ByKat Hours Updated
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Suit of the Week: Our Favorites from 2022

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collage of our favorite suits for women of 2022

Let's face it: 2020 and 2021 were weird years for workwear — particularly for women's suits. In 2022, though, we finally started to get back to elegant, sophisticated, and fun suiting. These are some of my favorites from our regular feature, “Suit of the Week,” which, as we note each week, seeks to find “the slightly different suit that is fashionable, yet professional.” 

If you’re on the hunt for basic suiting, note that we did major updates to our roundups of interview suits for women, including doing roundups for eco-friendly suits for women, interview suits if you're pregnant, and plus size suits. We also pondered whether you should button a double-breasted blazer, and which Ann Taylor suiting line is the best. We also did a major update of our guide to stylish tops under suits!

Of course, don’t forget to check out The Corporette Guide to Basic Women’s Suiting (recently updated!).

Anything marked with an asterisk is still in stock — and please feel free to use this post as an open thread!

(Text links go to the original post; picture links go to the product (if it's still in stock).)

bright purple pants suit

January: Boss

hot pink pants suit with bold shoulders

February: The Attico

Also loved: Banana Republic

light blue pants suit

March: Reiss

navy pants suit with asymmetric details

April: The Fold

hot pink suit

May: Banana Republic* (pants are still available in pink; other colors are available as full suits)

Also loved: Alex Mills*

blue blazer

June: McQueen

Also loved: Alice & Olivia, Mango

green pants suit

July: 1.State

Also loved: Reiss

magenta pantsuit

August: Ann Taylor*

Also loved: Reiss

woman wears black pants suit

September: Alaïa*

Also loved: Boden*, Banana Republic*, Victoria Beckham*

red velvet pants suit with flared pants; collar has sharp notch lapels and one button; there is a bit of a lighter pink detailing on the lapels

October: Reiss

woman wears wide blue trousers and a matching blue wraparound top

November: The Fold*

Also loved: Brooks Brothers*

woman wears gray pinstriped pants suit with a matching pinstriped vest instead of a top; she has a blue scarf wrapped around her neck.

December: Smythe* (pants sold out, alas)

201 Comments

  1. What’s the sizing like on J McLaughlin? Looks like everything might be long but how is it otherwise compared to say J Crew? (they’re having a pretty great sale!)

    1. A bit less vanity sized perhaps in structured pieces, but their knits are pretty forgiving. The size chart looks fairly accurate in general.

    2. I find it to be fairly TTS. If you are between sizes, I would in general size down, but it doesn’t run quite as large as J Crew in my experience.

      1. what vanity sizing? i’m a 4 or 6 at loft or ann taylor or gap or old navy and my work pants from j crew are a 10.

  2. Kat, you MUST publicize the year end sales up at Columbus Circle for those of us who are lucky enough to live in NYC! Even if you don’t live here but just visiting for the New Year’s Day celebration, there are so many discounted items and there’s also Rockefeller Center and the Tree and the Today Show, which I stopped to watch this morning before coming into work. There’s no substitute for NYC, even if there are people around who are missing a few links upstairs. I will go back out for an early lunch today, and visit Bloomies on the East Side, tho the West Side has better stuff to see around this time of year! YAY!

    1. Yay! Mindless consumerism leading to irreversible climate change. The fashion industry is a key culprit in greenhouse gas emissions. For those of you with children, I would ask you to think about what world you are leaving them? We’re already seeing the impacts of climate change now. I would beg each of you to think about whether you truly NEED the things you are consuming, but first and foremost, clothes.

        1. Precisely. This is a shopping blog. You go to where the message is needed. Preaching to the choir isn’t really all that effective. If this gets through to one person who starts shopping primarily used, instead of new, then that’s a victory.

          3. Are you aware that for there to even be used items to shop for there has to first be new items bought by someone else?
            As someone who does buy primarily used I find your thought process hilarious.

  3. Can anyone recommend a good quality k95 or kn94 that comes individually wrapped? I’m sticking them in carryon bags and our cars. (Ventilation on planes only works when you’re in the air, if you’re stuck at gate or on tarmac it’s v. likely you’re breathing other people’s exhaled air.)

    2. We like 3M Aura “respirator 9205+” N95 masks. Available at Home Depot, individually wrapped (flat), fit well.

      2. These are also my preferred masks on flights and fit well enough my glasses don’t fog up.

      3. These are also my favorite. I prefer them over Kn95s, which I’ve never found to fit very well. You can get these on the River store and they’re fairly economical.

      4. They have head straps and not ear loops, right? How do you keep the head straps from pulling your hair? (I’m not OP)

        1. They do pull some, but it doesn’t hurt, it just messes up your hair a bit. I find them more comfortable than the ear loops, which make my ears hurt after a while.

        2. My husband loves them, but I find that they pull on my hair so much that they’re quite painful and can’t wear them. I’ve been sticking with the kind with ear loops. I think this just varies between individuals.

        3. Was literally coming here to recommend the Aura. I wear my hair in a ponytail or bun—not so much because pulling but the seal is better. Ear loop styles won’t give you as good of a seal.

