From an Autonomous Lawn Mower to the Best Basket Lights

The Strategist’s list of thebest sunscreenshas long been topped byEltaMD’s UV Clear Broad-Spectrum SPF 46, but the category has a lot of new players with all sorts of advanced technologies, like brush-on powders and liquid formulas applied via dropper. So recently, beauty writerTembe Denton-Hurstendeavored to make sure we still had the story right, reaching out to her robust roster of skin-care experts. Turns out we do. This mineralsunscreen, recommended by five dermatologists, protects against both UVB and UVA rays and has a host of skin-care benefits (it’s noncomedogenic and rich in antioxidants like niacinamide, which is anti-inflammatory). Dr.Jennifer MacGregorofUnionDermappreciates that it’s “lightweight and oil free, so it won’t clog pores,” andDr. Dendy EngelmanofShafer Clinic Fifth Avenuepoints out that it contains “lactic acid, which will gently exfoliate the skin.” Perhaps the greatest endorsement is that it’s not just what dermatologists recommend:Dr. Marnie Nussbaumlikes it so much she uses it daily herself.

“I actually started using this particularpurifiervery recently. A friend of mine recommended it. For me, a home appliance is something that you really don’t know how it will perform when you’re looking at it on the store shelf. You have to take it home and live with it. It’s quite quiet. And the design integrates well into our home and life.”

“If you get a puppy, it’s going to beteethingfor exactly six months. And so for months, you think,Oh, no. What have I done? This puppy is chewing everything. How am I going to deal with this? Have I made a huge mistake? I have a furry alligator.
I would feed her these sticks and then, like magic, at six months old, she never chewed again. These things are amazing.”

“They are the perfecttravel footwear: One, they’re amazingly comfortable; two, they’re easy to kick off. Taking my shoes off in the TSA line drives me crazy. Because I’m known to wear these, friends and family often gift them to me for birthdays. I have an embarrassing array of them, but the midnight-blue ones are my standard fit.”

From price and ease of height-setting, to the power and variable speeds of its propulsion, to its precise cutting, this is the best mower I have ever used.
I’ve never once regretted giving garage space to the eForce.

There is still a place for old-school push-reel mowers for those looking for an ecofriendly, low-cost option that offers a precision cut,” saysSara Bendrick, a licensed landscape contractor. It’s a longer time commitment, but the results will look as good as the kind you get with a powered mower

Gas push mowers are great for large properties and overgrown grass, and this one is a workhorse: It has three self-propelled speeds; it can bag, mulch, or side- discharge; and its auto-choke feature ensures the engine enjoys steady, proper combustion.

This robot mower won’t leave patches of grass sticking up all over the place—its cutting paths are calculated meticulously, and its motor and blades are as powerful as those of any other noncommercial mower out there.

Nora Sands, who hiked the PCT in 2022, calls thistent“the Toyota Camry of ultralight backpacking.” “So many people use it, and it’s so recognizable,” she says. It’s made of Dyneema—a tough, lightweight fabric that can stand up to lots of abrasion.

Scott Wilkinson, the content-development director at thePacific Crest Trail Association, says long-distance hikers popularizedtrail-runningsneakers for backpacking.
He wears the Altra Lone Peak 7, known for its wide toe box, which offers room for your toes to splay out.

“If you walk around a PCT town, you just see all these weird skinny people wearing Hawaiian shirts,” saysJames Hoher, a through-hiker and video creator who completed the PCT in 2022. “You spot them and you’re like,That’s definitely a through-hiker.”

Harrison Bacordo, a Denver-based software engineer who completed the PCT last September, says more than 90 percent of the trail’s hikers use a plasticwater bottle(it’s lighter than a reusable) and pair it with this filter because it can screw onto the bottle’s top.

Dental floss comes in handy for gear repairs. “I’ve used it to patch holes in my shoes with a threading needle,” Bacordo says. “It’s so extraordinarily strong. It’s lasted me hundreds of miles.”

“It’s such a power move to be the girl that can stand while she pees, you know?” says Sands, who calls her PStyle “the biggest game changer for me” on the PCT. She didn’t have to take her backpack off or worry about finding a private space.

I got my first pair in 2014. At the time, I was working for filmmaker and artist Grear Patterson, who swore by Mephistos. He told me Steven Spielberg wore them for decades, and that etched their provenance in my brain. The mix of quiet elegance, hard work, honor, and quality intrigued me. I won’t say how many pairs I have now, but it’s well over 50. I am on my feet more than 16 hours a day, and I would say the Mephisto Match is a reliable, durable shoe, like a saddle that molds to your body. I work, skate, photograph, and dress up in them. I have every color including some rare duo- or tritone ones. The worst part is I even buy ones I know I will never wear, or ones not even in my size, just to put on a shelf like a tchotchke or to give to a friend as a gift. We all have to feed our spirit somehow.—Chase Hall

Reversible, babies.

Reversible, toddlers.

Nonreversible, babies.

Nonreversible, toddlers.