79 Comments

Gonna put my otherwise useless MFA in Children's Lit to use here and recommend "Chicken Soup with Rice" by Maurice Sendak for Sunny!

Expand full comment

Yay I love book recs!!!

Expand full comment

Just bought the Mrs Meyers Snowdrop soap and it is lovely! Great rec! Not sure how you feel about Target but right now they have their "spend "$50 on household supplies get a $15 gift card" promotion and all the Snowdrop products are in stock online (and at my UES Target)! Gonna buy like 6 of the hand soap refills! and also maybe the candle......

Expand full comment

omg sooo happy for you enjoy the heaven that is snowdrop and thank you for sharing this deal!

Expand full comment

Which helix mattress did you get? I took the quiz and it recommended dusk but curious which one you went with since you seem to love it. I’m looking for something firmer than my old Casper due to low back pain/disk stuff. Thanks!

Expand full comment

Helix Twilight Luxe, I was after something firmer too! I love it

Expand full comment

Haley I need your help! I have several pregnant friends right now, and I'm wondering if you have anything you were obsessed with during pregnancy... I'm looking for gifts for them and I can't decide if something for the baby would be cute or if something to make *them* feel more comfortable/cared for would be better (one of my friends is feeling weird about being pregnant becoming her identity now, haha). Any suggestions for a clueless/childless-for-the-foreseeable-future friend?

Expand full comment

Restaurant gift cards, prenatal massages and treatments, and honestly nicer comfy pj’s that are also breastfeeding friendly (aka buttons down front)

Expand full comment

I had a whole reply drafted up for you then lost it!! Going to try to redo tomorrow. Great q tho! And sweet

Expand full comment

I'm not Haley but I'm pregnant and a couple of friends recently gave me gift cards to restaurants we like that deliver and I realllllly appreciated those because many nights I have been too tired to cook

Expand full comment

Ooh that’s good!

Expand full comment

This is a bit of a splurge recommendation, but I'm obsessed with my corpus deodorants. They smell amazing. I buy the three pack of minis (rather than the full sized ones) and keep one at home and the remaining two in each of my bags. Even though they are "miniature," they last a pretty long time. You can also pick which scents go in your trio (even all three of the same are fine!). My favorite is the N Green scent, but they're all good imho.

https://corpusnaturals.com/products/mini-trio

Expand full comment
Dec 10Edited

Strongly recommend buying rudy jude jeans second hand rather than from the store, for a handful of reasons!

1) their measurements are super inconsistent. I once got pants from them with two different length inseams, another time, jeans with the waist band measuring a full size and a half smaller than advertised and most importantly

2) this brand has the worst customer service, will take weeks to respond to your email, and doesn't consider flaws /wrong measurements of this kind to warrant a refund. In fact, they will give you a condescending reason regarding why this is normal and tell you that you can't return the item because the one week return period has lapsed. - but it only lapsed because it took them so long to get back to you...

3) their items usually take MONTHS to ship, often weeks over their estimated ship date, and they now refuse to give you status updates on your order. if you email and ask for one, they won't respond. you'll just get an automated message in response telling you to check their website for general updates on what stage they are it in manufacturing

4) and this is just a general complaint but i really don't like the idea of supporting companies that are rude to their customers (for example, i have received items from them with crooked hem seams (pointelle tees) or that immediately get holes or weird, huge stains after just one or two washes (following their wash instructions).

These are common problems (you can check reddit or instagram accounts that have been made to share these issues (comments are usually blocked on their IG or comments get deleted instantly if there is a complaint) anytime I have emailed customer service about this, they have not been sympathetic and responded (usually after 2 weeks) by telling me that this is just the reality of buying from small "sustainable" businesses and that i can take my items to a tailor to fix them. this should not be acceptable for a brand that charges so much and claims to make things that last. Some of their items might as will be branded as disposable.

They will also say the crazy staining is a result of the natural dye process, but many natural dye enthusiasts will tell you that this is not the norm!

Some easy to find examples:

https://www.reddit.com/r/Rude_Jude_snark/comments/1dx6iem/brand_new_pointelle_wore_one_time_and_fell_asleep/

https://www.reddit.com/r/Rude_Jude_snark/comments/1fzg3w5/calling_all_dyers_need_help_redying_these_please/

https://www.reddit.com/r/Rude_Jude_snark/comments/1f5tngn/a_weak_area_and_only_tried_on_one_or_two_times/

All this is to say, buy them second hand if you really want them. They pop up all the time on instagram seller accounts/secondhand selling platforms (mostly because their sizing is so unreliable), but at least then you can get the actual measurements of the item you will be receiving and be able to avoid dealing with their customer service nightmare - and won't be giving money to a green-washing company that sells clothes that have been consistently reported by customers to fall apart or get crazy stains immediately upon one wear/wash and treat their customers like garbage.

