It’s that time of the year when the darkness comes earlier and there’s a sudden chill in the air. Our thoughts turn to steaming mugs of hot chocolate in front of a roaring fire and long walks in the countryside to admire the fall foliage.

At home, we yearn for warmth and coziness, bundling ourselves up in knits, flannel, and wool. One of the best places to shop online for beautiful autumn nightwear, blankets and throws is Toast. I’ve selected my favorite pieces (see below) from the fall-winter Toast catalog: flannel pajamas, djellaba and gown, and woolen blankets designed by Eleanor Pritchard.

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James Perse, the Los Angeles-based designer, has opened a boutique in downtown San Francisco, in the space formerly occupied by agnes b. I stumbled upon the store today by accident. The sales people told me that many agnes b. clients had been stopping by in the last few days, not knowing agnes b. had closed, and that they looked very sad. While I’m not exactly too thrilled to see agnes b. leave the SF Bay Area (and indeed the entire United States west of NYC — they closed their LA boutique too), I am happy to see James Perse take over the location.

I am a fan of Perse’s super soft t-shirts which fit like a dream. There’s nothing like them on the market today. The short-sleeved cotton shirts with side paneling (see above, left) fit like a glove and make your waist look tiny. I like to wear the black paneled shirt over the dark grey t-shirt.

Aside from shirts, they carry women’s clothes and hoodies and they have a sizeable menswear collection, too.

James Perse
33 Grant Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94105
+1 415 398 7400
www.jamesperse.com

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Check out our sister site, Mapplr.com, for travel news and reviews of the coolest boutique hotels and restaurants around the world.

One of my favorite clothing brands, Comptoir des Cotonniers, is opening a store-in-store at Bloomingdales’ 59th Street flagship store in New York City. What do I love about Comptoir? The style is very French and feminine, like agnes b. but more informal, relaxed and much less expensive. Comptoir is a great place to buy basics like t-shirts (long and short-sleeved), breezy summer dresses, jackets, and trousers for everyday wear.

Comptoir des Cotonniers’s first boutique in New York City is located at 155 Spring Street in Soho. With the opening of this branch in Bloomingdales, the company just made it more convenient for women to buy their clothes. If you are in Paris, make sure you stop by any of the Comptoir des Cotonniers boutiques in the city. Check out my Paris shopping guide.

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Check out our sister site, Mapplr.com, for travel reviews of the coolest boutique hotels and restaurants around the world. Make sure you visit Mapplr before going to Paris, NYC, Amsterdam . . . .