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Updated: Apr 30, 2023 182 Comments · by

Splurge Monday’s Workwear Report: Two-Tone Cotton-Blend Tweed Jacket

The Personal Shopper (TPS) |

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A woman wearing a black-and-white tweed jacket, coordinating black tweed shorts, black sheer stockings, and white heels. She is carrying a white bag with fabric with a Gucci logo print.

Our daily workwear reports suggest one piece of work-appropriate attire in a range of prices.

If a Gucci jacket is in your budget, please do me a favor and make it this one. The contrasting stripes, the gold buttons, and classic silhouette are making my heart sing. I can’t in good conscience recommend pairing it with formal shorts for the office, but if that’s the path you’re choosing, there is a matching pair.

The jacket is $3,500 at NET-A-PORTER and comes in Italian sizes 36–50.

Sales of note for 9.30.24

About Elizabeth

Elizabeth is a 30-something lawyer living on the East Coast. She spent seven years as a Biglaw associate in NYC, three years as a partner at a medium-sized firm, and is now in-house counsel for a large company. She loves Diet Coke, '90s sitcoms, and dresses with pockets.

Comments

  1. Anon

    Y’all, I have seen the women’s shorts suit in the wild. And not in Bermuda. I think the woman was wearing ankle-length hose, which would reduce blisters but would be hard to pull off in my non-trendy zip code as a look.

    • Anon

      I remember seeing a VP wearing a romper in 1990. It definitely gave off a summer dress vibe, but one of my coworkers discreetly pointed out to me that it was “shorts”. And we were in an ostensibly business formal environment.

    • Anon

      This one feels very Hillary from Fresh Prince of Bel Air to me. As long as they aren’t worn as a suit or in a professional context (and instead worn for lunch and shopping, that kind of thing), they don’t bother me.

      • Anon

        Agreed. It is a fashion look versus a work look. But I don’t think I will move back to dry-clean clothes I also have to iron for daytime weekend outfits.

          • Anon

            Or like move back to that, which was a workwear thing, especially for weekend looks. TBH, weekend looks seem to show up man my office (sundresses, crop tops (navel-showing and not just non-long blouses). Can’t categorize nothing in 2023.

          • Anne-on

            I still do from time to time. I try very hard to wear washable dresses but it can be hard to avoid if you’re attending a baby shower/big religious event (first communion/confirmation/bat mitzvah)/graduation party/bridal shower/milestone birthday party at a nice restaurant/mother’s day or otherwise fancy brunch/etc.
            This May/June alone I have 2 weddings, a baby shower for a long awaited first baby, high school and a college graduation, a bar mitzvah, and a 50th birthday boozy brunch at a vineyard where the theme is ‘derby day’ (hats and cocktail dresses). My weekends in May and June are nuts.

          • Anon

            I’m an Old and lots of my weekend clothing in the 90s was wool. Dry clean only! My dry cleaner knew me by name.

    • Anonymous

      I really like the pink linen Staud shorts suit Megan Markle wore to the Lakers game last week. Would not wear to work though.

    • pugsnbourbon

      I kind of love it. Or maybe I just love the idea of having a job where a shorts suit would fly.

        • Anon

          I wore hose or tights and “walking shorts”, probably pleated, in the 1980s. With loafers if with hose/tights or ballerinas if it was warm enough for bare legs.

        • Anon

          I am completely done with pantyhose, forever and ever. Either I’ll wear black tights or I’ll wear pants or I’ll go bare-legged; those are the only choices as far as I’m concerned.

    • Anonymous

      This is really taking me back to my high school and early college days I ran the student government and rushed sororities in a variety of fancy shirts and stockings outfits.

    • Anon

      In the early 00s my group’s admin wore a pair of wide-leg, below-the-knee gauchos/culottes to work and got sent home by HR for wearing “shorts” to work. Good times.

      • Anonymous

        Around that time I had a client wearing gauchos be disallowed from the courtroom for breaching the no shorts dress code. Good times.

    • Deedee

      I have seen this too and I absolutely love the look! The woman in my office wearing the suit was relatively senior, quite credentialed, and the shorts were about the length that an appropriate skirt would be. I would love to own the look too but I think I am still perceived as too junior.

    • Senior Attorney

      I kind of love this whole look and if you gave me the head-to-toe ensemble for my birthday I would totally wear it!

  2. Moving Help

    DC/NoVa area ‘rettes (or former DC/NoVa area ‘rettes) – any recommendations for a long distance mover? Or for a property management company?

    • Anon

      We used pods to move across the country (cheaper than the competitors for what we needed and where we were going).

    • joan wilder

      Property management in DC or NoVA. The rules in each are different, so find one that does the most business in the one your property is in. And tbh if it is in DC, sell rather than become a landlord…

    • Runcible Spoon

      Mayflower for moving. McEnearney (Arlington or McLean office) for property management.

  3. Anon

    I lost my wedding ring (not the one from the ceremony but the qalo daily driver). Time to reorder (which aids in finding the lost ring, usually). Are there other cute silicon rings to check out while I am shopping?

    • Anon

      If Qalo works for you, stick with it! They always made my finger sticky (no breathability), I prefer ones with more grooves cut on the interior to allow some airflow.

  4. Anon

    How are Portland Leather Goods’ shoes? The is a mid heel shoe with a buckle that likely would work well with my duck feet but IDK if they run TTS or narrow (deal-breaker) or anything else.

    • Anon

      No idea about shoes, but I got a bag from their ‘almost perfect’ section and it’s amazing.

      • SFAttorney

        How heavy is your bag? I have a message in to Portland leather asking about the weight of several of their bags. I know good leather necessarily has some weight, but I hate it when a bag starts out heavy before I put anything in it.

