This post may contain affiliate links and Corporette® may earn commissions for purchases made through links in this post. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Our daily workwear reports suggest one piece of work-appropriate attire in a range of prices.
I always love a snakeskin print (in fact, I have been wearing this one for almost four years now), so this python-inspired blouse with a twist from Boss is right up my alley. I like the idea of pairing this with coordinating burgundy bottoms for a monochromatic look.
If you’re feeling really bold, a full-on burgundy suit (jacket & pants) would look absolutely fantastic.
The blouse is $398 at Boss and comes in sizes 0–14.
Sales of note for 10.24.24
- Nordstrom – Fall sale, up to 50% off!
- Ann Taylor – Friends of Ann Event, 30% off! Suits are included in the 30% off!
- Banana Republic Factory – 40-60% off everything, and redeem Stylecash!
- Boden – 10% off new styles with code; free shipping over $75
- Eloquii – Extra 50% off a lot of sale items, with code
- J.Crew – Friends & Family event, 30% off sitewide.
- J.Crew Factory – 40% off everything
- Lo & Sons – Fall Sale, up to 35% off
- M.M.LaFleur – Save 25% sitewide
- Neiman Marcus – Up to 30% off on new arrivals
- Spanx – Lots of workwear on sale, some up to 70% off
- Talbots – 40% off entire purchase, plus free shipping no minimum
- White House Black Market – Buy more, save more; buy 3+ get an extra 50% off
An onymous
Low key question: are you good at interior decorating? I am not – not very creative and way more focused on function over form.
Part 2 question as I consider decorating or re-decorating a new space, as I go through divorce: does your house / apartment / place have a theme or motif or color that is repeated or visible in almost every room? The only things i can think of like this are vacation homes near a beach with beach decor or on a mountain with lake themes, or maybe family pictures or religious items in a more mainstream / normal location. Do you decorate like this at all and if so, how?
Anon
This is one of my skills, and I actually help friends with their interiors at their request so it’s a bit objective. To answer your question, no, I would absolutely never decorate as you suggest. To me that says low end hotel or tacky vacation house. If you want to decorate and aren’t good at it, hire someone to help you out. If you want ideas, there’s tons on instagram and Pinterest.
go for it
No theme etc.
My bedding/couches are white so I can switch out pillow covers and throws for seasonal color/textures
I am an eclectic decorator, and as such put in pieces/artwork that speak to me.
Anon
No, I personally think that is tacky but if you like it, you should explore to her that way. I think everyone should enjoy the space they’re in and follow their own taste. There are absolutely no laws about taste, only your own preferences.
Anon
There is something to this, but there are absolutely are principles of what goes into a pleasant space that people will enjoy. Inexperienced people easily home in on one thing they know they like, aren’t aware of the pitfalls in implementing their vision, and end up disliking the final result.
Anon
This. I also think the beach themed houses are a little tacky, but I own octopus throw pillows, whale plates, and other misc sea creature shaped items and have my walls decorated with nature photos (not just the ocean), which makes sense given that I have a PhD in marine biology and love photography. I don’t think it’s actually that obviously themed to a casual visitor, but I definitely gravitate to certain types of items (or get given them as gifts).
Anon
It’s not really a ‘theme’ but I do find it helpful to understand the age/style of your home or apartment. If you live in a historic home it’d be weird to do midcentury modern furnishings, ditto with traditional English chintz/wallpaper in Palm Springs. Maybe honing in on your preferred aesthetic in that way will help – traditional vs. modern, colorful vs. neutral, more formal vs. more relaxed.
Anon
This has helped me, even with my rather bland builder-grade 1960’s ranch.
I find the most success when I find a vignette that I really like, analyze what it is I like about it (usually it is the colors combined at a certain scale), then recreate it in my own space. I don’t intentionally do a whole-house theme, but I do try to get the view between rooms to coordinate and not clash. I don’t like the whole house to be matchy-matchy, but I do like when different spaces complement each other and maybe lean into different expressions of a style.
Ses
I’m ok at decorating but I think some of it comes from having some experience and exposure to fine art.
I sometimes use a theme to organise my thoughts, but I try to hint at it rather than be explicit. For example, I have a library where the theme is “garden” – but there aren’t a bunch of kitschy signs about being in a garden or garden tools and pots as decor.
Instead, I’ve painted it a calm green and used some brass accents reminiscent of brass or copper pipes and tools. I have live plants, and that’s the room where I keep my indoor watering can, which I made sure is a beautiful and functional metal item instead of a mismatched plastic watering can.
I’m slowly replacing cheap white furniture in that room with different wood pieces. I have a dusty rose desk pad and one of the prints I’ve hung is botanical (not all of the prints! Just one. The others are abstracts I love and are not at all gardeny). This is the difference between hinting at a theme or giving a vibe vs beating everyone over the head with it).
I think the fine arts eye helps with things like proportion and matching colours – the rose desk pad with other shades of rose and combining different shades of green without clashing.
Not a decorator
Love the library – garden and example!
Anon
Not a theme or motif, but often houses have a palette of ~4-6 coordinating paint colors repeated throughout. Usually ~2-3 wall colors (basically these are the colors you would notice), and ~1-2 trim colors and maybe ~1 accent color. Note that colors here includes neutrals like light greys and whites so definitely not 6 distinct in your face colors, if done well you wouldn’t notice either everything being one color nor everything being different colors but it would still feel cohesive. Kid’s bedrooms are typically the exception to this.
Cb
We’ve got quite a wide opening between the dining room and sitting room (previously untempered glass french doors which gave me nightmares with a small child) and the dining room is dark green and sitting room is terracotta, but both have the same wood tones, and there is quite a lot of the dark green (from sofa and plants) in the sitting room. It’s pretty colourful so not for everyone but it does make the space look distinct but also cohesive.
Not a decorator
I love this look and buy every decorating magazine at the checkout line with it on the cover vs. the griege architecture digest look ugh
Cat
I know what I like when I see it, but have trouble visualizing it 100% by myself. I’ve found the designers at Ethan Allen to be really good at helping see how different fabric choices, mixing materials, etc. create a cohesive effect without it looking “matchy.”
To your question about a theme, no; I agree that seems kind of Airbnb. In general the rooms in our home feel like they all belong in the same house (like one isn’t suddenly bold and mod). We enjoy art that reminds us of our travels – a mix of souvenirs – but it’s not like every room has a print of Paris on the wall or whatever.
Anon
I personally think themes are tacky unless they are organic. Like, there is a way to do a cute nautical beach home on a actual beach, or a swiss chalet vibe for a ski cabin, but oftentimes it’s forced. My friend is really into horses so her house is Equestrian chic and it works for her because she has actual ribbons and collects horse themed antiques. But in my house I don’t have a specific theme. I do have some core colors and a loose “style” that I think help tie things together, but I’m not super strict about it.
