Hello October
Yesterday, I went for an early evening walk in air so brisk and moist my hair took 20 minutes to air dry once I got home. It was magnificent. Living in California means the seasons have a way of ebbing and flowing into a nebulous movement of weather that doesn’t seem to ever find definitive boundaries. More or less, the climate in San Francisco is temperate and sunny. Foggy in mornings and evenings, but the sun spends more time here than I had thought prior to making the move. Turning the corner into October, we’ve had warm sunny days bookended with brisk, grey mornings and evenings—the perfect balance. I’ve loved dreaming up new recipes to keep us warm through Autumn, even if San Francisco doesn’t subscribe to the changing seasons. Delicata squash with spicy and sweet notes, roasted beets with hazelnuts and tarragon, smokey warm kale bowls with parsnips and root vegetables, warm gluten free spiced apple cake… It’s going to be cozy.
“I find in times of uncertainty, like we’re living in now on a multitude of levels, we need to recognize that the world is fundamentally changing, and we will in turn change with it.”
Despite my best efforts, the reality is, I sometimes feel as though I’ve hit a wall. This chapter of life we all started together in March has seemingly snatched each one of us up from the train track we were on and decidedly put us on another. It’s picked up the car in mid motion, full momentum, and set it on another no one knows the destination of. For me, I think it’s the loss of momentum that feels the most unsettling. I am very okay with unknown, but when the creative movement that was propelling me forward stoped without warning and without waver, I found myself frustrated at best. And then I realized, it’s not the pace of which my creativity has changed, but the direction itself. What I mean is, before COVID hit, the goals and direction I had was clear. In some ways, a lot of ways actually, those things are still the same. But what has changed, is a depth and yearning for real creative exploration and artistry. I’ve started sketching, or teaching myself how to sketch at least. (Yes, you can be an art director and not know how to sketch.) I’ve started researching the fundamentals of fashion design, textiles, hem and sleeve types and the endless, endless variations of silk you can buy. Maybe this will go somewhere, maybe it won’t, but I find in times of uncertainty, like we’re living in now on a multitude of levels, we need to recognize that the world is fundamentally changing, and we will in turn change with it. We cannot expect the world to change and for us to remain the same. What the world is, is becoming, and is asking of us, is different than it was 8 months ago. That’s an opportunity for a great adventure.
I have been thinking. Moving forward, I’d like to try to write a little note like this at the beginning of every month. What I’m asking out of October, and what it’s inspiring in me. What I’m dreaming of cooking and what I’m planning on reading. What designers I’m following and what looks are feeling of the moment, authentic, and rooted. What conversations I’m having and the podcasts, books, and articles speaking to them. So, that’s what we have here. A few of my current October loves, each of them speaking to my soul and my spirit in different ways. I have really leaned in to the art director in me over these last few months, and I hope sharing it here inspires you as well. As always, it will be a month of food, style, and a warm place to settle in.
Trousers 2020 may be the appropriate mantra for me this Fall. I have a few pairs and they are the perfect WFH-but-still-feel-fresh kind of vibe. A budget and a splurge option.
I have been eating asian pears every day… working on a salad recipe with them but until then I’m just eating them plain, in all their splendor. (Photo via @cannellevanille
Some upcoming travel, and just the cruel reality of time, has me shopping for some new bags— work and play. STAUD has been a longstanding favorite of mine. I love the structure of this one!
I’ve had conversations on truth, moralism, relativity, and cultural relativism weekly, if not almost daily. (nerd) This episode of Battle Ready is a beautiful and articulate dialogue on why there has to be more to life and to the world than just what “the universe” has to offer. “The Universe Doesn’t Love You”
The shacket is here to stay and I am straight rejoicing over its arrival. H&M has some incredible options.
This Mario Bellini Camaleonda modular sofa is the sofa of dreams… I got this right arm sofa module to use as a chair in my bedroom, and i’ll start building it out into a couch. I am nothing short of zealous for its arrival.