    4. Mask Lab KF94s are individually wrapped and come in lots of fun patterns and colors. I love mine.

      1. Most of mine are from them. However, don’t believe them when they say “ships same day.” It’s a flat out like. My last order took a week and a half to ship (not to be received, to ship.)

    5. I think the point about aircraft ventilation is well known at this point. Private Stock Labs were my faves. Not cheap, but their pet-te size works well for smaller faces, not inching its way up to your eyeballs thanks to curves at the top, and not blocking as much of your field of vision with a huge ‘beak.’

    6. I do the BOTN ones from everyday e mall dot com – individually wrapped and nice adjustment on the ear loops.

    7. They’re not individually wrapped but I like Vida KN95s and we always pack extras in carry-on suitcases, backpacks and cars when traveling. I don’t think the wrapping matters much, the virus isn’t really spread via surfaces.

      1. Why are the choices stay home forever or abandon all Covid precautions? I’m tired of this false dichotomy. Living life with simple precautions like masks is the right choice for many of us. We’re not asking you to do anything.

        1. This right here. My wearing a mask does not harm you in the slightest. So quit it with the theatrical “I can’t understand you.”

          1. As someone with hearing issues, I can assure you it’s not ‘theatrical’ when I say I can’t understand you. I genuinely had no idea I relied on lip-reading so much until mask wearing became a thing.
            I don’t care whether you wear one or not, like you said it doesn’t harm me in the slightest, just realize that there are people out there that really do have trouble understanding speech through a mask.

  4. So my husband recently revealed that he’s been nursing resentment at a sibling. The backstory is that his stepbrother had asked to get the kids together. Husband had bought tickets to the museum of natural history for stepbrother and his kids as well as himself and our kid and planned a whole day. (We’re all within driving distance but in opposite directions.) Stepbrother cancelled last minute because earlier that week they had gotten a dog and they couldn’t leave the dog alone. Stepbrother said apparently it was like a limited opportunity to adopted some kind of breeder’s dog for cheap. Like a paying customer rejected this dog or something and now the breeder had to take a bath on it. My husband thinks it’s a terrible excuse to break plans and he shouldn’t have gotten the dog. I get that they were saving money on something expensive but the thing is, they keep very messy home and already had two dogs. Why do people like this “need” another dog? Also why did they have to have a designer dog when the other two were adopted and no one had allergies or anything? Was stepbrother just being a jerk and blowing him off or is this a real opportunity that was important to take advantage of? We’re obviously not dog people so I’m curious about this. Clearly if they were expecting the dog they should have not made plans but how rare and important is it to have an additional expensive dog when you already have two dogs from the pound?

    1. Many dog people, me included, adopt their dogs and are inherently distrustful of breeders. So there’s that. But I do think it’s weird that you’re judging them for wanting a third dog just because they have a messy house. And I think your husband is overreacting about the canceled plans. Stepbrother should have offered to reimburse for the tickets, but stuff comes up and a date to go to a museum is not like a wedding or something where you shouldn’t cancel last minute except in an emergency.

      1. I was with you til that last part. You don’t cancel on someone at the last minute without a good reason. “Something better came up” is not a good reason.

        1. I mean, I think most people view a playdate at a museum differently than a wedding. I don’t think you bail just because you get a better social invitation, but this dog thing sounds fairly important to that family and I don’t think it’s terrible that they canceled. I do think they should offer to reimburse OP’s husband, as I said.

    2. oh my husband would be really mad too. I get why he’s really frustrated. One time my husband made plans to take our nephew to do something that he really wanted to do, and then my BIL took nephew with him to pick up a turkey (it was around Thanksgiving) and wasn’t back for several hours after the time DH was supposed to take nephew.

      I do think that everything after this sentence “My husband thinks it’s a terrible excuse to break plans” is a spiral and not particularly helpful questions. I get why you’re asking them – DH and I would too in discussions between ourselves – but the answers to those questions are not going to be satisfying and going to be different for different people. I’m a dog owner and would have figured out a way to keep the plans; even when we had a puppy we figured out life. Some people are just really terrible at managing plans and prioritizing – or they prioritize differently than we do and that’s really frustrating too.

      1. +1 to the entire second paragraph. This is about how SB handled breaking the plans, which led to the resentment. You and your DH judging SB and his family is perhaps something that gives you great satisfaction but not really the point.

    3. Just because it’s not important to you doesn’t mean it’s not important. To them, the dog is more important than a day at the museum with you. It’s a 10-15 year commitment to a living creature vs. a couple of hours at a museum. The trip can be rescheduled; it sounds like buying this dog can’t. You sound really really judgmental and snobby.

      1. IDK — if the dog is at the breeder, the breeder is usually able to keep the dog another day or two (or will for $). I don’t get why this had to be a conflict. When we adopted our “hot” breed dog (actually a mutt, so this accidental litter that got dumped at the shelter and advertised as “hot mixes”), it was near Labor Day and the foster was great at letting us take our planned vacay and get the dog after. Or the brother could have offered to pay for the unused or just made clear that the plans could get canceled and maybe to reschedule.