        • Anon

          I am not OP. I have a day to day Portland leather bag (the mini cross body tote) and it’s not heavy. I tend to overload it so then it’s heavy, but that’s a me problem. I’d say it’s quite a bit lighter than a Cuyana, as an example.

      • here she goes

        Same – I got ‘almost perfect’ bag and wallet and I could not figure out what was not perfect about them.

        Weight – not noticeably heavy to me? I have the large circle crossbody in nutmeg and it does not bother me at all to wear it while shopping all day. It helps that it’s smaller than my typical bag, so I really can’t put a bunch of extra stuff in it.

  5. Anon

    Random thought, because I think there are posters here with expertise in political science.

    I got covid recently, which gained me a few days of Netflix time. So I watched all of Derry Girls then went way down a Wikipedia rabbit hole learning about the Northern Ireland peace process.

    Super wild to learn how conflict resolution can be such a designed process. Why did it work? Can the theories/processes extend to other conflicts? What are the best books to read on this topic?

    • Cb

      I’ve never felt so useful! I’m a political scientist in Belfast right at this very second… AMA.

      The GFA conference just happened, and the Westminster Insider podcast did a great 90-minute episode on the process, with interviews with Blair, Mitchell, etc. It’s really worth a listen.

      My impression is that it worked in the fact that you can wander the streets of Northern Ireland without fear of a bomb, etc. You can talk about politics, the policing system is more equitable, weapons have been decomissioned.

      But it hasn’t overcome the community divides – there are more peace walls in Belfast now than there were when the GFA was signed and only 7% of students go to integrated (cross-community schools). There’s no government in NI because the DUP, which represents a more hardline protestant position won’t let Sinn Fein (Catholic) take up the post of First Minister after winning the election. Brexit has triggered an uptick in violence, destruction, and bonfires are a major thing.

      And this Good Friday generation, at least the ones who filter through my classrooms, feel so, so disillusioned.

      • blueberries

        I have so many questions!

        Do universities tend to be integrated?

        What is it like socially/professionally as a foreigner?

        It sounds like an election is not being respected–why isn’t there chaos as a result?

        • Cb

          There’s just two universities, Queen’s has more of a reputation as a nationalist uni these days, but historically, uni access was more limited for catholics. Often Protestant boys go to England or Scotland.

          It’s weird, I am treated as an outsider as an American. Americans played a huge role in the peace process but they also played a huge role in fundraising for IRA weapons. As a society, it’s still very white, less diverse than the rest of the UK or even the republic. I live in a fairly middle class, and increasingly international neighbourhood (all my academic colleagues live with a few minutes walk), but my landlady told me who the other Catholic houses were.

          I don’t live here full time though, I commute from Scotland. Partially because we were settled before I got the job, and partially because I can’t figure out schools for my half English, half American, raised in Scotland, speaks with a posh English accent child.

      • Anon

        So interesting, thank you! You are the perfect enabler of my Wikipedia rabbit hole.

        I only have a basic grasp at this point but it sounds like institution-building worked somewhat but community integration less so? Can you design processes for community integration? What are the parallels/contrasts to desegregation and the US civil rights movement? And is what happened in Canada to ‘tone down’ separatist violence in Quebec a comparable process or not? What terms should I be putting in Google Scholar to get started? (I’m an anthropology PhD in Asia so semi-literate in polisci to a point)

        So many questions. Rare side effect of COVID is that apparently it can turn some people into political scientists….?

    • Monday

      I recommend the book Say Nothing as a great history of the conflict. The author is the host of the Wind of Change podcast.

      • Anne-on

        +1 – I was a teenager when the Good Friday accords happened so I had some sense of the violence being bad but I didn’t realize how widespread/random the violence could be and how bad day to day life got for people.

        • Seventh Sister

          It’s an excellent book. I especially enjoyed the parts about the American support of the IRA and the culture clash between the Irish-Americans and the Irish operatives. When I was a kid in MD the 80s, it was pretty common to see donation boxes and/or those “26 + 6 =1” bumper stickers. The Good Friday accords happened when I was in college and I wasn’t paying much attention at the time, so it was great to get a better understanding of what happened.

    • anon for this

      Read “Say Nothing” by Patrick Radden Keefe. It’s not an explainer on the peace process but goes into many of the competing ways of government and life at the time, similar to Derry Girls. It’s so complicated and incredible that this happened fairly recently!

    • Anonymous

      If the process interests you, you might also find the South Africa record nciliation.process interesting. Different but also quite an intentional and managed process for something that seems . . . unmanageable.

      • anonshmanon

        Also Spain after Franco and how society planned to move forward after atrocities. Totally fascinating.

      • Anon

        Thank you. I also went down a Wikipedia side rabbit hole on Rwanda reconciliation and just…wow.

    • Anononon

      Not non-fiction, but if you want a great, great (fiction) read set during the Troubles, read Milkman by Anna Burns. I recommend reading it on a lovely sunny day so when you are thoroughly unnerved by everything happening in the book you can go outside and take a breather.

      • Anna

        Whenever I read a recommendation like that I log in on my library’s homepage and reserve it right away. thanks

  6. Anonymous

    I wore a new pair of sandals over the weekend that absolutely destroyed my feet. Is it worth trying to wear them again once I’ve healed, with some moleskin and bandaids? Or will the same thing inevitably happen again? The sandal was the Vera style by Naturalizer and I have sores on the backs and sides of my ankles.

    Relatedly, is this style of sandal with just a strap of leather across the toe and an ankle strap ever comfortable? These were a relatively low heel from a “comfort” brand so I thought I would be fine but it just feels like with this style of sandal there’s not enough holding my foot to the shoe for it feel good. I need something that I can walk a bit in.

    • Anon

      Comfort brand only means the footbed is cushy. My most comfortable sandals ever – an ankle strap and a strap across the toes – was some no name juniors brand from a regional department store on clearance for $13 at the end of the season. They just move really well, even though they’re pleather with no padding to speak of.

