May 16-23: Two Weeks In Review

I usually write my week in review on Saturday afternoon. This past Saturday afternoon, I was lying on a beach looking at the Atlantic Ocean. I thought I slathered myself in SPF, but got a bit of a burn on both sides of my right shoulder strap. Worth it.

My friend has a house at the beach. She is a self-made person; she grew up with little, worked through college and law school, and now has a successful practice and a well-deserved vacation home. And when our schedules align, a group of us gather there for some much needed low-frills, low-stress friend time.

This coming weekend is Memorial Day, and while I do not have concrete plans, I do not plan to be spending Saturday on my laptop so consider this a middle of two weekends update.

Last week I met my friend Sylvia in Georgetown. She recently moved there from another part of the city and her place is lovely, just like her. We had lunch, we window shopped, the weather was perfect, I wore the Lands’ End dress again, I love it (and it washed up great, just needs to be ironed/steamed since 100% cotton).

I currently am doing a campaign with Talbots: this post, and one coming this Saturday (it’s a capsule wardrobe; the link will work by Noon ET on the 23rd). I haven’t worked with Talbots for a while, and I love that this campaign is just blog posts (and some LTK content, because it’s through LTK). No reels, no stories, just share the sale in whatever way I think is best. I have worked on and off with Talbots for over a decade and am glad to have this campaign with them as I find Talbots a smart fit for my blog audience. I appreciate it’s one of the few retailers that carries petite plus size, and the clothes fit me pretty well and are usually good quality.

I also love taking brands that have known aesthetics and styling them in a completely different manner. I love making Talbots look edgy, Chico’s look minimalist, J.Jill look preppy… it’s one of my superpowers. But for this campaign, I chose to create content that would be useful even after the sale is over and the payment received. This is my focus for 2026 with Wardrobe Oxygen: being a resource, and creating the content I wish to see in the world.

I have a gigantic box in my dining room full of Universal Standard denim that I ordered and paid for. I have a ton of old Universal Standard content on Wardrobe Oxygen that was useful but not as much now. I updated my 2021 Universal Standard linen review and my 2022 linen styling post (and my sister and I made a cute little Reel to go with it), and now I want to update my denim posts.

Universal Standard has a crappy affiliate commission, hardly ever pays for campaigns, and isn’t big on gifting without deliverables, but I get a LOT of Google traffic for the brand. And as someone who is 5’3” and a 14/16, I know it’s helpful to see my body in their clothes. So after the holiday, I plan to turn on my office fan, drink lots of water, and photograph (and likely video too) myself in all those jeans. I think I get a better workout doing a clothing haul than a row on my Hydrow; at least I sweat more!

Tuesday, I had a follow-up appointment for my eye. For those who don’t know, I had emergency retina surgery Labor Day weekend, 2023. Some lasering in my left eye, but the right eye I got a sclera buckle (essentially a corset for my eyeball). My vision has been permanently impacted, and I have to get regular checks to see all is in order. And a few weeks ago at my checkup, the retina was getting sticky which explained my blurry vision. But good thing, the eye fluid (I can’t recall all the proper terminology) was swishing around again and my eye looked good.

After, since my eyes were already dilated, I went to get an eye exam at a new eye doctor and he was wonderful. The local eye place is having 50% off frames and lenses for Memorial Day weekend so my husband and I have a date tomorrow to go with my new prescription and find me some new google googles (what my dad used to call glasses). I want some Wayfarer sunglasses, and I am ready for some new frames that aren’t quite as heavy and dark as my Pradas.

Yesterday I went to Billy, my hair stylist and dear friend, for a cut and color. I still don’t have enough gray for my tastes, so I am still coloring it and he makes it look so natural and still feel lovely. I am not sure if I want to grow it out or keep a modified mullet, so he only gave it a bit of some shaping and we’ll see how the summer goes.

My kid is finished with all her AP exams, still has the SATs at the beginning of next month, but is starting to feel a bit of Senioritis, even though she is still in 11th grade. We have a road trip up north at the end of next month to visit two colleges and are planning a third college visit to one a little closer to home. I am not one to use AI for my personal life, but I have used it for colleges. It has been helpful to narrow down schools, create a spreadsheet breaking down the different aspects, etc. It’s not always correct, but it is a start and has helped us consider colleges we hadn’t before that may be really good fits (two of them are the ones we’re driving up to see).

Usually the beginning of the year feels like a snowball gaining speed as it rolls down a mountain, and it ends around April. But with a rising senior, this snowball is still rolling. I can’t believe it’s almost Memorial Day weekend, I feel as though the year just started.