14 items in this article
4 items on sale!
Photo-Illustration: The Strategist; Photos: Retailers
We write about hundreds of products each week. Here, in our version of the Sunday circular, we’ve plucked some of our recent favorites: expert-recommended essentials, life-changing stuff you didn’t know you needed, newly launched gizmos, and very good deals we uncovered while trawling through the vast online-shopping universe — including our new top pick for trash cans, which is made by Caraway; an eye-catching red knit from Uniqlo’s new JW Anderson collection; and one designer’s go-to white Ikea candlesticks.
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“Like many people who live in rental apartments, I’ve always had to negotiate where my kitchen trash can lives,” says senior kitchen and dining writer Emma Wartzman. Though she’s been perfectly happy with a stainless-steel step model by Kohler, after five years of use it was starting to look a tad worse for wear. Caraway’s latest slotted beautifully into her space, is just as aesthetically pleasing as Kohler’s, and is even more functional, making it well worth the investment. “There are very few little nooks and crannies for dust, crumbs, or splatter to hide in,” which makes it easy to wipe down and keep clean.
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“I have these on right now,” Ming-Na Wen told Wartzman in this week’s “Celebrity Shopping.” Wen has been wearing Ardell’s flexible-banded lashes as a part of her daily glam for three decades and sometimes even sleeps in them. “What I love about these particular ones is their shape. I don’t know why, but they’re the only brand I find that really suits my eye shape. Others — and I’ve tried them all — are too rounded or too stiff. These don’t bother you at all.”
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JW Anderson’s “academia”-themed Uniqlo collection went live earlier this week. Senior writer Lauren Ro got to try all of the women’s pieces, including knits, trousers, and outerwear, along with some men’s items. Among the standouts is this affordable sweater. “I love a red sweater, and this high V-neck immediately caught my eye,” she says. “The wool-cashmere blend feels soft and lightweight. I can imagine living in this all season.”
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Wartzman also spoke to cookbook author and recipe developer Deb Perelman about everything she can’t cook without, including the Taiwanese ramen she defaults to for work-from-home lunches. “The noodles are baked, not fried, so it doesn’t feel as heavy. The packet is just a simple soy-sauce seasoning. You can gussy it up. I’ll go into the fridge and throw in whatever vegetables I have to use up, then finish it with their seasoning packet, some chile oil, and toasted sesame seeds,” she says.
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Writer Bella Druckman wanted a truly wide-foot-friendly pair of mary janes that’s comfortable, nice-looking, and able to hold its shape after thousands of steps. She spent the past several weeks testing 14 pairs, and none compared to Franco Sarto’s. “Out of the box, these mary janes fit my feet perfectly, hugging my toes just enough to feel secure without any squeezing. I’ve gotten nary a blister nor a scab,” she says. “Their success comes down to the shape of the toe box, which is such a wide square it almost has a right angle. There’s even a small, half-inch-ish heel that makes the shoe look all the more elevated.”
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You may be wondering what exactly a vacuum steamer is. Writer Erin Schwartz did, too, after receiving three different pitches about the latest launches in steamer technology: “Getting a smooth finish while steaming requires an annoying level of garment fussing. What if the steamer were also a vacuum, suctioning fabric to steam?” After testing those three, Rowenta’s came out on top. While noisy, it left a crisp, dry-clean finish on otherwise tricky-to-steam pieces like collared shirts.
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This week we launched “Down to Earth Design,” a new series in which design-minded people clue us into their favorite home items under $100. At the top of London-based designer Ben Pentreath’s list are these Ikea candles. “All of life looks better by candlelight,” he says. “These are the best, most basic white candles. We go through dozens of boxes a year at our bothy on the west coast of Scotland.”
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Associate editor Jeremy Rellosa chatted with rock climber Nina Williams for another “Celebrity Shopping” installment about everything she can’t live without, including this bug-bite-relief tool. “If you have a mosquito bite, you take it and put the stick end on the bite and you hold it there for 30 seconds. It’s this intense, pretty painful burning sensation, but it burns away the itch. And then I swear to God, the mosquito bite does not itch anymore,” she says.
Senior writer Lauren Ro’s new fall trousers are flattering, comfy, and stylish.
Grill gloves that can handle 900-degree temps but keep your hands nimble.
A salon-worthy drugstore gem for weightless, shiny hair, according to trichologist Bridgette Hill.
$16
for 10
$16
$18
9% off
The affordable, smudgeproof pens that Ming-Na Wen uses for bullet journaling.
Danny Meyer’s foolproof solution for safely and easily removing foil from wine bottles.
The one-and-done French solid serum Hannah Waddingham can’t travel without.
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The Strategist is designed to surface useful, expert recommendations for things to buy across the vast e-commerce landscape. Every product is independently selected by our team of editors, whom you can read about here. We update links when possible, but note that deals can expire and all prices are subject to change.
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