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The Good Buy is a podcast from Harper’s Bazaar in which editors Leah Chernikoff and Lynette Nylander invite celebrities, designers, models, and tastemakers to talk shop: what they buy, where they got it, and why it matters. Come down the fashion rabbit hole and take a peek inside the closets and shopping carts of the world’s most stylish people. Learn how they use style to tell their stories.
The Good Buy welcomes its third guest to this season of the podcast, Ella Emhoff. As the former Second Daughter and a wearer of many hats—model, designer, and tastemaker—Emhoff has been widely embraced by the fashion community since the moment she wore that Miu Miu coat on inauguration day. Since then, she’s walked the Balenciaga fall/winter ‘21 couture show, started her own knit club, and became an avatar of Gen Z style.
From her “tumblr-era” high school style—which included American Apparel disco pants and platform leather Skechers—to her current refined wardrobe rooted in sportswear and tailored dressing, Ella Emhoff knows a thing or two about a good buy. On this week’s episode, she talks about abdicating her throne as the “Queen of Bushwick,” all things knitting, and taking major fashion risks. Read on for highlights, and listen to the show in full here or watch it above.
On her personal style:
“In the past year or so, I’ve just wanted to prioritize comfort…where I have a set of pieces that I love wearing, or silhouettes that I know are going to work—just having quality pieces. It’s very based in menswear, sportswear, and tailored dressing.”
On dressing outside the codes of D.C. style:
“I didn’t even know there were codes and I think that’s why I’ve continued to break fashion barriers in politics and I guess in Washington. There really hasn’t been someone, I guess with my taste or style or kind of preferences. It’s just different.”
On modeling:
“I was definitely an extremely self-conscious kid. [I had] so much stage-fright, I couldn’t even give a presentation in front of my class. I think once I moved to New York and started surrounding myself with people who pushed me to be myself and have more confidence, the whole idea of modeling became less I would never do it and more so, Oh yeah, I’m in New York, it’s around me, whatever.”
On knitting:
“In true ‘me’ crafty fashion, I was like What am I going to do with all of these stained t-shirts? I can’t donate them—I would never. They’re just gross and I’m not going to just throw them away. So I started turning all of my old t-shirts into yarn.”
On her knit club:
“I was becoming a slave to my phone. I was like Why am I always on this? Why am I filling up space to do this—searching for the community that I have the platform and the ability to create in person? If I’m feeling this, I know I’m not alone. I know there are a bunch of people in New York like me who are just wanting to find that sense of togetherness. It’s a third space that has like-minded people, but also isn’t surrounded by alcohol or drugs. And just surrounded by meeting new people and focusing on yourself.”
Shop Ella’s Good Buys
HER FIRST BUY:
“I think the first thing for me, pre-engaging in fashion, was my Coach leather crossbody vintage bag. That was such an epitome of just nice construction, [an] everyday bag, something that would last me forever. To this day, I’ve always been super intentional about the stuff that I buy and the longevity of it. I still have that bag and it’s beaten to death, but it holds up really well.”
Vintage Large Legacy Zip Bag
$525.00 at coach
“And then, [for] older Ella, my first buy—where I was like Oh, I get it. I get why people do this. I get why people put their work [and] money into this—was after I had walked the Balenciaga couture show, which was already crazy for me, I bought a pair of the steel-toe platform combat boots. It was the most expensive thing I’d ever bought at that point.”
Women’s Strike Platform Bootie in Black
$1450.00 at balenciaga.com
HER REGRET BUY:
“I got this Loewe dress and I don’t know what I was thinking…It’s blue. It has a huge, almost Victorian prairie collar, and it’s got a really tight bodice, a huge skirt, and big billowy sleeves. It was one of those freaky pieces where I was like, I’m going to wear this to all of the events! I get dressed for these events, I don’t need a dress like that. And it was a full runway piece and I got it and then it just proceeded to take space and sit in my closet for a year and a half until I decided to sell it.”
HER REPEAT BUY:
“White t-shirts. T-shirts in general. Number one right now is [from] Everybody.World. I also really love the Calvin Klein fine ribbed capped tee ones. I just discovered this brand [called] Plain Jane that is New York-based, and they have really mastered the understanding of ‘no shirt is created equal.’ There’s this brand called Blanks by Thirteen—they just make blanks. It’s similar to the Everybody.World [t-shirt], but a little thicker, more structured. Kind of similar to a Uniqlo U situation, which is next on my list. It’s really good—same with Muji. I kind of have those ranked in a similar vein.”
Boxier Trash Tee
$40.00 at everybody.world
Add to cart
$35.00 at blanksbythirteen.com
U AIRism Cotton Oversized T-Shirt
$14.90 at uniqlo.com
Cotton Contour Rib T-Shirt
$31.50 at calvinklein
HER DREAM BUY:
“This brand Small Talk Studios. They make these just really sick, custom hand-drawn pants, [and a] great silhouette. I mean all the stuff they’re doing is really cool.”
Custom Off-White Hand-Drawn Pants
$1200.00 at smalltalkstudio.biz
HER MOST RECENT GOOD BUY:
“It’s not a clothing piece, but I found this Olive Oyl phone from the cartoon ‘Popeye’ and it’s Olive Oyl and her baby Sweet Pea. It’s a weird rubberized version of them and they’re just chilling on the base of the phone–it’s like a landline.”
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