Suit of the Week: Alice & Olivia
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For busy working women, the suit is often the easiest outfit to throw on in the morning. In general, this feature is not about interview suits for women, which should be as classic and basic as you get — instead, this feature is about the slightly different suit that is fashionable, yet professional. Also: we just updated our big roundup for the best women's suits of 2025!
This suit isn't for everyone, but I haven't seen a suit like this one from Alice & Olivia with a price tag less than 4 figures in a while.
In my mind, if I see a beautiful paisley suit, the brand is usually Etro and it's several thousand dollars. Smythe also has a lot of patterned, bold suits, also on the pricey side, and I've seen occasional standouts from The Fold and Lafayette 148 New York. Boden also tends to have suits with interesting patterns.
Alice + Olivia does tend to be farther on the “party” side of the “festive suit” spectrum, but I like this one a lot. It's a best seller at Neiman Marcus, where the blazer is $625 and the pants are $395.
Some of the other fun suits we've featured include this watercolor print from The Fold, this gold brocade number, this rockstar-like jacquard suit with tiny birds, and this very unusual print suit from Etro.
Sales of note for 10/9
- Ann Taylor – 40% off must-have styles, and 30% off your full price purchase
- Banana Republic Factory – 40% off everything + extra 25% off
- Boden – 10% off new womenswear styles with code
- The Fold – Up to 25% off with their Workwear Mix and Match offer
- J.Crew – 40% off sitewide
- J.Crew Factory – 40-70% off everything + extra 60% off clearance
- M.M.LaFleur – Fall style event! 25% off $500+, 30% off $750+ — try code CORPORETTE15 for 15% off
- Nordstrom – 1000+ new markdowns!
- Nordstrom Rack – UGG up to 40% off
- Soma -$25 off when you spend $110+, also get a free bra when you buy two
- Talbots – 30% off entire purchase, and free shipping on $150+
WOW I love this so much!
Has anyone done laser lipo? My understanding is that it’s a less invasive (but still invasive) form of lipo that gets pretty dramatic results but no huge scar and while there is downtime, it’s much less painful than regular lipo.
Specifically wondering whether I’d be a good candidate. I’m not overweight, but struggle with belly/hip fat. I don’t really have loose skin (or at least not now… if I got rid of the belly fat maybe I would be left with some?) but I’ve heard laser lipo can also help tighten skin.
Appreciate any insight!
I think that’s what happened to Linda Evangliista…
I’m 99% sure that was cool sculpting?
Are you referring to surgical lipo that uses a cannula and a laser to melt/extract fat (vs. water to separate it) or a laser that is supposed to somehow liquefy fat when used over your skin? If it’s the former it’s supposedly an easier procedure for the patient. The latter is basically snake oil.
OP Here. I’m referring to the surgical lipo with cannula and laser (smaller incision and much less painful recovery, is my understanding). I am not referring to cool sculpting or a laser used over the skin.
Do you vacation with family members who ostensibly want to join in, but express zero enthusiasm for any aspect of the planning and don’t contribute their fair share? We had a family meet-up last summer so the next generation of cousins could meet. I’m close with one cousin, “Susan,” but (God love her) she won’t lift a finger to plan anything and also shot down suggestions as being “too expensive” without offering alternatives. Her sister and I had mapped out reasonable, affordable family options/Airbnbs (the cheapest and yet still clean/safe places we could find) and we were frustrated to get met with “omg that’s so expensive” or “omfg that price tag is insane” when Susan would neither offer her own suggestions nor clarify an exact budget for us to work with. She also NEVER said thank you to us for all the work we did, and she’s very comfortable with “I just don’t feel like it right now” when backing out of plans she initially agreed to and that others have put effort into on trips. She’s not a bad person, but this is a big blind spot for her and it always has been, despite people bringing it up with her before (it’s not just a problem with me/my family – it’s been a lifelong thing that other family members and friends have mentioned).