OR, there are many other small businesses with actual sustainable practices to support that aren't scamming their customers. Small businesses with similar workwear inspired jeans that are the same price range but actually great quality: Jesse Kamm, Gravel, Shelter, Beaton Linen (rip :( ) etc

Sorry for the long rant, I just felt the need to share this because their clothes are expensive and it makes me angry when brands advertise themselves as being "slow fashion," ie, great for the environment, when their practices are anything but.

Expand full comment

I got the subway jeans by Still Here over a year ago and love them so much - they are really similar in style and quality to the RJ utility jeans (slightly pricier by like $15, but worth it) - for those reading this who want a RJ alternative!

Expand full comment

Omg I had an absolutely TERRIBLE customer service experience with them as well! They said the problems were my fault for drying the jeans on high heat but I literally always air dry them! Glad to hear it wasn’t just me, good call on buying second hand for sure.

Expand full comment

Wow!! Haven't had any issues with the jeans myself but this all sounds like sound advice!

Expand full comment

This is slightly weirdo behavior from me that requires a ruler/tape measure, so no offense taken if you ignore this, but I’m wondering how long the Nikki Chasin sweater is from the underarm down to the little split, and how long the split is. I am thinking of making myself a dupe using this pattern and I like the little split hem detail and want to add it to the pattern. https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/cardigan-no-9

Expand full comment

Thank you! Will def share when it’s done, although I’m a slow knitter so see you in the spring/summer

Expand full comment

Length between bottom of armpit and top of split is 6 inches, length of split is 4 inches! So impressed you have these kinds of knitting skills! You have to show me if you do it

Expand full comment

Not a thing but a precursor necessity to the stomach churning sweater: YNAB, aka You Need A Budget, which has allowed me to feel amazing about a few "indulgent" items as well as save up for...I don't know what yet...but I am obsessed and turned to it to set some savings goals after reading this list :)

Expand full comment

Never heard of this app but sounds really smart!! It's always so surprising what I can afford when I stop buying cheaper alternatives that don't stand the test of time. Whenever I see people raving about $10 sweaters on tiktok I cringe. Do not buy $10 sweaters!!!

Expand full comment

Also! Just got a Butter Bell on my neighborhood free page. Amazing rec

Expand full comment

Yes!! I looove having a butter bell

Expand full comment

After two kids worth of preg/nursing pit stank, I finally found a naturalish deodorant that works. A 2024 highlight!

https://cleoandcoco.com/collections/charcoal-deodorant/products/extra-strength-natural-deodorant

Expand full comment

A few recs of things that improved my life this year:

1. Got swindled by a tiktok ad into buying good ass hair day dry shampoo and I hate to report it's actually great. Smells like vanilla cookies, great bang for your buck, enviro friendly, no need to get powder all over your hands, etc. etc.

2. Quince cotton thong multipack. Comfy, inexpensive underwear that holds up and looks cute.

3. Always having some sort of large format sweet bev (e.g., lemonade) in the fridge and cutting each serving with plain seltzer (we make ours with sodastream) to make a cheeky little bev served over ice with a glass straw. Feels fancy, takes minimal effort, reasonably healthy.

Expand full comment

Love cheeky little bev concept!!

Expand full comment

for others who like a rudy jude-ish vibe but don't want to drop the $$--i'll recommend by GOATs, the Alpha60 dalton jeans! they're so comfy and work with literally everything. i have a pair, and i also got one for my mom, who is obsessed: https://www.alpha60.com.au/products/dalton-jean-navy

Expand full comment

Been looking for a new pair of work/dress-ish pants that I don't want to rip off at the end of the day and can dress down so thank youuu already ordered (on sale rn!) <3

Expand full comment

Ahh I hope you love them!! Try wearing with a big-ass button-down

Expand full comment

will do :)

Expand full comment

re: baby meals in ice cube trays, I highly recommend “souper cubes” for frozen adult meals - they make ½, 1, and 2 cup sizes (maybe more?) and make it soo easy to freeze & organize leftovers!! Also really helpful for leftover pasta sauce, chicken broth etc

Expand full comment

Was going to comment this! I love souper cubes!

Expand full comment

omg thanks for this rec! i just ordered some since i'm forever trying to partially though a huge container of soup or stew!

Expand full comment

Seconding! I used to never reheat my frozen soups because I got frustrated with the containers and letting them thaw a bit before using, but souper cubes are great and solve that problem

Expand full comment

Could you re-link the ssense blouse? the link just directs to their website!

Expand full comment

I believe it was this but it seems like it’s no longer on the site: https://clothbase.com/items/f809d99d_open-yy-ssense-exclusive-white-blouse_open-yy

Expand full comment

Ahhh yes it was that^ so sorry!!

Expand full comment

Curious how you / others style those j crew pants shoe-wise. They look incredibly cozy and chic, but I feel like they really only work with ballet flats or pumps/pump-adjacent shoes, which I don’t normally reach for in my closet. Would love to know what others think!

Expand full comment

I wear them with both of the shoes listed here (the flats and the Birkenstocks)! Harling wears hers with new balances and I think I’ve worn mine with loafers too

Expand full comment