Photo-Illustration: The Strategist; Pictures: Retailers
We write about hundreds of products a week. Here in our version of the Sunday Flyer we have selected some of our favorites – recommended by experts essential, life changing stuff you didn’t know you needed, newly launched gadgets and the very good deals we found out while browsing the vast universe of online shopping last week, including a salad prep shortcut, a viral ’60s book, and custom-fitted chinos.
Kitchen and accessory stylist Jess Damuck isn’t usually a kitchen gadget person, but she made an exception for this unassuming green stripper. Separating the leaves is “a boring thing, especially if you’re making big salads for a dinner party,” says Damuch, adding that “you end up wasting a lot of leaves.” But with this tool, you simply drag a piece through the appropriately sized hole, and you end up with two separate parts, resulting in “a cohesive, velvety mound of greens.” Now, Damuch quickly separates the greens – a “decidedly tedious chore” – with this shortcut.
Photo: Retailer
Contributor Steven John, who has suffered from dandruff since he was a teenager, has been searching for a solution for years. He happened to have Jupiter’s shampoo and conditioner on hand, and to his surprise, it was almost flake free after a few days of use. “Running my fingers through my hair caused a few flakes to drift, rather than thousands,” he wrote. Thrilled, but also confused, John contacted Dr. Michelle Henry, a board-certified dermatologist at Manhattan Skin and Cosmetic Surgery. Henry explains that the shampoo’s main active ingredient, pyrithione zinc, is antifungal and antibacterial to “treat yeast and any bacteria that cause scalp irritation and inflammation.” The conditioner hydrates the scalp, “creating an environment where yeast and bacteria can’t take hold in the first place.” Thanks to this balance of ingredients, John is left with “virtually flake-free head for the first time since middle school.”
Contributor Nora DeLigter noticed over the past year that every screenwriter, editor, and Ph.D. candidate from New York to Los Angeles picked up the 1962 short story Cassandra at the wedding. She set out to find “patient zero, the person at the very top of the Cassandra channel” by talking to everyone she knows who has read it. This led her down a rabbit hole of editorial assistants, producers and even actor John Early. “Meanwhile, the strands are still multiplying,” writes DeLighter, noting a recent podcast plugging the book and that production companies Neon and Seaview are co-producing a book-to-movie adaptation.
“I’m not a neat freak in most aspects of my life, but I do care about keeping my books in pristine condition,” writes Lauren Ro, strategist writer. To help keep her book jackets unripped, she purchased a set of archival Mylar book jacket covers. They’re “essentially paper-lined plastic rolls, but they’re pre-folded and ready to go,” says Ro, and covering his book covers is quick and easy. (It took Ro less than five minutes to cover one of his son’s books.) “Now the dust jacket stays put and is protected from stains, wrinkles, tears and any damage that a child of 3 years of overzealousness could inflict on her,” Ro writes. Although she doesn’t plan on using it on every book she owns, she “feels less anxious knowing I have this option at hand.” .
“There’s something about this dip that makes it impossible to stop eating once it’s opened,” musician Avril Lavigne told us when we asked her about the things she can’t go without. to live. With her Doc Martens and eyeliner, Lavigne is obsessed with Tostitos’ queso because “it’s cheesy and spicy, but none of the flavors dominate each other.” Although I eat healthy for the most part, it’s the only “junk food I have to have in my house,” she says.
In our latest episode of Don’t Dillydally, we highlighted Cold Picnic’s latest collection of candy-inspired rugs with names like Sherbet, Taro and Battenberg (as in the cake). The collection is dedicated to the founders’ immigrant parents and the Taiwanese and English desserts they grew up with, with each piece hand-tufted with bamboo silk yarn. As we note, “We are fond of the Mochi rug, which features a mix of mint, cream, watermelon, and black against a grasshopper green background.”
In our latest analysis of internet sales bins, editor Leah Muncy discovered that many Armani Beauty products are on sale at Nordstrom. This includes the brand’s buildable (and best-selling) foundation. When we spoke to makeup artists about the best foundations for mature skin, one told us that it was “the holy grail of foundation for all skin types” and that it “creates a radiant shine without a greasy finish”.
A good shampoo is essential for fine hair, so strategist writer Dominique Pariso set out to find the best options. MONDAY Haircare Volume Shampoo is a sulfate-free shampoo that Pariso has “sworn since buying it almost a year ago.” Even compared to more expensive brands, “it’s the only one that gets compliments on my hair,” she writes, noting that it “adds a good amount of body and most importantly, lots of shine without weighing my hair down or make them look greasy (and for only eight bucks a bottle, to boot).
If you’re already planning for Mother’s Day, we’ve got plenty of gift guides for every type of mom. This Keep Cup is a seriously aesthetic gift for any mom who loves chai, and it happens to be something yoga instructor Adriene Mischler can’t live without. For Mischler, it ticks all the boxes: “It doesn’t leak, it’s lightweight and it’s sleek,” she says.
“Chinos generally fall somewhere between denim and dress pants on the casual to formal spectrum,” writes Strategist writer Jordan Bowman. That means they’re quite versatile and “can be a staple in any man’s wardrobe if styled right.” Bowman set out to find a range of the best men’s chinos, including this pair of slim Uniqlo pants. Nicolás Lazaro, community specialist at menswear resale platform Grailed, calls them “the best chinos under $100 you’ll find anywhere”, adding that “with a little stitching or a cuff folded, they can look as good as, if not better than, most luxury options.” That said, while the inseam for all sizes is set at 34 inches by default, you can order the chinos online and Uniqlo will shorten them to your preferred length for free.
The strategist is designed to surface the most useful expert recommendations on things to buy in the vast e-commerce landscape. Some of our latest conquests include the best acne treatments, rolling luggage, pillows for side sleepers, natural remedies for anxietyand bath towels. We update links when possible, but note that offers may expire and all prices are subject to change.