        #priorities
        #useyourwords

      3. This. Obviously a new dog takes priority and you can’t always control when you get one. I also refuse to judge breeder versus rescue. There are many ways animals come into our lives. OPs husband might be a happier, less resentful person if he had a dog.

    4. Obviously they do not “need” a third dog, much less a “designer dog”. Having said that, if they wanted this breed of dog and were on the breeder’s list, this was probably a golden opportunity to get this specific breed of dog and saved them thousands of dollars.

      It sounds like you are conflating two separate issues.

      (1) Your distaste for the decision to get a third dog given their two existing dogs and messy house, and particularly your dislike of whatever breed is in question (or of purebred dogs in general). I cannot comment on that without knowing more, and particularly the age and health status of their two existing dogs and whether they wanted a dog for something specific (running, playing with children, etc.) that their current dogs cannot do.

      (2) Cancelling plans at the last minute. I will say that step-brother should definitely offer to pay for the tickets. But given that you live close together, the event was driving distance (rather than your husband taking time off work and flying), and that step-brother was (at noted above) probably saving a lot of money, cancelling what was essentially a play date does not seem unreasonable to me and I am not a person who cancels plans lightly.

      Ask yourself (and your husband) this: If step-brother had been in the market for a specific car and had the opportunity to get one really cheap but he had to pick it up NOW, would he have been as upset? He is obviously disappointed and that is understandable but his reaction seems a bit disproportionate to me given the information provided.

      1. The brother has just saved a ton of $, so he should have some $ to pay for the unused tickets no? And maybe pizza at a concilliatory “come meet our new puppy” dinner?

    5. Is husband more mad about the lost cost of the tickets or the lost opportunity to get together? Because he’s perfectly within reason to demand the money back for the tickets.

      I sadly have a sister somewhat like this and we just don’t get along. Every second or third thing she says is a lie or an excuse and I got tired of trying to translate.

    6. I’m not a dog person and really don’t have any comments about the dog, but I do suspect that the dog has nothing to do with the cancellation.
      I am someone who takes commitments with people very seriously, and having been in situations similar to this, know how disappointed your dh and your kiddo must be. The kiddo was probably excited to see the cousins, and to go to the museum, and now those are off the table.
      I don’t blame your dh for being annoyed at his sibling. I hit a time where I basically stopped making plans with people who treated plans carelessly. If we saw them, we saw them, if we didn’t, we didn’t, I was just tired of getting my hopes up and my kids’ hopes up and it wasn’t worth trying hard to figure things out.

      1. So actually a new dog does require a lot of care when it first comes home. It’s not a careless cancellation.

    7. Whether they should have gotten the dog or not is irrelevant to this situation. Stepbrother didn’t get the dog *at* you. I will say that even if they have dogs, if they’ve never had a puppy before (and most rescues are juveniles or adults, not puppies) they may not have realized how much hands-on attention a puppy takes for the first few weeks (like, has to go potty every 30 minutes to an hour while awake, for example). It is also the case that if you are on the waiting list for a dog from a breeder, it can be the case that you get a short-notice call that a puppy is available – we had been on multiple waiting lists for a specific, rare type of dog that is used for hunting (we bird hunt) for over a year, and a breeder called us and said another client had dropped out but that if we wanted the dog we had to come that weekend (in 3 days) to get it or she would offer it to the next person on the list until she found someone who could meet her timing.

      All that being said, if stepbrother had to break plans the correct thing to do was to do so as soon as he realized it wouldn’t be possible (not last minute), to apologize profusely, and to offer to pay for the tickets.

    8. The discussion of the dog is a red herring. Step brother canceled preexisting plans that DH paid for in favor of a non-emergency shiny exciting other thing. It could’ve been anything – and if your husband is this miffed then this probably isn’t the first time. If I were DH I would ask/demand that brother pay for his tickets, it’s not fair for DH to eat the cost.

      1. Yeah, this sounds like it could be another event in a long line of actions that say, “your money and your plans aren’t priorities for me.”

        My MIL doesn’t do that particular kind of thing, but she did something enraging over Christmas that’s completely on-brand for her particular level of narcissism (basically, if she’s enjoying herself, it doesn’t matter what anyone else wants or needs).

        1. Right. Husband was annoyed that he had called and given this whole speech how important it was to get the kids together, and then bailed for a reason that seemed totally unnecessary and a little unhinged. I will admit I’m pretty judgmental of them. It seems like they’re not managing their lives well and an extra dog just seems like more unnecessary chaos and also a very weird status symbol. My husband can more than afford to eat the tickets but money is such a sore spot with them. (Stepbrother has a trust fund that he’s always bragging about but he’s mostly unemployed and I suspect he probably needs money.)

          1. Sounds like you don’t like them and I’m not sure they like you much, either.

          2. We get it. You don’t like dogs. You don’t like the stepbrother. You don’t like how stepbrother and his family live or how they make decisions or prioritize things. You definitely don’t like that they live with and prioritize dogs, because you don’t like dogs.

          3. Wow, so this has nothing to do with the dog at all. You don’t like the SB or how they live their lives, which is their own business and you don’t have to like it.

