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The Cereal Aisle by Leandra Medine Cohen · 2026-09-22 · 6 MIN READ

Letter of Rec #123: How to wear a navy blazer without looking preppy

Plus: ITS PONCHO TIME

Leandra Medine Cohen
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A tight sampling of the main event, featuring Veronica Beard’s ‘Trailblazer,’ which is almost sold out, but no matter: she is still around, and when we’re done here, we can explore this, this, this too. Fyi, you can get button brooches to spruce any of the above up!!!

I just ordered these cargo pants (sized up x2 for mega slouch) and this cape (it’s definitely a cape, but I’d rather call it a poncho) and look forward to wearing them together in like a month. I think the combo has the potential to become uniform. Inner-layer is either this henley (the bell sleeve is everything) or a shell turtleneck. Shoes are something like this or Bensimon’s this. Maybe an interior boot like this! For sure there are sunglasses.

The cape and cargos in question, with what were mvp shoes of the summer closed. They r transitioning into a great pair for the fall.

Reason I’d rather call the cape a poncho: I suspect the season is upon us and it sounds punchier/less stuffy this way. Year of the poncho!!! They’re all I want to style around (with, surprisingly, the exception of straightforward blazers). At market there are good

Even though crucial aesthetic qualities differentiate these poncho/capes, my sense is that they’re here as an expansion of the influence that the old west has been having in fashion. And if last year we nailed the concho/rodeo buckle belt and cowboy boot, and the year before we went long on fringe jackets, this year my prediction is that we’ll forgo sleeve holes altogether.

Wear a navy blazer, don’t look too preppy

Also opting for a lot of navy. Are you finding that too? Black is forever don’t get me wrong, but…these pants, in navy. This cardigan too. This polo. The baby tee, the silk shirt, the skirt. It’s softer than black, but tougher than brown. Maybe a little preppier in conceit, but not if handled with the right intention — like avoid pairing camel suede loafers (these boots are fair game) with it and you’re 50% there. Here’s a navy blazer — one among the truest emblems of fall! from Veronica Beard (good right now! Did you see these wild jeans? The Madison windows always get me) — styled three (fine, 5) ways with nary a sailboat nearby.

Veronica Beard’s ‘Trailblazer’ (you can monogram a little mantra on the inside which you’ll see further down), styled with All Three’s ‘Claire’ tank (unbelievably, black is on sale here. Run don’t walk!) and ‘Spade’ pants, a Cordera belt (with a pendant locked into it!). You have an expensive, designer pick of your litter here with Etro (obsessed with the moon buckle), The Row, Tods
You’ll notice that the color palette here could skew pretty preppy but because of the shapes (plunging neckline [not an alt but a great slinky deep v here; I like this one from Cos too), low rise pants [I sure do continue to love Khaite’s ‘Karo’, masculine footwear [VB’s ‘Prilla’ if you’re more of a loafer gal!]) and the jewelry choices (bold silver with wild stones), I’m in the clear. The pictured shoes are Jamie Haller.
The trailblazer with a long sleeve crew neck from Frank & Eileen, my collab shorts with Relax, B-low the Belt’s suede bag (try the fringe next?) and Gabriela Hearst riding boots (you gotta click on the dark brown option).
Optic white (just got this tee too, I recommend) and black are great contrasts for navy. The wayfarers add something special too.
Here we’re dressed for one errant of the 80-degree days that seem gone but will greet us on the other side of the more consistent chill in the air rn — it’s a Miu Miu dress with crochet boob cups (found on TRR; love this one to style over w a marled knit too) toughened up by a dark bead choker (made by moi).
Also employs the same blazer (obv), and some dependable French sandals from Soeur. So many good things happening there right now. The bag is Savette.
This is like Sandra Bullock in Miss Congeniality (pre makeover) meets sweaty summer night
Veronica Beard blazer, your silk button down here, 16 Arlington skirt (another slip dress option to wear layered under a good knit), The Row suede shoes. Sunglasses are Oliver Peoples; love these from Dries x Linda Farrow so much too
And here’s your blazer one more time with the mantra exposed. The jeans are Doen, shoes are The Row. (More stock of these.) I must say I do still love Mansur’s ballet heel — and then these from Tory are lit. Wore this outfit like 3x last week. It’s a good transitioner!
She says ‘Go slow.’ Need to remind myself this time of year more than any other that good things take time!!! (And that you’re more likely to catch your stupid typos if you chill the F out). Necklace can be found heeeere. Cuffs too!

On the matter of footwear

Speaking of shoes, I’ve reached my limit with sandals. For years I stretched their shelf life, choosing to style them with unconventional partners like a wool pant suit or socks deep into December but these days it’s concealed toes for me baby.

I started to tease this when the inkling came through at the end of last summer and all I wanted to (and p much did) wear were cowboy boots with high rise pants and tank tops, but the quality of what makes the shoe right is expanding. Some recent hits:

  • Dear Frances (with skinny flare pants. These from Spanx are my fav and I’m not even kidding; I always size height for a petite so they’re a tiny bit cropped)

  • Staud kitten heel (especially with a bordering-on-dowdy skirt)

    Styled with a great Rohe sweater. Also dropping in the Tory kitties once more bc they’re good!

  • Jamie Haller brogue (as seen above. Great with a barrel leg)

  • And then I don’t have these YET, but you bet you bottom toothpick they’re on MY LIST

Then we touched on this in the last letter but how are you feeling about chokers these days? I’m working on one, 3-rows of white pearls with a pave diamond pendant that has coral and lapis lazuli stones hanging off. The vibe is kind of like this,

which took me threeeeeee months to get right but man she was worth the wait. A few more at market that I’ve been looking at:

If it’s not a choker, it’s a very long strand of beads. Marisa Klass really nailed it with this one —

Stiff grey cotton baby tee
Styled with a tank from Depop, Dries van Noten’s cummerbund (I got a small) and All Three spade pants

But as colors get darker and materials less textured, I think a long white strand of pearls could be exactly the levity the time-honored, reliable dull looks of later fall/winter will beg for. A good grey t-shirt and the world’s greatest pants look fine on their own, but you’re EXCITED to get out the door with the pearls in the room, no?

Love you,

Leandra

✧

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