Anon
I am really fortunate to own an old craftsman home. So it’s not really a blank slate – it has lots of character and wood detailing to begin with, so I didn’t start with a big white box to try to decorate. I just try to keep it simple and functional and that seems to be plenty.
ALT
Q1: yes, I have a background in interior design so I’d like to think that I’m good at it!
Q2: recurring theme, no. I do have a cohesive color palette throughout my home (blues and greens with pops of pink and yellow), but that’s more because those are what I’m drawn to. I am thoughtful about what I purchase and add to my home—I want things to coordinate and “go” but not match. For example, my living/dining space has a black wood and metal table, bookcases that are black metal with dark wood shelves, and a dark wood tv stand. To lighten it up, I’ve added light fabrics on the couch, chairs, pillows and curtains. Artwork is either stretched canvases or framed with a thin black frame. There’s a good dose of rattan as well for texture.
I would think about what you want your home to feel like; what you tend to gravitate towards as far as colors, styles, etc.—do you want to be minimalist or maximalist? Do you want it to be serene or bold?
My style is eclectic and on the maximalist side—I love color and pattern and texture. If I have the option to choose a color when picking a coffeemaker or a cooking spoon or whatever, I’m going to pick the one I like best rather than plain white/black/gray. I try to choose vintage, secondhand or antiques when possible because I want things to look lived in.
Anon
Yes to cohesive color palette. My house had rooms painted every color when we moved in. Now everything is shades of green (craftsman house mentioned above) so that as you move from one room to the next it makes sense and isn’t jarring. We have 3 different shades of green, all on the same color card, thoughout the house. It feels a lot better with the dark natural wood than the sunny yellow (and blue, and pink, and turquoise) that many of the rooms were painted when we moved in.
anon
Green looks amazing with natural-colored wood. Well done! Color is such a personal thing. There are colors that I enjoy but could NEVER live with.
anon
We have the same consistent color palette throughout the house. Shades of blue, green and neutrals. We do quite a bit of adventure travel so most of the wall coverings are landscape photos from our trips. We don’t have a theme per se but its earthy and naturey between the art and decor. Majority of our furniture is mid to dark tone wood as well. Makes it easy to swap things around too if I want an easy refresh.
Anon
I wouldn’t say I’m a terrible decorator. But some rooms and their dimensions can be tricker than others. I recently moved into a new to me home, and I felt a little overwhelmed finding furniture and decor that both fit the space well and were cohesive together. So I paid for an online interior designer off of Havenly, after seeing it mentioned on this website. I was happy with the service and I’ll probably use it again when I tackle another whole room or room(s) redecorating.
JP
I didn’t follow a theme or motif, but I did (and do) look at various interior design styles at a macro level for inspiration. For example, mid-century modern, Scandinavian, bohemian, farmhouse, etc. I’d describe the overall design of my house as moody, global mid-century, with a dash of art deco. The purpose of this is to create a sense of cohesion in the space – for example, the style lines of most of the furniture are mid-century. At the end of the day, though – it’s your space for you to feel comfortable in and enjoy. Have fun with it and remember that you can always change it if you don’t like it.
anon
I think I have incredibly good taste but an incredibly poor ability to pull it off, likely due to a combo of lack of money (or resistance to spending it), time, and executive functioning. My current them repeated in each room is “clothes on the floor.” Does that count?
As to your second question, a good friend of mine has a beautifully decorated home that does repeat color themes throughout. What makes it so interesting is that there’s variations on the main color scheme in each space. She also used wall paper to great effect. It’s not monotonous and this approach gave her the freedom to be more creative but still cohesive.
Anon
This is me. I love my taste and people tell me I have a good eye – but I’m also cheap and waiting to inherit family pieces I love. I’m OK making do with IKEA freebies in the meantime, especially because we rent a dumpy builder-grade apartment with popcorn ceilings. There’s only so much I can do, you know?
Anon
oh gosh, your 1st paragraph is so true. Currently my apartment is somewhere on the scale above hurricane just passed through and tettering on depression mess. Its been about 3 months of apathy.
I love and could put together a room, decorate a table or side board or bookcase like no ones business, but keeping it that way is….
I’ve done table settings and foral arrangements for family and friends at the holidays, and geniuinely enjoy that kind of fussy detailed decorating. Its the day to day life Stuff and cleaning that gets me in trouble.
Anonymous
My favorite decorating meme is “my style is best described as “there appears to have been a struggle. . .”” :-)
Anon
I literally laughed like a crazy lady all alone at my desk.
Anonymous
For our own home, it’s not super decorated (e.g., you don’t walk in and think “craftsman home” or “mid century modern” or whatever). But we did a little bit – our furniture coordinates in each room, we have rugs where you expect them that match the furniture, we use color other than white/gray, we have some art and shelving with decorative pieces on the walls, we have a centerpiece book shelf (basically an entire wall is a bookshelf in our dining room and we were thoughtful about decorating it with books/plants/photos/art).
I actually think about this a lot because often when I go to friend’s homes they are just…completely undecorated. I’m in my mid 30s and most of my friends bought homes when we were in their late 20s/early 30s. Almost all of them have white or gray walls, wood floors, minimal rugs, almost nothing on the walls except maybe a family photo gallery wall in one place, furniture is extremely functional but doesn’t coordinate (lots of Ikea / West Elm mid century modern type stuff). My best friend has lived in her home for 3 years and literally has unpacked, sealed moving boxes scattered around her home (her bedroom, her entryway). One of my friends in a condo had no rugs and when her downstairs neighbors were complaining about noise she was like “well I can’t possibly do anything about that” and I suggested putting rugs in.
I initially I assumed the lack of decoration was because they had just moved in, but now some of them have been living in their homes for 5+ years. Now part of my assumption is that they don’t bother because they have kids? I had kids a little later so decorated during the long stretch of time before I had them.
I also think some of this is how you grew up. My dad was weirdly opposed to anything on the walls and my mom hates “knick knacks” so we had no art or photos up in our home and so it was mostly just furniture/rugs. My husband’s mom and grandmother are very artsy and he grew up in a highly decorated home as a result. So we are sort of a combo of the two.
Anon
My husband literally did not own a rug, piece of art, or curtains before he moved in with me. He still dislikes paying for ‘decor’ (shutters, roman shades, rugs, curtains,mirrors, chandeliers) but acknowledges that the house looks much more finished with them. My own personal issue is hanging art/decor. I love art, I love photography, I love mirrors but it will take me forever to actually get it on the walls if I do it myself. I’ve accepted just having to pay a handy man to hang a dozen things at once so it’s done.