    • Anne-on

      Ymmv but oddly all the sandals that gave me the worst issues were naturalizers. I can’t wear anything across just one toe, and I can’t wear any sort of hard medallion/stone/metal accent over the top of the foot (think the old Tory Burch style medallions).
      I wait till they’re on sale but the Sam Edelman Gigi sandals are my category killer summer sandals. The metallic ones look dressy enough for evening but they pack down to nothing and can be easily shoved in a beach bag or suitcase.

    • Anonymous

      If they are leather they will stretch and mold to your feet more, so I vote trying again with protective measures.

    • pugsnbourbon

      Ironically, I find these types of sandals to be the most comfortable! I’m sorry your feet got torn up. I’d try again with moleskin on the trouble spots.

    • Lydia

      If they are slightly too tight you could try wearing them with thick hiking or gym socks and blasting them with a hair dryer (to stretch the leather around your feet)

    • Anon

      How long were you wearing them? how much walking and standing did you do? If you spent a lot of time in them, it may have just been overkill. I find that each spring, I need to solely adjust my feet to sandals. If I don’t, even the most comfortable pair from last year, gives me blisters. But if you were only in them for an hour or two and didn’t spend the whole time walking, these are probably just not the pair for you

    • Anon

      I have some sandals just like that from I think Naot – ankle strap, single strap across the toes – and they don’t bother me. It may just be the shape of your feet. I wear ankle straps or Mary Jane straps on most of my shoes, because otherwise they wouldn’t stay on my feet, so I’m used to them.

    • Anon

      I’d try again but for shorter periods of time and with a supply of blister pads at the ready.

      This is more of a fit issue to me. You want the shoe to fit your foot so that it isn’t rubbing your skin constantly. Also, leather for me takes multiple wears before it becomes soft and comfortable.

  7. Anon

    I need a spring coat. It has been so cold and I am tired of my black winter coat. Any leads on coats (I just need “warm” vs “warmest” level) that are not black / navy / camel / red? I am sick of winterwear and freezing and just need something for my current climate. I saw a woman in a long purple raincoat (have no idea if it was lined or maybe she wore a puffer or fleece underneath) and looked at it longingly. Raincoats, to me, are warm (in the way that I hate them in hot weather) because it insulates fairly well while being drapey.

    • Anne-on

      I’m in mod but check out Barbour. The raincoats I have from them are great and super thoughtfull designed and it looks like they have some bright/fun colors and prints.
      If you really want to splash out check out Mackage or even Hobbs London for fun bright trenches.

      • ANON

        +1 on barbour. i’ve been wearing mine since march and surprised to still need it as temps drop to 50s this week

      • Seventh Sister

        I have a rose-colored Barbour raincoat that is really great and reversible (beige plaid).

    • anon

      I have a purple cropped trench. If you poke around you can find something.

      While my winter coats are more basic/dark colored, I find that I “need” (like…) an assortment of coats for tricky spring transition weather. 10 degrees difference makes a big difference on the coat that works, and depends on what I am wearing underneath.

      Leather/suede moto jackets (and even some cute ones in lighter fabrics), denim jackets (white, black, blue), bomber, trench / raincoats (cropped and above the knee lengths, black/tan/purple), fleece, and more.

      Asking for coat recs is too vague… when do you want to wear it? Over what? What is your “current climate”?

    • Curious

      If less formal will do, I have a cute pink utility coat from StitchFix that gets a ton of compliments.

  8. Clementine

    Anyone else really struggling with the proportions of what’s currently in fashion?

    I’m taller with a long torso, so the current cropped ‘hit right at the waistband’ shirts that are in style show skin. Add to that, the boxy cuts just aren’t flattering on my figure. Anyone else struggling with this season of fashion?

    • Anon

      OMG yes. Short with very short torso. What I don’t need — pleated Bermuda shorts. So much volume. Throw in a double-breasted open jacket and I become shaped like a Tic-Tac with weird little legs. No me gusta.

    • Anonymous

      This is one of the reasons I don’t follow what’s “in fashion”.
      I just don’t have the income to justify buying anything that doesn’t fit my body properly…

    • Anonymous

      Right there with you on the boxy belly shirts. I am a small long-waisted rectangle and those tops manage somehow to be simultaneously frumpy and inappropriate on me. No thank you.

    • Anon

      I’ve been getting the boxy styles that otherwise look good and just getting them taken in, because I absolutely cannot with current fashion right now.

    • Anon.

      Yes. I have a long torso and have trouble finding tops these days. Cropped tops are comically short on me, and high-waisted pants that could give some coverage would have to have a raise that’s Steve Urkel-esque, if you know what I mean.
      Don’t even ask me about bathing suits and rompers. It’s either “pulling decolletage down to navel, flattening everything to a pancake” vs “the worst wedgie ever”.

      • Anne-on

        Jcrew long torso bathing suits are just about the only ones I can count on for the right length and some built in support. I don’t want the ‘olympic swimmer wearing a speedo with no b00b support’ look, thanks!

        • Cat

          +1. I miss the days when tankinis were popular. I tried Lands End and just, no, if the bottoms were any more full-coverage they would be marketed as swim diapers.

          • Anon

            I still wear my tankini. It’s not like I’m renting a cabana in Vegas or with my hot girlfriends. I’m vacationing with my family and using a pool or hot tub at whatever place we’re staying. The tankini is fine.

            I’m tall and one piece suits, even long torso ones, never quite worked for me.

      • Anonymous

        Long torso swimsuits were an amazing realization to me, in that I was finally like “oh that’s why one-piece swimsuits have never fit!” Land’s End, while perhaps not the most fashionable, does offer a long option in a lot of their one pieces.