We had a nice time on the trip eventually and Susan paid for her share of the lodging, but now the question of planning another trip has come up and I’m not so enthusiastic. On the one hand, I want my baby to see family and for us to just deal with the little annoyances that always come with these kinds of things, especially because the proposed destination is a REALLY fun place. On the other, it’s really a bummer to do all of the work, have someone constantly and vaguely shoot down your ideas, and then not even appreciate your effort or show enthusiasm for the family time. Any suggestions on how to handle this? I’m leaning towards “everyone books their own lodging and whoever pulls it off, great,” but I know for a fact that doing that will reduce the chance that Susan attends this trip by at least 75%, and in the end, I would love for her and the kids to be there, even knowing that they won’t participate in everything everyone else is doing. Really, even one “thanks so much for finding this place” or “I can’t wait to take the kids tubing” would be enough for me, but since I’m not likely to get it, any suggestions for handling this?
Back way up. Some people are not planners, some people don’t express gratitude, but also…maybe this isn’t how Susan wants to spend her vacation or money, and you’re not really picking up on that based on her polite demurrers.
This is where I lean. This is important to you, so you do it. That’s just how the cookie crumbles sometimes. That said, I think you’re doing a good thing and you deserve thanks.
I should clarify that Susan says she wants to come – she seems sure on that. If she didn’t or expressed no disappointment when we dropped the plans, of course that would be a different story.
Give her an assignment? Plan Activity A, Breakfast B, and have her send the details around to the group X weeks ahead (where X leaves the rest of you enough time to pick up the slack if she slacks off).
Also give her the constraints for her part (allergens or dietary preferences or requests) but then when she tries her best, encourage her and be enthusiastic
I would just leave her out of the planning. If she/her family come great, if not, that’s fine too. She’s been pretty clear that this is not a priority, is expensive, and she doesn’t sound into it. You can’t force a relationship onto people and it sounds like you’d be happier (or at least less stressed) letting it go too.
And pick the least expensive option possible, or prepare to subsidize her family.
You would subsidize another family in this scenario? That seems risky.
We haven’t subsidized family, but if they have significantly more money than her and really want to see her, it doesn’t seem crazy.
I make a little more than Susan but not that much more. I can’t afford to fully subsidize her even if I wanted to. That said, I’ve always taken her financial situation into account as much as I can, except for the fact that she won’t name an exact budget. That’s why we’ve gone with the most affordable Airbnbs, etc.
I have subsided close family on vacations before, and had family do it for me. In our 20s, when I was in biglaw, my brother and I would travel together. Sometimes there would be an activity that I know he would enjoy but it was too expensive for his budget, so I would just pay for us both. Or I would pay to upgrade us to a private day trip because I knew it would make the day more enjoyable/we would get to see more.
Now that I’m a single parent (and make a lot less money), when I travel with family, we normally split the cost by the number of adults — so they are effectively subsidizing my family.
That’s normal in my family.
Stop catering to her. Give her a yes or a no (this AirBnB, these dates, these activities) instead of trying to accommodate her. She probably won’t come, and that’s fine. There are some great friends who I would never in a million years travel with, because we have really different budgets, or really different energy levels/interests.
Alternatively, if seeing her and her kids is the make-or-break, go where she is, or where she’d want to go, and plan to do 1-2 things together with her.
I think part of the tension that her sister and I are feeling is that we have selected Airbnbs that would work for the group and Susan’s budget, but if she’s not coming, then we would stay elsewhere (somewhere smaller, etc). It’s tricky when Susan says she wants to come and then vaguely complains about price. Clearly we should just stop trying to make shared places work.
I mean… could you plan on a hotel (say a marriott courtyard or another kitchenette style extended stay thing) instead of an airbnb?
That way she can book or not book a room (or stay for 2 days instead of 5) and it has no effects on your plans.
+1 I hate shared Airbnbs for this reason. Separate hotel rooms are the way to go.
I would plan the vacation that you want to go on, and then present it to Susan. If she wants to join with her family, she can. If she does not, your family goes alone. If she wants to go, but does not want to do every extra activity that you want to do, that is fine too, your family does those activities alone.