Anonymous
Also I wrote this comment and feel like I should clarify that I am curious about this in a non-judgmental way – I mostly find it interesting how people decide what to do, or not do, with their homes. It’s similar to how my clothes are very boring but I see friends who look amazing/fashionable and am curious how they got into fashion, know what the trends are and what looks good, etc.
anon
I understood what you meant! I also have friends who have never decorated their homes. I think they care, but not enough to put the time, money and effort into it. Whereas I really value having a lovely home, so I spend a lot of effort there. My fashion choices could not be more basic, though, haha.
Anon
Listen “decorated” is in the eye of the beholder. When I bought my current house one of my friends came over and said “your house is gonna look great once you decorate it.” My house is as decorated as it’s gonna get. We have table lamps, book cases, throw pillows & blanket on the couch, a painting my cousin made, and pretty candles on the mantel.
I know she was throwing shade at me, but this was coming from someone who has a “Tuscan mural” painted on a giant wall of her generic suburban McMansion and has a never-used dining table always set with seasonal linens, chargers, china, candles, fake flowers, and fake fruit. It’s like Michael’s threw up in her dining room. So, shade back at you, “friend.”
Anon
I really don’t like clutter. My house is a bit cluttered because we have lived here for a long time and have .. stuff. Like books. But I am not a knickknack for the sake of knickknacks person. Just more places for dust to collect.
anon
I think I’m better than average. I don’t do themes or a motif, though I have added artwork in themes that I enjoy (lots of water and nature). I do stick to a color palette so everything flows nicely and looks like it belongs. The 60/30/10 rule works pretty well for choosing a color scheme. 60 percent main color, 30 percent accent, 10 percent another accent/wow color. My base color basically stays the same from room to room, but I play with the accents.
Over the years, I’ve learned that scale is really important, as is the level of formality that you’re trying to create. Decisions should flow from there. (That said, design is more interesting when you very selectively choose something that’s unique and stands out from the rest.)
I also think it’s important to be mindful of the style of house. Not saying that if you have a Victorian, you need to decorate 100 percent in that style, but something like MCM is probably going to look a bit off.
Anon
I feel like themes in decorating are a thing of the past, but maybe it’s because it makes me think of something like this :) – https://www.instagram.com/reel/C0pH27hO1ZF/
Anonymous
This was definitely 90s goals
80s was the same but more, like, pastel stripes or seashells
No Problem
Y’all are making me want to redecorate/repaint my house! It’s all largely painted one color already thanks to the previous owner, but I have some decor decisions to make soon and love the idea of having a cohesive color palette for the house (or at least adjoining rooms).
Nina
Hmm I just bought and am decorating my apartment. Part of it is that I’m doing it slowly, as I find pieces that catch my eye. I’m trying to keep it colorful but minimalist – too much stuff doesn’t work for my ADHD mind.
I basically have a separate color scheme for the bedroom, kitchen, and living room. The living room is furnished and I have things on the walls, but the bedroom doesn’t right now. I need to buy more artwork and want to be selective about what I buy and put up. Waiting for things to speak to me.
Anonymous
so I absolutely LOVE when there is a theme repeated in a sophisticated way — for example Reese Witherspoon’s Nashville house is amazing with a ton of light blue crazy patterns and prints all matched but not the same at all. i have another example from apartment therapy years ago that was a very minimal/swedish type design but with black and hot pink accents in almost every room. oh and there was a washington post article about a Sears house (refurbishment maybe?) that had red and teal repeated in a very sophisticated way.
that said I’m not great at interior decorating and hired an online designer to do 4 big spaces in my house for about $500 per room. worth the price and i got to fill the furniture needs as i saw fit.
Anonymous
This is where I found Pinterest really helpful. I just pinned rooms that I really liked, and did it enough times I could figure out common threads between them. Then I tackled changing one thing at a time until I got to a result I like. The best advice I got was to choose the rug first with colors you love, and then work from there.
Anonymous
My house is a vibe. It’s all white and neutrals with a Scandinavian minimalist meets beach cottage thing. Furniture is either white linen slipcovered or mid century modern. It speaks in the language of light woods, neural leather, woven jute and hide rugs, light marble and polished chrome, tons of candles in the evening. The art is mostly tonal and huge. It’s cozy, serene, clutter free and without pretense. We have young kids and nothing is precious or heavy. It feels luxurious but casual and to me at least really appropriate for its costal location.
Seventh Sister
I’m not good at it – I don’t have the interest or space for anything more than really simple stuff. That said, I’m picky about what we have, except we have approximately six gazillion books and I don’t want to get rid of any of them. So if I have a decorating style, it’s books and dust bunnies.
Anon
I think “books everywhere” is one of the easier styles to pull off. I’d just add some traditional rugs, some framed paintings, and lighting to read by!
Anonymous
I highly recommend this book:
Apartment Therapy: The Eight-Step Home Cure
by Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan
It’s from the early days of Apartment therapy, and it’s not glossy, I have a battered paperback, but kindle would be fine. This books will give you ideas to how to use things that are meaningful to you in your home, whatever that is – with advice on how to choose lighting, furniture, colors.. Not what to choose, but how.
Anonymous
I think it’s just trial and error to see what you like. I have a 1920s craftsman and love antiques so my house is a hodgepodge of collected things. I think that aesthetic is freer than trying to make it seem effortlessly designed. It’s more of an I like it kind of mentality and not trying to make things match.
Clear bag for stadiums
I got some free tickets to a Nats (baseball) game, and now I need a clear bag to take into the stadium. Any suggestions? Thanks!
Anon
There are tons on Amazon so last time I needed one, I just ordered one from there that fit the dimensions the stadium required. I don’t think there are any that are better than others.
Cat
FWIW, unless you need a tote, small non-clear bags (like a crossbody) are allowed.
https://www.mlb.com/nationals/ballpark/information/bag-policy
JTM
A lot of stores are carrying them now. I really like this one from Target – https://www.target.com/p/camera-crossbody-bag-universal-thread-8482-clear/-/A-89999937#lnk=sametab
Anonymous
Doesn’t have to be clear if it meets the stadium size guidelines. Highly recommend this company: https://www.clutchwomen.com/
anon
I just bought a pair of traditional cut “trousers” with a higher waist and fuller leg. They need to be hemmed regardless and debating whether to do them sort of ankle “cropped” or longer and more traditional. Thoughts? If relevant, they are linen so I’m not wearing them in the winter regardless. thanks, corporettes!
Anon
For summer, I am surprised to find I really like wearing flats with a wide leg cropped silhouette.
Anon
Then go shorter for summer!
Anon
Long to flat sandals, it’s a more modern look.
Cat
I think hemmed to the floor will be a longer-lived style than wide-legged crop, if that influences the choice!
Anonymous
Keep enough length for long, and have it done pretty enough on the inside that you can cuff for short.
Veronica Beard
How do VB blazers run compared to soemrhing like JCrew? And how do they compare on quality? I don’t mind paying 200ish for a blazer, but even on sale these are more like 400. Debating if it is worth trying.
