Summer Solstice, Saks Sale, and Gwyneth’s Forest

A weekend of bops, buys, and beginning The Artist's Way

Happy Sunday, lovers!

What a gorgeous summer solstice weekend it’s been.

My mom came into town on Friday, and we spent the last few days frolicking in the city heat, shopping, bopping the streets, and spending quality time. As I’ve shared in previous editions, my parents have come to visit so many times that we’ve now reverted to not planning much when they do come—instead, I really just have them tag along for my “usual weekend routine,” which is such fun!

The city felt very quiet this weekend, which of course happens as summer kicks into high gear with everyone going out east or even further afield. I’ll be joining the exodus myself in the coming weeks! In fact, I’ll be away the next three Sundays…you can still expect to hear from me in your inbox, albeit perhaps with more condensed check-ins exclusively for my paid subscribers. Which, speaking of, paid subscribers received Your Guide to Nantucket in their inbox last weekend. And based on upcoming trips, I’ll soon be creating guides for Bozeman and Mallorca—both destinations I’m excited to return to and dive even deeper. But first, let’s get into this week’s goodness!

• Some highlights from this weekend and interesting things going on in the city right now

• A roundup of what caught my eye at the Saks Designer Sale

• Updates from my first week doing The Artist’s Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity

• The Vault (Paid Subscriber Exclusive): dispatches from the digital front row…my assessment of four of the brand trips currently happening around the world

• The Vault (Paid Subscriber Exclusive): shows I’ve binged and loved lately, podcasts that left their mark, and stories I’ve consumed and loved this week. Plus, what I thought of The Materialists!

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Rounding up a few New York exhibits and foodie things I’d carve out time for—whether you’re in the mood for art that lingers, pancakes that live up to the hype, or a floral-filled escape where Gwyneth Paltrow’s voice guides you through a fake forest. Add in a chic showroom moment, and you've got a well-rounded lineup of what I think is worth your attention right now!

• The Forest Within: Running until June 29th, this reimagined Korean forest where nature, technology, and wellness converge. Guided by the spirit of the Korean Tiger, Jeff Leatham’s lush floral design—rooted in Gwyneth’s approach to serenity—invites you into a surreal, sensory escape. It’s free and in the heart of Meatpacking! (40A 10th Ave. New York, NY 10014 , Tuesday – Sunday 11AM – 8PM)

• The pancake stack at The Golden Swan is totally worth the hype! If you can score a reservation upstairs, they also do tableside omelette service. (314 West 11th Street, New York, NY 10014)

• Arcmanoro Niles: When There’s Nothing I Can Do: I Go to My Heart at Lehmann Maupin. Niles’s new canvases capture quiet emotional states through vibrant, gem-toned colors and strategic glitter accents, blending naturalistic composition with surreal pop. (501 West 24th Street, through August 15. Gallery hours Tuesday–Saturday, 10 AM–6 PM)

• Ice cream at Caffè Panna!!!!! Always hits. I actually much prefer to order a pint and pick it up (you get to skip the line), but they do also have daily sundae and soft serve specials, which you can stay tuned on by following their IG.

• M.M. LaFleur Showroom: Book a private styling appointment, sip on some bubbly, and try on a curated selection of wardrobe essentials tailored to your lifestyle. Stylists handpick looks ahead of time, so all you have to do is show up, slip into polished pieces, and leave with a closet that works smarter—not harder. My mom booked an appointment for Friday and it was massively successful! (130 W 42nd St, New York, NY 10036)

• Dinner at Anton’s. I almost didn’t want to put this in because I don’t want to be the reason this under-the-radar place becomes hard to get a reservation, but I just love it here. We particularly went feral for the snap pea salad that’s currently on the menu.

I wound up at Saks not once but twice this week. For those in New York who may have monogramming needs, did you know there is a retailer on the first floor, Royce, who will do custom jobs? Costs a prettyyyyy penny if you’re bringing in leather goods that aren’t theirs, but it’s a difficult service to find, so I wanted to mention in case helpful!