            Yea it’s annoying they canceled last minute but it sounds like your husband needs to accept the SB he has and act accordingly or drop interacting at any meaningful level. SB isn’t changing so y’all need to accept that and move on.

          4. That sounds like my in-laws – always talking about how they are incredibly, unbelievably rich, but just try to get them to pony up for a tip at a restaurant.

    9. You’re not curious about it, you’re judgmental about it. Which is fine, but don’t try to disguise it, it doesn’t work.

    10. My sister has a veritable menagerie of animals – current count is four dogs, three cats (plus the neighborhood’s feral ones that she tries to TNR), a tank of fish, and about six chickens. No kids. If she decided to get a brand new dog and couldn’t leave it alone, she might have cancelled last minute. BUT she would have apologized profusely, sent me the money to reimburse me for all of the tickets, and planned another outing. Life happens, but getting together as a family is important to her and she wouldn’t cancel lightly.

      I’d be irritated if I was in your husband’s shoes, but you can’t force people to interact with their families. My aunt and uncle were never interested in fostering a relationship between my cousins, my sister, and me. Some of it was over religion, some of it was over slightly different parenting styles, but it was their choice. None of us are close, but I hold out hope that we might interact more at some point in the future.

    11. Annoyed? Yes. In a stewing spiral of resentment? A bit much. Is there a past issue in your husband’s relationship with his stepbrother that forms the foundation for what seems to be a disproportionate reaction? Or does your husband perhaps have control and/or anger issues? All in all, had it been me on the receiving end, I would be ticked off and would keep it in mind when considering future arrangements, but soaking in anger over it really seems a bit much.

      1. But he’s allowed to have feelings about how he and kid are NOT important to them.

    13. Key information I feel like we’re missing here: how far in advance is “last minute”? Morning of? A few days before, but after husband had bought the tickets? Annoyance is far more reasonable in the former case than the latter.

  5. Okay, I’m looking for a dupe of the ‘Club Monaco Slim Belted Coat’ in Camel.

    I just… I really want a belted long camel coat.

        1. It’s showing as on sale for $299 plus an extra 40% off right now for me, if that’s more in your price range!

        2. Get the coat you want. I have too much experience with trying to buy a cheaper alternative and then never being quite happy with it. It sounds like its a great deal right now anyway.

          1. Okay, I love you all. I actually saw this on StitchFix at $479… No way could I justify that.

            I just pulled the trigger on it for $179 though! I am THRILLED. Thank you so much all!

          3. Another reason why poshmark and stitch fix aren’t great resources all the time. I’ve seen tons of things there marked more than stores with the items in stock (and with return options).

  6. The number of people who suddenly decided they need things last minute this week is really pissing me off. I want to send them all a “your poor planning is not my emergency” response, but alas, I cannot. Just needed to vent while I’m stuck working, that is all.

    1. It was like that last week too. Even all day Christmas Eve, even though it was a Saturday. I have plans this Friday night and I’m expecting to field calls during. When I was more junior, I would’ve had to cancel. At my level, I’m not canceling but I may or may not be interrupted so much that I might as well have not come. I’m not sure which is worse tbh. It would probably be a lot better if I could let go of the anxiety that I might have to work and just roll with it.

    2. I’m on vacation and getting sucked into these emergencies, too. I’m sorry you “forgot” to order a critical thing with a 6+ month lead time and you need it this week…. Sigh — venting here right with you while trying to be helpful over email & text…..

      1. This why I am hesitant to drink sometimes and yet I should always have my first reply be something alarming like “I’ve been drinking on the beach for a while and probably shouldn’t drive but can try to help . . . .” where the person decides that the help available is not likely to be helpful and may be a liablity.

        1. The only person it’s a liability for is you. I just don’t respond to work calls and emails when I’ve been drinking, regardless of whether I’m on vacation or it’s late on a Saturday night.

      2. Do you have to reply to email? I just say I’m going somewhere with spotty email service and don’t respond to emails like this.

        1. Unfortunately, that is the job. This is a very busy time for my department and monitoring email/text is just part of it. That said, I do take computer-free vacations other times of the year!

  7. Help me with a geometry problem pls:

    One couch I just got from my uncle is a Chesterfield, so the arms are as high as the back. It needs higher side tables, like as high as the arms?

    My other couch has lower arms. Those side tables should be lower than the ones with the Chesterfield?

    My whole apartment is mostly stuff I have thrifted, gotten at Ikea or auctions, or was given, so I am OK to spend some $ to finally have these pieces in a setting where they look more intentional vs random (plus, with a second couch, I need to shop anyway, but will start with trying to rearrange existing items). Was easier when I could just add another milk crate to the stack :)

    1. I have a couch with arms as high as the back. I opted for a long console table behind the couch, level with the back, instead of side tables.

    2. The tables can be the same height or slightly lower than the arms (you just don’t want them higher) but what I really like with a high armed couch is a “little table” or two – just big enough for your iced tea and a book. Not meant to put a lamp on. You put it in front of your lovely couch as you are lounging there to keep everything within reach.

