Still Want To Dress Like A 1992 J.Crew Catalog Model?
Here's this summer's starter kit
I wrote a letter about a topic I felt passionately about—the enduring perfection of J.Crew’s nineties catalogs—a year ago. I thought, “Maybe a few people will get it!” It’s my most popular letter to date.
All my choices from last summer stand, of course, but I thought I’d update with some more core pieces, and plenty of secondhand options, to keep the normcore vibes flowing this season. And if you embraced the way of dressing a year ago, here’s your reminder to pull your washed button up and white canvas sneakers out from the back of the closet. Old J.Crew is forever.
Striped swimsuit
Here’s my philosophy on swimsuits: find what works and stick to it. This is not a category where I’m compelled to “innovate.” Within a given silhouette, you can get fancy with prints. Spending a medium amount of money on swimsuits makes sense to me: guarantees you more than one season of wear without making you feel precious about sunscreen stains.
I’ve always loved J.Crew’s swimsuits and find they fit quite neatly in that medium pile. You can buy swimsuits secondhand and there’s nothing wrong with it, but it’s not Level One secondhand shopping—I’ll say that much.
This stripe is so fun and very 90s. I would wear a massive white button down on top and these sunnies!
This is not in the middle category as far as spending, but I’ve been curious about Hunza G forever.
People were raving about Left on Friday in the Long Live chat and I must say, this is chic chic!
Athleta swim—a sleeper hit! Trust me! This striped bikini looks super comfortable and feels 90s in a good way.
Sporty skort/shorts
has been evangelizing about skorts for a while now. We all know to trust when she says a trend storm is brewing. I’m opting out of skorts after trying to failing to get into to for seven years, but there’s no reason that should stop you! Lots of brands are going to their 90s archives for inspo here. Why not go straight to the source? 
Opt for a sporty skort or short as your beach coverup and add a rollneck for when it gets cold at night.
This Adidas skort from the 90s is so sick and $50.
Deeply obsessed with this skort and it would not have made it to this letter if it was in my size…
If you insist on shopping new, I prefer an a-line shape.
Something simple and clean in a size 6 for $17.
Polka dotted dress
These run rampant at your local thrift store. But don’t worry! There are lots online, too. The size of the polka dots matters. Anything too small feels busy. My favorite and most wearable color combo (IMO) is brown with white dots. Navy comes in second. Black in third.
And if you’re a man, you should be in a tie and rolled chinos at the beach. It’s just the respectful thing to do!
Wide white pants
The good news? We covered this topic a few weeks back and you should be armed with all the wide leg white pants you could ever dream of!
Finding a pair that feels like you might involve some trial and error, but don’t give up! Once you have a fit that feels great, you can reorder forever, even if you find the brand secondhand; set an eBay alert!
This white linen vintage set might be a little more Nancy Meyers than Old J.Crew but it’s great either way.
These are sharp and would make getting dressed for office life in the summer a breeze.
Very cool vintage Armani option for $50.
You all know: drawstring pants are very important to me.
Longer shorts than last summer
This one’s easy. Give your tiny denim shorts a breather and embrace something a little more “dad’s on a long weekend and left his pager at home.” This is another item best sourced secondhand. And a tailor can help you nail a length that makes you feel super confident and cool.
Picnic basket encouraged, but not necessary.
A 90s denim short option to replace your cut offs from college.
What I love about this Donni pair is that you could pair with a big chunky sweater in the fall with boots. They’re just as cool with a bikini top.
I just LOVE the fastening on these $22 Talbots shorts.
Color blocking
This one’s simple. Pull out solid, colorful items from your closet. Toss them on your bed. And get inspired. Maybe you always wear olive green with navy. Now’s the time to try it with lilac! And that royal blue skirt you swear you’ll wear someday…that day’s today and it’s with a kelly green tshirt.
Mixing and matching bikinis gives me PTSD from 2013, but this is a very sophisticated use case.
You might surprise yourself with how easy this bright pink Ralph Lauren linen shirt is to pair with other colors.
Now’s the time to get into chocolate brown, especially if you were hesitant last summer. Pair this with your white pants above or over a blue swimsuit.
Another bright colored linen option that feels totally limitless! This is $65 and I would offer $50.
Easy breezy skirt for experimenting with other colors.
Canvas tote
This bag looks great on the cover of a J.Crew catalog, but let’s be real, it’s canvas or nothing come summer time.
You can keep it simple or go crazy on the secondhand market.
This will last 45 seconds before someone picks it up for $40.
We discussed this on Tuesday, but I’m lowkey vibing with the Lands’ End new striped totes.
I’ll always love a mini canvas tote. I love these for gifts!
Amazing vintage take and only $40!
Blue Varsity stripes
An athletic nod just makes my heart happy. A little double stripe on the sleeve? It’s such a fun way to elevate from a plain tshirt. Think of this as the high summer equivalent of a rugby shirt.
This color scheme just makes me smile.
Here’s a $30 option in a perfect blue.
Or go for the real thing with this Etsy vintage find.
Honorable Mentions
Have you downloaded Carted yet? It's simple to save any product from any store in one central place. Plus, you'll be notified if/when the product goes on sale. Next time you feel the shoppies, you can simply add to your Carted account and save for later.
Dealing with pregnancy insomnia (cool!) but this Perelel magnesium powder is a godsend. And in the meantime, I curated a list of chic shower curtains in the middle of the night…
Obsessed with the Crown Affair x DS & Durga collab.
If you’re obsessed with work, this podcast is a very interesting listen.
Thank you for reading Long Live. It means so much to me. You can preorder my romance novel, Exit Lane, on Bookshop or Amazon. You can shop my favs here, follow along on Instagram + Tiktok, and shop my Notion template. You can book my Office Hours to talk shop here. Get matched at EV Salon. And if you want to partner on a future Long Live, email evan@communite.co x
One of the best fights I ever had with my mom in the early 90s was over her refusing to buy me “$30 plain red T-shirt” from J Crew because, “I can get you the same for less from LL bean or land’s end!” And I shouted, “when I grow up all I want is to afford J Crew!” To which SHE LAUGHED IN MY FACE & said, “oh god, I hope you’re not that shallow!” (I’m not that shallow, but the grip those catalogs had on me!!!!)
Now I know what to do with the two small canvas totes that were given to our family years ago and have been languishing in the basement. They are both a traditional light color, one with green handles and one with red. Thanks for opening up new possibilities for me to dress like a 90s J. Crew model (I was in college back then)! Happy summer, Erika!