Y’all, I don’t know where my summer went – I suspect it’s buried beneath a pile of b-school assignments, but I can’t be sure. Somehow, I woke up last week and it was definitively fall. Thank goodness the clearance racks were good to me this past year – I’ve been culling my cool-weather wardrobe for many months now, and I’m excited to finally break out some of my VIPs:

Fashion Finds

Skinny Skinny Jeans | Madewell

My love for Madewell is well established; they’re the first brand of jeans I’ve ever found that Just Fit. I’ve been eyeing these particular pair for probably close to a year at this point – I just could never quite justify spending full Madewell prices on pre-ripped denim. Then, they went to the clearance section, where they stayed – for months – while I waited for one of Madewell’s lovely extra-percent-off-clearance sales – and when it finally happened, my size was one of few that remained. I love the dark-but-worn denim, the shape and placement of the knee rips, and the way it makes my tushie look. Yes ma’am.

Mira Heel | Madewell

More Madewell, y’all. These heels are EVERYTHING. The suede is a beautiful deep teal, and though the heels are high they’ve padded the bed such that they’re insanely comfortable. The geometry of the toe box provides coverage to my challenging feet while still having a bit of toe cleavage at the front. And seriously, the color. I almost bought them in beige; I’m so glad I didn’t.

Twill Cape | Halogen

After a few years of seeing them in magazines and half loving and half laughing, I finally decided I needed a cape. This beauty was part of Nordstrom’s Anniversary Sale, so it was all over the blogs, and even came in petite sizing! Still, even at the $85 sale price it tasted just a bit too spendy for me. However, it was one of the lucky pieces to go almost immediately from Anniversary Sale to Clearance, and its final price rested around $40 – at which point I promptly added it to my closet.

The key to a great cape as a petite is the shape – and this one’s got it. There are two basic types of outerwear capes: jackets with cape backs, or all-over capes with slits for the arms. The latter is not ideal for petites, as it transforms the upper body into a shapeless mass. This one falls into the former category, and worn gives off a bit of a Solange’s wedding vibe. Sadly, it’s no longer available in petites or misses, but if you’re plus size you’re in great luck!

Beauty Buys

Restore Mask Treatment | Living Proof

With autumn comes cold weather; with cold weather comes dry winds. Living Proof’s hair products are the best, and the Restore Mask Treatment is a beautiful addition to anyone’s cold weather hair lineup. One thing I love about Living Proof is that their products are almost all oil-free – those who’ve followed my skincare posts know that I believe in binding moisture with ingredients that act as water magnets, rather than trapping it with heavy oils, and I feel no differently about hair products. The Restore lineup helps rebuild hair’s proteins to minimize its porousness, which makes it feel softer, shinier, and lighter. As someone who possesses very fine hair and an oily scalp to boot, I’m generally afraid of any deep conditioning treatment, but this stuff is spectacular.

Stay All Day Liquid Liner | Stila

One of my beauty resolutions for 2015 was to grow my comfort with liquid liner. I’ve gone through a few brands I really love, but none hold a candle to Stila’s. This liner has a felt tip, which increases ease of use exponentially, and the black is a very intense, opaque black. And, true to its name, once it’s on it doesn’t budge or bleed until you take the remover to it.

Blush Subtil Duo | Lancôme

I’ve found it – my very perfect blush. The pale pink of this blush makes for a perfect flushed look, and the cream highlighter that comes packaged with it is a beautiful rose gold that perfectly complements it. I’m concerned, now, because this is part of a limited edition set. If Lancôme decides to keep it around for good, I’ll be a happy lady.

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What are your must-haves this fall, Team PCA?