The Good Buy is a new podcast from Harper’s Bazaar in which editors Leah Chernikoff and Lynette Nylander invite celebrities, designers, models, and tastemakers to talk shop: what they buy, where they got it, and why it matters. Come down the fashion rabbit hole and take a peek inside the closets and shopping carts of the world’s most stylish people. Learn how they use style to tell their stories.
The second guest on The Good Buy is this month’s cover star, Miley Cyrus. This is a pop star who truly contains multitudes: She’s a free spirit and an old soul, a Disney Legend and a Grammy winner. Millions have watched her style evolve from Hannah Montana to the icon she is today, and the one thing that’s remained consistent is her unpredictability. And she’ll be the first to tell you she hates consistency. No one loves a vintage archive quite like Cyrus—she has plenty of archivists on speed dial—but she also finds comfort in her minimal California uniform for her day-to-day. Read on for highlights, and listen to the show in full here or watch it above.
On personal style:
“My personal style is in the moment. I am committed while also being completely detached. That’s who I am. That’s like being in a relationship with me, that’s being a friend of mine, that’s being related to me. At all times, I am fully convinced until I’m not. And then I am done with it. I have moved on.”
On being in a constant state of evolution:
“Consistency has never really been too important to me because I think being inconsistent and being ever-changing is consistency in itself. And so every day is just different. I can feel very committed to a look but also have one foot already out the door and onto the next one.”
On the style icons who inspire her:
“I love an artist that does the most and does the least and you don’t really know the difference because it all feels like skin. So someone like my godmother, Dolly Parton, she definitely does the most, but it feels like it’s just a part of her and never feels like a part of me—a costume or an armor keeping you at a distance from her. It actually, like, brings you in. And I feel that way about a Grace Jones or a Diana Ross.”
Prada Galleria Ostrich Leather Mini Bag
“My first buy was an ostrich Prada bag. I know you’re not allowed to have ostrich anymore. I was 12. I didn’t know better. I didn’t know better. I went to Paris, and the first thing I did when I landed was I made my dad take me to Prada and I brought an ostrich bag. It was calling to me, and it is still sitting in one of my many storage units. I’m emotionally detached to all my items, yet I’m literally a hoarder.”
The Row Zipper Boot
“I just bought three pairs of the same shoe from the Row. But that’s because I already know that I am going to wear these until the soles fall off. They’re just very soft, minimal black boots. And they’re so soft that I can already tell that they are a forever boot.”
Ann Demeulemeester Black High Danny Tall Boots
“I am on the quest for a new motorcycle boot. Something that feels clean but somewhat worn and not Western. I want to be able to dance at any moment. I want to be able to take my dog to the park at any moment. I don’t want to have to think, Oh, I’m in these stiff boots right now. I want them to be able to be in every part of my life.”
Louis Vuitton Beaubourg Ankle Boot
“I bought a couple of pairs [of motorcycle boots], regretted it immediately, did the return. I did the Louis Vuitton ones with a round toe, and because I have small feet, the web isn’t working for me. It’s doing that thing where it’s giving but not giving. It’s doing too much, but not doing enough for me personally.”
Saint Laurent Oversize Textured-Leather Jacket
“I just bought a leather jacket from Saint Laurent, and I love it because it fits in every version of myself, and I am very particular about spending. If I am going to make a big purchase, I want it to be something that I could imagine myself wearing, and I saw myself everywhere in this coat. I could imagine myself doing all these things: going to a concert with my boyfriend, wearing it at one of my own concerts. And then I imagined, like, me and my mom once a year go walk around this rose garden in Pasadena. And sometimes it’s cold. So I’ll bring my jacket.
“This jacket gets to come with me on the sweetest, most personal moments of my life. And it could be a part of those big moments in my life too. I can wear it onstage. I love a leather jacket and a gown! I’m always looking for something that can be a bridge between my personal life and my professional persona. And that’s where I end up making those big splurges; it has to be something that feels like it fits into both of my worlds.”
Tara Gonzalez is the Senior Fashion Editor at Harper’s Bazaar. Previously, she was the style writer at InStyle, founding commerce editor at Glamour, and fashion editor at Coveteur.