I am happy to share some fun new content with you. My sister-friend Jennifer is a NYC interior designer and all around goddess. These are the things she’s shopping for this summer. More to come as she is sure to keep texting me all the stuff. Enjoy!
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The first time I went paddleboarding was in Stone Harbor NJ. We called a place called SUP Guy and he met us on the bay side with four boards and gave us a quick lesson. It was so much harder to stand up than I thought it would be! Eventually I got the hang of it.
Soon after, My friend invited me to go do a SUP yoga class of all things. I loved it. Check out Melanie’s website below. I went a couple more times. And then a couple more times just paddling. Often I go with a friend and it’s like going for a walk with a girlfriend. You forget you’re doing it because you’re just talking the whole time.
We always wanted to have our own boards so my husband and I bought two of them for an anniversary gift for ourselves. We’ve had them now for three years. The ones we got are inflatable and relatively inexpensive. It’s pretty easy to transport them to the lake and then inflate them. (They come with a board, paddle, pump, dry bag, and a big backpack that everything fits in.) I recommend also buying belt pack lifejackets. And remember to take a water bottle! The LifeStraw water bottle is my daughter’s favorite.
If you’re local to Bucks County PA, or visiting, you have to book a paddle with Miss Melanie!
When we got back from Mexico this past March, I thought, “Oh good, we will get back just in time for the beautiful Spring weather.” Uh, no. The middle of March was warm. Then bitter cold. Then everything in between. April was all over the place but actually not too rainy. Now, as we approach Mother’s Day weekend, the official, we-won’t-be-getting-any-more-frosts-and-you-can-plant-your-gardens time of year, I feel I can finally wear pretty much anything. I waited until just after Easter to do my closet switchover from Fall/Winter to Spring/Summer. All that means is I pull out all my shorts and try them all on and decide I don’t really like any of them. I also cycle the warm weather items I’ve had packed away in the big drawer in my dresser and replace them with my corduroys and cashmere and things I know I won’t wear for a while. It’s hugely satisfying. Welcome linen! Sandals. Tank tops. I’m especially excited to wear my clog sandals. Hello old friends. Flashbacks to my mom pulling boxes and boxes of clothes out of the attic and making me try everything on. How I hated it then, and now I love it. Some items I love just as much as when they were new, if not more. Other things I am so over and I say goodbye to them. I did a follow up inventory of my workout wear, specifically the running shorts and tops. I don’t usually get rid of much when I do a switchover, but I let a few things go. Only one pair of running shorts made the cut. And one pair of Patagonia baggies. After seeing what I had, I allowed myself to add a few new pieces. All clothing is old except for those with links.
J Crew linen dress | Sandgrens clog sandals
Lucky Bowie t-shirt | J Crew jeans | Kork-Ease mary janes
J Crew linen shirt | Old Navy chinos | J Crew sandals
Michael’s t-shirt | Scotch & Soda chinos | Lotta from Stockholm clog sandals
J Crew breton | J Crew linen pants | J Crew sandals
Gap tank | Loft trousers | Lotta from Stockholm clogs
Gap tank | Pistola chinos | Lotta from Stockholm clog sandals
I recently found some of my old artwork from college. And by “found”, I mean drove to the house of my roommate’s parents, and took them home to my house. The art, not the parents. Why my artwork wasn’t moldering in my own parents’ house, I can’t tell you. All these years I knew I needed to go get them. I planned to go get them. And I thought, when I get them, I’ll flip through them, remembering those idyllic days, and then toss them in the trash. But, you know what? I actually was impressed by some of the pieces. Impressed by my talent and also the talent of my professors who managed to extract something not-bad from that young artist-to-be. Now they aren’t masterpieces, they’re homework assignments. Exercises, practice pieces. But they all have a certain something. A somewhat satisfying quality that seemed to be innately me. Of course they aren’t all the work, in all media, that I produced in those four years, just a mysterious collection that got separated from the rest. I didn’t even major in Fine Art or Painting but Photography. So here is a small random collection of work that I did all those years ago. Thank you to Maryland Institute College of Art for a great college experience, and to my roommate Penny for reaching out to me.
The first thing I realized this morning, the first day of 2024, is that I needed a new calendar. I made this real quick and printed it out and will hang it on my fridge. Feel free to download and print it yourself. I used 13 x 19 paper but you could reduce it down to fit letter.
Happy New Year!
I recently learned that rainy days aren’t so bad if you have rainwear you love. Last year I bought a new raincoat and I’m excited when I get a chance to wear it. I had a raincoat but it’s not very waterproof — kind of necessary for a raincoat.
My original coat is from J. Crew from Spring of 2019 and I still like it. It’s the shorter of the two. A cotton-nylon blend. I love the dark moss color. It’s lightweight and fairly stylish. You could even wear it if it’s not raining. It’s cute.
The new coat is by Joules which I bought on Amazon. It’s polyester-cotton with a cotton-nylon lining that has a very pretty floral pattern. It really repels water and definitely keeps you dry. The hood even has a little visor.
Now, rain boots. I have a pair from J. Crew that are very minimal, black rubber in a sort of chelsea boot style. They’re not terribly comfortable, like I wouldn’t want to wear them all day. But they get the job done.
Then I have a classic pair of tall Hunter boots. Remember when people decided those were cool? I got some about 10 years after that, second-hand. They are great when it’s just bucketing down. But if you’re not slogging through puddles on a country walk with your dog, do you really need them? I say no. You definitely don’t want to wear them for long or drive a car in them.
If it’s wet but not aggressively raining, I will wear my green rubber gardening clogs, because, you know, clogs. They’re by a brand called Nora.
I also have my Doc Marten‘s which are not for rain, but won’t get ruined if it’s a little rainy. They have that really stiff, shiny leather.
If I were to get a new pair of boots, I’d get these from Everlane. They look really cool. I would replace the J. Crew ones with them. But for now, if it rains, I’m all set.