      My couch is a 30+ year old custom made (for someone else) Chippendale style so I feel you!

      1. I was just googling to provide a link but it turns out the term for little table is “accent table”

        1. C table, accent table, little table. Very handy

          The real story is when my first husband left me and took everything but the couch (because I love that couch and claimed it) I went to Ethan Allen. An older divorced lady was my “designer” and she just guided me through the process of furnishing my now empty home, and gave me a great sympathy discount on most of it. She said “let’s get you a couple of little tables. They’re so handy”. And she was right. I still have both of my little tables 20+ years, a new husband, and two young adult kids later. Thank you, June!

  8. My lovely partner pointed out that I am hot and cold in patterns. Like, a couple days before my flo app says I’m ovulating, I am cold and distant. He’s right – I hadn’t figured the pattern thing out but I do think about how nice it would be to live alone every couple months. And miss single life. But then I absolutely love being with him a few days later, can’t imagine life any other way. Anyway, I’m thinking about tracking my moods better in 2023. I don’t really want to track them in flo. I’d probably prefer a hard copy calendar so my data is more private. Any recommendations?

    2. I use my google calendar to track things but use a code. Then I can quickly search for the code to find the dates on which some event occurred. That might work for you.

    3. Any time a guy I’m dating has blamed my period for my “moods” it’s been because he’s being a jerk. By all means track if you think it’s helpful to you. But I’d really question the correlation to your cycle. It’s ok to want your own space sometimes, and a loving partner should support that, not blame your period.

      1. I agree with this point of view in principle. At the same time I know that I, like OP, have very distinct hormone related mood variations throughout my cycle, and somebody living with me will definitely pick up on these.

        I feel terrible at ovulation, with a mood low at the middle of the luteal phase. It picks up the last day of cycle, and then I feel great for two weeks.

      2. Nah. My husband learned exactly when my period was coming. He was never a jerk about it – he actually recognized that I was short-tempered and would walk away because he knew it wasn’t about hin. Good for you, Anon at 4:32 if your menstral cycle does not impact your mood but many of us have that experience.

  9. Ok I’m updating my jeans in the new year and am wondering what length you all wear in straight leg jeans. I got some long length because I’m tall, but in order for them to not bunch around my ankles I need to wear a slight heel, and then they still look a bit bunchy – maybe my eye just needs to get used to it?

    Or should I try a pair in regular length that would hit right at my ankle bone?

    I tried cuffing them but I guess because I have wide thighs, the light cuff seems stumpifyung, even though I have relatively long legs.

      1. I guess I wasn’t clear. I’m wearing the proper length, which is close to the ground in the back of the foot technically, but then I get quite a bit of “break” (which looks like bunching to me) in the front. My question is what length people are actually wearing relative to their foot or ankle.

        1. I know exactly what you mean! Personally, I think that the “break” length only works if there is a slight flare such that there is a straight line or flare out from the knee. My “straight” jeans still cling a bit to my calves so I get that bunched up look at the ankle even when they are hemmed. I hem my straight leg jeans to ankle length.

          1. Thanks. I might try that with one pair to see if I like them better that way. I think I’m just so used to skinnies and ankle pants that straight legs at the proper pant length are looking sloppy to me – but it could just be my eye adjusting. I HAAATED skinny pants at first!

          1. I give up. I swear.

            ” My question is what length people are actually wearing relative to their foot or ankle.”

          2. You’re welcome! I just thought of one more place. @charlygoss on instagram has a highlight titled “shoes with pants” where she shoes a bunch of different pants styles mixed with different styles of shoes.

    2. I think I understand what you are asking. I do not like bunching or having a break in my jeans (or any pants actually). I prefer to wear regular length straight leg jeans that cover my ankle and end right at the top of my foot unless I am wearing sandals with ankle straps (or shoes that have an interesting detail towards the top of the shoe). For that type of sandal or shoe, I wear ankle length straight leg jeans. Therefore, my solution has been to order straight leg jeans in ankle and regular lengths.

      So, to answer your question, I would order the regular length, try them with the various types of shoes you plan to wear, and see what you think. I personally would prefer shorter jeans than ones that results in bunching.

  10. I need to do The Thing (renew my passport). I can’t until my DH does The Thing (get passport photos printed). He can’t/won’t do that until he gets his hair cut so he looks like himself in his photo.

    I have enough issues with Doing The Thing without having to wait on him!

    1. Why do you need to wait for him? Get yours renewed and he can get his renewed in his own time.

      1. +1
        Also, interesting you are printing out your own photos. EU is biometric – the Thing is easier because the only effort it takes is to get yourself to the gov office issuing passports.

        1. In the US, there are many post offices that will take your photo so you can do it all in one visit.

      3. He has the paid-for app that takes pictures that the passport office can use. Mine is taken. If we send them for printing separately, it will double the price.

        He went to get a haircut this afternoon. Next is to stand him in front of the blank wall in my office to get the picture taken.

        I told him that I was getting concerned, because I need to submit my application by mail, while he can submit his electronically. He promised that we will get mine in the mail before the end of the day tomorrow.

