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Three images of models wearing clothes: a black model in a blue Pact maxi dress, a brown model wearing Everlane jeans, and a white model wearing a silk camisole and skirt.

June & July 2022 Shopping Diary

Published by welcomeobjects

Continuing on my theme of shopping for hot weather, I’ve been acquiring more clothing to help me get through the summer. To be honest, there’s definitely an element of retail therapy happening. I’ve turned to emotional shopping in the past. And while I think I’ve done a pretty good job at tamping that down, some major stressors in my personal life recently have led to slip ups. I’m not going to worry about it too much right now. Just doing the best I can.

(On the doing better side of things, this is the first year I have completely resisted the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale. I didn’t even go for any beauty products.)

** This post contains affiliate links. If you shop through my links, I may earn a commission. Thank you for supporting Welcome Objects. **

Wardrobe Buys

Everlane Way-High Jean in Light Indigo – In my last shopping diary post, I reported that I bought the Way-High Jean in Folsom Blue but the fit was snugger than expected. (More about the fit in my review of the Way-High Jean.) I ended up exchanging them for the Light Indigo, an even lighter wash. This color is out of my comfort zone. I don’t think I’ve owned light colored denim since the ’90s! The regular length is too long for 5′ 4″ me, so I did have to get them hemmed.

Pact Coastal Cami Maxi Dress – I was in the mood for something loose and flowy when I came upon this dress. My usual size is S, but I ended up buying this in XS, which was more flattering in length and overall shape for petite me.

Quince Washable Silk Tank, Washable Silk Cami, and Washable Silk Skirt – These purchases happened because I browsed the Quince site. Oops. But in my defense, they’re versatile pieces that will play well in my wardrobe. I bought the cami and skirt both in black so that I can wear them together for a faux dress. These two pieces are pictured at the top in other colors. I’ll write a review when I’ve worn them for awhile.

Club Monaco Pleated Skirt (similar) – Thrifted this for $8 at my local Goodwill! I’ve been wanting to try a pleated skirt, so this was a lucky find. Documented my thrift store trip here:

 

Wardrobe Subtractions

I deleted two tops for reason no. 4 on this list: The details of the garment aren’t quite right. The neckline was too low on one shirt and too high on another. Two pairs of shoes that have never felt the same to me after developing issues with my right foot also went into the sell pile. 🙁

And then there’s the jacket that, sadly, seems destined for the trash. Back in 2014, I bought two different jackets that incorporate pleather. In recent years, both began cracking and peeling. One of them is conspicuously cracking on the back. I hate to throw it out as it’s otherwise wearable, but I haven’t come across a way to fix it. Any ideas? I’m never buying faux leather again!

The back of a beige-colored faux leather jacket, which is cracking and peeling

Faux leather doesn’t last.

Welcome Objects 2022 Wardrobe Count To Date
Additions: 15
Number of Additions That Are Secondhand: 4
Subtractions: 17

Housewares Buys

Metal Clothing Rod – You might have seen on my Instagram Stories that the wooden rod in my closet came crashing down. How? The plastic sockets holding the rod broke. Clothes are heavy, y’all! Hoping this all-metal setup is sturdier. Bonus: the metal rod has a smaller diameter than the wooden one, which means my German-made shirt hangers and skirt hangers now slide around easily with no issue.

Brightech Solar-Powered Outdoor String Lights – Though there are cheaper string lights on the market, I decided on these lights for my deck because they seemed well made and are from a small Los Angeles-based company. So far, I’m happy with them. The Edison bulbs have that vintage look I was going for. And I love that they are solar powered and automatically turn on when it gets dark.

Belts organized in a shoe box with cardboard between them creating slots

Small Space Solutions: How to Organize Clothes with Boxes & Bins

Published by welcomeobjects

I’ve lived in my share of apartments with limited storage space, which means I’ve had to get creative with how I store my clothes. I haven’t had a dresser in over 15 years! I ditched it when I moved into a studio apartment where a dresser didn’t make sense in the layout. Two apartments later, and I still don’t have a dresser.

I end up storing a good deal of clothes in boxes or bins, which then go onto shelves or into cabinets. Here’s a few tricks I’ve learned.

1. Fold clothes and store upright.

Fold clothes into short rectangles, and then store upright. I prefer storing upright to stacking because that way I can see everything. When I stack, I tend to forget what’s at the bottom of the pile.

Here’s how I fold T-shirts so that they can fit in a shoe box:

A t-shirt folded up into a small rectangle

I folded these T-shirts into long, short rectangles to fit the height and width of the box. To get this shape, fold like how they’d be displayed in a store, then fold in half once more.

