It’s the first day of what’s going to be a very long week for me, so I thought I would put together a quick post about some of my favourite things right now. (This has nothing to do with the fact that I’m supposed to be writing five posts a month and the month ends tomorrow, I promise.) Check out what I’ve been loving lately and let me know what items in your life have been helping the new year go a little more smoothly.
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This sweet book, How to Sew a Button and Other Nifty Things Your Grandmother Knew, promises to teach readers how to do everything from removing stains to writing letters to representatives. It has cold remedies, card games, composting techniques, and pretty much anything else domestic that you’d ever need to know. Okay, it’s a little old-fashioned, but I adore having it on hand so that I can reference how many ways there are to clean with baking soda or vinegar or how to throw together a last-minute flower arrangement. I keep this book on my shelf right next to Real Simple’s New Uses for Old Things and an old etiquette book I picked up at a yard sale for 25 cents.
My preferred coloured pens are the Staedtler Triplus Fineliners. They write so well, and the 20-pack has basically every colour you could need to match the fronts of cards or brighten up letters. I’m really picky about my pens and I colour coordinate like crazy (class notes, to-do lists, itineraries..), so these are a godsend. I’ve been using them for twelve years and haven’t ever had a problem..except that the turquoise and violet ones always seem to run out of ink much faster than the rest. :)
Making loose leaf chai instead of using tea bags is time consuming, but so worth it, and this carved wooden box that I picked up in India is the perfect size for storing tea leaves. One of my current favourites is Darjeeling de Triomphe black tea. I do have to confess that I bought it solely for its name, though…
The One Line a Day five-year book is perfect for people like me who love the idea of journaling but never seem to have the time (or prefer writing fiction!). Each day of the year has its own page with space to write a sentence or two about what happened— not only this year but also for the following four. I love it because once next January comes around, when I add new entires, I’ll easily be able to go back and read what I did or how I felt on the same day a year ago.
Speech bubble paperclips! These are so much fun, and they hold more papers than the normal ones (which I also use all the time, but mostly in place of bobby pins in my hair). Mine were given to me to “make thesis-writing more fun” by a sweet friend last year, but you can find them here.
I have a collection of Moleskine notebooks that would make you roll your eyes, but one of my favourites is the mini ruled Volant. These are truly pocket-sized, in that they actually will fit into the back pocket of your jeans, unlike the so called “pocket” notebooks, which will not. Unlike the hardcover Moleskines, which, of course, you have to get in black, I make sure to buy these in bright colours so that I can find them in the mess of my daily life. I always have one on me, which would be more convenient if I also always carried a pen. I’ve used many strange things to jot notes in my journals or planners— borrowed eyeliner pencils, sharp Georgia red clay rocks (during a picnic— you never know when inspiration will strike), and, once, I took down a phone number in apple green royal icing.
This precious New Year card was sent from my grandmother in Bombay a few years after my younger brother was born and is addressed to both of us. I found it recently in a box of old papers and immediately pinned it above my desk. On the front: On New Year as always; inside: Wishing you joy and sweet moments to cherish, the whole year through. It was the perfect message for three-year-old Sonia, and the (almost!) 23-year-old me will take it to heart as well.
C.O Bigelow’s Rose Salve No. 12 saved my lips this winter. I’d heard so many wonderful things about rose salve in the past, so when I stumbled across this (on sale at Bath and Body works, of all places— I buy their tiny bottles of hand sanitizer to keep in my purse), I had to buy it. It smells amazing, comes in a cute little container, and is the perfect fix for chapped lips, dry elbows, or cracked cuticles. If the men in your life need something to help out their skin but don’t want to smell like roses, I recommend this hand and nail salve from Savannah Bee Company. I’ve forced it (lovingly) upon both my boyfriend and my brother.
I love this vintage key from an antique store in Charleston. I haven’t been inside the gorgeous shop yet, since this was a gift, but I can’t wait to go and try to discover the story behind it— and buy a few more keys so I can make a pretty display.
This is my mom’s copy of George Orwell’s famous novel. The inscription inside has her name and the date— 16 July 1975, before 1984. LOVE.
Lovely papillion paperweight my parents picked up for me on a trip to Asheville.
Winter white honey, also from Savannah Bee Company, is delicious. I tend to dislike most honeys; they’re too cloying for me and I don’t care for the sickly sweet smell. Plus, when I was little, before I could swallow pills, my mom would crush up malaria prevention medicine and mix it with honey for me when we went to India. It never masked the bitter taste of meds, and I’ve never forgotten how much I hated eating it. This one is different. It’s creamier and more reminiscent of a sweet sauce than a syrup. I love it drizzled on top of goat cheese and crackers.
New glasses purchased after my old pair snapped in half. I can’t say enough about these glasses and how much I love them, even though it has less to do with the Ray-Ban frames than with my new prescription and the fact that I can finally see again.
What have you been loving lately?
I need that book! I am clueless when it comes to doing a lot of house-related chores.