        1. It’s an extra $10 or something like that for printing. At the local post office you can get combined photos and printing for $16 total. You’re making this sound like a huge added expense when it’s really not a big cost. I also don’t understand why the passports have to be submitted at the same time. If one needs to go in the mail it should absolutely go first.

    2. There are free apps that take passport pictures just fine. I’ve used Passport Booth for me, my kids, etc. Take the picture at home and print at Walgreens for $0.50. The app includes instructions on how to get the pictures the right size/shape.

  11. Our house has been rental property for 30 years. We’ve lived here a year and a half. Every week for the last year and a half, we’ve received 3-4 pieces of *first class* mail for people who don’t live here – bills, letters, corporate Christmas gifts. It doesn’t end.

    I put every piece of mail back in the mailbox with the flag up and write on it “RTS – not at this address.” I guess I keep expecting the mail carrier to someday realize, “Oh, this is addressed to X and it says ‘return to sender.’ X must not live here anymore,” and divert it. Short of sticking an angry post-it inside the box flap that “YO, OUR NAME IS SMITH, STOP GIVING US NON-SMITH CRAP EVERY DANG DAY,” is there anything I can do? I feel like USPS should be paying me for serving as some sort of redirection hub.

    We’re in the suburbs of a major east coast city; if I were in a small town, I’d just go talk to the local post office.

    1. Um, the PO’s job is to deliver the mail as addressed. They aren’t in the wrong here. And you can’t legally file a change of address on someone who isn’t you.

      1. Interesting since our post office box is required to have our last names written inside and mail will not be delivered to us unless both the name and address match. When I moved in with my husband my mail was not delivered for several weeks before the post office worker left a note asking if there was a new inhabitant and if so to please add to the mailbox. We rent in an east Coast city.

        1. IDK that it is required to have a name written on it. My kids get mail at my house and my last name is different than everyone else’s. I swear it’s not that hard — mail comes to the address.

        2. I’ve lived in a city and in the suburbs, with a mailbox I had to go unlock, one at the end of my driveway, a mail slot, etc., and I have never once had to put my name anywhere so this is not an across the board requirement. I’ve lived in five east coast states.

          1. My husbands name is still on the mailbox outside an apartment he lived in over a decade ago (there’s a restaurant we like near there and it’s a tradition to go see if his name is still there every time we eat there). I’m assuming this hasn’t prevented any of the subsequent tenants from getting mail or his name would have been replaced years ago

    2. You can just toss it. I only “return to sender” bills and things that look important. My house hasn’t been a rental ever and I still get mail for two prior owners even though I’ve lived there for 15 years.

      1. We’ve had our house for @ 15 years and we still get mail for the previous tenants. I just toss it all at this point.

    3. I think the mail carrier will keep delivering unless there’s an active change of address, which only lasts for a year; you’re asking way too much for them to magically know that people don’t live there anymore. If it bothers you that much, go to the websites of the people sending mail and unsubscribe the previous residents. I do that for especially persistent mailers and it works just fine. Otherwise, I just toss it (in our case, the previous resident is dead, so there’s definitely no need to try to forward it).

    4. The first year I looked up the previous people in the phone book (only 10 years ago! It worked!) and just dropped the mail off at their new house. It hardly happened at all after that. Bit of a wake-up call for them.

    5. commiseration! We’ve been in our rental for over 4 years. It’s annoying.

    6. If it wasn’t important enough for previous renter to notify the sender/authorities of their new address, it is not worth your time and effort to correct. I would leave a note for the postman saying that you are now house owners and only people by name of XYZ live here, so no need to deliver post for anyone else. The post may still be legally required to deliver to your address, but at least you give them the option. Whatever they deliver, I would toss. Again – if it wasn’t important for the renter……

    7. You’ve taken this on as your problem when it’s not. As others have said, toss it. I have always gotten mail for non-residents at every house I have lived in and owned. Stop wasting your energy on this non-problem.

    8. I get someone’s 401k statements! I’ve lived in the house for 20 years. I’ve tried contacting the guy via finding his name on LinkedIn but he doesn’t respond. So now I just shred.

    10. I would just toss it. This happens to me all the time. I think it happens at most homes. I just toss it unless there is something exceptional.
      In one instance, I received a large Christmas gift addressed to a stranger at my home. I located the intended recipient using social media and they came and got the package. It was not a former resident, just a massive error by the sender. I have had flowers improperly delivered twice and notified the florist each time. In another instance, I thought the mail looked important, so I tried to locate the addressee via online search. The name popped up in articles about her arrest in a massive drug bust. Having already had the experience (multiple times) of police arriving at my door late at night in an effort to locate a fugitive, when they intended to go to the house next door, I contacted the sender to try to disassociate my address from the intended recipient.
      But other than that, I don’t see any reason to do more than throw the mail away.

      1. wow that’s a really interesting set of issues, truly.

        you did a good job of trying to reach people and do the right thing

      2. I had something similar with a Christmas gift at one point! A liquor retailer I had used previously delivered three bottles of wine to me, with a card saying how much my boyfriend missed me and wished we could be together. Only I was/am married, and I didn’t recognize the name. When I called the store, we determined that the shipment was meant for someone in another state. They apologized and asked me to return the package, while they tracked down the customer who purchased it to begin with.

