Cart Curator #2 - The One With The Met Gala
Our Met Gala review, why it's time to graduate from Shellac and our favourite shopping app.
The Substack lives to see another day - happy one-week anniversary.
A big thank you to everyone who subscribed over the past week, we hope you love Cart Curator as much as we do.
A few housekeeping notes to start. Your email provider may accidentally send us into a junk or spam folder, please flag that we are not so you can find us in your inbox.
Secondly, we had some feedback (from multiple people, we hear you!) about not being able to identify which recommendation is whose, so we have taken this on board and will call this out. Popshop will remain an amalgamation of our thoughts / DMs.
Please leave us a comment below or reach out to us on IG (@jesswest___ + @nicoleharn) with any thoughts or feedback,
Jess and Nicole x
Popshop
Our favourite pop culture or industry moment of the week.
Ah, the Met Gala. As if we were going to discuss anything else.
The First Monday in May (this documentary is required viewing to keep scrolling) or the Oscars of the East Coast. The Met Gala is our favourite fashion, and cultural, moment of the year, and operates as an unofficial in-and-out list of celebrities (which seemingly, the KarJenners are on the out).
The 2023 theme, ‘Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty’, is an interesting one. Lagerfeld has undoubtedly had an impact on modern fashion. Still, it is arguable that the lens isn’t yet wide enough on just how much of an impact he’s made, and that’s not even to mention his past questionable comments. Amy Odell from Back Row has a good explainer here.
We held our breaths as the underwhelming cream/blue/red carpet was revealed (is cream the new red?), and thankfully exhaled as some great looks appeared. MVPs included Sydney Sweeney, Anne Hathaway, Jennie Kim, Jessica Chastain (v into the blonde and sunglass combo), Michelle Yeoh, Keke Palmer, Nicole Kidman, Lea Michele and Taika Waititi.
ICYMI here are some of our favourite moments (in no particular order) from the 2023 Met Gala - Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty.
We love a man who’s not afraid to show a little leg.
An icon in an icon. Nicole in her dress from her 2004 No.5 Chanel commercial.
Kendall’s new beau doing the most in backless Jacquemus.
Love this feminine look for Jennie.
What we would give to be a fly on the wall.
Or a cockroach on the ground.
Another good glam moment (huge Mamma Mia fans here, so Amanda Seyfried can do no wrong).
Tell me Giselle isn’t giving I’m thriving post-breakup.
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We were awaiting this reunion.
The best-dressed co-host (sorry Dua) in custom Schiaparelli.
Kylie’s look, in particular, the bold coat/train and glam - definitely our favourite of the KarJenner trio. Desperately awaiting Stormi’s Met debut.
The duo we never knew we needed.
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And last but not least… Irina Shayk’s after party look. *chef’s kiss*
Add to Cart
What’s sitting in carts, or what’s been checked out.
Nicole
The temperature has turned in Sydney, and I’ve quickly realised that my winter wardrobe has been lacking cohesiveness for the last few seasons, mainly due to Covid lockdowns overriding the colder months and driving us inside in tracksuits.
My first planned purchase is a versatile black boot and I’ve got my eyes on this pair from Zara. This will undoubtedly be the season of the cowboy boot, and this pair hits the mark in both style and price ($99.00).
NOTE: Jess here. Purchased these and received in the mail yesterday and they are even better in person.
Zara Double-Faced Short Jacket
Another Zara pick, which is surprising for me as Jess is usually the Zara fiend.
@parisiensinparis is my year-round style mood board, but when I was specifically looking for winter inspiration I noticed see two key winter trends - Double Face jackets and Shearling.
This Zara number is a semi-cropped and oversized style, and sits perfectly on a petite frame like mine. Ideal when you want to feel both cosy and chic (always).
This option in black is also great.