Anon
I’d take your ‘designer’ size in VB vs. Jcrew, which for me is typically a size larger (4 at mass market brands, UK 10/US 6 in designer brands). The quality is definitely better – nicer finishes, better quality buttons/materials, stitching is cleaner, lining is nicer, etc. If it’s a ‘fashion’ blazer I’d go with JCrew (I have and love a barbie pink moto jacket from Jcrew that I wear 2-3x/year, it’s holding up well). For something that you’d like to wear 2x/month I’d go with Veronica Beard.
Anon
No, they are not at all the same quality at Jcrew. VB much higher quality and the tailoring/cut/fit is what you are paying for. Their blazers are pretty true to size but I think their pants run more designer sizing. Once you know your size, the RealReal often has a very good selection of VB blazers. You can often find the non-classic/staple styles on sale at major dept stores and/or VB website.
Anonymous
VB is bridge quality, not mall quality like J Crew. Smythe is similar quality to VB. Both regularly can be found on sale sites.
Todays pick
This top is beautiful! Not even the cut or print but just the style and drape.
Anon
I am drawn to the whole outfit as something I’d want to wear when the weather cools off and starts feeling like late October through the end of the year.
But realistically, given that I WFH and have sort of a basic wash & wear preppy style, I don’t see it happening!
Anonymous
+1, love it. Fortunately for my budget, Theory doesn’t fit me.
Cb
Can I have a little Monday brag? Anyone have a proud moment to share?
My 7 year old and I had a goal to do longer cycle rides this summer. School let out on Friday so we decided Sunday was the day to tackle our goals – my husband dropped us quite far from home, my son and I did 7 miles without complaint, we met my husband for a pub lunch, and I did 10 more miles home. It was the longest cycle ride I had done – the first 8 miles were fairly flat (old railway flat) but the rest were on fairly hilly backroads.
I’m a commuter cyclist – I use my bike most days for the school run, to get to the bus, campus, etc. but I don’t normally cycle more than 4-5 miles in a stretch, I think my previous max was 10 miles. I felt like I could manage another 2-3 miles, before needing a break, and don’t feel sore today.
anon
that’s great! it’s such a powerful feeling when your body does what was difficult before! enjoy the moment!
Emma
That’s great! I love long bike rides, maybe it’s time to get a baby seat for kiddo. My Monday brag is that I started running a few weeks ago. I was fairly athletic when I was younger but I’ve a variety of health issues since pregnancy and I was really, really out of shape. Well this morning I ran a 5k at a decent pace and didn’t feel like I was about to pass out at the end. It took me a while to get into it, but running can be so rewarding in that way.
Anon
How do you do a school run with a bike? As an escort? (Like rides his own bike). Or some tandem setup?
Cb
When he was at nursery, we had a bike seat that we could move between our bikes. Now he cycles independently – he’s fast and confident, and listens well when we’re crossing roads. It’s about 1.5 miles each way, so 15-20 minutes, depending on whether we have a chat with someone or spot something in the river.
Anon
That’s awesome! I’m getting back into working out after a terribly busy winter/spring. I’ve finally gotten back on my erg and I’m back to rowing 3,000 meters after having to really gut out 1,000 just a few weeks ago. My ‘base’ is also back to 30 strokes/minute vs. feeling like I was dying at 28. I’m gearing up to regularly hit 5,000m by the end of the summer (although honestly it’s the sitting on the seat for so long that’s my issue now!)
It’s so nice to see effort pays off!
anon
This might be the incentive i need to get back on my erg! I used to do 5000 daily and haven’t really gotten back into it since our last move.
Anon
Good for you! One of the best things I ever did for myself was getting back into mountain biking during the pandemic after a hiatus of a few years. It’s brought me so much happiness and now that I’m pregnant, I have these great visions of putting my kid on the front in the Kids Ride Shotgun seat. There are so many moms out there riding bikes these days. Love to see it.
Cb
I think I’m always doing something or even just listening to something, so that quiet time on the bike really makes a difference. I need to focus on my surroundings but can let my intellectual brain rest for a bit.
I loved cycling with my son when he was young. Just normal commuting stuff but he really enjoyed the fresh air, looking out for things, etc. And kids learn to cycle so young now, it really can be a family hobby from a young age. T was 2.5 when he got a balance bike and mastered it within an hour.
Anon
I worked up the courage to take my concerns about one of our executives to our company board. I found out this morning that the board and owners met over the weekend to finalize the separation plan. That man has been making life miserable for a number of people for quite some time, and my voice made a difference.
Loofah
That took a lot of guts and I’m so glad it’s making a difference!
Ses
nice one! I’ve vowed to get on my road bike more this summer and have a long rail path available… just need to get myself out the door on a Sunday!
Anonymous
What’s your favorite neutral nail polish and favorite top coat?
anon
My favorite top coat is Essie Good to Go.
Neutrals are hard to recommend because so much depends on your preferences, skin tone, etc. But I am a fan of Essie Gel Couture in Fairy Tailor when I need a light, sheer color.
AIMS
I have two, Essie Pink Glove Service (kind of a dupe for the Dior Nail Glow) and OPI Dulce de Leche.
Anonymous
Kur from Londontown – it’s both. really easy .
Anokha
+1. I was influenced by a Buzzfeed article and it is legit.
Pep
+1 I love the Londontown Kur Illuminating Nail Concealers. The “Milky” one is my current fave.
Anon
Butter London Mellow the Yellow. It’s a natural color (not yellow!) and doesn’t need a base or top coat because it’s a treatment. I have it on my toes.
NaoNao
This is very much a great “problem” to have but I need some advice/encouragement to wear my $$$ designer purse that was a wonderful surprise gift from spouse a couple years ago. It’s far and away my most expensive item so I do baby it, but I want to get use out of it and I know my husband would be tickled if I wore it more. I don’t want to sell it, as that would be very hurtful to him (and I love what it represents, and feel hashtag blessed to have it).
The struggle is it’s the Fendi First Medium, which is a big structured purse that just doesn’t hold a ton. I WFH but even when I do go to office, I don’t bring an extra handbag (and my office is not in a part of town where a designer purse is a great choice, to be frank), but on nights out it feels a touch big and structured for “evening”. It’s a warm caramel color as well, and most of my color palette tends to be cool toned.
I welcome general outfit ideas (I think this is more of a cool season purse to be honest) but also stories of getting over that “oh this super expensive precious thing what if I lose or damage it!?!”
Thanks !
Cat
As far as getting over it – either you don’t use it because you baby it, or you don’t use it because you used it too much. I’d pick the latter!
It doesn’t seem too big for evening to me. I can see it chic-ing up a simple white dress and tan sandals, or linen pants and a slouchy tank?
