3 Words To Describe Your Style: Comfortable. Timeless. Playful.
First Fashion Memory: Going to Louis Boston with my mom when I was a young girl. She always had an effortless sense of style. It was equal parts chic, comfortable, and unmistakably English. She taught me that the best style is timeless, personal, and never tries too hard.
Favorite Scent: Fresh sourdough from Kneady Mama. Or Mediterranean Honeysuckle by Aerin, which I wore on my wedding day. But I’d bottle the sourdough if I could.
Favorite Local Clothing Store: Slate in Charlestown.
3 Desert Island Essentials: Flaky sea salt, SPF, and The Joy of Cooking.
Dinner: Thai coconut curry salmon.
Zodiac: I am a true Taurus through and through.
Best Advice: You don’t have to have it all figured out to get started.
Mantra: “People who love to eat are always the best people,” Julia Child
Bedtime: 10:00 p.m. (in theory)
On My Nightstand: My Kindle, a myriad of chargers, and our engagement photo in Tuscany.
SUZANNE MENDES
This fall, she and her husband, chef George Mendes, are opening Agosto and Baby Sister, two new restaurants in the South End.
Suzanne Mendes was destined for a creative life. Her lawyer father represented artists, and her mother was a violinist. She enrolled at NYU as a music major, but it wasn’t until adulthood that she finally found the specific channel for her artistic abilities. After two decades of leadership roles in communication and marketing at Estée Lauder, Kiehl’s and Uniqlo, Mendes started her own brand strategy firm called Antara (discoverantara.com). “My creativity lies in bringing an idea to life and creating the experience that allows people to connect with it,” she says. This is perhaps felt most strongly in her work with her husband, chef George Mendes, with whom she is opening two new restaurants in the South End. “This project is about storytelling, design, intention, and building community.”
Camilla Barcelona Babe silk caftan
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE BRAND
Narciso Rodriguez For Her Eau de Parfum
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE BRAND
Bottega Veneta Barbara bag
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE BRAND
A World Appears by Michael Pollan
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE BRAND
PHOTO BY ARTERRA/GETTY IMAGES
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE BRAND
Wake-Up Time: 6:30 a.m. (or whenever my 6-year-old says it is)
Breakfast: Yoga at Down Under and a chia bowl from Life Alive.
Uniform: Whatever carries me from a board meeting to a restaurant site visit to keeping up with my kids.
3 Words To Describe Your Style: Natural. Intentional. Occasion-aware.
First Fashion Memory: My mother getting ready for an evening out. She was very glamorous, while still looking like herself. She taught me that great style isn’t about fashion, it’s about presence.
Signature Accessory: My Bottega Veneta briefcase. It’s been a constant through every chapter of my career. It’s super worn now, and I love it more than ever.
Favorite Scent: Narciso Rodriguez For Her
Style Icon Past Or Present: Sophia Loren. Her confidence, warmth and intelligence were every bit as compelling as her style.
Favorite Local Clothing Store: Covet
3 Desert Island Essentials: Great music, a gorgeous sunset and my Camilla kimono.
Dinner: When George makes his arroz de marisco, I surrender the kitchen.
Zodiac: Aries Sun, Libra Moon, Leo Rising.
Best Advice: Let the beauty of what you love be what you do.
Mantra: Within challenge lies expansion.
Bedtime: 10:30 p.m. at home or late when out
On My Nightstand: Michael Pollan’s book, A World Appears: A Journey Into Consciousness and an amethyst sourced from where I was born in Brazil.
JOANNE CHANG
The James Beard Award-winning chef has a new cookbook, The Joy of Cookies, out next month.
PHOTO BY PLUM + PORT PHOTOGRAPHY
Joanne Chang’s name is synonymous with sweets, but behind her sugar tooth is a giant brain. Chang fell in love with baking while studying applied mathematics and economics at Harvard. “Baking, like math, is systematic and organized. Now I can understand why I gravitated to it. But at the time, it was just fun to be in the kitchen,” she says. After stints at acclaimed restaurants Biba, Rialto, Payard Pâtisserie and Mistral, Chang opened her first Flour bakery (flourbakery.com) in the South End 26 years ago. Today, Chang is a James Beard award winner with 11 Flour bakeries throughout Greater Boston. She’s authored five cookbooks, with her sixth, The Joy of Cookies, coming out in October.
From top: Celine Jolene jeans celine.com; Fendi Wrap sneakers
PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE BRANDS
PHOTO BY THEAYS/GETTY IMAGES
The New Yorker “Repose” August 3, 2026
PHOTO BY PIERRE-EMMANUEL LYET/THE NEW YORKER
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE BRAND
Wake-Up Time: 6 a.m.
Breakfast: Multigrain sourdough toast with English breakfast tea.
Uniform: Jeans, T-shirt, chore coat, sneakers. 3 Words To Describe
Your Style: Easy, wabi-sabi, comfortable.
First Fashion Memory: Not wanting to wear lace because it was itchy, and my mom telling me that if I wanted to look pretty, I had to wear the lace. I wore the lace.
Signature Accessory: My mom’s gold necklace
Favorite Scent: My husband’s neck
Style Icon Past Or Present: Esti Parsons
Favorite Local Clothing Store: Viola Lovely
3 Desert Island Essentials: A piano, Christopher, ice cream
Dinner: PST margarita pizza, side broccoli, a glass (or two) of Nebbiolo.
Zodiac: Gemini
Doppelganger: Papa Chang
Best Advice: Follow the recipe as written the first time. THEN experiment!
Mantra: Fall down seven times, get up eight.
Bedtime: 11 p.m.
On My Nightstand: A year’s worth of The New Yorker and ice water.
Theme Song To Your Life: “You Can’t Always Get What You Want,” by the Rolling Stones