Happy Sunday evening. Here we are with the latest The Skinny, which will take three minutes to breeze through and doesn’t require moving from the couch. 

For anyone new here, welcome to The Skinny, a free weekly newsletter that will take you three minutes to read. We designed this to entertain and save you time—everyone’s most valuable resource—thanks to a curated selection of lifestyle news. As one of our subscribers told us: “You’re like my favorite magazine, without all the annoying pop-up ads.” 

While Jill is currently working out of the Hawaii office searching for the best Mai Tais, Nicole’s holding it down in BK and prepping for the holiday. But mostly, she’s focused on building a new capsule wardrobe and not breaking her at-home pilates challenge streak. And yes, it’s t-minus four days until Thanksgiving, so we have a poll on one of its most-debated dinner table topics: sides. 

PS: here is Campbell’s annual “State of the Sides” report after the poll, so it didn’t sway your vote. Do you agree with the top 5?

What we’re covering today: 

• Holidays can be stressful, so in your down time it’s a good idea to start thinking about your 2026 wellness retreat—and we have plenty of ideas to channel inner peace

• It’s Sunday, and if you’re a football fan let’s talk about the latest and greatest (and, not-so-great) collabs when it comes to NFL apparel 

• Gift idea of the week: subscription boxes! It’s the gift that keeps on giving, and we have one for everyone on your list

• Plus: fast food holsters, “Turkey Cake,” the iPhone (and Glizzy) pockets & a chic Riiiiiicola scarf.

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Deep breath

Book your next wellness-focused escape

The Skinny: For obvious reasons, the months following the holidays are the perfect time to channel your inner peace and/or guru while on a wellness-focused vacay. What this looks like is really yours to design, as options from Nine Perfect Strangers-esque “retreats” to simply finding a remote forest to bathe in are more abundant than ever. The world of travel wellness is yours to design and personalize, and if you need ideas, dive in. 

• We love this Independent story and writer, who is a self-admitted “retreat addict".” As a highly recommended read, this provides the lowdown on all types of retreats (including some outrageous ones), a resource for navigating/choosing the right one for you, and why “what happens at a retreat, stays at a retreat.” 

• More resources: The experts at editorial site Well Defined announced a strategic partnership with the Wellness Tourism Association and the Wellness in Travel & Tourism (WIIT). What does that mean for wellness-focused travelers? Trusted insights, visibility and credible information via an editorial storytelling hub. 

• Dip your toes into a geographical area with lots of options and overall vibes with the most “wellness obsessed” cities.

• When in doubt, choose Sweden. Visit Sweden recently launched a campaign in which doctors can “prescribe” an Rx to actually visit Sweden. The PR pros in us love this! 

• Who better than Yoga Journal to inform on the 13 Most Sustainable Hotels and Resorts in the World. This is also where we discovered Forestis Dolomites, which is on the top of our wish list with a seemingly infinite number of unique experiences (such as, sleeping outside). 

• Also in the sustainable and “peaceful coexistence" category is Costa Mujeres, the latest hotspot for wellness tourism and, not to mention, is the polar opposite of its neighbor, Cancun. 

In closing: while researching this item, we realized many of these wellness retreats fall into the luxury category. As a follow-up, we’re planning another guide for anyone who prefers a different level of simplicity (e.g. straight-up camping) or hotspots that deliver without breaking the bank.

Sunday superfandom

NFL apparel collabs, from touchdown to fumble

The Skinny: Sunday = game day and with that, let’s look at the latest and greatest NFL apparel collabs for yourself, of your fellow fans. Disclaimer: we have not tried any of these yet, so ratings are based simply on our educated opinion. 

You may have noticed an uptick in women’s NFL apparel collections, and that’s not a coincidence. We’ve seen quotes and stats that the 2024 Super Bowl saw a record-breaking increase in women viewers, with females representing nearly half the total viewership. This is currently being reported as something new and perhaps “because of Taylor Swift,” but as Nicole knows from working on COVERGIRL in 2014, this is decades-old news. Back then—when the makeup brand launched their NFL program—they were doing so because almost half of NFL fans were females (quoted as more than 80 million at that time). 