Yeah, maybe this is what we should do. I’m taking her at face value when she says she wants to come and that she loves the cousin meet-ups (she’s very nostalgic for the meetups of our youth), but at this point, I’ll have to leave the logistics to her.
+1
Stop trying to accommodate her.
This sounds like the same situation as the poster who was upset her cousin didn’t attend the luncheon after grandma’s funeral.
Here’s how this is gonna go:
Planners: “Dear Fam, We’ve worked hard to plan a fun and affordable trip for everybody! Enclosed you’ll find the details for the itinerary. If certain options don’t work for your family, feel free to make substitutions that meet your needs. Excited to see everyone in July!”
The end. There’s no asking cranky cousin if she likes it; she’s received the plan and been told to adjust as needed. If she chooses not to come or not to participate in things, that’s her telling you loudly and clearly that she’s just not that into this trip. You need to do the work to grieve that your daughter will not get to know her cousins like you knew yours. Leave this woman alone.
My mom was 13 years older than her brother (my uncle). Uncle and Aunts kids are 11 years younger than my brother and I. I tried so hard to maintain a relationship with all of them even though my family moved to another state. Last April, I made my final trip to where they are for another relative’s birthday, saw them, and made peace with them just not being that into me.
Some people are just selfish and put their own needs before everything. In the name of “boundaries.” I’d leave Susan out and plan with her sister. Tell her what you’re up to so she can go if she wants but make it clear you’re not getting accommodations for her.
And other people are selfish enough to think that they do or should hold a higher place in their family member’s list of priority people. Not everyone considers family sacrosanct, and that is okay.
Agree that OP and her sister should just plan what they want and stop trying to force Susan to change.
It’s actually not okay.
For me it is. I don’t really care if they feel offended that I’m not interested in being an extra in their story.
I love travel planning and even plan trips for family members that I’m not going on, so I happily do most of the planning for any extended family trips.
Not sure this is really about the lack of initiative in planning. Different budgets can make things complicated. We primarily travel with my parents, who have more money than us, so I don’t have to worry about the budget because as long as it works for us it will be fine for them. Travel with my in-laws is more complicated. Our best trips with my SIL & BIL were cruises or all-inclusive resorts where everyone booked their own cabin or room, and meals were included.
I’ll raise you one. On big family trips with my husband’s family, we propose an activity and say does anyone want to join, to which we get replies – go ahead, let us know how it goes and we might do later in the trip if you like it. This drives me bonkers – we aren’t your in person yelp review and we are inviting you to do it with us.
As far as advice, what works in my friend group is that we organize a few big group activities – some are cheap like a hike, lunch at a pub, or museum and then a couple have a bit more cost, think fancy dinner or sunset cruise – and give a deadline that I need a head count for to buy tickets. I also leave good blocks of time for people to do their own thing. If there are big disparities in income, then I will sometimes foot more of the bill so that everyone can join (e.g., renting the boat with an open invitation to all). DH and I typically stay at hotels, and everyone is on their own to sort out lodging. This formula has worked for the better part of the last decade.
This stuff is so cultural! “Go ahead, let us know how it goes and we might do it later” seems like a fine reply to me.
Same here!
I’ve never done a huge extended family trip (not close with extended family and basically never saw them growing up), but have done a few trips with my parents, brother, and my family. Honestly, I just plan the whole trip myself. My parents don’t really care where we go so long as it works for their limited mobility, so my brother and I will pick the destination. Once the destination and approximate budget is set, I plan everything. I tend to pick easier destinations, both given the parents’ mobility issues and my kids’ ages — so we have done all-inclusive resorts, resort towns, and cruises that make the planning somewhat easier. I ask everything to look to see if there are any activities they would like to do in the destination and make a list of options that my family is interested in (and include anything that I think the others would love). I get my parents and brother’s buy-in on the final list of activities and just book everything. We don’t necessarily do all the activities on my initial list, but are also ok splitting up for a day if people have different interests/activity levels.