Anyway, I went on Thursday to get some gifts monogrammed, and came back on Friday with my mom to discover a treasure trove of sales. With up to 60% off select designer items, the timing coincides perfectly with the desire to refresh those warm-weather wardrobes for summer! Think breezy dresses, chic bags, and playful accessories, all at blissfully marked-down prices. I was over the moon to find a Zimmermann dress that perfectly fit the vibe for something I have coming up, and while that particular one is sold out, I wanted to round up some other gems from them and others that caught my eye! Sizes are going fast, so, run, don’t walk.

Zimmermann

• Wylie Lantern Cotton Minidress $446.25 ($850)

• Crush Polka Dot Ruffle Minidress $971.25 ($1,850)

• Silk Wrap-Front Crop Top $223.12 ($425)

• Acacia Broderie Linen Minidress $522.37 ($995)

Bags!

• Toteme | Bucket Bag $567 ($1,080)

• Mansur Gavriel | Everyday Cabas Pebbled-Leather Bag $364.87 ($695)

• Chloé | Small Paraty 24 Leather Top Handle Bag $1,075.50 ($2,390)

• Altuzarra | Small Athena Leather Top Handle Bag $469.87 ($895)

Accessories

• Valentino Garavani | Toile Iconographe Wool and Cashmere Shawl $870 ($1,450)

• Valentino Garavani | VLogo Monogram Canvas Bucket Hat $432 ($720)

• Khaite | The Benny Leather Belt $343 ($490)

• CELINE | Bold 3 Dots 51MM Rectangular Sunglasses $322 ($460)

💸 aaaaaand as a disclaimer, this shopping section—as always—includes affiliate links. These little babes help me continually reinvest in making The Sunday Series better. I make a small commission when readers click and shop through my links at no additional cost to you—so if you found something through a link I sourced, please do consider purchasing through that link so I’m credited! Speaking of, I’ve been using the ShopMy platform for a few months and love it. Want to start making commission on the links YOU share? Sign up with my referral link for a 10% bonus on your fist six months of linking.

Okay, now for some creative bits and bobs! I mentioned a few weeks back that I was doing The Artist’s Way and invited you to join in the fun. This 12-week creative recovery program was designed over 30 years ago to help unblock your imagination and reconnect with your inner artist—whether or not you consider yourself one. Originally created by Julia Cameron, the process combines weekly readings with daily practices like Morning Pages (three pages of unfiltered, handwritten journaling) and weekly Artist Dates (solo adventures meant to spark inspiration). It’s less about becoming a professional artist and more about cultivating creativity as a way of life—quieting your inner critic, noticing beauty, and making space for play, exploration, and self-trust.

My takeaways from this first week—which is focused on “recovering a sense of safety”—were mostly just around how much I can carve out the time needed to do three pages of journaling in the morning. I have been sooooo bad about writing lately outside of this newsletter and work, so it was refreshing to be reminded that it can be done. I love the idea that sticking with this process means I’ll have 252+ pages of documentation about what was on my mind in summer 2025!!!!! If you’re into the idea of exploring this self-guided program, I’m linking up the book below.

There’s something about a brand trip that scratches a very specific itch for me—as someone who works in travel marketing, I’m equally obsessed with where these brands choose to tell their story as I am with how the whole thing gets packaged. Whether it’s Zimmermann flying the cool girls and celebs to Mykonos, Comme Si romanticizing socks in the Austrian Alps, Veronica Beard launching sportswear at Sugar Beach (a resort I just got back from myself) or J.Crew bringing coastal prep to Masseria San Domenico, I watch it all unfold with a marketer’s curiosity: Who was invited? What does the setting signal? How does it all translate into the kind of content that quietly moves product?

Here are a few trips that caught my eye this week—which in some cases, are already shaping my searches and shopping carts.

• J.Crew x Masseria San Domenico (Puglia, Italy): J.Crew staged an Italian vacanza at the iconic Masseria San Domenico hotel, complete with a limited-edition “elevated souvenir” capsule. Think embroidered eyelet sets, printed scarves, and straw totes inspired by la dolce vita. The brand even transformed the hotel’s beach club into J.Crew À Mare, a living lookbook of J.Crew’s summer staples (spritzes and beach swims included).

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