Jess
Okay, Nicole has gone very Winter focused whereas I’m continuing with the Euro purchases recently adding the Maison Essentiele Kimono in black to my collection during the recent preorder. Near identical to the Wardrobe NYC Kimono the Maison Essentiele version comes in at a fraction of the cost (Wardrobe NYC is only available as part of the 8-piece beach wardrobe at a cool $4,300) and achieves an extremely similar look and feel. I’m envisioning this thrown over a bikini for a post beach club lunch complete with a chunky silver earring (like these from Lovisa) and a leather slide (cc @dani.shreeve).
Last week we spoke in length about the glow-up Sofia Richie has undergone in the lead-up to her South of France nuptials and this pick is very much inspired by this. The ONTE Helena Gilet is very much giving old money but is easily updated with a pair of oversized jeans. Pictured in black (are we surprised) the style also comes in Blanca (white). At $180.00 this price point isn’t out of the question but AERE (available via The Iconic) and DISSH also have some same-same-but-different options available for half the price including the AERE Tailored Vest Top and DISSH Oscar White Scoop Neck Linen Vest.
Beauty Counter
Prod of the week.
Nicole
In preparation for a 4-week holiday, I’ve recently started a BIAB journey. A good Shellac manicure only looks good for 1.5 weeks of the 2 weeks it’s supposed to last, so BIAB is a durable and longer-lasting option. BIAB stands for Builder in a Bottle and has a similar glossy finish to Shellac, with exaggerated staying power. A GF recently pushed hers to 6 (!!) weeks, before she had infills. The gel is becoming increasingly popular in salons, so if you ask, your local may already offer it. Colour offerings are limited with a range of mostly nude or pink, however, you do have the option of asking for Shellac on top to widen your colour options.
NOTE from Jess: I’ve been trying to get Nicole on the bandwagon for multiple years, so glad to hear it is everything I promised her and more.
Jess
Soap & Glory Clean On Me Body Wash
Okay this may have been a better fit for IYKYK and you may be thinking, sorry are you 15? Butttt the Soap & Glory Clean On Me Body Wash is one of the best-smelling things I have ever put on my body. To be fair I did use this in high school and had recently opted for something more elevated in the way of the Necessaire The Body Wash in Bergamot (which the Clean On Me also has notes of) but I found that it didn’t live up to my expectations and I have repurchased this after 10+ years - and at $13.00 you can’t go wrong. Side note the scent reminds me of being in Singapore (niche) - might have something to do with the scent of the handwash in ION Orchard, who can be sure.
Lottery Win
A girl can dream.
Coming in at $840 via Net-A-Porter this Jacquemus Cropped embellished ribbed cotton-blend top isn’t necessarily a lottery win but for essentially a tee and with the current state of our Euro savings, a lottery win is required to justify this purchase.
We have a feeling the mock bra top, like Sofia’s here, will have a moment.
Surprise surprise this pick is also black - we will give you one guess at who selected this.
IYKYK
Super specific recs and niche hyper-fixations.
Nicole
I’ve been trying to get Jess onto the clothing marketplace app Depop for months, and this week she finally joined (she’s currently $600 in sales down, and putting it all back into purchases on the app).
The platform’s algorithms have clearly gotten smarter, or there has been an influx of fashionable girlies joining in the last year because recently the finds have been impeccable.
We’ve snapped up some pre-holiday gems in the last week including this for an upcoming wedding and this as a chic basic. I’d also love to share with you some more weather-appropriate items sitting in our wish lists, BUT they are excellent finds from hours of scrolling and don’t want you to snap them up while we ponder these purchases (the competition on Depop is vicious).
We’re both the type of person to wake up one day and want a complete wardrobe refresh and personal rebrand, and Depop makes selling clothes SO easy. Especially once you get over the short time taken to snap some images and upload a listing. The bonus is you avoid the 1000 “Is this still available?” messages from Marketplace.
Aubrey Plaza (AKA Audrey Slutburn) is our mood until next week - see you then.
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