NaoNao
Ooh I like that, kind of the Nancy Myers Kitchen but make it fashion :P
anon
Oh love that bag. I’d wear it evening or day time on weekends. I feel like I’d go for simpler tonal outfits and let the bag pop, something mostly black or mostly cream/off white. An option could be to swap out the strap for a chain strap and see if you think that makes it feel more like an evening bag.
In general, i am a very “use the thing” kind of person.. I don’t think you get over the precious mindset until you start using/wearing your things.
Anon
+1 “Use the Thing!”
Anon
I’ll just say that I sympathize with you on this. It’s beautiful bag, but I would also have trouble wearing it, as it doesn’t go with a single item of clothing I own (my wardrobe is mostly shades of blue and gray, with a few cool greens, purples, and pinks mixed in). I agree with posters above that this would look best with black or white, but maybe it would be okay with navy or red?
Anon
I would happily pair this bag with cool tones (blues, pinks, lavenders) as well as classic colors like black, white, navy, red. In the summer I’d wear it with jeans and a white shirt and sandals.
I don’t know the right way to say this, but natural toned leathers often coordinate with (most people’s) “human color” more than with outfit color?
Anonymous
Use it!
Some colors that are cool-toned or coolish that work with caramel tan leather:
White, light blue, denim, navy, steel gray, dusky teal, cool forest green, raspberry, cool mint.
Caramel can be a little orange in undertones, so look for the cool colours that are opposite on the color wheel and adjacent. You might bring in one more orangey, caramel or golden item (sandals, belt, hair clip, watch strap) not close to your face to give it a «friend» in the outfit.
Anon
Just start using it, that’s really the only way to get over both issues. I don’t think it makes any sense to leave the good stuff in your closet, what’s the point? I extend this philosophy to everything. As for matching or being too big or small, just use it. I intensely dislike matching bags and I’d argue caramel goes with everything. Too big shouldn’t matter when you’re going out to dinner or our on the weekends. If you have a little extra space, so what? Toss in your sunglasses.
Anon
What a gorgeous bag. You just have to wear it, even if it feels too extravagant at first. I’m that person who wears a big (faux) fur coat over joggers to the grocery store, because why the heck not? I’d rather wear my nice things than have them gather dust in a closet. I get compliments from strangers so it can’t look too ridiculous. The rest of your outfit doesn’t have to be equally fancy. Wear what you normally would and then throw the purse on your arm. The caramel color may look odd to your eye if you normally wear cool tones but I think it would match almost anything.
Anon
Adding: Don’t worry about keeping the purse pristine. High quality leather looks great when it’s a bit worn. Mary Kate Olsen famously has a beat-up Birkin bag. It’s stylish because you can tell the person uses the item, and it doesn’t look like a costume piece
Anon
I do the same, but with real fur. Those minks died a long long time ago.
Anonymous
It’s not too big for a night out. And it’s not flashy either. I vote for bring it everywhere, even sketchy work neighborhood, and enjoy it.
Loofah
I’m not a bag person but that’s a GREAT bag. Very cool shape. It seems like a perfect piece to really elevate an outfit.
Anonymous
Bags go out of style, much like other fashion––and I think even more so when it’s a recognized designer. I used to really baby my designer bags. But not as much now that I recognize that having a pristine bag from 10 or 15 years ago that looks sort of “off” is less useful to me than a bag that gets used but maybe gets a scuff or two along the way. I don’t usually use designer bags for anything like air travel or a work commute where the wear and tear is heavy. But I definitely bring them out for dinners, theater, local vacations, girls brunch, etc. When a color isn’t common for me, I find I get a lot more use out of the bag if I have shoes that match. Then, when I wear all black or white or a complementary color, it looks more intentional. I would buy some warm caramel sandals and start bringing the bag to dinner.
Anonymous
I’d rather regret getting a stain or scratch on something than regret keeping it in a closet for years and years until my only way to use it was to carry it with me to the nursing home dining room.
Anon
That is gorgeous! Go husband! I wouldn’t use it for a wedding or festive party but I think it’s lovely for dinner, the theater, important work meeting, and honestly would look coolest with a chic casual outfit for brunch or going to a tennis match or something like that. That can feel awkward at first but having lived in NYC and Miami I’m here to tell you a great pair of jeans, nice white tshirt, and designer bag in this color is a fabulous outfit!
Chicagoland NW suburbs CPA rec?
Good morning!
Can anyone recommend a CPA in the northwest suburbs of Chicago to do tax preparation?
Thank you!
Anonymous
Good morning!
Can anyone recommend a CPA in the northwest suburbs of Chicago to do tax preparation?
Thank you!
Me
Consider using someone elsewhere? Taxes aren’t going to be Chicago-specific. I realize the state has taxes, which the CPA needs to be familiar with. But I think you can extend your reach. Unfortunately, I don’t have a rec.
Anon
Is Reiss generally occasion wear or work wear or does it vary by item? I struggled since starting a job with distinguishing anything but the ends of the fancy vs formal spectrum of women’s wear. Appreciating how my military friends have gym-informal-“work”, and fancy/formal categories of clothes with no gray areas.
Cat
often dressy-formal as opposed to work-formal (think daywear for Princess Kate), but I wear some of their silky blouses with neutral pants to the office.
Anon
It varies in my experience. They do have lovely blazers/slacks but a lot of their items can read high end nightclub vs. office.
Ha, I agree that women’s clothing can be difficult. I think it’s bit of a running joke that men can’t tell the formality levels of a dress (dress=fancy) which I saw this weekend – I wore a Jcrew Factory cotton sundress to run errands/head to dinner with my family. My son thought I was ‘so dressed up!’ when most women would agree it’s a very solidly daytime casual dress.
Anonymous
It definitely varies by item. Sorry. What item is confusing you?
Anon
It depends on the item, occasion, and your personal style. I wouldn’t wear a lace dress to the office, for instance, but I would to a party. While I personally wouldn’t wear wool suiting to a wedding or party, you certainly could if it’s your style.
Anon
In case no one ever told you, a good rule of thumb is to look at the fabric. Consider a sheath dress – done in gray wool, clearly workwear; done in navy lace, special occasion like a wedding; done in black satin, date night. Broadly speaking, lace, satin, anything shiny or sparkly, or anything spandex-y is inappropriate for the office. Floral dresses are likely to be inappropriate for the office, but a floral blouse is ok.
Anonymous
Varies by item. I rented a beautiful silk halter Reiss dress I wore to a wedding, but I’ve also worn their wool/tailored dresses for work.
Anonymous
I think of Reiss as a slightly older and more expensive version of Zara.
The same styles and aesthetics, but a little more expensive fabrics, more whites and creams (so dry cleaning budget) and not only Zara black. Some sparkles still, but some natural fabrics added.