    • Anonymous

      Yessss. I went shopping this weekend (in person! In an actual mall!) and success with tops was… limited. The boxy fit probably looks cute on lithe 20 somethings. It just looked weird on pear-shaped almost middle-aged me. (I did get a really cute skirt and my first ever jump suit from Athleta. Much less success with work clothes)

    • PJ

      Same build and same problems. I’m nodding to fashion by bringing my older wider cut suiting and linen pants back out, but otherwise not buying much.
      No pleats, no midriff, no boxy tops

    • anon

      Yep. Long torso, here, and the cropped stuff just looks dumb. It looks like I don’t know how to find clothes that fit.

    • Anon

      I skipped low rise pants/jeans altogether in the 00s (my babies were born in 01 and 02 and the belly flap they left behind was just never going to work in a low rise) so I’m confident I can skip anything – not as much of a hardship now that I’m in my 50s, but I was in my young 30s back then and still managed fine.

      This time I’m skipping anything cropped, but it looks very cute on my now early 20s daughter. And I wore cropped boxy tops when I was her age!

    • Anon

      I am super-tall with a short torso, and I have very thin legs (so my waist is my widest part). Wide-leg pants look absolutely ridiculous on me. Cropped or ankle-length pants also look ridiculous on me. I am way too old to be showing midriff. I am keeping it classic and avoiding this season–nearly everything is highly unflattering on me. I’m with you!

  9. Wolferman’s

    Has anyone ordered baked goods from Wolfernan’s? I was thinking of ordering the scones which comes with Devonshire cream and jam as a gift for my sister. Interested to hear any reviews or if you have any other place in mind that would deliver. TIA!

    • Cat

      The English muffins are really good. I had them at my inlaws’ house when someone had sent a basket at the holidays.

    • OOO

      I’ve never had Wolferman’s, but I usually send Zingermans gift baskets and everyone loves them

      • Anon

        Zingermans food is so underwhelming to me. I don’t get the hype at all. I only send them to people who went to Michigan because of the nostalgia factor.

        • Anon

          I’m from Michigan and have only ever experienced Zingermans as something you grab at the gas station when you want a quick, junky snack…like Twinkies or Hostess. It is wild that people actually send gift baskets.

        • Anonymous

          The actual deli sandwiches are OK, but not really worth the wait. The gift baskets are so overpriced.

      • Sunshine

        We received a very large assortment from Zingermans as a gift. All very eh. Would not recommend.

    • Runcible Spoon

      Following, because I was just window shopping online for this very package to send to a dear friend whose husband was just diagnosed cancer, pet just died, and other relative got into some legal trouble.

  10. Anon

    Any recommendations for high quality CZ stud earrings in solid gold or even platinum settings?

    • Anonymous

      I think you’re going to have a tough time finding this – a costume jewelry stone in a fine jewelry setting. Is there a reason you are looking for this particular combo? If you’re interested in avoiding conflict diamonds lab grown diamonds might be the answer. Alternately, would you consider a different stone? Larkspur & Hawk make beautiful pieces with foil backed quartz. They’re spendy but can often be found on resale sites.

    • Marie

      Because I tend to lose stud earrings, I buy solid 14K CZ stud earrings in bulk (i.e., several pairs at a time) from that large online retailer starting with A and ending with zon. The ones I bought most recently are from the seller Tilo Jewelry. I think the CZ stones are high quality, but I’m not sure what exactly makes a CZ high quality. The settings and backs are very nice.

  11. Anon

    I’m heading to Boston this week for work, what should I pack in the shoes and coat categories? Forecast looks like some rain and chilly. What are y’all wearing?

    • HFB

      a warm raincoat and walkable ankle booties like blondos. still seeing lots of ankle booties around town.

    • Anne-on

      It’s a shockingly nice day today but otherwise I’ve been alternating between my hooded lined Barbour raincoat and my tan trench coat (for in-office days). If it’s really pouring I’ll wear chelsea boots. Otherwise I’ve been swapping between leather loafers (for the office), and Rothys driving mocs or loafers (this in between weather is the perfect use case for Rothys imho).

  12. Anon

    Any experience with kick-out clauses in real estate contracts?

    We have our house on the market and received a full-price, cash offer with one glaring hang-up: they want 10 days to look at the house with their contractor and decide if the house can be renovated into their dream home, and if not, they walk away with no penalty.

    Obv, for us as sellers, we do not want to take our house off the market on the “maybe” that these out-of-town buyers who’ve only seen our house through a FaceTime walk-thru with their agent will actually like it when they or their contractor see it in person. But a full-price cash offer is nothing to sneeze at.

    We’re possibly getting another offer here in a couple hours, but in case it doesn’t materialize (and even if it does, it’s another couple in the same situation – out-of-towners with cash), I want to know about kick-outs. The agent of the above offer called ours this morning and suggested a kick-out, but google only is talking about home-sale kick-outs, which isn’t this situation. Thanks for any insight.

    • Anon

      You’re taking your house off the market for the, which has costs to you. They can pay a penalty if they don’t want it.

      Functionally, they want an option contract, and those cost money.

    • Anon

      The only kick-out clauses I’ve heard of allow the seller to keep marketing the house until the contingencies are met. I would probably be ok with the sale then.

      Otherwise, I would just tell them to visit the house with their contractor and then make an offer. If they would only have 10 days after the offer is accepted to do so, they should just do it in the next 10 days and then make the offer. If you are still in a hot market (do any still exist?) and think that you would get an equal offer in those 10 days, then there is really no incentive to take this offer

    • Anon

      I am assuming every state is different. Your realtor should be weighing in on some guidance here.
      A 10 day inspection period is pretty normal and buyers can really use almost any excuse to back out in that time period. I sold an older home last fall and through hearsay I learned our original buyer’s inspector pointed at lots of random things around the home and told them it would take large amounts of money to “fix” or replace. Some of that Inspector’s guess-estimations where wildly inaccurate. They completely walked away and their real estate agent said they were going to put a pause on home buying all together from it.
      Also, in my state, if a house is under contract but with contingency (ex. in my case contingent on another house sale closing from my buyer, or an inspection window, etc.) we were able to accept back-up offers that were contingent on the first contract falling through. Which is ultimately how we did sell that house. So you might want to check with your realtor, but if you were to accept the first offer, you might be able to use this other possible offer as a back-up.