This works for us since I enjoy planning trips and everyone is willing to pay their share without complaint. But, in the situation you described where someone shoots down all the ideas, I would not be as willing to take on that work. With regards to skipping planned activities, I would try to just let that go so long as your cousin paid any costs that still existed even if she skipped the activity.
i would do some very initial research to say “broad strokes — this is how much we expect the trip to cost, with $x for lodging, $y for tickets/meals/etc. is everybody ok with this? let me know by friday. and if she says no (or doesn’t respond) then you have your answer.
My general rule is that if I can’t do something without developing resentment towards someone, I should stop doing that thing. So stop planning things because doing so is not creating grace and joy in your heart.
+1
This sounds frustrating, but for me would be something I’d be willing to consider “cost of admission” to the cousin relationship – everyone had a good time in the end, you want her & her kids there, etc. (It’s ok that it’s still frustrating! But pretty much all relationships have some frustrating bits).
So options –
To minimize the back & forth, can you do a “here are 3 options; everyone send your votes (excellence rules) by next Friday & then we’ll make the final booking!”
Very clear “we need to book X by Y date so let us know if you’re coming & send the Venmo by then” rules (it’s not cool to back out of plans that change the finances for other people)
Agree with asking her to take on planning something!
General cost-of-admission relationship advice — what is your cousin really good at? What unique value do you see her bringing to the family? *Why* do you want your baby to grow up knowing her? Say it out loud to yourself right before you send the planning email :)
Help me learn to live suede shoes. To me, they seem so delicate. They can oil spot. And water spot. And you can’t polish them. How can I relax and spend $ on quality shoes is so many of them are suede? The Thom McAn suede numbers of youth were true play shoes and held up but $$$ ladies shoes and loafers seem to get wrecked, sometimes with a scuff in the first wear (and I work in a central business district in a city where sidewalk and paver gaps are always going to be a hazard). Help!
I don’t buy suede shoes. I used to live on the East coast, and one ill-fated salty outing could ruin really gorgeous shoes. Now that I don’t live somewhere like that, I still don’t buy suede shoes because leather is more durable.
I’ve gone over to the dark side and chosen fake suede. It’s the best. I was just thinking about this after a mud puddle incident after which my fake suede shoes look back to new.
Suede dress shoes are indoor-only for me. And even then, I treat them with a waterproofing spray meant for suede, prior to the first wear.
I just wear them when the weather isn’t bad and make sure I take them off if I am cooking. And I generally don’t buy things at a price point that makes them too precious for their purpose (which varies given a person’s finances).
Don’t wear nice shoes to commute. Buy plain flats for that.
Or sneakers. No need to ruin your feet either.
+1 My nice work shoes never see the outdoors.
You need to buy block heels to deal with hazards from walking. The suede (from most designer brands – e.g., Aquazurra, Jimmy Choo, Giovani Rossi, etc.) isn’t any more prone to a scuff than a soft leather pump. I normally do darker suede to avoid any spots, but that’s just a preference, and you can buff them out with a sponge to perk the suede up.
I love suede flats, booties, boots and coats. One of my favorite fall fashion trends.
But they require care, and if you routinely destroy your good shoes, than they are not for you. Of course you don’t wear them in terrible weather or for long walks/commutes unless they are winter tolerant boots/booties from Aquitalia or La Canadienne or the like. And even then, I have a little suede cleaning/protection kit. I either take them to the cobbler at the beginning of the season for weatherproofing, or buy the sprays myself and retreat them all. And I clean them if they get marred. I have a little suede eraser and special suede brush, and use a diluted cleaning solution (water/vinegar) to spot clean (and remove salt ASAP during winter snow).
Pick up your feet a bit more when you walk on city streets, or keep your suede for date nights or keep them in the office for carpets only wear.
I use a suede spray yearly. Mine is from a hiking supply store.
Good stationery was one of my first love languages. Now, my grandmother, mother, and aunts are all gone. I’m not sure who to write to or who writes but I’m sad at it all sitting there. Grocery lists? I sends Xmas cards, but these are general cards or fun little notecards.
Do you have any kids in the family? I would bet they’d all love receiving mail. Alternately, what about looking into an ‘adopt a senior’ program where you can write notes to residents at local senior living communities.