Marie Kondo has a similar method of folding so that clothes stand up, but I will have you know I was doing this before she came on the scene.

T-shirts folded up and organized in a shoe box

Now that they’re all folded and stored standing up, I can see each T-shirt at once.

Two shoe boxes with socks folded neatly in them, as seen from above

The fold-and-stand-up method applies to my socks too.

2. If you can’t fold it, roll it.

As I shared in this post about adding legs to an Ikea bookshelf, I’m using a Kallax shelf with bins to store clothes because I don’t have room for a dresser.

A gold Kallax bookshelf on gold legs with blue Drona storage cubes.

However, each cube (and thus bin) is 13″ tall. That height is not ideal for clothes storage. Unlike the shoe boxes above, the bins are deep. If I stored T-shirts in these bins in a similar manner to the shoe box, there’d be a lot of wasted space in each bin. And I can’t really fold T-shirts or other soft clothes into taller rectangles because they wouldn’t keep that shape for long. They’d collapse into a messy pile.

My solution? Roll the clothes and store them on their ends. This allows me to pack more in while allowing me to see everything.

Here’s how I’m storing workout and outdoor clothes:

Clothes rolled up and stored on their ends inside a bin. There are pieces of cardboard making slots.

Lest you think I work out a lot, these are not all my clothes. Some of them belong to the Mister.

3. Use cardboard to make dividers.

When organizing, cardboard is your friend.

You may have noticed that the clothes above have some help from dividers. I made these dividers from cardboard. When organizing, cardboard is your friend. I love using cardboard as it’s easy to cut and adapt to your needs. Plus, you’re reusing something that was destined for the recycling bin.

Here’s how I used cardboard to organize my belts. In my previous apartment, I hung my belts up on a wall inside my closet. But my current apartment doesn’t have that kind of space, so I moved my belts to a shoe box.

It was important to me for the box to be organized, so that meant it was time for cardboard:

Pieces of cardboard cut with notches in them

I measured out pieces of cardboard to fit inside the box, then cut notches into them.

Pieces of cardboard with notches in them, being inserted into each other to create organizers

Next: assemble the pieces and put the newly-formed cardboard structure into your box.

Belts organized in a shoe box with cardboard between them creating slots

Tada! The cardboard created slots for my belts. Note that I’m also following tip #2: If you can’t fold it, roll it.

Once again, I’m able to see everything in the box at a glance.

See my whole process here:

These methods have helped me easily organize my clothes and accessories even when I didn’t have much space. And I didn’t have to spend that much money either. Sure, I bought the Ikea bins so they’d fit perfectly into the Kallax shelf. And I’ve acquired some canvas bins, plastic bins, and clear plastic boxes. But in many cases, I try to reuse items I already have like shoe boxes and cardboard.

Of course, this works for organizing other items too. I use shoeboxes and bins in my linen closet, for my toiletries, and under the sink — pretty much everywhere.

A linen cabinet. At the front is a shoe box with washcloths neatly folded. To the right of the box is a stack of bath towels. Behind them are more bins.

That feeling when you find a shoe box that’s the perfect width for your wash cloths.

Four product shots of Everlane shorts. Two are blue and two are brown.

Fitting Room Review: How Everlane Shorts Fit on a Petite

Published by welcomeobjects

I visited Everlane the other day to return my Memorial Day Sale order (detailed in my last post) and ended up trying a few pairs of shorts. So, I thought I’d put up a quick post showing you how Everlane shorts fit on a petite person. We’ll go in order of OK to terrible-looking. I’m 5′ 4″ by the way.

** This post contains affiliate links, but was not produced in partnership with any brand. If you shop through my links, I may earn a commission. As always, all opinions are my own and I only write about items that interest me. **

The Way-High Canvas Short

I’m a fan of the Way-High Jean (my review here), so the Way-High Canvas Short seemed like the best bet. Here’s a 5’10” model wearing a size 10.

Here I am wearing a size 6, my usual size.

A woman with black hair taking a selfie in front of a mirror in a fitting room, wearing black high-waisted shorts

Without busting out my tape measure, I’d say these have a similar rise to the Way-High Jean. (Everlane says the rise is 12.5″ and the inseam is 4.75″.) They’re not bad, but I don’t love how they flare out at the leg. On me, because I have less leg, the flare seems more pronounced than on the model. Fabric was nice, though — a sturdy canvas with a bit of stretch.

The Easy Short

With an elastic waist, the Easy Short, like the Easy Pant, are supposed to be effortless to wear. Here’s a a 5′ 8″ model in size 0.

