I'm Thinking 5 Months Ahead—6 Under-$500 Items I'm Already Shopping

The below is from editor-in-chief Nikki Ogunnaike's weekly newsletter, Self Checkout. Subscribe here.

I don’t know about you, but I’m feeling a bit in limbo. Like I should relish these last few weeks of summer, but I’m also ready for the fall sprint to the end of the year. Team Marie Claire is deep into planning all the incredibly ambitious and exciting things we have in store for 2025, so my brain is thinking five months ahead of now…and you can see it in this random hodgepodge of the bits and bobs that have caught my eye. I’m not interested in making any major purchases at the moment—hence everything under $500—just a little piece here and there until the fall collections fully hit stores.

An Under-the-Radar It Bag

There’s a lot of talk about the not-so-secretly great bags Coach currently has on their site and these are a few of my favorites. Both sizes of the Brooklyn shoulder bag have the girls in a tizzy, but we really should talk about the Empire. So good!

A Summer Work Dress

Alex Mill is a favorite essentials brand for me, especially when it comes to high-summer dressing. This shirt dress does the trick on those super hot work days when I have to go into the office.

A Sneaker That Goes the Distance

I’m gearing up for a 199-mile relay race and plan on wearing these Nike sneakers for each of the legs I’ll be running. I did a little shoe review on Instagram, but in short, so far I love these for any distance under a 10K. They’re not exactly like the original Pegasus Turbo, but they’re still great.

A Classic Polo—With a Twist

Tibi dropped some new fall pieces and this polo shirt is calling my name. The off-kilter collar—a design I haven’t seen before—will help me justify adding to the collection I already own (ha!).

A Versatile Wrap Skirt

I also love the idea of this Tibi poplin skirt. I could wear it now while it’s hot, then into the winter with a chunky knit sweater and knee-high boots.

A Sparkly Statement Earring

It may be a little early to think about holiday dressing, but these earrings also caught my eye as I was scrolling the Dorsey site. They instantly conjured up dreams of dressing up and toasting to a great year with friends.

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