Investing in Your Home Body: Cozy Necessities

Audrey Hobert once said, “And anyway, when I get home, I take off my cool clothes, cuz why would I stay in those” and I live by that every day.

Here is a list of cozy necessities I would rather spend all of my money on than anything involving leaving the house.

P.S. I tried to keep my items to Canadian brands or brands that are available in-store for Canadian retailers. These are trying times, so I’m trying.

P.P.S I didn’t try very hard. I started with an Australian brand.

Sweatshirts

Let’s talk brands. Butter is a streetwear brand that existed before it’s namesake was a colour that broke the internet. For all my Dime lovers (you are not special), this brand is your next in line. I know one of their stockists is a streetwear store in Montreal that my ex introduced me to, coincidentally called Exo, but the brand has an extensive list of their Canadian stockists on their website that I highly recommend you checking out. And if you don’t want to. Ssense. Just Ssense.

Mr. Winston is the epitome of exclusivity. This Australian brand releases monthly small drops, that usually include a variation of their hero item, the puff sweater, as well as a matching puff makeup bag, a lace top and matching skirt. And that’s it. They sell out too quickly forcing you to keep their countdown home-page open as a tab for days on end. I am currently doing so, waiting for their archive sale that starts in 14 hours, six minutes and 12 seconds. And usually, I would not subscribe to this transatlantic craziness. But they called their sweats “puff” and sue me, I wanna dress myself in puff (*Edit – I bought the puff).

Ah Dime, you sick son of a bitch. Every out-of-province student in Montreal has you in their closet and thinks they have the key to the city. The city being that group of mildly attractive skaters that say ‘sup’ when you walk in the store then confer with their colleagues that that sounded cool and pretend not to notice that you were here yesterday, and yes, in fact, you are wearing the shirt you bought from them less than 24 hours ago. True story. Anyways, there’s nothing more to say about Dime. Grab a hoodie and join the cult.

Sweatpants

Let’s acknowledge my bias. I have two pairs of the below Alo sweats that I’ve collected over the years and will be buying another pair on Black Friday. That being said, are they the most interesting pair of sweats? No. But the fleece lining has me wearing them to bed more than once a week. This Ashley Williams pair, however, might just get me to wear sweats out of the house. And that is remarkable. (I’m acting like I didn’t just go to class last week wearing my black Alo’s with a hole in the knee).

Guys this just got so dangerous for me. I’ve been rooting for Tea You for years now. They’re a very small Canadian brand with the softest looking sweat sets in beautiful shades like the one below and I haven’t heard anyone talk about them. I need them to succeed as a Canadian brand, but I’ve been concerned, okay? Their stock has slowly been dropping, no more dozen colour ways, only this one. So I checked their website before writing this to make sure they were still kicking and what do I find? Another gosh-darned locked website with a countdown sale taunting me to join early access. And it’s in 35 minutes. You will have missed it unfortunately, but my tabs just increased by one. (*Edit – I bought again.)

I don’t have much to say about Kotn. Incredible name, great brand visibility, these sweats look up to par.

Pyjamas

I don’t think I’ve ever gotten a pyjama set that wasn’t from Victoria Secret and that’s a crime. Because I’m not a VS fan and yet I subconsciously subscribe to their piped lining sets that, let’s face it, are boring. I want this blue floral set from Cou Cou Intimates that I will wear exactly like the model because she is selling that set for me. Cereal in a hotel room I’m eating on one foot? That’s so me! Now the other girl, the Victorian child ghost is not my personal vibe, but I could definitely see some of my friends wearing this Reformation set, opening their presents on Christmas morning with rosy cheeks and wet hair. My god, would you have to hide this set on your period.

So I realize my whole, ‘I tried to keep this to Canadian retailers’ is total crap. You really think Daphne, founded by American reality tv star, Paige DeSorbo, is hosting a pop up in Toronto? Funny. Frankly, I believe that if you’re buying this set, you’re buying for the cultural capital (Izzy don’t laugh). You wanna watch Summer House and listen to Giggly Squad in this set and say you’re having a DeSorbo night. And you know what? I listen to Giggly Squad so I’m not too far off.

This is not necessarily different to Skims. Clearly also a celebrity brand, yet with greater inventory to offer and reputable enough to trust their products’ quality. You can, however, find Skims at your local Holts so there is that.