      • Anon

        Same here. I find it a little strange that the OP is balking at an inspection contingency. It does frequently get waived in the Bay Area, where buyers are desperate to come into contract, but ironically they usually sign/acknowledge a government form that strongly advises to do one’s own thorough inspection and check everything. The reason they can waive it, is that the sellers provide an inspection report from a licensed professional when they put the house on the market.
        Do you expect people to buy a house that they have only seen on facetime? That seems an unrealistic expectation to me. But if the buyers drag their feet and don’t remove the contingency after the 10 day period, then you would be free to take another offer (in the Bay Area at least). So the risk is fairly manageable, no?

        • Anon

          In fairness, a dream home construction contingency is very different from an inspection contingency.

          • Anon

            Practically it’s the same though. While it is called an inspection contingency, there is no threshold that the inspection needs to reveal any deficiencies to let buyers out of the contract. My realtor’s words “If you don’t like the way the sun sets on the house one day during the contingency period, you can get out and get your deposit back.”
            Being on the buyer side myself at the moment, I will also say that I don’t think buyers are frivolously wasting sellers’ time with no commitment. In the Bay, a decent inspection is about $1k. To justify tight timelines overall, you start appraisal in parallel, which is another $1k. That’s money I won’t see again if the deal falls through.
            The dream remodel from the top of the post conflicts with ‘have only seen it on facetime’. The latter seems more like they are just doing due diligence.

          • Anon

            It may be the same practically, but it’s still very different in effect. Most buyers use the inspection contingency to see if there are any serious concerns with the house. They already really like the house, and are not going to back out because of small issues. That’s very different than someone who has never seen the house in person and wants to do major renovations that may not be financially practical

          • anon

            +1 to Anon at 12:21. This is a “standard” inspection contingency. Quote around “standard” as they’re really common in “normal makrets” when buyer has modest to total leverage. They’re also almost never seen in the most competitive offers in insanely hot markets, in multiple bid scenarios – think 2019-ish until rates started to run last year.

            If you only have one offer, maybe two, and without knowing where you are, how long the house has been on the market, etc hard to know who has the leverage, but if they’ve all you got I’m not sure I’d drop an otherwise good offer that has an inspection contingency.

          • here she goes

            @ Anon 12:21 PM that’s not the way inspection contingencies work in my state/area. To get out of a contract via an inspection contingency, the inspection must reveal something and then the buyer is given a chance to address it, and if they don’t want to address it or give any money to the seller to address it, then then inspection contingency can come into play. There’s definitely a threshold here (real problem that comes up during the inspection) and the buyers are allowed to try and rectify.

            Granted, that is in my upper midwest market. You reference the Bay, and that is a wildly different market than my upper midwest market.

          • Anon

            Pretty crazy how these norms differ in regional markets. I remember a conversation here a while back about an agent/broker and how responsive they were, and some posters found it entirely normal, while others said it was a red flag…

        • Anon

          The issue is that the buyers want to know fit he house can be renovated to their standards, which is subjective and has little to do with the quality of the house. People understand backing out of the sale if there is structural damage; that is an objective (relatively objective) issue that is about the house itself. This is a subjective issue – the house can probably be renovated in some ways but not others – that depends on what they want, not on the condition of the house. It’s also open to abuse…. “Oh we wanted a fifth bathroom and can’t do that.”

      • Anonymous

        This is my experience with buying in Atlanta. A no-penalty inspection period of 7 or 10 days was standard. Homes in hot neighborhoods went on the market with an offer already and the showings were really just for backup offers, which of course was always disheartening to learn at the initial open house

      • Anon

        When we sold our old house, the first offer we got was cancelled/rescinded (not sure the exact legal term – the buyers backed out) because they had wanted to do some major remodeling and once they found out how much it was going to cost and how long it was going to take, they decided it would be cheaper to build a new house. They triggered the inspection contingency saying that one of our bathrooms needed repairs (it didn’t, according to our pre-listing inspector – updating, maybe, but not repairs) and got out of the deal and walked away with their earnest money. Totally fine with us; I’d rather deal with a buyer that isn’t going to ask us to remodel the bathroom for them under the auspice of “repair” before they agree to close the sale. We got another offer from another buyer within 3 weeks and that deal closed.

        I am also not sure why the buyers in the OP’s situation want to complicate the sale in the way they’re proposing. In our state, it was perfectly legal for the potential buyers – pre-offer! to walk through the house with a contractor and discuss remodeling plans. That isn’t an “inspection,” where a licensed person is testing the house systems and looking at possible structural problems, etc. If the buyers are concerned they won’t be able to remodel the OP’s house to their liking, can’t they just arrange for a contractor to do a visit and report back, and then they can make an offer with standard inspection contingencies? I guess maybe they feel pressure to get an offer in before someone else does?

    • anon a mouse

      In my market these are called contingencies and while they disappeared for a while, they are starting to come back in certain situations. A 10-day contingency seems reasonable, you could try to negotiate down to 5 if you felt strongly (have your realtor make the case that you don’t want to keep it off the market for a weekend). Or, just signal that you are waiting for an offer with no contingencies and they are welcome to bring their contractor before writing an offer.

      It depends on how hot your market is. When we bought in 2014, we were able to have a 14-day inspection contingency and a 30-day financing contingency. But obviously the market is really different now!