A model wears the Everlane easy short and a t-shirt. Her hands are in her pockets.

Easy Short – $45

Here I am in size 6.

A woman with black hair taking a selfie in front of a mirror in a fitting room, wearing cream colored elastic shorts.

These have a 5″ inseam and are more mid-rise. I wrote a longer review about these shorts here, but basically, I found them too roomy in the leg. And it’s not like I have skinny thighs. The cotton twill fabric was lightweight, on the thin side, and also seemed to wrinkle easily.

The Linen Boxer Short

Similar to the Easy Short, the Linen Boxer Short have an easy elastic waist and a 5″ inseam. Here’s a  5’10” model wearing a size S.

Here I am also wearing a size S.

A woman with black hair taking a selfie in front of a mirror in a fitting room, wearing loose linen shorts in blue.

I guess they are true to their name, because these 100% linen shorts do look like boxer shorts. They’re purposely going for a relaxed fit, but there’s so much material in the leg. It just looks bunchy. Meh. They’re comfy, though. They’d be alright as pajama bottoms.

The Tourist Short

Alright, here’s the last one. Here’s a 5′ 10″ model wearing a size 0 in the Tourist Short. These are high-rise with a variable inseam because they’re cuffed. Completely unrolled, the inseam is 8.75″. A single roll of the cuff (which is what I think is happening in this model photo) yields a 7″ inseam.

Here I am wearing a size 4, which is one size down from my usual size.

A woman with black hair taking a selfie in front of a mirror in a fitting room, wearing ugly light blue bermuda-esque shorts with pleats.

As soon as I saw these shorts on the hanger I knew that I wouldn’t like them. Sorry, I think they’re ugly. But I tried them on in the name of bloggery. I don’t think they look great on the model either. The pleats, the front seams, the baggy leg — it all seems a bit much. This is giving me flashback to the ’90s. Do people like this? I lived through the ’90s, didn’t like the fashion then, and don’t like it now. Some things we should just leave in the past.

Here’s a little video summary:

My conclusion from these try-ons is that Everlane is not a place for me, a short person in possession of short legs, to buy shorts. Not this season, anyway. Hope this was helpful, or in the very least, entertaining.

You can find a directory to all my Everlane reviews here. If you found my review helpful, please consider shopping through my link. Thank you!

A flat lay of items on a white surface: a golden brown/yellow tank top, black shorts, and a black and white roll-up hat.

May 2022 Shopping Diary: Hot Weather Buys

Published by welcomeobjects

I did quite a bit in shopping in May, mostly to shore up my summer wardrobe, which was pretty flimsy. I never needed much in the way of summer clothes in San Francisco because of our constant and temperate weather (freak heat waves notwithstanding). But I know New York summers will be much different.

** This post contains affiliate links. If you shop through my links, I may earn a commission. Thank you for supporting Welcome Objects. **

Wardrobe Buys

Pact Harbour Tabbed Short, Harbour Midi Dress, Field Racerback Dress, and Field Reversible Tank. I reviewed all of these Pact pieces in a recent post. I want the shorts and tank top (shown in the photo above) in other colors now. If only they would restock sizes!

J. Crew Dotted Brocade Pencil Skirt. I already own this skirt, which I bought back in 2012. (It’s pictured in this post about skirt hangers and in an outfit in this Vetta review.) But, I can no longer fit comfortably in it with my added pandemic pounds. One Sunday I walked into a thrift store, and there it was in the next size up! Was this meant to be or what?

Eileen Fisher Washable Crepe Skirt. This was a case of an Instagram ad making a successful strike. The ad was for Eileen Fisher Renew, which sells gently used Eileen Fisher pieces. Honestly, the site does not make for a good shopping experience. There’s only one photo of the item and no garment measurements. When that item is black, it’s hard to see any details or get an idea of what the material is like. I ordered three black skirts in my ongoing quest for a black midi skirt and kept one, even though the fabric was a bit thicker than I imagined.

A person with black hair wearing a golden brown tank top tucked into a black A-line skirt with yellow shoes. The items are by Pact and Eileen Fisher.

Wearing some new buys: Field Tank Top // Eileen Fisher Skirt

Gap Denim Jacket (very similar to this). I stooped this in front of someone’s home. They had put out a clothing rack of free clothes. I didn’t have a denim jacket on my Wardrobe Wants list, but free stuff is a great way to test out if something is your style.

