July Testing Report: Buck Mason’s Newest V-Neck and a Plastic-Free Rice Cooker

These track shorts are made of a Japanese nylon that is so lightweight I barely notice that I’m wearing them — and I’ve been wearing them a lot, since they’re ideal for a heatwave. I also love the crinkly, almost iridescent look of the fabric. And while I generally prefer longer shorts, these somehow feel just right; they show a flattering amount of leg without being too revealing.—Winnie Yang, senior editor

Buck Mason reigns supreme in most of ourT-shirtguides, so I was excited to try a tee from its newly relaunched Toughknit line. All of the pieces in the collection are knit in Pennsylvania and sewn in Los Angeles, and you can see the quality craftsmanship in the even stitches and substantial, heavyweight cotton fabric. I tried the cropped V-neck tee, which hits around my hip bone since I have a short torso. I am usually an extra-small or small at Buck Mason, but I wanted a looser fit on this one, and the size small delivered. It’s slouchy and boxy yet still looks polished with a pair of jeans. —Bella Druckman, writer

At the start of every summer, my fashion plans are tall. But as soon as the heat actually strikes, most outfits are chucked out the window in lieu of plain cotton tanks and airy bottoms — paired with silk scarves to make my outfits a bit more interesting (and cover my sweaty hair). I usually opt for vintage and secondhand ones, but those can be hard to find in lighter shades. COS has a nice selection, so I tried a now-sold-out polka-dot version of this butter yellow one with an elegant organza trim.It’s been a simple addition to all-white or black looks. The scarf’s size is key — large enough to wear as a belt on my hips but not so big that it overpowers my face when worn atop my hair. I can also tie it tightly enough after a day at the pool and get away with wearing it as a top without the fear of it coming loose.—Najwa Jamal, updates coordinator

The minute I saw these, I was smitten. The tonal ruby polka dots (which you can see in better detailhere) give the shiny, supple leather an ostrich effect, making them look even more elegant. (Strangers have stopped me on the train to compliment them.) But these really stand out for their incredible comfort. Having recently dabbled in all amounts of painful footwear for mycomfortable-mules hunt, I found that putting these on was a respite. To this day, they haven’t given me a single blister or any other pain. The entire shoe, from the cushioned sole to the lining, is leather, so the more you wear these, the more they mold to you. The stacked heel gives you just enough of a lift and support without being difficult to walk in. And while they’re pricier than I’d like, the quality seeps through in every tiny detail, like the pull-on fabric tab and elasticized, soft shoe opening that never digs in to your foot. They’re 100 percent worth the splurge.—N.J.

I’ve been a longtime fan of Merit’s Clean Lash lengthening mascara (it’s one of my favoritetubing mascaras), so I was excited to see that the brand recently launched a volumizing version. It has a slim, low-profile brush covered in small, spiky bristles that help comb the product through your lashes all the way from the root to the tip. It’s not themostdramatic volumizing mascara I’ve ever tried, but I actually prefer that — it keeps the mascara more wearable for everyday. Plus, the addition of more coats builds it up to create extra oomph. It didn’t smudge even after three straight hours of dance class and, like all tubing mascaras, disappeared with just a splash of cleanser and warm water. It’ll definitely be featuring heavily in my regular rotation. —Kitty Guo, writer

I’ve been loyal to regular ol’ pumice stones for many years, but decided to try this out recently. It smoothed out my heels and toes more effectively in one shower than any of my pumice stones have in a week. It feels almost like using one of those Korean spa scrubbers, but for your feet. Normally I refuse to go to bed without slathering on a ton of foot cream, but now my feet are so soft that I think I could skip if I really wanted to.—Sam Daly, deals editor

I love the subtle pinstripe detail of this tablecloth by Cultiver. It doesn’t look wrinkly, and the weight of it makes it drape perfectly. The biggest test was how it would wash after I got a few food stains on it. It fared perfectly. After I sprayed the spots, washed, dried it, then laid it out on the same table, it looked as good as new again. —Emma Wartzman, senior writer

I was skeptical about trying this appliance for way too long since it doesn’t technically compost food waste. But as someone who for years kept their kitchen scraps in their (already packed) freezer between trips to the building or street composting collection bin, the Mill has really been a game changer. Before the Mill entered my life, a few days’ or a week’s worth of scraps from my four-person household might end up occupying a cubic foot of the freezer until one of us begrudgingly carried it down, but three weeks into testing it, we’ve barely filled this thing a third full. It’s really impressive how much it can break everything down, and because we put all the scraps in that felt too gross to freeze (even frozen, some things still smell), it has really reduced the volume of outgoing waste. The Mill is the size of a large kitchen trash can, but so far, it’s worth making space for.—W.Y.

