Secret Strategist: October 31, 2024

Harvey Guzzini table lamp
Photo: seller

This roundup of things we loved this week originally appeared in the October 31, 2024 issue of the magazine. Secret strategist newsletter, a weekly email in which we share what our staff—and a rotating cast of writers, people from the design world, and others with very good taste—would otherwise keep to themselves. If you’d like to receive our picks straight to your inbox every week, sign up. Here.

Between Happier Grocer (our Erewhon) and the new Gem Home (similar to Echo Park’s Cookbook, but with Autumn Sonata towels), it feels like New York is moving toward the market culture of Los Angeles. I’m not complaining! —Katie Schneider and Simone Kitchens

Precious House
Photo: Sean Davidson/seandavidson

* A new, extremely expensive, by-appointment-only store called William White has opened on Canal Street, selling baskets, Oxford shirts and various other clean, white goods. It reminds us of the Plain Goods store in New Preston, Connecticut in that everything is beautiful and makes us want to live very expensively in Connecticut.

*By the way, the guy who started William White, ASH NY founder Will Cooper, personally owns a lot of good lamps. Among them: a 70s table lamp by Harvey Guzzini, a Model Area 50 pendant lamp by Mario Bellini, and 70s floor lamps by Robert Sonnemann. Speaking of lamps, this image made us want the Celestia ceiling lamp – not ideal since it costs about $8,000 and isn’t on sale anywhere. (Sold out, shelved, definitely a good thing.)

*Okay, we might lose some of you, but we really need a movable fish pendant. Does anyone know why these things exist? Here’s a really good option at a good price. We admit, this image made us want to buy a silver table lamp made from a nautilus shell.

*I’m thinking about ordering a new pair of white Bensimons.

*Erika Werink just posted about these $30 Target jeans, comparing them to vintage Levi’s. Simone ordered and first thought: Not bad! The “navy” ones (actually a medium blue) have a nice weight to them and you can wear them high or low, depending on your size. But the best part is the length. The regular version (without cuffs) has a 34-inch inseam. Turns out the long, no-frills jeans we couldn’t find had been at Target the whole time.

*This August, Reath Design founder Frances Merrill sent us a list of her favorite pieces. We personally heard that some of you bought Swedish candles and Portuguese bath mats for $17. Merrill also recommended this Pennsylvania-based weaving company for its handmade throws and pillows, but after digging around on its website, we decided to order these hemp-colored cotton curtains. They are great! Bright, a little moody, and somehow only $29 a panel.

*This glass bag from Auger makes a great gift!

*These perfect Nu Swim tanks (the uniform we’ve been looking for all summer at a price that’s not ridiculous) are now just $32. They’re being discontinued, so stock up on them for next summer or wear them as a fifth layer this winter.

Strategist designed to provide useful, expert shopping recommendations across the vast e-commerce landscape. Each product is independently selected by our team of editors, which you can read about Here. We update links whenever possible, but please note that offers may expire and all prices are subject to change.