I also bought a few things that I’m returning. My Everlane Memorial Day sale order was a dud. I was excited about the Air Tank for its cut, but after trying it on for a while, it stretched out quite a bit. (Here’s my review.) I also bought the Everlane Way-High Jean in Folsom Blue. But it fits tighter than the same jeans in black (my review here), so I’m going to see how the next size up fits before deciding whether to exchange. Or maybe I’ll just return it. The wash is out of my all-dark-denim comfort zone.

Lastly, I found one of my favorite tank tops, the Ryan Tank (discontinued by Everlane so I’ll link to this review by Jamie-Lee) on ThredUp. But, it has a hole in it! It’s going back.

That’s 7 items acquired total. Three of them are secondhand, which is progress. I’m trying to shop secondhand more. I also removed a few items from my closet in May due to fit issues. But not enough to balance out what I brought in.

Welcome Objects 2022 Wardrobe Count To Date
Additions: 9
Number of Additions That Are Secondhand: 3
Subtractions: 13

Housewares Buys

Two folding mesh chairs and a small side table on a balcony. There are plants, a tote bag, and a throw pillow and tapestry as well.

Folding patio chairs and table – $30-$40 // Hanging planter – $10

Bought a few things for the home as well, also warm weather related.

Midea 8,000 BTU U-Shaped AC Window Units. This was the Wirecutter’s top pick for window A/C units and I second their recommendation. It has an unusual U shape, which allows you to open the window if you’d like. Plus, it’s much quieter than other A/C units. Amazon has the lowest price on these, but in an effort to buy as little from Amazon as possible, I asked Home Depot, which also had it in stock, to match Amazon’s price. They even beat it.

Room Essentials Metal Mesh Folding Patio Chair and matching side table. We’re lucky to have some outdoor space at our apartment. I specifically looked for folding furniture so that I can store them indoors during the winter. I got these during a 40% off patio sale at Target the other week. But it seems like they’re having issues with stock, because these quickly went from in stock to barely in stock, with no shipping option. (I rely on shipping so much more now that I live in NYC without a car.)

Obtaining these required some determination. I found a Target 40 minutes away that had both items, bought them online for in-store pickup, then borrowed a car and took the morning off to retrieve them. Pro-Tip: Always check your pick-up items. The table had some discoloration on top, but luckily there were others on the floor, so I just swapped it out.

Room Essentials Planters and Hanging Planters. For the outdoor space. I like the wide shape of the hanging planters, but they get bad reviews for the wires breaking. So I reinforced them by adding stainless steel picture wire. Hopefully that will do the trick and prevent disaster.

I also bought a door mirror, but it turns out I can’t install it because none of my doors are flat. Now I’m trying to figure out how to return a mirror to Target with no car. (Or whether it’s even worth the hassle of taking a mirror on transit to get $17 back). I have 90 days to figure it out. (Actually, 120 because I used my RedCard.)

Some Random Observations

The other day I was wearing my favorite T-shirt dress (pictured in this post), which is from the Prologue line at Target. That led me to wonder what was new with the line. But it’s gone! Looks like Target did away with it in 2021. It was marketed as a work wear line, and with few people going into the office, it probably sold poorly. But I thought of it more as a fashion-forward minimalist line, like Target’s version of COS. Even though I only bought one piece from this line (and criticized its heavy use of synthetics) I’m bummed it didn’t survive the pandemic.

Speaking of Target, got momentarily sucked into the Tabitha Brown collaboration that launched yesterday. I didn’t even know who she was, just saw other people talking about it online. I had to remind myself that the bold prints are not my style. This lemon wedge clutch is calling to me, though. But I know I’d rarely use it. The one thing I might actually wear are these lemon print shorts, but they sold out by the time I woke up. (I was not staying up until 3 am to shop the collection as soon as it went live.)

Also walked into Uniqlo for the first time in a long time, since before the pandemic. They now have these self check kiosks where you just pile your clothes in, and it knows from the sensors what’s in the bin. I also learned that they changed their return policy. You have to make returns to the store that you purchased something from, not any location. Wow, that is so consumer unfriendly!

A stack of gray towels.

Quince Turkish Spa Towel Review

Published by welcomeobjects

I first mentioned Quince’s Turkish Spa Towels in a roundup of favorite household buys after moving into my new apartment. Now that I’ve used them for about five months, I thought I’d write a more thorough review.

** This post contains affiliate links, but was not produced in partnership with any brand. I bought these towels myself. If you shop through my links, I may earn a commission. As always, all opinions are my own and I only write about items that interest me. **

Quince makes three types of towels: Turkish Spa Towels, Turkish Quick-Dry Bath Towels, and Organic Turkish Waffle Bath Towels. There seems to be organic cotton and regular cotton versions of at least some of these. Currently, the waffle towels are organic, but not the other two. But back when I shopped for my towels in the fall, the spa towels came in both organic cotton and conventionally-grown cotton.

