My niece came to stay this week, and it’s gotten to the point where, when people ask about her, I occasionally refer to her as “our daughter”—meaning the offspring, collectively, of my identical twin sister and me. Biology majors, fact-check me here, but since Coco and I share essentially the same DNA, isn’t she technically half mine? Please don’t ruin this for me. Anyway, she’s now back in New York getting ready to go back to boarding school, and I’m taking inventory. Not just of what’s missing, but of what she chose, because I’ve realized her pilfering is actually highly instructive. At 17, she is basically a walking focus group for what’s cool. When she wants something of mine, I feel validated. Then, approximately three seconds later, I’m like: wait, do I actually want to give that to her?? Her arrival outfit alone gave me pause: and sneakers. Are we doing exercise clothes on the airplane now? I will be monitoring closely. (P.S. At least her was top notch.) Over the few days we spent together, however, she returned to sticky-fingers form. From my vanity: , obviously. , because apparently she has expensive taste in skincare. shampoo and conditioner, which she liked so much she snapped a pic (see below) and borrowed a suitcase in order to transport the full-size bottles back to New York. From my closet: my brand-new stripes (grrrr!), anything —including the just-out , above—and a growing pile of things I had perhaps too casually said she could have (this , these , and this perfect-blue sweatshirt). And herein lies the useful part: what she takes is data. A tiny, ruthless edit of my own edit. And here’s a few more things I’ll have in stock when she returns: this product, this , and these (stealthily borrowed from the boys). Happy Labor Day Weekend!