Bras

I haven’t bought a new bra in probably 6 years. I have my bralettes from Aritzia, that one underwire cup bra from VS I use to contain my underwear in when I travel, and then I would just go braless. But see, I’m 22 now and it’s November and it’s not so necessary to be braless anymore especially with how cold it is outside. I think it was definitely a trend to reject cup bras, a trend long overdue more so for significance than physicality, but now we have to correct those 6 years and buy the right kind of bra. I want softness, good support, and straps that won’t leave a mark when I take it off. Fruity Booty and Cou Cou Intimates are the right kind of brand for the new age of bras.

And now we get to have a little fun with our bras. Hope Macaulay is a beautiful knitwear brand fro the UK that gained prominence in the Covid era but has retained their status with the quality of their knits. Chunky is the name of the game and sue me again I want a Chunky Bra. This bra will be worn cooking dinner for myself, reading a book on the couch, and maybe even to a music festival in the summer. She’s VERSATILE.

I sincerely admire Oddli as a brand. I’m a huge fan of young women starting their own clothing brands and Oddli is a great example of that. Although an LA native, their bras speak to women their age, grungy plaid sets that make my little heart excited. You’ll squeal when you see the matching underwear below.

Underwear

I need new underwear and I know you do to. Again with the VS nonsense, and I swear it’s pure convenience but it’s time to break free and buy underwear you’re excited to wear. This pair of matching bloomers (how cute!) to the Oddli bralette above is the girl equivalent to men’s holiday boxers. I want to see this gorgeous orange plaid peeking out of your low rise Dime jeans while you’re out thrifting with your girlfriend. GAH.

And then there’s the 3-pack. Just take my money we’ll do the math and carry the one later.

I have this one pair of boy shorts that I stole from my sister years ago. It’s from Garage and it’s long gone from their manufacturer’s factories – HOLY SHIT it’s 1:02 brb gotta catch that Tea You sale!!

Okay I’m back. I got the Rover Pant and the Wide Leg Cruiser! I tell you, the thrill I get from supporting small Canadian female-founded brands is akin to watching my sister run a half marathon. Lots of cheering and open mouth smiling involved. I don’t really have much else to say about these undies so I’m just going to move on.

Robes

I never saw the use for a robe prior to university. I couldn’t see the window of opportunity to wear a robe. I mean you shower, then you change. That’s that. But you see I was close-minded, and only when I moved in with my best friends did I realize there was a whole lot of time in which you should be in a robe. When you’re doing your makeup before a big night out, do it in a robe. When you’re in sweats already but you’re still cold, throw a damn robe on! When you make your coffee in the morning and look out the window with a hot mug in your hand, this is prime robe time!!!!

Personally, this Hill House robe is not my taste but the brand is notable for quality and I definitely have some friends who would love this. Now this Skims red flannel robe? I’m listening to Cinema by Harry Styles right now and he just said ‘I don’t know why but it feels so right to me” and could he be more topical! He goes ‘I just think you’re cool’ and I just think purchase.

This Paul Smith robe is a collector’s item for me. I just think it’s so cool and I wanna be seen wearing it, like I would actually leave the house in it. This is a robe you would wear with a t-shirt underneath, singing Adele like you just got your tonsils removed, and the neighbours banging on your door to turn the music down. It’s that cool.

When you’re buying a Tekla product, you’re buying the brand. This Danish brand gained prominence alongside other Scandinavian brands like Ganni a few years ago and has maintained their sense of national authority as their influence grew internationally. Don’t get me wrong, their products look like heaven with a housekeeper but do they have to be so expensive?

Miscellaneous

I know you have slippers already but wouldn’t you want another pair? Don’t you want slippers that hasn’t had dishwater splashed on them and strictly maintained that whole ‘indoor shoe’ persona? Yeah. So go for it. You know where the nearest Ugg store is. It’s in that mall you hate.

And talk about the nearest Indigo store because you have to have a pair of reading socks! They have grips on the bottom and fleece on the inside and honestly, they’re a cult classic for winter. Indigo should really capitalize on their icon status actually. Do something buzzy.

A weighted blanket is that item you’re friend has that makes you excited to go over to their house. Like they could come over to your house but you don’t have a weighted blanket so you should really go to theirs. Ya know?

Well hello, Jelly King Gift Pack…

So at the end of the day, I am now poor and you were (hopefully) entertained? BYE!