UPDATE 1/26/24 – Quince has expanded their towels offering. Now there’s even more types, plus bath sheets (which are larger than towels): Turkish Waffle Bath Sheets, Ultra Plush Bath Towels, Ultra Plush Bath Sheets, Waffle Terry Bath Towels,  Waffle Terry Bath Sheets, Ribbed Quick Dry Bath Towels, Ribbed Quick Dry Bath Sheets. Please note that the towels I reviewed here (which are 700 gsm) are not offered anymore. Instead, there have been replaced by Turkish Classic Bath Towels, which are a thinner at 550 gsm. The Ultra Plush Bath Towels are 800 gsm, so the towels I bought in 2022 were in between.

Fibers & Feel

Made of long-staple Turkish cotton, they feel luxuriously thick and soft. When I say luxurious, I mean that they rival any fancy hotel towel I’ve encountered.

The Turkish Spa Towels are the thickest of the bunch at 700 grams per square meter. (By comparison, the quick-dry version is 500 gsm.) Made of long-staple Turkish cotton, they feel luxuriously thick and soft. When I say luxurious, I mean that they rival any fancy hotel towel I’ve encountered. And even though they’re plush, they don’t take too long to dry. (Though in humid weather I’m learning they they take longer, so I think I’ll switch to something thinner for summer.) In my experience, they don’t get linty either.

At 27 x 54 inches these bath towels are a bit smaller than other brands. I have some Hotel Collection towels from Macy’s that are 30 x 56 inches. But I don’t really notice the difference in size when I’m using them.

After five months of use, these towels remain soft and plush. Some towels actually feel rougher as you use them. Why? Because manufacturers typically treat towels with fabric softener to make them feel fluffy in the store. The softener wears off after successive washings. In this case, I noticed no drop-off in softness with the Quince towels.

The only issue is that sometimes after washing them, a long string or two may appear. Is this because the washing machine is battering the towels, causing the loops of the towels to come undone? Or is it a sign of not-the-best quality? I’m not sure. I guess I’ll see how these continue to wear over time.

They also take longer to dry in the dryer than other towels. When I take them to the laundromat, they are always the last item to dry since they need more time. And that’s with me defying the care instructions, which say tumble dry low, and using the high heat setting instead.

A hand holding up the corner of a gray towel to show how thick it is.

I find the Quince Turkish Spa Towels nicely thick.

Pricing

Quince sells their Turkish Spa Towels in sets of two for $39.90. The organic ones cost me $5 more for the set. (Though perhaps the price would have gone up if they had them in stock? The organic waffle bath towels are $49.90 for the set.)

That makes them a pretty good deal. The Hotel Collection towels retail for $36 each — though you can probably snag them for less on sale or with a coupon. But this is not an apples-to-apples comparison because it’s unclear what kind of cotton the Hotel Collection towels are made from. It just says “ultimate micro cotton,” which makes me think they are a lesser, short-staple cotton.

Like the Quince towels, the Wirecutter’s top pick, Frontgate Resort Collection towels, are also long-staple Turkish cotton woven to 700 gsm. One towel costs $40, though they are larger at 30 x 58 inches. But you can get twice as many towels at the same price with Quince!

However, one thing that Frontage towels have over the Quince ones is that they’re OEKO-TEX certified, meaning meaning they’re free of harmful substances. Though Quince has a OEKO-TEX logo on their sustainability page, there’s nothing on the listing for each bath or bedding product that indicates they’re certified free of toxins.

I wrote to Quince’s customer service to ask about certification for its bedding and bath items. A rep replied that “as a new company, we have not received [certification] yet — but I can guarantee our bedding meets the standard 100 by OEKO-TEX organic!” The rep said they were working with their suppliers. “When our vendor partners update their certification, we update ours accordingly.”

Choices (not a lot of them)

I have no complaints about the towels themselves, but the offerings could be better.

For one, their towels come in only two colors: white and gray. This works for me, as I happen to have a white, gray, and black color scheme going on with my shower curtain. But if you’re wanting another color, you’re out of luck.

UPDATE 3/19/23 – Browsing the Quince site today and noticed that Quince expanded the color offerings. In addition to white and gray, they now come in ivory, silver, and mineral (a dark blue).

Also, there’s not a lot of flexibility when it comes to obtaining exactly how many towels you might want. You can buy a set of two bath towels. Or, for $35 more, you can buy a bundle that also includes two hand towels and two face towels. But you can’t buy the hand towels or face towels on their own. Want to buy two bath towels and eight face towels? You can’t.