Same. Everyone I used to write to is dead and my generation just doesn’t write. I send postcards to my niece and nephew.
And I’m told they actually write letters/pictures to their friends and put them through the mail slots themselves, which I find heartening.
I always send birthday cards to my kids’ friends.
Or my friends’ kids, rather.
A friend decided to send a handwritten note to someone weekly for a year. It was so fun to receive an unexpected letter in the mail from her at a random time. There are probably people you aren’t thinking of who would appreciate a letter.
I’m young and I send birthday, Christmas and galentines cards to my college friends because getting mail is fun !
Don’t you send thank you notes? I always follow up on a text with a real note and go through boxes of stationery.
I do but no one but my MIL sends me presents now. All other adults have gone no-gifts. Did not think adulting would be this way.
I mean for things like dinner parties, someone treats you to dinner, does something nice for you at work, helps you out. It’s not gifts only.
Man, none of that happens. Need to examine my life choices. But when I’m out with friends we just split the check.
I’d be up for a Corporette pen pal group—I love stationery and have a ton that doesn’t get used!
Oh, I made a similar comment below! Maybe we could set one up? Or is it too weird to give strangers on the internet your home address? I don’t know!
Donate a few minutes of your time a month to one of the many organizations that asks for letter writers. Can you imagine how delighted an elderly resident in a nursing home, who is lonely with no family visiting, would be to receive a hand written letter on beautiful stationary?
https://www.lettersagainstisolation.com/
I send birthday cards! Everyone appreciates them in my experience.
If we were not strangers on the internet, I’d offer to be your old fashioned pen pal, because same! I love sending and receiving old school letters.
Some of my best friends were once strangers on the internet and I am not even kidding. Just got home from attending an internet friend’s daughter’s wedding on the other side of the country.
styling help – how do I make the satin/silk skirt with sweater look work? Is it just a matter of trying on options until it looks right? (I’ve tried a few and felt awkward but not sure if i’m actually off or a training my eye thing)
I have a pink and a deep teal satin slip skirts in my closet already but does this work better with a neutral?
What type of boots/booties would you wear vs. length of skirt?
I think you just do it. I don’t think this ever looks good, but lots of people disagree with me, so just take a deep breath and do it.
Is this the ghost of 1995? I feel like now the youngs do this with a tan cowboy boot and neutral sweater (how they style everything else also).
I wore a long satin slip skirt with a burn out velvet blouse & cami to my 7th grade concert performance in 1994 and felt very chic!
I’m seeing them styled with larger chunky sweaters (often belted) and either pumps or knee high sleek boots.
i saw an influencer pair a floor-length brown satin skirt with a brown sweater and thought it looked fabulous. of course she said it was a work look, which, disagree, but hey. but i’d try the monotone look.
help – how do you nail the sweater with a satin skirt look? What’s the right sweater fit to skirt length/fullness to boot/bootie equation? (I feel like when I’ve tried it’s a little off but love the look on others. Am I doing something wrong or just need to adjust my eye?)
I have pink, deep teal, and sage green slip skirts already if anyone has specific advice on color combos
What is a modern ankle boot shape? For weekend wear. I have large feet for my height so I don’t want anything too chunky and feel like pointy toes are both foot lengthening and uncomfortable.
I’m 49 and I feel like I’m drawn to shapes that are rather pre2020.
I like the sam edleman paige bootie and i have the tory burch chelsea on my wish list. I think an above ankle chelsea still is in style, and have more almond shapes than pointy
I also have large feet for my height. I stay away from pointy toes. Almond toe is good, and I do have a square toe pair I like but they do look a little chunky. Also, a bit of a heel helps shorten the appearance of my long foot, if you can tolerate that. I have booties that are the traditional shorter shaft. And I have some higher shaft ones that have more heel, with a shaft closer fitting to the leg. I like these a lot for skirts, cropped pants or flared pants.
i mean i don’t think the rag & bone harrow cone-type heel from ~2015 is back but the same kind of boots you wore in 2010 are probably acceptable for right now.