      • Anon

        I bought my current house when the 10 day contingency inspection caused the prior buyer to walk. I ended up getting about $50k off the price (originally $900k, relisted for $849k) and then a lot of buyer credits against closing costs for things that their and then my own inspection identified. It helps that I knew my house was a fixer upper (many many $50ks later) but apparently the other buyer didn’t.

        I’ve given you those numbers to give you an idea of what this situation could potentially cost you as a seller. In your shoes I’d take an official backup offer so you don’t have to remarket the house. If you can find a potential buyer to sit in backup for 10 days.

      • Pass

        Contingencies are one thing, but it’s usually contingent on something other than “we haven’t seen the house and don’t know if it will work.”

    • Anon

      OP here. Thanks all. Your comments have been helpful, particularly the ones about viewing it as an inspection period – you can lose a buyer over many things.

      Our house went on the market on Friday and we got two offers this weekend – a crazy low-ball and this one. The other potential offer I mentioned above (from a showing this morning) won’t be coming, but we have more showings scheduled.

      Like others have mentioned, in our area, during the inspection period, you have to give the seller a chance to fix what’s wrong – you can’t just walk because of how the sun sets, to borrow one commenter’s phrase.

      We’re fully prepared to fix a glitchy outlet or the like, but it feels like being taken advantage of to ask us to cool our jets for 10 days while you fly down and see the house in person and see if you like it. We don’t even know if they’ve ever even been to our town! All we know is that they live 1000 miles away, have been looking in this region for a while, and are able to pay our asking price in cash. So the way their offer is written, they have no skin in the game at all, but meanwhile our showings dry up because back-up offers, bidding wars, etc are unheard of in our area and no one locally will want to deal with that.

      Just a lot to think about. We have just a couple more hours before we have to get back to them and we aren’t terribly sure how to proceed.

      • Don’t do it

        I would say no to this weird contingency. If you have to put the house back on the market it makes it harder to sell bc it signals something was wrong with it. If they really want the house, they’ll still look at it and buy it. If they don’t want it that badly, they weren’t going to buy it anyway so you saved yourself a headache.

        Once you take it off the market you lose a lot of leverage and there’s nothing to stop them from saying, “actually the reno is so expensive we are only going to offer $40k less.”

      • Anon

        I would tell them that the house will remain on the market through the end of this coming weekend, and they are welcome to submit an offer with standard contingencies by then.

      • MJ

        I agree with other posters here. From a pure corporate finance perspective–this is an option, and they are valuing that option at zero. You are able to counter ON YOUR TERMS and ask them to put a price on this option. Whether that’s 10K or real earnest money (ten percent), up to you, in consultation with your realtor. But it is not reasonable to ask them to take the house off the market to your detriment and not be compensated for that. Counter!

    • Ummm no

      They aren’t offering to buy your house, they’re asking you to take it off the market until they decide if they want it. Pass pass pass!!

      If they really do want it, they’ll still make the offer after they’ve seen it

      • Anon

        Bay Area poster here: I get that they don’t want to plan a whole trip with the possibility that someone else comes in with an offer just when they are getting on the plane, but since the kick-out clause isn’t worth very much in the local market, the offer is very imbalanced towards the buyers’ advantage. Maybe since they are rich enough offer cash on the house, they should just take the risk to make the trip anyway.

  13. Horse Crazy

    Has anyone recently switched from an Android to an iPhone? I’ve always had Androids, and I like the seamlessness they have with Google, but it’s always kind of annoying to be the one person who doesn’t have an iPhone – I can’t iMessage, I can’t share photos as easily…has anyone succumbed and gotten an iPhone?

    • Anon

      I’m iPhone all the way, Apple products are so easy to use and seamless, I’ve never understood getting anything else. So just encouragement you probably will be happy switching.

      • anon

        Same here. And Google apps are available on iPhones. I use them extensively and integration has never been an issue.

      • Anon

        Another iPhone all the way. Androids are supposed to be better but they’re just not. I lived through my husband having an android while I had an iPhone and we’re not doing that again. He’s iPhone all the way now too.

        OP it won’t be difficult to switch. iPhones are easy – that’s why people like them. And now you can stop being the embarrassing green text in the group chat.

        • Horse Crazy

          Wow, I didn’t realize I should be embarrassed…I think it’s more embarrassing that you judge people for purchasing the wrong $1000 phone.

    • Anonymous

      Do you regularly use a computer and if so, which system are you on? My iPhone is incredibly easy and seamless for me because I use a Mac. I think using an iPhone with a PC might be more frustrating. I avoid Google in all ways unless I’m forced to use it, so I don’t have any experience of how iPhones do/don’t integrate with Google.

      • Anon

        Always used a PC and always used an iphone and the iphone is so easy. I can do anything I want in google with the google apps. Never had an android and never been interested.

    • Anon8

      I am a weirdo who has switched back and forth between iphone and android several times and I’m sticking with iphone for the foreseeable future at this point. Switching is always a pain, but it’s short lived. I think you nailed the advantages of each one. It’s great to be integrated with google, but apple is easier for messaging, etc. Apple also becomes more and more convenient the more you get into their ecosystem. I already use a Mac, and I love that everything syncs seamlessly, and I can text from my laptop. If you get an apple watch or airpods it’s even more convenient. Apple supports their phones for longer than Android too, so you can generally keep using an iphone longer without needing to replace it if that’s your thing.

    • Anonymous

      I switched from a Google Pixel that was getting old and not working so well to a new iPhone 12 a couple years ago. I had wanted a new Pixel but the supply chain problems at that time made them hard to find, and I was able to get an iPhone quickly. I don’t care for the iPhone and I will buy another Google Pixel when this phone becomes hard to use. The battery life is very short already. I don’t own any other Apple products, so that could be part of why I’m not a fan of the iPhone. I maintain my calendar and email on Google calendar and gmail, and I use Google Drive and other Google apps, so I find the iPhone calendar and other iPhone apps annoying. I’ve tried to adapt and have done several tutorials to customize my phone, but I’m just too set in my ways to move over to the Apple side. I want something that works well that I don’t have to take tutorials to get used to.