In my case, after I used the gray spa towels for a while, I decided that I wanted the matching hand towels. But there was no way I could get them without buying the whole bundle. And I didn’t need the whole bundle. I just wanted the hand towels. I ended up finding some hand towels at TJ Maxx that were close enough in color and feel. But I would have preferred getting the perfectly matched hand towels.

Lastly, they seem to have a problem with keeping stock. Many times, things are sold out. At present moment the spa towel two packs are sold out, though you can still buy the bundle. When I bought my towels, it was the other way around.

Ordering Experience

Quince ships directly from the factory, so things might take a little longer to arrive depending on where they’re coming from. These towels shipped from Turkey. My shipment was delayed by a week, too, though not through any fault of Quince’s. I had put down my first initial and last name on my mailing address, and apparently Turkish customs did not like that. Quince had to contact me to get my full first name to add to the address.

Even if we disregard the fact that I ran afoul of customs, shipping did take noticeably longer to arrive since these towels were traveling internationally. But they were well worth the wait. I stand by my statement in my prior post that these are the best towels I’ve ever owned.

If you’re interested in trying Quince, here’s my referral code, which will take $20 off your first order. It will also generate a credit for me, so thank you! This helps me keep trying out products for review.

Pact Apparel Review: Summer Styles

Published by welcomeobjects

Now that I live in a place with actual seasons, I need summer clothes. My existing wardrobe is not equipped to deal with hot and humid NYC summers. So, I recently ordered several items from Pact. Happily, I’m keeping every item from my order.

About Pact

Pact is a company I can get behind for their practices. They use chemical-free dyes and organic cotton. They’re also fair trade certified, producing in factories in India (where most of the world’s organic cotton is grown).

Pact says organic cotton consumes 81% less water than conventionally-grown cotton and makes a point of listing how much water is saved on each product listing. However, the generally-held belief that organic cotton uses less water appears to be a myth. A recent report by the Transformers Foundation concludes that, “There is no known critically-reviewed correlation between organic cotton farming and reduced water consumption in cotton farming.” Nevertheless, I prefer organic cotton because it doesn’t use synthetic chemicals and synthetic pesticides.

** This post contains affiliate links, but was not produced in partnership with any brand. If you shop through my links, I may earn a commission. As always, all opinions are my own and I only write about items that interest me. **

The company also walks the walk when it comes to their packaging. They use paperboard mailers and boxes from recycled materials. Plus, the polybags that the clothes come in are biodegradable and won’t leave behind microplastics. They should break down in a few years, not thousands. How? Microbes in the bag will eat the plastic!

I tried items from Pact’s Harbour and Field lines, which are made of a mix of organic cotton and hemp. (30% hemp for Harbour and 20% for Field). The Harbour fabric feels a bit thinner and breezier, reminiscent of linen, while the Field fabric is thicker and has a bit of a nubby texture.

A hand holding up some black fabric. The fabric is a little see-through in that light can pass through a bit.

The fabric for Pact’s Harbour items, which are 70% organic cotton and 30% hemp.

Close up of some clothing fabric, in gray and golden brown.

The fabric for Pact’s Field items, which are 80% organic cotton and 20% hemp.

OK, on to the clothing reviews.

Harbour Tabbed Short

I’ve probably mentioned more than once on here that I only have one pair of shorts suitable for leaving the house in. So shorts was high up on my shopping list. The Harbour Tabbed Short looked promising to me.

Here’s a 5′ 9 model with a 25″ waist wearing size S.

A white model wears a muscle tee and shorts with sandals.

Harbour Tabbed Short – $55 ($48 on sale)

And here’s 5’4″ me with a bigger waist (I wear a 27-28 in jeans) wearing S.

Two views of a person with black hair wearing a tank top and shorts. The shorts are longer in the first image.

Harbour Tabbed Short: Worn with the longer length (left) and cuffed once more (right).

Sizing & Fit: With an 8.75″ rise, I consider these mid-rise. They fit true to size. However, the waist does run tighter in these shorts than the Pact Essential Sweatshort. The elastic initially left light marks on me, though I suspect they’ll loosen up after more wears. (UPDATE: They did.) When measured laying flat, the Harbour Short is a little less than an inch shorter across the waist than the Essential Sweatshort in the same size, a significant difference. So size up if you like a loose fit.

Design Details: Tabs on the side allow you to adjust the length. You can fold up the hem and secure them with the tab, which makes the inseam 1.5″ shorter. These shorts also have pockets in the front as well as pockets on the back.

