets the city in a thick fog. It's also when you see tourists traipsing through the city in shorts, sandals, and San Francisco sweatshirts. The good news is that you don’t have to totally forgo summer clothes in August, but you do need to get creative with your layers. Here’s my go-to outfit for summer in San Francisco.

When most people think of Sweden, they probably think of Ikea, meatballs, and maybe Volvo. Ok, I think of those things too, but also street style bloggers like Elin Kling, fashion giant H&M (which also produces my beloved COS), and Byredo, which makes my perfume. It may not be the A-list European destination that, say, Paris or Rome is, but Stockholm is a cool, clean, cute city that’s totally worth a visit, especially if you’re going to hit Copenhagen too (as we did). There are a gazillion museums, great restaurants, world-class shopping, and lots of boats. Here’s how we spent our four days there.

Spoiler alert: I absolutely loved Copenhagen. I'll go into detail about why, exactly, when I post my travel diary, but to put it succinctly, it's a gorgeous city with amazing food, friendly people, and inspiring design everywhere you look. It also happened to be having record-breaking heat (in the mid 80s) when we were there, so please note that typical summer weather is more in the upper 60s to low 70s, and thus this post is not truly representative of a Danish summer. That said, I was happy to enjoy the sunshine and warmth, so here's what I wore in Copenhagen.