Anon
Does anyone follow any good entertaining/party blogs or substacks? I’ve followed wedding blogs for this and Camille Styles used to do a bit, but both aren’t quite hitting it. I’m looking for inspiration for backyard summer parties, holiday parties, birthdays etc that are for adults not kids and don’t involve some overly crafty thing on Pinterest.
Anonymous
Does anyone follow any good entertaining/party blogs or substacks? I’ve followed wedding blogs for this and Camille Styles used to do a bit, but both aren’t quite hitting it. I’m looking for inspiration for backyard summer parties, holiday parties, birthdays etc that are for adults not kids and don’t involve some overly crafty thing on Pinterest.
anon
The stripe has a bit of this. On tiktok, i like faganchelsea, she does smaller adult parties
Anon
Looking for anecdata or personal experiences on this one, I cant stand self help type books.
Has anyone retaught themselves how to do basic life tasks or had to teach themselves to maintain a standard level of care? Like have you had to teach yourself to do the dishes regularly and not let them pile up? or to clean your bathroom on a regular schedule? Just day to day life things that should be on a regular schedule and you ideally should have figured out by age 30.
Daily life maintenance as never been something Ive been good at and I want better for myself. I want better habits and my home to be …better than what it is. I struggle with apathy towards clutter, plus the fact that this is work and requires effort and time.
I was the child that would rather mope and cry than do chores and clean my room. Yes my mother is ruthlessly clean and this was a battle growing up until she finally gave up when I was a teen.
Where and how do you start with things like this?? How do you actually make yourself keep up these kinds of things??
Anon
The book ‘how to keep house while drowning’ might be a good one for you. The author is also on social media and breaks down some of her tips.
Honestly what works for me is a combo of ‘touch it once’ (if I have the mail in my hand I sort and file the mail, not dump it on the counter) and schedules (laundry on Sunday/Wednesday/Friday, groceries on Sunday, etc.). I also spend 15 minutes after dinner cleaning the kitchen/unloading and reloading the dishwasher and then straightening up anything else on the main level that needs to be done – it’s not a ton of time and it makes a big difference in the daily neatness of my house.
Anon
This sounds a lot like me. Getting older helped. Also paring down my possessions in a drastic way (I have a collector/hoarder mentality). The clutter made me feel like all of my efforts were wasted, so why bother. I only cleaned out of shame in a big mad dash a few times a month. Do a few ruthless clearing out sessions over the next few months (big stuff, small stuff/goodwill, trash.) This helped me. I didn’t need a closet full of clothes that ended up on a chair or my floor. I didn’t need cupboards full of crystal and china that kept me from having space for my drinking glasses. Also fewer drinking glasses, fewer gadgets, etc. and fewer books–painful, but a real problem for me. I’m positive this is personality driven (and not necessarily driven by forming habits.) Good luck!
Anon
Organize your home around your habits. Frequently used items should be easy to put away. If you have to get a stool or move other stuff out of the way then you won’t want to deal with it. Maybe you need duplicates in several rooms for phone chargers, scissors, etc. If you dump your stuff when walking through the front door add a coat rack, hooks, key bowl, and shoe bin. Trays are great to corral random items. Make sure you have adequate closed storage. Maybe you’ll never fold a throw blanket so you need a storage ottoman you can toss the blanket into.
As for the actual cleaning, I find it’s easier to build it into other tasks. Sweep the kitchen floor while waiting for water to boil or windex your bathroom mirror while the curling iron to heats up. It doesn’t feel like you’re losing leisure time to clean because you’re stacking it with other tasks.
Anon
Everybody has to teach themselves this. You’re not unique in not wanting to do chores.
Anon
I think for me it’s a difficult quality of life analysis. “Never relax in my home again because all I can see around me is what will need doing next?” vs. “Enjoy a clean home.”
Anonymous
man, following this one – my house is so filled with clutter. for me i try to be gentle with myself because a big part of it is the season of life that we’re in with 2 big kids and lots of toys, books, and clothes that are being sampled and/or outgrown at a high rate.
the best stuff i’ve been able to change about myself has either involved chaining or stacking though. if you want to do something every day, look at it like you’re making a chain and you don’t want to break the chain by skipping a day.
for stacking i try to add healthy habits to other already-established habits. they can be a bit bizarre sometimes – like i decided to floss my teeth whenever i have bras in the wash.
i also like the idea of starting small; there’s that meme with the ladder with really small rungs next to the ladder with widely spaced rungs.
Anonymous
https://www.reddit.com/r/GetMotivated/comments/kz8bnc/image_small_consistent_steps_yield_big_results/
Anonymous
Look up Dana K White’s website, and then go back a gazillion years to the beginning of her blog and podcast. She lived in a cluttered house, struggled to keep dishes done, had laundry everywhere, etc. She didn’t see clutter, and didn’t want to deal with it. Gradually, she taught herself how to keep things clean and orderly. If you start with her current stuff, you’ll dismiss her because you’ll think she’s just like your mom. She’s not. She’s you.
Simple start: spend 15 minutes every evening cleaning up your dishes and kitchen. 15 minutes. Set a timer. Stop when the timer goes off. I promise you that if you do this every evening, you’ll start to see a difference.
Also: Expect to ‘fail’ and learn to start over. You’ll do this for 3 evenings, and then forget and slack off for the next 2 or 3. You’ll likely then want to give up because “See, I can’t do it.” Instead, just say, “Yup, I expected that would happen. OK. I’m starting over. If I start over enough times, I’ll eventually build some kind of habit.”
Also, you’ll need to end the fight between your inner child and your mom. Or every time you try to change, your inner child will start moping, crying, refusing, and shutting down again. Because changing means “mom wins” and your inner child is probably determined not to let that happen.
Anonymous
I used to be exactly like you in this regard and now I am not. I don’t know why I am like this – I am very high functioning at work and my parents were super hands on and gave me responsibility for these things from an early age (and are excellent at them themselves).
You seem mostly focused on cleaning, for which my tips are:
1. Agree with the rec for How to Keep House While Drowning
2. I also found the book Home Comforts: The Art and Science of Keeping Home helpful. To be clear, I do not keep my house to the standards in this book. But I like that the book goes into why we do the various cleaning / maintenance tasks, gives very detailed instructions, goes into some of the science and provides a clear schedule.
Regarding the motivation, I actually found I got better at this when I STOPPED trying to maintain some kind of regimented schedule. I basically have two sets of tasks – things I do daily and things I do when I have time. For the things I do when I have time, I try to make time 2-3 times a week for ~30 minutes for things like mopping, organizing closets, washing walls, cleaning under rugs, cleaning out the fridge, whatever. I keep a long list in my notes app and note the last time I did the task in there. When I have free time, I pick something off the list based on need (e.g., seasons changed so I organize clothes) or length of time (e.g., it’s been 3 weeks since I mopped), I throw on a podcast and do a many tasks as I can until the podcast is over.