So far, I like these. They’re lightweight and they don’t wrinkle too much.

Field Reversible Tank

The word “reversible” caught my attention. I love a convertible piece of clothing. So of course I had to try this tank top.

Here’s a 5’11’ model with a 34″ bust wearing a S.

An Asian model wears a tank top, shorts, and sandals

Field Reversible Tank – $45 ($36 on sale)

And here I am wearing the S in golden brown, which reminds me of Dijon mustard.

Two images of a person wearing a tank top. The tank top has a V neckline in the first image and a rounded neckline in the second.

Field Reversible Tank: Wear either side on the front.

Sizing & Fit: True to size. I have a 33″ bust and generally wear a S in most brands. The length works OK on petite me, though I prefer tucking it in to shorten it.

Design Details: I love that you can wear it with the V or scoop in front. In this way, it’s similar to Vetta’s Textured Shell (which I reviewed here). But I find the cut of the Pact tank more comfortable and easier to wear. Both sides are equally comfy.

A person with black hair standing on the sidewalk outside some homes, wearing a mustard-colored tank top and rust colored pants with leopard print shoes.

Pact Tank Top // Vetta Pants // dr. Liza Flats [review] // Lo & Sons Bag // And since we can see my bra strap, Bra [review]

I like this so much, I want another one. I keep checking to see if the sandshell color (worn by the model above), has restocked in my size. But every time I check, more colors sell out in more sizes. Things seem to sell out fast on Pact’s site! This tank top comes in five colors, but I wish there were more. Why isn’t there a black? I demand black so I can make a faux romper with the Harbour Short.

Field Racerback Dress

I ordered this racerback dress because it looked like it might be good for really hot days when you don’t want anything too close to your body.

Here’s a 5’11” model with a 34″ bust wearing M.

An Asian model wears a gray tank dress

Field Racerback Dress – $65 ($57 on sale)

And here I am wearing a S.

Two views of me, a person with black hair, wearing a racerback tank dress from the front, and from the back.

Field Racerback Dress: I can never quite figure out how to line up my bra straps exactly. Close enough.

Sizing & Fit: True to size.

Design Details: I feel like they got the details right with this one. It skims the body and thankfully doesn’t show my belly pooch, but it’s also not too shapeless. The high-low hem adds some visual interest.

Harbour Midi Dress

This dress was a bit of an impulse buy. I don’t really need another black dress. But I wondered how it might look on me. If I were in the store I would definitely try it on, so I ordered it and here we are.

Here’s a 5’11” model with 34″ bust wearing a size S.

An Asian model wears a midi dress in mariner stripe.

Harbour Midi Dress – $118 ($103 on sale)

And here’s 5’4″ me in a S.

A person with black hair wearing a black midi dress outside in a park, standing next to a column. She has a hand in a pocket.

Harbour Midi Dress // Camper Shoes (old)

Sizing & Fit: I ordered this in both S and M because reviews online complained that the top part is small. But that was not the case for me. It fit true to size. However, I have a small bust. If you are busty, I can see it not being roomy enough on top.

Design Details: A classic design. It has a full skirt, a U-shape on the front and back — and pockets! Do note that the buttons on the skirt part are decorative, not functional, so you can’t unbutton the whole thing. The belt is removable.

This came in some fun striped patterns as well, such as the mariner stripe that the model is wearing, but also a pink and blue striped pattern called stucco that you can see on these bermuda shorts. Alas, those patterns are sold out. It’s only available in black now. However, I’ve seen the striped versions briefly pop back now and then in a size or two.

Shopping Success

Overall, I’m happy with all these pieces. I’ve only had them for a short while, so I can’t speak to how they’ve worn. But if they’re anything like my Pact sweats (reviewed here), they’ll hold up great through wears and washings. I cold washed and hang dried everything and there was no shrinkage or fading. (You do have to iron the shorts after washing to keep the tabbed hem from being twisted.)

Finally, I have some summer clothes!

BTW, everything is on sale this Memorial Day weekend on Pact’s site.

If you’re interested in Pact and there’s not a sale taking place, use my coupon code WELCOMEOBJ15 to get 15% off your first order.

A display in an Everlane store with a stack of easy shorts.

Fitting Room Review: Everlane Air Tank & Easy Short

Published by welcomeobjects

It’s been a while since I’ve written a fitting room review. (Thanks, pandemic.) But I’m back! In my search for summer clothes, I recently went to Everlane to try on a few things: the Air Tank and Easy Short.

** This post contains affiliate links, but was not produced in partnership with any brand. If you shop through my links, I may earn a commission. As always, all opinions are my own and I only write about items that interest me. **

The Air Tank

The Everlane air tank in walnut brown.