• Abercrombie: 4.5 stars. As the “Official Fashion Partner of the NFL,” we’re down with this from a price point, on-trend and collab perspective (especially Nicole, since Amon-Ra and CeeDee are on her Fantasy team). Women’s collection here, and Men’s. 

• Off Season: 4 stars. This is a more street and design-centric brand we’d never heard of but love by looks and vibe alone: “merging fashion with sports.” And Nicole‘s Christmas present to Jill just might be the Lions pants that Tay Lautner is wearing, here. 

• Naadam for NFL: 4 stars. Nothing not to love with this luxe collection of limited-edition cashmere crewnecks, except the price. But as the VIP of cashmere, these are built to last (hence, not for fair-weather fans). 

• Lululemon: 2.5 stars. Reports claimed their stock went up when this launched, but internet pundits, who we agree with, criticized it as a desperate “Hail Mary” and completely off-brand. Thoughts? 

• Veronica Beard x NFL: 2 stars. This would be a solid one-star if it weren’t for the fact that we absolutely love VB, and especially their Dickey Jackets. While this is from last season, we’re struggling to think where you’d actually wear this. The only place(s), and this is a big maybe, are either a luxury box at a game with a dress code, or if you were attending some kind of NFL charity function. That is it.  

OT: Because we know that many of our female readers prefer college football over the NFL, we have a great recommended read on College Football’s 15 Best Tailgating Schools.

Gift this

This year’s subscription box picks

The Skinny: Give the one that keeps on giving: a subscription box. As an added bonus, these are often more eco-friendly than the gift of an object/product/etc. as they contain items to use, eat or drink daily. Our selections:

• For your relative with a breakfast nook and who loves browsing the Farmer’s Market: monthly subscriptions from the Farmers Finds help small businesses and are packed with surprises from regional markets.

• For the craft-beer collector: choose your flavor palette and get a box of selected craft beers from all over the country with Beer Drop.

• For the charcuterie and cheese board snob (like us): Platterful will deliver a box filled with everything you need for a curated charcuterie board. And any cheese-lover’s heart will melt if you gift this Murray’s Globetrotter’s Cheese Club, featuring cheese discoveries from all over the world (there’s still time to get their advent calendar, too). 

• For someone whose panties are always in a twist: “My Subscirption Addiction” has the best underwear subscriptions for anyone whose drawer needs a revamp.   

• For someone with a sweet tooth: Pint club from Jeni’s delivers seasonal drops of ice cream flavors.

• For the home design-minded: Who wouldn’t want a monthly delivery of lovely farm-fresh flowers from Bouqs?

Last licks

This week’s newsfeed (marketing edition)

• Tito’s, we love you and we’ll join your Turkey Rot by committing to doing nothing Thanksgiving morning except for “a race…to the couch.” Signing up is free and for each registration, Tito’s is donating $500,000 to Meals on Wheels America and $5 for every registration, up to $1 million total, through November. Register to rot here.

• It’s a belt, it’s a limited edition taco holster: introducing the Taco Bellt. Also, as of this summer, Roy Rogers classic “holster fries” are back. 

• In additional holster news: have you seen the iPhone pocket, designed by Issey Miyake? We wrote about the brand’s Moleskine collab last week, but if you haven’t seen the “pocket,” take a look. Some found it akin to a  “gadget mankini” and were confused by its presence and use, but the pocket’s designer likely welcomes that sentiment as the brand’s designs are “less defined to allow for possibilities and personal interpretation.”

• And, here’s how Oscar Mayer team interpreted it. While the Glizzy Pocket isn’t for sale (yet!), give that social media manager a raise. 

• Baskin Robbins is bringing back its Turkey Cake, “stuffed with ice cream.”

• Reminiscent of the vintage “Midas Muffler” from the ’80s, scarves—like Farm Fresh’s mozzarella stick version—are the latest in creative branded merch. (Update: we report, with a cold neck and heavy heart, that the aromatic Ricola scarf has sold out.)

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