Daily tasks are run dishwasher, one load of laundry, vacuum living space, wipe down surfaces in kitchen/bathroom/living room. It helps to stack this with things – e.g., after I cook dinner, I clean all the dishes before eating.
I also do a organizing spree right before New Years and right before summer – it’s nice to start of the year/summer with an organized home.
Also, I tried to make things easier for myself. I hated vacuuming so I got a cordless vacuum – it’s not as good, but I do it every day. Our laundry hampers are in our laundry room and have multiple baskets so laundry is pre sorted. I got a combo mop/vacuum to deal with the floors in between mopping. I got a Little Green Machine I can use to spot treat things (kids). Some people find robot vacuums helpful.
Anonymous
Start small: clean just one thing a day. After a couple of weeks you should have more order and feel better about your place. And then it’s easier to maintain.
Anon
Two mental strategies have helped me with this kind of thing: (1) Be compassionate to my future self. My future self will be so happy when she walks into the kitchen in the morning to find it clean and put away, with the coffee machine filled and ready to press “brew.” (2) As an act of love to my partner. If I unload the dishwasher right now, my partner will happily find it empty and won’t have to do that annoying and un-fun chore.
Loofah
+1, I do the same thing. I do The Thing for “tomorrow Loofah”
Lorelai Gilmore
This is a very old recommendation, but try looking at the FlyLady website. I never did her whole protocol, but I really liked some of her basic suggestions. I also liked Marie Kondo – again, I never did her protocol, but she gave me some useful framing for how to think about all the “stuff”.
For me, there are four keys to keeping the house at a relative state of tidiness:
1) Every night, clean the kitchen and run the dishwasher. In the morning, unload the dishwasher while the coffee brews.
2) Ruthlessly purge your belongings. It is so much harder to keep your house clean when you have a lot of stuff. The less stuff, the easier it is to tidy.
3) Have a plan for paper. For me, I keep a recycling bin at the front door so junk mail, random paper, etc. can go straight to recycling. The rest goes into another bin and then I deal with it on a periodic basis. I’m sure others have better strategies but that’s what works for me.
4) Hire someone to come in and clean on a regular basis. I would eat beans and rice every day before I gave up our house cleaner.
Anonymous
Do the dishes every day.
Take the trash out the day the bag is full, don’t start a new extra bag to avoid emptying.
Put trash in the trash bin as soon as you see it, don’t save that task for later.
Do five minute pickups with a timer.
Do laundry often enough for you to be able to use and find your favorite clothes.
Declutter.
I recommend Dana K White’s method. She has written books, but there are YouTube videos, podcasts, blogs and checklists. They are all meant for people who get overwhelmed and don’t feel they have the skills or habits. It’s not peppy, cheerleadery or patronising, and there is no assumption that you already know this stuff.
Cat
I heard the quote “never put anything down; put it away” and that is the most succinct version of anti-clutter advice I’ve ever heard!
Other idea – set a timer and see how much you can get done. In 3 minutes I can unload the dishwasher. Loading the dishwasher and handwashing other pots etc from dinner prep is usually about 10, less if it was an easy dinner like hummus & pita & veggies. Folding a load of laundry is like 5. Way less than you think!
Anonymous
I’m not sure this is the kind of thing that can really be found in a book as ultimately it’s boils down to “just do it “but for me it has been very helpful for me to figure out exactly why I am procrastinating as to doing something. To make up an example, my resisting dropping off my mail every day at the mailbox because I have to put on my jacket and my shoes, and I have to find both of them? Then put the jacket and shoes where they are easily found. That kind of thing. Often times we are dreading “the next step” – it’s helpful to think through why the next step is onerous for you.
Anon
Tidy one room in your house every day. Think of it as a gift to yourself tomorrow.
Outsource what you can. If you can’t keep your home clean and it makes you unhappy, and you can afford to hire someone to clean your home, then it would be silly not to.
Anon
Growing up is realizing elves aren’t going to come in and do it if you don’t. I don’t mind books out on the coffee table. But I do mind junk mail and newspapers on the table. So I get rid of them. The books can stay there for a while.
It’s a matter of knowing you want the clean environment enough to do the cleaning.
Anonymous
For those with kids – when my kids were young, we did “three song cleanups,” where we’d play three songs and tidy up while the songs played. When the songs were over, we were done. It was very successful. We each got to pick a song and something about having a time-limited period made it easier to clean up.
Anon
Lots of responses already so just some anecdata but I live alone in not a big apartment and even I think its hard to keep up with this when working, friend commitments, etc. So I tend to do lots of things at ‘once’ like after dinner I’ll load and run the dishwasher, do a load of laundry, and clean off the kitchen counter (maybe once or twice a week as needed). I like to listen to music or a podcast or the news in headphones while I clean, then the cleaning becomes the ‘secondary activity’. My only main tip is I love cleaning Thursday nights – it sets me up nicely for the end of the week and weekend, makes Friday feel like the first day of vacation, and by Thursday my apt is usually pretty cluttered from whatever happened with work and life M-R.
Anon
Reporting back on some advice I received here a couple months back about using a wet alarm for an older child who still wasn’t dry at night. It totally worked! Took a couple weeks, but that brain-bladder connection formed! Used one of the cheaper alarms available that was recommended by a commenter. Thank you to those who offered advice and shared their experiences with similar issues!
Anon
Which one did you buy? I want to try this for my kiddo
Anon
Wet Stop 3. Started the first night by placing the sensor on her underwear, but wearing a pull up on top. After a couple nights quickly had to ditch the pull up and just use underpants. The pull up drew away the wet too quickly.
Anon
That worked for my son too! I had started to think he’d go to college in his pull-ups. He’s just a really deep sleeper and needed that alarm to learn to wake up to pee.
Anonymous
What happened to travel sized hairsprays?! I am at my fourth Walgreens and finally found one can for $20 and was grateful for that. Did I need to hoard these back pre-COVID? The TSA sizing isn’t a new thing.
Anon
Have you tried the all travel sizes website? Otherwise I just hoard samples from advent calendars/gift with purchase. Also, in a pinch, moisturizer will help (rub it between your palms, gently smooth down fly aways).
KJ
Your problem is that you’re going to Walgreens/CVS, which is the worst place to reliably find something simple. They’re at Target for $3 and you can order for pickup.
Anon
Buy a travel size spray bottle and fill it with your own favorite spray from your larger bottle at home
Anonymous
+1 Buy a travel size spray bottle of ANY product, empty it out, and refill it with hairspray.
Cat
Target has a few kinds in-store for like $4.
smurf
I think you’re just at the wrong store.. Target, Ulta, or Sephora has tons of options for this.
Anecdata
Walmart had a TON of travel size everything when I stopped by this weekend
Anon
Ulta has great options
RiskedCredit
Costco business center is the place to pick up travel sized everything. They have tres seme hairspray in mini size multi pack meant for sale in bodegas.
