7.11.26 | ✨ Caftans, closet edits + summer style with Allison Bornstein

Happy Saturday!

I’m so excited to welcome this week’s guest curator, celebrity stylist, author, and writer of our favorite fashion Substack, Allison Bornstein!

Allison believes that fashion is wellness and is on a mission to “to help people care for themselves by caring about their clothes.” Her Three Words Method helps you get clear on your personal style so that you have a compass for curating a wardrobe that feels like you. Several of our team members have actually had 1-1 sessions with her and have left feeling more confident and stylish than ever before.

Below you’ll find more about her weekend rituals, her motherhood journey, and some special stylist-approved summer style picks. I know you’ll enjoy!

Warmly,

Kate

💛 Welcome, Allison!

Hi! I am Allison Bornstein and I am a stylist, wardrobe consultant and author! If you haven’t heard of me (hi!) you might have heard of some of my styling methods such as the Three Words Method or Wrong Shoe Theory (if not, welcome!). Through working one on one with styling clients or creating content for Instagram, Substack or Tik Tok, my mission is to empower my clients with the tools to curate a closet that reflects their authentic self.

I am a new mom to a one year old baby so the weekends look different than they did before. Since I work full time, the weekends are my time with my son and you would be surprised at how high maintenance a one year old’s schedule is! He kind of rules my weekends. Typically, we will go to breakfast at about 8AM with all the other parents of babies and then take a walk or go swimming. It is usually very leisurely which feels great.

I really try to protect my weekends and not work at all. If I have to send an email or get something done, I will usually do it Sunday night to get myself ready for the week but I have really tried to draw a line with myself. It can be hard because I genuinely like working but I really try to be present as a parent.

I am so bad at staying off my phone so if you have some tips, would love to know. In terms of my computer, I usually keep it plugged in in my office and leave it there when I finish up on Friday. I find that keeping work in my office (even if it is a home office) creates a little space and distance. I used to bring my laptop into my room or worked while I watched tv and I realized that made everything feel like work. So now, I almost pretend it’s a desktop. If I need to finish something up after the baby goes to bed, I will go to the office and do it. I find it helps me just do my task and be done as opposed to getting side tracked and sucked into email. The separation of spaces is really huge for me. When I leave my designated work room, I try to leave work there.

I live in LA so the heat is starting to be a factor. Luckily, I am a big shorts person. I would say my summer weekend uniform is typically a pair of silk or linen shorts and a tank but I typically bring it home with jewelry or accessories. I am a big vintage jewelry person so I often dress pretty functional and then use the jewelry and accessories to add interest and a little bit of irreverence. If I go too functional I don’t feel like myself, but if I go too stylized or fussy I can’t do what I have to do. I find the happy medium is usually functional pieces in interesting shapes or textures which make them feel cooler. For example, I have these basketball shorts from Maria McManus that are silk and so beautiful but also functional. I either throw on a ballet flat or a flip flop with those but they are also excellent with a cute wedge flip flop if i am going somewhere fun (for once!). Similarly, I have some silk track shorts from Phoebe Philo and a taffeta pair from Kallmeyer that are super tiny. So it is all about the proportion and texture!

My other go-to is a caftan. Easy, breezy and most importantly I always feel like myself.

Being a mom is my favorite thing in the world. I had a really rough transition into motherhood (Jack spent 3 months… 90 whole days!!!...in the NICU) which was the worst thing in the world but also makes everything feel so sweet and precious. I would never wish for anyone to go through that and would prefer not to do it again, but it did give me incredible perspective and make me feel so grateful for every moment now. I wasn’t sure if he would be able to come home, if we would be able to take walks around the neighborhood, if I could give him a bottle in his nursery, so all of those super small moments felt so incredible and they still do.