      3. This month there were so many packages delivered to my apartment building that were actually addressed to other buildings in the neighborhood that my son and I decided to play Santa one day and walked around delivering them all. It was fun and made it a little easier to find our boxes in the pile in the mailroom.

    11. Not really relevant to your point, but when I split up with my ex-H several years ago and bought a house .4 miles away from where he stayed in our old house (not as weird as it sounds, it’s a small town and we’re amicable), almost immediately the letter carrier started delivering mail addressed to me at the old place to my new house. I was surprised how many acquaintances heard we were divorcing, and how fast everyone knew, but I didn’t think the postal service was also paying attention …

    12. It’s bizarre to me that you are annoyed at the mail carrier rather than the previous tenants.

      2. Right! Like the mail carrier is supposed to stop at each of the hundreds of houses he delivers to and rifle through the mail to check all the names to make sure the lady of the house won’t be irritated?

        Just put it all in the trash before you even set the rest of the mail on the table.

    13. You never know what you’ll get. I got a misdelivered package that contained two pairs of $900 Balenciaga sneakers, one of which fit.

  12. PSA: If you are offered a hybrid position that requires you to be physically present in the office three days a week and ask if it can be remote and are told “no”, please either do not take the job or come in as required.

    And if this is you and you took the job, turn over a new leaf the first week of January. Because our boss is pissed and you are going to get fired once the holidays are over unless he sees your smiling face Tuesday morning. (And I cannot even warn you because you are not here and that is not something I am putting in an email or Teams message.)

    1. Co-sign. I refuse to be your office mom. If you aren’t taking directions, I’m not going to go (again!) and spell it out for you. I can’t care about your job more than you do.

    2. Oh boy! I am not a fan of FaceTime but I truly do not understand the number of people taking this type of approach to in person requirements for hybrid working arrangements.

      Sister PSA to your PSA: if you are a very junior person and/or new person and you see senior people not following office rules (whether return to office or otherwise), do not assume that just because they can get away with not following the rules you can. You are allowed to be frustrated by this fact but the fact that senior susy who is very well liked and a leading expert doesn’t come in three days a week isn’t going to save your job.

      1. Also, very junior person may be assuming that senior suzy is WFH when, in reality, senior suzy regularly has very important meetings with very important people off site.

  13. I love clothes and style. I have a massive wardrobe so less interested in buying more but I would like ways to remind me to wear some of my clothes and combine them into other outfits.

    is there either software to help catalog my stuff or ways you’ve found to do this? I’m only in office 2x a week but would love your ideas. (as a caregiver I just often pull on all black)

    1. I think if you need software to remind yourself to wear your clothes, you probably have too many clothes.

      1. I had NO snark today so thanks judgy internet stranger who has no insight into my life!

        good job being a crabby downer!

      2. This is an unkind response but there’s a nugget of wisdom here. A ton of people only wear a fraction of their wardrobe and it’s largely because they can’t see what clothes they have.

        I’d suggest doing a closet edit and getting rid of items you no longer like or that no longer fit. Streamlining my closet to eliminate those items that just took up space but I never wore helped me go from regularly wearing like 40% of my wardrobe to wearing nearly everything regularly.

        I also like the hanger trick. Turn all your hangers backwards January 1 and turn them back around after you’ve worn them. Then get rid of anything you haven’t worn in a year or in a particular season

        1. all common advice.

          I didn’t say I wanted to reduce. I want to is what I have better. I’ve done all the tricks and have given away or sold items I don’t like.

          1. I’m posting very late, but maybe you’ll check back. Have you considered a couple hours with a personal stylist? I did that once a number of years ago when I was the winning bidder for the stylist’s services at a dinner auction. I found it a lot of fun and very helpful. She created a lot of combinations I hadn’t thought of. She didn’t try to sell me anything though she recommended stuff to fill gaps.(You probably don’t have gaps)

          1. Are you really enjoying them if you have so many you can’t remember all of them?

    2. I have lately been reading the Vivienne Files because I’m trying to wear more color. I have my clothes hung by color and use her ideas for outfit combinations. Her style runs preppy/classic and I’m a little more femme (“elegant” is my aspirational word”) but I look to her for color combination and remixing ideas.

      And I keep a spreadsheet of what I wore together and how I feel about it. There is probably an app for this, but Excel is my native language.

      This has really helped me “shop my closet” and not just look to shopping to fill a hole that isn’t really there.

      2. I have a spreadsheet too – all my clothes registered and categorised (type, season, colour, material, formality). and all my wears since 2016 (probably about 10% error margin).
        I love my clothes, all of the 600+ lines in the spreadsheet, and I often spend quality time with my spreadsheet planning out outfits for the coming month/quarter/season, This means that I generally remember to wear everything (apart from very specific items like gala dresses ad very casual clothes) in a year. And I can look back and see what combinations I wore when to get inspiration.

        1. op here, I’m so impressed by this! I love that you can track back so long too, what a cool diary of fashion!

