Basket Case: What to Buy at Quince, According to Our Editors

Welcome to Basket Case, wherein your trusty VICE editors scour the proverbial aisles of our favorite online retailers to bring you a smorgasbord of the absolute best things to buy. In this installment, we're playing Supermarket Sweep at the luxury direct-to-consumer haven that is Quince, bringing you everything from Turkish cotton robes to Ray-Ban dupes.

Every once in a while, you find a place that makes you feel like you not only like you have your shit together, but that you’ve had it together for a while. Not to get too deep on this gentle Monday, but we wade through the shores shopping trends a lot, and we know when label clout is worth it, and when you’re getting hosed. Luckily, so does Quince. 

Quince is the shopping equivalent of finding $10 in your coat pocket. As a DTC (direct-to-consumer) brand, it’s all about bringing people popular luxury home goods, accessories, and apparel without the steeper price tags that comes with Parachute, West Elm, Everlane comparable high-end brands. No shade to the latter, but we think you deserve to feel like a pinkies-out boi on a penny-pinching budget; we want you to have the cotton waffle robe of your dreams, and be able to throw down for this specific Joshua Tree rental. Hence, why we’re DTF with the DTC uprising.

 Label clout is cool and real, and we encourage you to spend your tax return on these Versace boxers if it makes your heart sing, but we think it's important to keep your label-loving in-check. Our situationship isn’t exactly reading the fine print on our linen bedding when they’re sucking our toes, and they’re not going to demote us for wearing The Blues Brothers-worthy shades that don’t literally have “Ray-Ban” scribbled on the side. It just ain’t that deep, mate.  

Think of Quince as your one-stop-shop/savior for all the adult purchases you’ve been jonesing to make, but never wanted to shell-out for. There’s bedding for every kind of sleeper, Mongolian cashmere sweaters for you (and your dog), and boxers that hug your junk like the prize trophy it is. 

Pour yourself something bubbly, and get ready to feel pampered. 

Quince is heaven for Tauruses, and/or touchy feely people who rule the world from their bed. This percale bedding bundle was one of the first things we ever ordered from the site, because it packs a solid 270 thread count but costs more than 60% less than comparable sets at Brooklinen and Parachute (according to the rundown on the product page). The organic cotton material feels cool to the touch, but as soft as the belly of a baby dove. Definitely the marquee star of our bedding rotation right now. 

Look, you have two options for feeling like the erudite lead of a Luca Guadagnino film this spring; you can either have torrid sex with Tilda Swinton in Italy, or buy a really great linen duvet cover. We can’t help with the former, but this linen duvet cover is a major fave of our editors’ and has over 700 reviews and a 4.9-star average rating thanks to its earthy appeal, and naturally moisture-wicking, cooling powers. Most linen duvet covers will cost you nearly $200, but this flex is a mere $99, and will only get softer with every wash.     

“But winter is almost over,” you may say upon seeing this faux fur throw from Restoration Hardware, and you’re not wrong. Luxurious, kingly bedding knows no season, and you haven’t lived until you’ve Superman’d this throw after a hard day’s work. It feels like getting swaddled by a well-fed chinchilla, and won’t give your knees rug burn during sex.

We wouldn’t preach the linen gospel without giving Quince’s blackout linen curtains a spotlight moment. Not unlike owning a bed frame, applying sunscreen daily, and owning dish towels that actually match, a pair of linen curtains will signal to your guests that you are a well-adjusted adult with fully formed opinions on Slavoj Žižek. These curtains have a 4.9-star average rating on Quince, and one reviewer writes that they “look absolutely amazing [and] block out most light, but enough comes through that you can tell if it’s daytime or not (which I do like).” Sounds like something that Žižek would probably say is a metaphor. 

It’s hard to find a beautiful, vintage-looking Morrocan-style rug that doesn’t cost half of our rent—which is why Quince’s hand knotted wool rug is one of its bestellers in the home department. It’s versatile enough to work with your style evolutions (Daddy knows you’re leaning into Japandi design, and he’s proud) but intricate enough to make you look like a worldly person.  

Stop using that bath towel from 2012 that feels like sandpaper, and start pampering your skin with a set of matching Turkish bath towels. As one reviewer writes, “Using them makes me feel like I’m in a fancy hotel or at a spa. They also dry really fast for being so plush.”

Quince’s cashmere game is strong, affordable, and not to be ignored. One of VICE’s shopping editors swears by this pair of cashmere sweatpants, which have earned a 4.8-star average rating on the site and praise from reviewers as the best travel pants. They come in six colorway options, and cost less than even Everlane’s cashmere sweats. 

You could get a cashmere sweater for yourself and the bulldog you inherited from your ex at Quince, and still spend less than the price of a single cashmere sweater from a luxury retailer. This cashmere sweater is warm enough to keep you toasty once the fog bank rolls in, but lightweight enough to layer with all the gorpcore vests, mesh turtlenecks, and puffer jackets you need. Bonus points for the fact that it’s not a V-neck; you’re not out here trying to look like an IRS auditor. 

One of our friends, Hot Jordan, also swears by the Ponte pant as a must-have for work. She’s a physical therapist, and says that “they’re flattering but super flexible. You can get all of your deep squats in but also look professional. All of my patients always ask me where they’re from.”  

What do all the elder goths do once the temps rise? Why, slip into their Dr. Martens sandals and a breezy black silk skirt such as this one by Quince, which has a 4.9-star average rating and comes at the wildly affordable price tag of around $59 (for context, that’s less than the cost of this silk eye mask). Wear it with a white tank top/crochet bra and a leather duster.  

A waffle robe that does its job should have the *chef’s kiss* ability to absorb water and dry quickly, and Quince’s jawn is made out of 100% organic Turkish cotton (and comparable to Parachute’s cult-fave waffle robe). 

We’ll be brief: These five-star-average rated undies are beloved by reviewers for their ability to hug your junk while providing breathable, flexible support. 

Don’t call them Ray-Bans! Or, do. No one would mind. Do you think the Blues Brothers were label simps? These polarized frames give you the classic look for over $100 off the price of comparable shades. 

Is your Herschel backpack looking a bit crusty? Put your dusty napsack out to pasture on Depop, and bring this ~adult~ backpack into the fold; its water-proof nylon material is made out of 15 recycled plastic bottles (no promises that they were Sprite, but we can pray), and comes with a built-in laptop sleeve and leather accents. Comparable brands (that will cost you way more) include Away, Saint Laurent, and Longchamp, so you know you’re getting a backpack that could be seen bopping around a gluten-free cafe in Paris’ Marais neighborhood. 

Garnish your outfit with one of Quince’s many high quality leather goods, which include shoulder bags, duffles for traveling, and this Clare V.-esque crossbody bag fashioned out of Italian leather. It has a 4.9-star average rating from reviewers, one of which writes, “It holds just about everything for a quick errand, [and] the leather is beautiful. I've had this bag for 2 years, and it still looks amazing.”

Here’s to Quince supremacy, and hoping that it tackles the Cloud Sofa next. 

The Rec Room staff independently selected all of the stuff featured in this story. Want more reviews, recommendations, and red-hot deals? Sign up for our newsletter.