RUSSH editors’ May wish list blends practical luxury and cool-weather style

As the air turns crisp, RUSSH’s May wish list lands in that sweet spot between useful and indulgent: clothes that fix a wardrobe problem, skincare that earns its place on the sink, and accessories that make an outfit look considered in one move. It is the kind of edit that explains 2026 taste in one glance: practical luxury, no fuss, and nothing that looks too precious to use.

Mia Steiber is dressing like the commute matters

Mia Steiber’s list is built around the kind of pieces that make everyday dressing feel less annoying. The standout is low-rise suit pants, and SIR’s Rivoli Trouser is the sort of pair that makes the case for the silhouette immediately: a wide-leg cut, a low-mid rise, and a smooth wool-blend finish for USD $460. If you want the same idea with a softer, earthier read, Rowie is the obvious lane, because this is really about a trouser that can go from office to dinner without looking corporate. Her other smart buy is a plain brown belt with a simple buckle, the fastest way to make those lower-slung pants feel intentional rather than nostalgic.

She is also leaning hard into the dependable basics that make a wardrobe work. Free People’s v-neck tanks start at $38, while styles like the Margaux Tank sit at $78, which is exactly why the brand keeps showing up when a sold-out cult tank needs a quick replacement. Mia’s chocolate set from DISSH hits the same note: the label’s chocolate edit ranges from a $60 scoop-neck tank to $260 knitwear, with satin pants at $159, so the set feels polished without becoming precious. If you want to understand the mood, this is it: clothes that look like style, but behave like infrastructure.

Her winter wardrobe is rounded out by Ena Pelly, where the current outerwear mood is decisively more substantial. The Emma Utility Suede Jacket is $640, which is not casual money, but it does explain the appeal of buying one really good cold-weather layer instead of five mediocre ones. That same logic runs through her cleansing routine, where Emma Lewisham’s Illuminating Oil Cleanser is $84 and Rationale’s #4 The PreCleanse Balm is $134. These are the sort of products that make sense as gifts because they are not decorative. They get used twice a day, which is the highest compliment in beauty.

Samantha Corry is having a very good colour moment

Samantha Corry’s taste is less about blending in and more about finding the right kind of statement piece. DÔEN’s Petra Cardigan in Rosebud is $328, and it shows why soft pink has become such an easy insider color: it reads gentle, but not childish, and looks far more expensive than a basic neutral sweater. That instinct carries into the Zimmermann sweater she cannot stop thinking about, the Rebellion Drawn Sweater in Red/Cream Stripe, which is $725 and comes from the Cruise 2026 collection. She first clocked a red-and-white striped Zimmermann sweater on Lana Del Rey at the Zimmermann show in Paris on October 6, 2025, and that is exactly the kind of celebrity reference that turns a knit into a shortcut.

The rest of her list is very much about the gift someone will wear more than once. Brown heeled Tabis remain one of the easiest ways to signal that you know your fashion references, and Maison Margiela’s brown Tabi heeled boots are sitting at $1,304 on Farfetch. Diamond drop earrings do the same job with less attitude, and Catbird’s Angel Hair Pavé Diamond Drop Earring is $428 a single, which is exactly the point: fine jewelry should feel like a small event every time you fasten it. The Dragon Diffusion x Rixo bag she has on her radar is even better if you want a present that reads as current rather than trendy. Rixo’s Amoria Leather Bag is $430, the Lucine leather bag is $570, and the Roxella belt is $230, all of them pulled from a limited collaboration rooted in vintage charm and traditional weaving.

Cassandra Dimitroff is buying pieces with texture, not just polish

Cassandra Dimitroff’s picks are the tactile, slightly unexpected ones that make a gift feel editor-approved rather than algorithm-approved. The MIISTA Abisai sandals in burgundy leather are €230, and the appeal is obvious once you clock the details: vegetable-tanned leather, a memory-foam insole, and a 6 cm heel that keeps them in the real-life category. Permanent Vacation’s Dissolve Wool Tank and Dissolve Wool Skirt both come in at $210 AUD, and together they are exactly the kind of Melbourne-made set that makes a minimalist wardrobe feel finished without becoming severe. This is practical luxury at its best: useful, well made, and just unusual enough to feel personal.

Her home and body picks bring the same sensibility indoors. Flamingo Estate’s Roma Heirloom Tomato Candle is $50 on the brand’s site, and it is still one of those candles that people remember because the scent feels green, peppery, and oddly transportive. By Katia’s body brush set is $85 and comes with interchangeable wet and dry bristle heads, which makes it a much better gift than a generic bath accessory because it feels like a ritual, not a prop. Cassandra tested it in store, and that matters: this is the sort of object that earns its shelf space by being used.

RUSSH keeps returning to this format because it understands the moment. The May 2025 roundup was just as comfort-first, with editors reaching for cold-weather staples, skincare, and footwear, and the 2026 version sharpens that idea into something more giftable: lower-rise tailoring, polished knits, strong earrings, and home pieces with actual atmosphere. That is the insider trick here. The best gifts this month are not the loudest ones, just the ones that make someone’s everyday life look a little more chic.