    • Mrs. Jones

      I switched a year or two ago. I still miss the android (back button, customizable stuff like ring tones, cheaper, app organization, etc etc). The iphone is just not intuitive but I caved to peer pressure.

    • Anonymous

      Yes, basically because of family and friend pressure. I was already using an i-Pad. But I use Windows on my laptop.
      Many moons ago I used a Mac but then moved to a lab job where I had to use Windows.
      Both moves entailed a good deal of frustration.
      I need to replace my laptop and will have to decide which system to buy. Any advice will be welcome!

  14. Anokha

    Desks! My home office is dying for a new desk. My last one was from Wayfair (for like $300) and is falling apart.

    Favorite sources? I’m fully remote and happy to spend up to $1k on a desk. Don’t want a standing desk. Prefer to have something that makes me smile when I look at it, but that can be modified for functionality. (e.g., I installed a keyboard tray onto my current desk so that I could have a ergonomically friendly keyboard height).

    • Anonymous

      I am a big fan of second hand old battered really solid wood desks. I found ours at a local consignment store, and my grandma’s garage.

      • Anon

        I kick myself for not taking my dad’s old oak desk out of the house when we sold it after mom died. (Dad died much earlier.) No one thought they had room for it, me included, but in hindsight I should have made room.

        One side of the desk had a door where you’d expect shelves to be, but it was a spring-loaded tray for a typewriter. I could have had a carpenter convert that area to shelves, I’m sure.

    • Anonymous

      My first stop whenever I’m looking for new furniture is second-hand (FB marketplace, antique stores, etc)
      I got my current desk -that I love and will probably never replace- secondhand for $350, in nearly new condition.

    • anon

      I just discovered the local companies/websites that do estate sales in my area. The post all the items online now, so it is very easy to peruse.

      The beautiful items and great deals was…. shocking. I have always been a fan of scouring consignment shops etc.. for good quality second hand furniture. But I never realized how these estate sales have incredible stuff (in my area at least!) and as they are trying to liquidate fast the prices via auction are shocking low.

      I don’t think I will ever buy a new piece of furniture again. There is a reason why designers get a lot of their stuff from estate sales. I just didn’t realize how low the price points can be.

  15. Anonymous

    How many billable hours should it take, or how many hours would you pay, for a lawyer to draft and file a response brief?
    – Novel legal issue,
    – low dollar issue ($20k maybe) but a win would confirm a valuable decision
    – plaintiff’s argument and brief were somewhat nonsensical and the judge admitted at the hearing that she was “very confused”
    – lower administrative agency level, will appeal if adverse ruling
    Yes, I know the answer is “it depends”- I’m just looking for a gut reaction.

    • Anonymous

      A lawyer new to the case? Like 40 hours. Because this is some nonsense and I find the whole thing shady. I’d charge you a 20k retainer minimum.

      • Anonymous

        What is “shady” here?
        This sounds like a lot of my work for small business owners as broadly outlined

        • Anonymous

          I’d find it shady to be brought in just to respond to a brief by someone claiming it’s a novel issue. It probably isn’t and why didn’t you call me earlier? That’s going to be a difficult client to work with.

    • Anon

      The dollar value of the dispute has nothing to do with how long a brief will take to research and write. The answer is any litigation will cost more than 20k and it’s a matter of deciding if it’s worth it to you to fight or settle. Impossible to back of the napkin costs on the details provided.

      • Anon

        +1 to “the dollar value of the dispute has nothing to do with how long a brief will take to research and write.”

      • Anon

        +1000000

        I’m a career clerk who came from private practice. I’ve written memos to my court about novel issues that took weeks to write. I’ve written some about novel issues that took a few hours. This is completely impossible to answer except that litigation will likely cost more than $20k and litigation on principle is always expensive.

    • Explorette

      A lot. A novel legal issue on its own would take a lot of time. Add in responding to a confusing brief, which is really difficult to do and time consuming. Yes, it depends, but I’d guess a minimum of 30 hours.

      • Anonymous

        Well, these answers confirm why I always struggled to make hours in Big law.

        • Anon

          Were you cutting your own hours? If you can write a brief in 10 hours that would take someone else 40 hours, that doesn’t explain why you wouldn’t make hours because you could just be writing 4 times the number of briefs that other people were. But if you were cutting your own time, yes, that’s a mistake except in very specific circumstances that aren’t that common.

      • Anon

        30 hours seems crazy low to me. I’d think more like 60 assuming it is truly novel and also just one issue

    • Anon

      At least 30 hours. Likely more.

      I have a side gig writing briefs for plaintiffs in admin agency determinations (social security benefits). The cases involved medical records and can be fact-intensive, but do not typically require complex legal research. Even the most simple cases will take 17 – 18 hours.

    • Anon

      I’ll talk you out of buying the gold knits: I can see the outline of the model’s bra. Unless your figure is amazing (and if that’s the case, go you!), you will need to wear a slip underneath to avoid every lump and bump being highlighted. I might do that for a $60 dress but not for a $600 dress.

    • DC Inhouse Counsel

      I can talk you out of the gold top. I bought it to be a fun weekend outfit for date nights/going to concerts etc. and it clings weird. I can’t wear it with jeans because it shows the outline of the top of my pants/button and it doesn’t flatter my bust area (which usually looks great with a v neck!).I think it would only look good on a thin person and tucked into high waisted pants.

    • anon

      Will absolutely not talk you out of the second and third one, and will only talk you out of the top one if you don’t have a place to wear it or can wear it to the office. That dress would be too much for my office but I could get a LOT of wear out of the other two pieces!