      1. thanks!! this is what I was looking for as for various reasons, my clothes are not all in one place.

    4. I had a clothes app that let me take pictures of items, put them together and and tag when I wore them. I really had fun taking pictures and scrolling, but I lost momentum very quickly.

      In your situation, I think I’d to a twist on capsule/uniform idea, but more like a themed version. Things like Forgotten Treasure Monday, Blue Tuesday, Accessory Wednesday, Pattern Thursday, Opera Friday etc., themes to match different styles you like. So on Sunday, pull out some rarely in rotation items to your themes, and then have a couple of more workhorse days where you just change your earrings.

      1. Oh yeah I do that a bit – trying to use different colours over the week (each week I wear brown, black, green, grey one day, and then a mix day where I wear all the other colour clothes).
        I also vary pants, dresses and skirts so that I generally wear any type of bottom max twice a week – except for shoulder seasons where the weather might be dictating otherwise.

    7. This is dumb but the “reverse hanger” trick worked for me. It did not work to turn things backward AS I wore them – what I did was turned my entire wardrobe backward, then hung things back the “right” way after I wore them which was much easier. It was super-helpful, and I’m going to do it again for the new year!

      1. To be clear, this isn’t a method for getting rid of clothes – this is just to make sure I reach for things I haven’t worn yet, rather than the same things over and over.

  14. Do any ‘rettes have experience with MOTF? the clothes look nice (I get The Fold vibes) but the low price point suggests low quality.

    1. Check Reddit – I think there’s a whole thread on whether these places are scams.

    2. Trust your gut. There’s not a magical place out there selling high quality clothes for less than they cost to produce.

  15. have you converted photos, slide and or video using a scanning service? did you love it or not recommend?

    1. My husband had a local service do this with old home movies and it has been great.

      1. I’m in nnj. if you are nearby, kindly recommend? if you’re from another state, how did you find them out just used Google reviews? what was the cost?

        1. I’m in CA, and he wanted to have a place do it where he could take them into a shop rather than mailing them. He relied on google and reviews. Good luck!

          1. PS I don’t remember the exact cost, seems like it was in the low hundreds, but we had lots. Totally worth it, IMO.

  16. What is up with the mood here today? I hope those of you who are coming across as extra cranky or impatient can take a moment for a few breaths and do something for self-care tonight. Genuinely.

    3. Is the observation that someone is or is not doing an action “at” you a thing? I have never heard it before, and I’ve read it a couple times here recently.

      1. I think it’s online vernacular. I agree it wasn’t something said 10 or 15 years ago, but I’ve seen it in other online forums. Not sure where it originated…twitter? reddit? But I’m pretty sure it’s an internet thing, not a corporette thing.

      3. No, that’s a very common phrase. I think I first saw it used on Captain Award, years back.

  17. I am now officially 100% remote and looking for two items for my home office:

    Item 1: white, rolling, two file drawers filing cabinet (not higher than 28 inches with wheels, and I would like to swap out the black plastic casters for polyurethane wheels that won’t scratch wood floors). Extra credit if cabinet has no drawer pulls and/or if cabinet is wood/laminate instead of metal. (I will post link to wheels in reply.)

    Item 2: clear acrylic/lucite riser for laptop that is 8 (eight inches) tall.

    I have searched Amazon, Container Store, Wayfair, Overstock, Ikea, Staples, Office Depot, Home Depot, Lowes, CB2, Crate and Barrel, West Elm, Pottery Barn (regular and kids). Any other suggestions? TIA.

    2. We see filing cabinets on Buy Nothing and Facebook Marketplace with some regularity — maybe check used?

  18. Could use advice.

    I own a Birkin 30. It’s very basic, nothing exotic, but I love it and I will probably never own another. It became too expensive to insure for regular use travelling so I now just keep it in my house. A friend is aware I have the bag and she keeps asking to borrow it for an international trip. I’ve told her no multiple times and she’s been persistent. I wouldn’t even want to loan it to be honest if she gave me cash for the value of the bag as a deposit, I’m very unlikely to have an opportunity to buy another one. I view the bag as basically impossible for me to replace. I’ve told her I consider the issue completely closed and she won’t talk to me. Thoughts?

    1. That’s a lot of nerve on her part. I don’t think you’ve done anything wrong at all, but I don’t see any real “fix” for the issue. Her reaction is outside your control. I think you’ve got to just keep on keeping on and hope she comes to her senses.

    2. Wow. That’s incredibly entitled of your friend. You’re doing the right thing. Honestly, if she won’t talk to you over this…I don’t think she is a friend.

  19. Inspired by the jean length question above, help me decide the length for hemming new suit pants. They have a bit of a taper, and hemming them full length will create a break in the front when worn with flats and low heels. I like the look of no break and am thinking of hemming to the ankle bone. Is this length trendy and therefore at risk of looking dated in the future? This is a classic pant suit in a nice fabric that I plan to wear for many years.

    2. if you’re checking back on this

      a post on a fashion blog, about fashion question….

      I think lower than ankle bone and a slight break but if you like no break, lower than able and without. you can get hemming magnets if you want to raise them up sometimes!

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