The moment we’ve been waiting for has finally arrived! Get Organized with The Home Edit dropped on Netflix last night! As a rule, I don’t watch anything that bills itself as reality TV, but I can occasionally make exceptions! Home organization, organization in general really, is my greatest passion, so this is like pornography to me. I do worry that bingeing this will cause me to absolutely spin out and reorganize my entire home. I’m already looking at my shelves and drawers disdainfully. I will say that, as nice as the aesthetic component of organizing is, creating functional systems has genuinely improved my life and helped me with anxiety and executive function. There is no such thing as organized chaos. The most creative and successful people I know are organized (and diagnosed and medicated). You don’t have to put your books in rainbow order—The Home Edit is, to some degree, selling an unattainable fantasy. But creating systems that work for rather than against you will change your life, and maybe even spark a little joy.
So, one truly kooky thing that’s been happening is that I’m starting to window-shop my own wardrobe. Like, remember those comfy flats you used to wear to work? Maybe one day you’ll leave the house again and get to put them on! I swear that, since work-from-home began, I’ve exclusively worn my Birkenstocks and my Rothy’s flats. I have not put on a single other pair since March 17. I mean this especially about the Birks, but if you’re going to spend too much money on a pair of shoes, these are the ones. I would exclusively wear Birkenstocks if I lived in a warmer climate.
My September Book of the Month is Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi. I loved Homegoing, so I’m sure it will be an amazing read. I actually cancelled BotM because I’m trying to practice what I preach and stop buying physical books unless they’re really meaningful or something I’ll return to over and over again. I obviously want authors to make money, but getting ebooks through the library is absolutely where it’s at.
My best friend sent me this recipe and !!!!!!!!!!!! Deb’s mind!!!!!
My husband bought me this ukulele for my birthday. I promise I’m not a 2011-era Zooey Deschanel type or anything, but if there’s a chord chart in front of me I can play. I do have a feeling that this will be relegated to the decoration realm, but it was very sweet of him and who doesn’t love a pastel rainbow?
THEY’RE MAKING A FILM OF REBECCA STARRING ARMIE HAMMER. Ceci n’est pas un drill! My body is ready! I loved this book as a teen, and I’m re-reading it before the film drops on Netflix in October. The e-book is on Amazon right now for literal shekels.
This is random, but I have an enormous monstera plant in my living room that was overgrown and out of control, so I cut some of the leafy stems off to use as decorations around the house. I expected them to have a shelf-life like flowers but…they simply do not die! I’ve had three in a vase in my bedroom for months that look as vibrant as the day I cut them off. Needless to say, when I discovered that they were immortal, I put them all over my house and now I live in a rainforest.
The episode of Black Frasier with Chris Hayes and Clark Neily is a must-listen, if only to shock and amaze yourself by vehemently agreeing…with a self-professed libertarian. Also, THEE Phoebe Lynn Robinson creating a podcast called Black Frasier in these dark times is a gift we do not deserve.
Sandal season approaching, you guys! The weather has been so amazing in New England lately. Even when it rains, it’s still gorgeous. It’s been between 50° and 70° every damn day.
I am a Birkenstock devotee! Best sandals in the game.
The fabulous weather has inspired me to fill my house with plants and start the seasonal DIYs! My first step was to revamp the porch.
We have a big, gorgeous wooden porch that we never use because apparently we’re crazy? Really though, it’s because it became outdoor junk storage. The compost bin, the recycling–everything lives outside, making our lovely porch a major eyesore.
Something had to be done, and that something came in the form of a hanging planter of pansies and a spray-painted patio set!
Pretty purple pansies in the evening.
Paint used (since the colors are washed out in the photo): Rustoleum gloss spray paint in Ocean Mist & Candy Pink.
The patio set is still missing its sister chairs—I’ll be hitting up Home Depot soon to buy & paint the rest of them—and the table needs another coat of candy pink, but it’s already shaping up nicely! I am feeling blush pink and mint this season—not just because of Pantone! I’m thinking about adding an umbrella, one of these beauties, from the Marimekko for Target collection.
Soooo many hooks for hanging planters!
Our porch, ceiling, which needs to be painted badly, has a bunch of hooks already in place, so you know I’m going to be adding a ton of plants to our outdoor space! If only I knew how to safely remove and refinish what is probably lead paint…
The best thing about nice weather and spending more time outdoors is dressing for it.
Self-timer fails: when your actual husband is a terrible Instagram husband. Sunnies/ABM for Bonlook, dress & choker/F21, jacket/BCBGeneration, bag/Rebecca Minkoff (available here), faux furball/Topshop, sandals/Swedish Hasbeens
I’ve basically been freezing my butt off for days, in complete denial that it’s not quite shorts weather, but these Anthro short-eralls are 100% worth it.
Dressing like a 9-year-old boy is what I do best. Top/August Silk, Shorteralls/Anthropologie (or Free People? Urban? They’re from a brand buyout!), Necklace/Monqstyle
Alright, enough of my shenanigans: there are much more serious matters at hand. I don’t really have words to express my grief regarding the death of Prince. So, instead of risking sounding trite, I’ll just leave this picture, which gives me endless life. Good night, sweet Prince. I don’t care where we go, I don’t care what we do—I don’t care pretty baby, just take me with u.
Della Bites 