    • Anon

      The coat is gorgeous. Where do you plan to wear the gold items? The fabric seems too jazzy for most work settings.

    • Anon

      I cannot talk you out of that coat in particular. My wool coat is a similar color and I wear the heck out of it.

    • Anonymous

      I have tried on and immediately decided not to buy the heavy viscose blend knit items from The Fold.

      They are very heavy, and do not drape well on me. The ones I’ve tried did not have metallic thread, and were still itchy – not a texture I enjoy. I much prefer their wool knits.

      So – would absolutely not get the gold dress. I guess the top might be fine – the color’s beautiful, totally get why you’re drooling.

    • Anon

      I don’t know Hokas but I know “my feet are killing me” very well. What is the specific issue.

      • Anon

        Rheumatoid Arthritis, which manifests as pain in the midfoot (on top) and the back edge of the heel. I’d appreciate any suggestions you have!

        • Anon

          Hello, I also have RA! And I occasionally also get plantar fasciitis. Steroid shots help with both but I know you don’t want to do those too often.

          I have to wear shoes that have a bit of lift in the heel, so not 100% flat. I don’t do well in sneakers for that reason. Clogs are better, danskos are great, and I love a couple of their summer sandals that I bought recently. I tend to look for comfort shoe brands that have a rubbery low wedge sole. I’ve had luck with Naot and Fly London, Sas flats work ok even though they don’t have a heel rise, same with a broken in pair of Birkenstocks. My favorite loafers are Naturalizer ones with a rubbery sole.

          Orthotics are absolutely key for me. I don’t know whether you see a podiatrist (I recommend any one with RA find a podiatrist!) but custom orthotics are usually covered by insurance. I have a sports orthotic as well as a dress orthotic.

          Best of luck. It’s really a lot of trial and error.

    • Betsy

      Yes they are, but don’t trust the internet on that. Go to a running store (you don’t have to be a runner!) and have them help you pick a pair that works with the way you walk.

  18. Anonymous

    youth sports moms, former sports moms, and in person sports fans: how do I make the sidelines more comfortable? I have 3 kids that play sports all year long. I’m too cold, too hot, too uncomfortable in the chair, in too much sun, not enough sun- the works.

    Best recs for a sideline chair? Umbrella? Other gear you swear/swore by? Some kind of blanket?

    Also, any tips on how to keep your athlete comfortable? One of mine played lax at 8am in 42 degrees of rain and wind yesterday and got in the car sweating and freezing.

    • Anon

      Sweating and freezing: buy clothes that breathe. Change immediately into dry clothes when done. Hydrate.

    • pugsnbourbon

      Dry clothes for your kid – especially a shirt and some socks! I vividly remember one year where it seemed like every single soccer game I played was in pouring rain. My mom and I would stop at the gas station down the road and I’d change (and get hot chocolate).
      Grab a big pack of those single-use handwarmers, or get a rechargable one. I’ve tried heated socks before but they weren’t amazing, so get the warmers that go in your shoes, too.

    • Hollis

      I hope you are still reading because I am an expert on this living in Seattle where my kids play club soccer year round. For cold weather, you absolutely need a “Mambe Blanket,” which is waterproof and super cozy. Get hand warmers – either the disposable packets or the cordless ones you can get from the river site – and stick them in the pockets. I also have a down parka that goes down to my knees and a merino wool hat and sperry waterproof boots (the ones that look like bean boots), which I wear with wool socks from Costco. I also have and recommend my Oceas waterproof blanket, which I use as a wrap whenever the mambe seems overkill (e.g., if it’s just a little windy, but not actually raining).

      My kids don’t mind the cold and wet (they are Seattle kids after all), but there’s no way around it here. My son just takes off his shirt after the game and my daughters just ask to turn on the seat warmers. If you don’t have a car with seat warming capability, I think even just a dry towel to sit-on is a must.

      If you live in a rainy place, I highly recommend shoe dryers. The DryGuy boot dryer has been a godsend, and I use it to dry my ski gloves also.

      • Anonymous

        OP here- we are in Boston so I am right there with you in the bitter cold. Club soccer here is indoors year round, mercifully. It’s late fall and early spring that get me!

        We ski and have all the hand warmers, boot warmers and breathable layers. Time to throw some in the lax and soccer bags, apparently! My oldest is in 4th and in prior years they’d cancel in bad weather. Not now!

    • LawDawg

      If there are bleachers, buy one of those seats with backs that slide onto the bleachers. You can sit back and the seat is above the bench — no cold metal freezing your bottom and it’s dry. Plus, it allows you to sit with other parents/spectators in the bleachers and still be comfortable.

    • Anon

      When I was a club sports mom (FHOCK), I bought the heavy duty collapsible camp chair from Coleman. It was a little heavier to carry around but worth it for the comfort. I also had a folding umbrella to connect to the chair, but I try to be a zero sun person (rosacea) so that’s super important to me. I also had a farmer’s type hat with a chin strap for when I was in more of a bleacher situation. Dress in layers, as you know, and same for your kid. Lots of girls wore full length leggings and long sleeved wicking tees under their uniforms on the coldest days (and we also had some girls who wore that every day for religious reasons.) I prefer the cold to the hot for my athletic kid, as she passed out from heat playing on a 100 degree day.

      As far as the chairs, none of these are comfortable for hours, so you have to get up and walk around. I liked a thermos of hot sweetened earl grey tea (and on hot days for evening matches, I liked a pitcher of ice cold weak margaritas – I was a popular mom!) And on the coldest days, I just wore my full on parka that’s good to 10 degrees or something like that. The other moms were trying to make it work in athleisure, but when you’re cold, you’re cold, and I had no shame about dressing like I was on an arctic expedition as long as I was warm.

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