Stories by

Willa Townsend

Just a girl with killer taste

14 stories

The Head Scarf Solves Three Problems At Once

The Head Scarf Solves Three Problems At Once

A head scarf solves three problems at once: sun on a parting, hair in an open car and three days of salt water. I picked eight silk scarves, eight that are not silk, and earrings that do not catch on the knot.

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When Is Resort Season: Dresses, Cover-Ups and Straw Accessories

When Is Resort Season: Dresses, Cover-Ups and Straw Accessories

Resort season is when resort collections reach stores in November, for trips taken in January. I picked eight resort dresses, eight cover-ups and the straw accessories that go with them.

What Shoes to Wear With Jeans: A Hem-First Guide to Flats, Loafers and Boots

What Shoes to Wear With Jeans: A Hem-First Guide to Flats, Loafers and Boots

What shoes to wear with jeans depends on the cut: this edit pairs ballet flats, loafers, heeled booties, knee boots and slim sneakers with the hem they suit. I would start with where the denim ends and choose the shoe from there.

Mary Jane Flats Outfits: Straps, Tailoring and Straight Denim

Mary Jane Flats Outfits: Straps, Tailoring and Straight Denim

Mary jane flats outfits look modern when the straps meet sharp tailoring, restrained color, straight denim, and clean skirts. This edit focuses on grown-up leather, patent, and suede pairs that feel polished rather than overly sweet.

How to Wear Fringe This Fall

How to Wear Fringe This Fall

Fringe fashion works this fall if you wear it with restraint, after it showed up all over the New York spring shows this September. I go through fringe skirts and dresses, knits, tops and coats, and bags, scarves and shoes.

Hair Thickening Shampoo, and What It Can Actually Fix

Hair Thickening Shampoo, and What It Can Actually Fix

A hair thickening shampoo cannot add strands to your scalp, but it can lift the ones you have and coat them so they read as denser under light. The category splits into two honest lanes: scalp treatments built around a stimulating routine, and coating formulas that swell the cuticle on contact. Both are worth understanding before you commit to a bottle.

Knee High Heels Are The Cold Weather Power Move

Knee High Heels Are The Cold Weather Power Move

Knee high heels are the boot that does the most work in the coldest months, because a tall shaft and a real heel solve two problems at once. Stacked heels, moto hardware and clean suede. The current run is more varied than the category usually is.

Melissa Joy Manning Jewelry: Recycled Gold and Sculptural Design

Melissa Joy Manning Jewelry: Recycled Gold and Sculptural Design

Melissa Joy Manning jewelry pairs sculptural design with recycled metals and hand-finished details, tracing the label's artful roots in silversmithing.

Dinner Jewelry Is Not Day Jewelry

Dinner Jewelry Is Not Day Jewelry

Candlelight shows outline and reflection, not detail, so small fine pieces disappear. Eight earrings, eight necklaces and eight cuffs chosen for low light.

My Fall Makeup Essentials

My Fall Makeup Essentials

Fall makeup, for me, is about warmth and a little glow rather than more coverage. I want skin that looks like skin, eyes with some depth, cheeks that read as a flush and lips that feel cared for. These are the formulas I am reaching for as the light gets lower.

The Platform Sandal Makes a Case for Height

The Platform Sandal Makes a Case for Height

A styling guide to platform sandals, midi dresses and clutches, weighing volume, proportion and how much height an outfit needs.

The Pearl Necklace Has Outgrown Its Dress Code

The Pearl Necklace Has Outgrown Its Dress Code

Pearl necklace styling, from the familiar strand to supporting knits and boots, is considered through a polished, wearable lens.

Linen Pants Women Actually Want to Rewear All Summer

Linen Pants Women Actually Want to Rewear All Summer

Linen pants women reach for every summer are the ones that solve linen's one real problem, which is that the fiber wrinkles the moment you sit down in it, by cutting the silhouette wide and loose enough that creasing reads as texture rather than mess. The fabric itself comes from flax and breathes in a way cotton cannot match at the same weight. Dozens of pairs below, from a tailored wide leg to a pull-on that could pass for pajamas in the right light.

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Activewear That Works as Hard Off the Mat as On It

Activewear That Works as Hard Off the Mat as On It

Activewear that works as hard off the mat as on it. A guide to Revolve's versatile sets and separates for class, coffee and everything between.

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