AnoNL
I can’t share with many IRL due to confidentiality, but: I have accepted a job offer today for a role that I have been waiting for for 4 years! I am sad for leaving my current boss/team/company but also excited for the new job. It’s a big promotion.
I will have to move countries again and very fast, so there is plenty of logistic details to figure out, but yeah… super happy.
Anecdata
congrats!
Anon
congrats!
Anon
Yippee! You’re amazing, congratulations!
Loofah
Well done you!
Anon
So happy for you! Woo hoo!
AnoNL
Thank you!
Anon
Did you keep your covid N95 masks? I have a box of them, and I just don’t know what to do with them. I haven’t used any…I wear a surgical mask to the nail salon (for smells-genius!) and to the doctor (for precaution). They were so hard to find, and it feels weird throwing them away. Might someone want them on FB Marketplace?
Anon
A lot of immune compromised people still need to wear N95s in many settings, so they should be easy to donate or give away!
Are you sure you don’t want to wear a N95 instead of a surgical mask to the doctor? Surgical masks aren’t great PPE for anything airborne (they keep people from sneezing or drooling onto other people, which is why they’re good for surgery, but they’re not respirators like N95s). This also makes N95s better for some chores that kick up dust or potentially spores.
Cat
I kept ours. I think we have about 50. I still like them for overnight flights since I’d rather go to sleep ASAP than stay up a random 1.5 hours to eat, and it helps block the gross plane food odor from waking me up!
Anon
Ha, I’m the opposite — we were super Covid cautious for years, and overnight flights were about the only indoor place I removed my mask. I found it sooo hard to sleep in one.
But to answer the OP’s question, I only had KN95s which are a little more comfortable but yes I kept them. I still wear them to the doctor, for travel (except eating and sleeping), outdoors on bad air quality days and to the nail salon.
Anon
Save them for home remodeling projects, or pass along to a friend who is a DIY-er. They’re perfect for when you need to deal with drywall, sanding, refinishing, going under a house, etc.
BOS
I still use for masks plane rides and other mass transportation time. You may want to try your “everything is free”/”buy nothing” FB group if you want to pass them on.
Anonymous
I have some and we’re going through them very slowly. I use them for doctors and flying or if I’m sick and need to go out in public, plus they were great when we had horrible air quality for a period of time last summer.
Anon
I put one on out when a small stove fire produced an impressive amount of smoke, and I’m really grateful how much ended up on the outside of that mask and not the inside of my lungs!
AnoNL
I still wear them in winter/cold&flu season when I am heading to crowded places or at the airport. Just had 4 coworkers went down with covid last week, so will definitely wear one when I am taking a flight later this week.
If you want to get them out of house, I would donate them to friends or hospitals or some charity healthcare facility nearby.
Anon
I still wear them for certain home projects and on planes.
Anonymous
So I just bought more… I’ve been seeing a lot of bad stuff about the avian bird flu, and a LOT of people on my Twitter timeline have been talking about trying to stay prepared in advance like buying N95 masks if you need more and staying on top of your doctors appointments. (I’ve even seen some people suggesting that if you have anything even close to flu symptoms you should get a scrip for flu medicines and fill them so you can keep them on hand just in case.) I would not get rid of the masks at this point, just shove them in your closet and hope you don’t have to think about them ever again.
Anon
We’re keeping ours – not really for the next pandemic, although emergency kit guidelines recommend that, but because we do mask indoors for the time being (pregnancy) and also live in a wildfire zone.
Anon
They usually have a shelf life, something like 3 years, I believe?
I have been using mine when mowing the lawn or doing yard work during the absurb pollen dump we had this spring. And for keeping my face warm when shoveling snow this past winter.
Anonymous
I kept them for wearing when I am sick myself but need to interact with people (I’ve had COVID in 2022, 2023, and 2024), when I am doing certain household tasks involving harsh cleaning products, and for removing poison ivy. I also wear my cloth masks when I am mowing the lawn, which kicks up a lot of dust and other irritants.
Anon
I still use mine! I just ordered some more. I wear them in all healthcare settings and in the airport.
One of my local friends just caught COVID – tested positive over Friday – and she was miserably sick for 2 full days. Feels like a cold now, but two days of flu-like symptoms like body aches, killer headache, and chills. Why wouldn’t I want to avoid that? have no issues wearing a mask if I can avoid that kind of sickness. (Which is similar to how I felt when I had it a year ago)
Anon
I feel like this is something you should always have on hand. I always had them even before the pandemic, in case of wildfires (smoke is now a risk in most of the US) and for the occasional home project. Add the fact that I’m still wearing them on flights and to some doctor’s visits, would wear them if I needed to be in public when sick, and would definitely want them if there was another pandemic. But if you have way more than you could ever wear, I’m sure someone else could use them.
Anon
I still wear them flying. If I have a choice between flying and getting sick (with covid or a yucky cold), I choose to mask instead!
Anon
Maybe a long shot, but does anyone here happen to have any leads on fully remote jobs related to writing, editing or communications? I live in a very rural part of the US for family reasons and a move is not possible. I have a remote job currently that I’ve been at for quite a while, but I’m looking to leave for a variety of reasons, and unfortunately all the job posts I’m finding online are in person or hybrid, and I’m not within reasonable commuting distance of any major city. I currently work full-time and ideally would find a full time job, but I’m open to part-time or hourly work.
Comms
I’m a VP of Comms at a fully-remote nonprofit. When I was interviewing for this role, I coincidentally was also up for two other VPs of Comms at nonprofits, and both were also fully remote! (This was last fall) So they’re definitely still out there. I would suggest looking at progressive nonprofits on the smaller side (100-400 employees) and seeing what you find.
Anonymous
Do you have any experience in grant writing or fundraising (“development” in nonprofit-speak)? These are very marketable skills at nonprofits and lend themselves especially well to remote work. If you want to try to train yourself in grant writing, check out Candid’s free training resources: https://learning.candid.org/
smurf
anyone else watch the Olympic gymnastics trials this weekend? Wow! So awesome to see Simone kicking a** again, and super excited for Suni too! Highly recommend reading her Self magazine story – the announcers briefly mentioned her kidney disease diagnosis but she has really been (and is going) through it. So inspiring.
Anon
Glued to it! I just cried right along with Suni in the group interview after the announcement. I’ve been following her more closely than the others because she was at Auburn, and the kidney issues came up during her second (and last) season there. The AU fanbase has been rooting for her for a long time, and we’re so very happy for her. Jordan annoys me, though; she’s so “look at me!” all the stinkin’ time. Girl, you are 23 and a world-class athlete. You do not need to tell everyone you meet that you are Simone’s BFF and try to hone in on Suni’s emotional moment. She is probably a lovely person in real life, but her public persona grates.