The Saturday Group Text, #71
An epic collab between two favorite brands, an affordable new beauty launch, a costume jewelry gem, a gorgeous clothing launch, and more
Hi friends. I hope it was a good week and that you’re having a cozy morning. It is going to be freezing this weekend in Charleston, so I’m hunkering down. A good weekend to read, catch up on shows, cook, and be as indoorsy as possible.
Weekend Reading is up on the blog. Quirky TV recs. The dreamiest family home on Shelter Island. Bags and shoes that have transformed fashion. Yummy riffs on the Negroni. A guide to the many, many! White Lotus collaborations. Jennifer Anniston’s favorite things. A recipe for dirty martini baked potatoes. Plus loads more articles and a few shopping finds that caught my eye.
Enjoy the list, and have the best weekend! xx
PS - This one gets a little long! Click through to Substack to read the whole thing. And if you are feeling nice, give it a heart. <3
PPS - On a housekeeping note, I spent some time this week organizing my ShopMy page. There are shelves of favorite things, a place to shop all of my Instagram posts + stories, and a home for best-sellers. I feel like this is such a nice way to keep everything in one place.
Versed Makeup
Whenever I’m asked for affordable beauty recs, Versed is at the top of the list. I’ve featured their $18 cleansing balm (it smells just like Noxzema!) in a past SGT, and I really like their Vitamin C serum. When I learned that they launched makeup, I was excited. I tried three products; here are my thoughts:
Multi-Serum Skin Tint w/SPF 40 (shade 4W) This is essentially a $20 dupe of Ilia’s Super Serum Skin Tint (also with SPF40). I like it a lot. It has nice coverage and a dewy finish . . . I got a lot of compliments on my skin this week and this is what I was wearing. I will say that you do need the brush. It doesn’t absorb quite as fast as I’d like it to, but the brush makes a difference. And for its $15 price point, it’s an excellent foundation brush (reminds me of Rare Beauty).
Tinted Lip Serum (shade: flamingo) This is a juicy lip balm with a glossy finish. It reminds me a LOT of tarte’s juicy lip plump gloss, for a fraction of the price. I will 100% buy more shades of this.
Blush Stick (shade: pinch) This is a nice blush. I don’t have a lot to say about it good or bad, it’s just nice. It didn’t blow me away (but most blushes don’t really blow me away?) but it’s a nice blush for the price with sheer buildable coverage.
Style by Simkins x Dillard’s
Natalie from Style by Simkins hit it out of the park with her collection for Dillard’s. If you're a fan of brands like Johanna Ortiz or Cara Cara, you’ll love this one. And it’s all very reasonably priced. I wanted everything, but I settled for this happy yellow sundress and these green and white rosette heels.
Other pieces I really like: this black-and-white dress (the fit is perfection), this crochet coverup, this green-and-white one-piece, this chic off-the-shoulder top, and these strappy sandals, which serve major Toteme vibes. It’s worth noting that I found the quality of these pieces to be better than past Dillard’s collaborations. Truly, a stunning collection that has me feeling super excited for warmer temps.
BaubleBar Semi Precious Stone Bracelet
I don’t wear a lot of costume jewelry but when I saw this BaubleBar bracelet, I gasped. It’s gorgeous. I love the round setting (it reminds me a lot of the Dorsey James setting) and it features real stones (not plastic or resin). I am picky about jewelry and in person, it’s really pretty. Even better than the photos. I am really impressed with this one. There’s an all turquoise version too!
Hello, dream collab between two of my absolute favorite brands. I am so excited about this one. The brand let me pick out a piece and of course I chose the mini kaftan which will be perfect for lounging poolside (honestly, it’s great around the house too—I snapped this photo and continued to lounge around in it). This patterned robe is very cute as well. While you are on the Weezie site, this beach towel is a beauty.
Paradise (Hulu) is my show right now. It’s fantastic. It's a political thriller with a sci-fi/dystopian element. I don’t want to give away too much, but the cast is excellent as well. Sterling K. Brown protecting President James Marsden. Just trust me and watch it. My only gripe is that they did not release all of the episodes at once!
Nickel Boys (bought on Apple TV). I was really excited to watch this, but to be honest, it fell a little flat for me. The cinematography was beautiful (they filmed it from the vantage point of Elwood and Turner), but as someone who loved the book, I feel that it didn’t do it justice. If you haven’t read the book, I think you’ll really enjoy it (especially how it is filmed, which is really creative). But if you have, you may wind up a little disappointed. It could just be me!
Naturally, I watched The White Lotus (Max). The first episode was great. I’m also really enjoying Prime Target on Apple TV.
The SNL 50-year Anniversary Special (I watched it on Peacock) was so good! It featured so many great guests +and was a fun trip down memory lane. It's a must-watch, IMO.
Freda Salvador made us a code. Use GRACESPRING15 through 2/23 at midnight. I have a little collection of favorites saved here!
Shopbop Hearts are up to date. A big week of good dresses. Also, if you are a new Shopbop customer, use SHOPMY20 for 20% off your first order. (Expires 3/3)
Minnow launched their Spring collection and it’s really good. I got this swimsuit for me (I size up to a large), and this rashguard one-piece + terrycloth coverup (wish it came in my size) for my niece!
La Vie Style House had a really good drop on Moda. I could not resist this striped, sequined kaftan (stripes & sequins . . . IYKYK).
A little extra content, beyond the paywall. You can expect this every week, going forward!
What’s below:
This week’s high + low.
A 5th find — would make a great gift idea.
Substack articles from fellow publishers that I enjoyed!