I’ve been a dedicated Zojirushi rice cooker fan since I was a kid, so I never imagined I’d try, let alone own a rice cooker from any other brand. But Zojirushi still doesn’t offer a plastic-free pot, so I decided to give the latest pressurized cooker from Cuckoo a try. The interface is a bit more convoluted than the Zojirushi, and I still haven’t figured out how to stop it from shouting at me in Korean. But theresults… Just asMay Hong said, this thing is incredibly fast — often taking less than 20 minutes to cook a pot of perfect rice (depending on the amount and settings). And the texture of the rice it produces is better than anything I’ve had from my similarly specced pressurized Zojirushi cooker. The cooked rice tastes and feels as if each grain were individually steamed before being placed gently back inside the pot. A lot of rice residue gets left behind on the unlined pot after the rice has been served, but it comes off easily with a few swipes of a soapy sponge. —Michael Zhao, senior writer

I started testing these pillows after the brand’s ads hounded me on Instagram. Each of my kids has one and both are loving them; my 10-year-old even took hers with her to sleepaway camp. (Side note, when I dropped her off a week ago, one of the friends she’s at camp with reached out to squeeze the pillow while I was carrying it into their cabin and said “Ooh, where did you get this? I want one!”) My girls are excited by the colorful pillowcases — one has purple, the other has hot pink, and we also have extra pillowcases in yellow with pink piping — and have commented on how springy and comfortable the pillows are. The “guts” are a slab of 100 percent naturalTalalay latex, which is one of my personal favorite pillow fills. Latex foam in general is almost always plastic-free (as DreamJellie’s is, though there’s a touch of spandex in the pillow cases). It also tends to stay much cooler than memory foam. And Talalay latex in particular is very comfortable if you like a good amount of squish but still want responsive support. I would not let the fact that these pillows are marketed for kids stop anyone from using them as an adult. They are a “standard” pillow size with rounded corners, and the cases fit the curved shape perfectly, though you could also throw a regular pillow case over top if you prefer. They are all-around fabulouslatex pillowsat a competitive price for these materials. —Jen Trolio, senior editor

I’m presently on a quest to test every pillow from Target (at least, every pillow I could get my hands on). I’ve tested six already and this one is a standout so far. It’s a down-alternative pillow filled with microgel polyester fiber fill.Microgelis a term I’ve seen thrown around in the pillow world, but I didn’t really know what it meant until after I tested this pillow. Apparently, the polyester fibers are coated to give them a springier, more downlike feel than basic polyester fiber fill provides. That definitely holds true for this pillow. I slept on a couple of regular polyester-fiber-fill pillows before this one and found them overall too soft and squishy. This one is soft and plush, but I didn’t have to scrunch it around just to keep my head and neck from collapsing. It also offered much more support for side sleeping. It’s still an early assessment, as I only slept on it for one night, but for a $20 pillow, I’m impressed so far.—A.J.

I’ve been trying out these Serve sets from cat food brand Smalls with my cats for about a month now. The set comes with the Smallserve bowl, which is raised off the floor for a more comfortable eating position, and the Slooowserve bowl, which is made from silicone with ridges to encourage slower eating. The Slooowserve bowl fits right onto the Smallserve bowl, so you can add it when needed. I’ve been using the Smallserve bowl to feed my cats their dry food, and the higher bowl definitely seems easier for them to eat out of than their old, lower bowl. They also look very cute. I initially tried giving them their wet food in the Slooowserve bowls, but they seemed less inclined to finish it than when I served it to them in a simple metal dish. Neither of my cats are particularly fast eaters, though, so I didn’t feel like they necessarilyneededa bowl that forced them to eat slower (as I know some cats do). However, I’ve started using the Slooowserve bowls to feed them wet treats likeChurusorSmalls Licks. I think it makes a nice form of enrichment for them to work a little harder to get their treat from the ridged bowls. Overall, I’d recommend the set if you want a nice-looking bowl with the benefits of encouraging a better eating posture and slower eating. My only con is that the Slooowserve bowl can be tricky to get fully clean when washing by hand (it’s top-rack dishwasher safe).—A.J.