Air Tank – $30

The Air Tank seems to be the cousin to the Air Cami, which did not work for me due to the cut. (Air Cami review here.) However, I did like the fabric, which is a super lightweight, thin cotton — perfect for disgustingly humid and hot days.

Here’s a 5′ 10″ model wearing a size small.

Here’s a closer look at the tank top in a color called walnut. I didn’t see this in the store, but I think it’s a nice shade of brown. The Air Tank currently comes in six colors.

And here’s 5’4″ me wearing an XS in a color called iced coffee. For reference, I’m a dress size 4-6 and wear a small (and sometimes XS) in most brands.

Sizing & Fit: I find that Everlane generally runs big when it comes to tops. So this runs a bit big. But the sizing is consistent to other Everlane shirts. The XS was the right size for me. When I tried the S, the arm holes were too big and showed my bra.

Design Details: I appreciate the placement of the scoops. The front isn’t too low. And while the back is low, it doesn’t show the back of your bra. I also like the not-too-long length. (The XS is 21.5″ in length.) Perhaps it’s not a good fit if you have a long torso, but it’s handy for pairing with high-waisted bottoms. If you wear it tucked in, there won’t be too much material to tuck.

I can see myself buying this tank in several colors. At $30, though, I’m going to wait for it to go on sale.

UPDATE 6/1/22 – I ordered the air tank in walnut, and the color is lighter in person. (Couldn’t quite capture the shade. It’s even lighter than this photo in real life.)

UPDATE 6/10/22 – OK, after having some time to try on the Air Tank, I can now report that it stretches in the arm hole area, so much so that my bra became visible from the side. Plus, it kind of sticks out in that area, which you can see below. I really liked the cut, but I’m sorry to say I can no longer recommend it because of the substantial stretching. Disappointing!

The Easy Short

The Everlane easy short in pewter green.

Easy Short – $50

The Easy Short seems to be an iteration of the Easy Chino Short (my review here), a prior Everlane pull-on short with an elastic waist and lightweight cotton twill fabric. The fabric content is 98% cotton and 2% elastane.

Here’s a 5′ 8″ model wearing a size 0.

Here’s 5′ 4″ me wearing a size 4 on the left and a size 6 on the right.

A person with black hair takes a selfie in a fitting room. Wearing a tank top and shorts.

Easy Short in canvas. Wearing size 4 (left) and size 6 (right).

Sizing & Fit: I am a 4 or 6 in bottoms these days (probably more like a 6 if I’m being honest with myself). I wear a 28 in the Everlane Original Cheeky Jean and a 27 in the Way-High Jean. I tried on both the 4 and the 6. They felt similar in the waist (though of course tighter in the smaller size), but the leg was much roomier in the 6. The 4 was more flattering for me. So, I guess these run true to size in the waist, but big in the leg.

Design Details: The Easy Short have a lot going for it that sounds good: elastic waist, pockets, a 5″ inseam, and a high-ish rise (10.88″ in the size 4). While casual, they can be dressed up as well. They look cute on the model. But on me, I felt meh about them. Maybe it’s because they were so wrinkled in the store? (Which makes me think they’d be wrinkled always.) Or that they just don’t look good on my short legs? The roominess of the leg gave serious auntie vibes.

They feel comfortable. Perhaps a darker color would be more flattering and better at hiding wrinkles.

The Air Tank and Easy Short are just two of Everlane’s summer offerings. I was on my way to an appointment, so I didn’t have time to try on everything that caught my eye. I’m also curious about the Air Muscle Tank and Linen Boxer Short.

UPDATE 5/26/22 – These two items are now marked down as part of Everlane’s Memorial Day Sale.

UPDATE 6/10/22- Alright, I ordered some things during the sale and here’s a try on of the Air Muscle Tank. It seems wider in the shoulders than other muscle tanks. Which is maybe why it kind of puckers out at the side at the arm pits. Not a keeper for me. Maybe good for someone with wider shoulders?

You can find a directory to all my Everlane reviews here. If you found my review helpful, please consider shopping through my link. Thank you!

11 pieces of clothing, folded neatly, plus 3 pairs of shoes and a bag, all on a white surface

Everything I Wore for 6 Weeks: A Capsule Wardrobe

Published by welcomeobjects

What do you pack when you’re living out of a suitcase for six weeks? In my case, just 14 items. (16 if you include bags.)

If you follow me on Instagram, you might have already seen my 14 x 42 capsule wardrobe (14 items worn over 42 days). But I thought I’d pull everything together into a proper post. Whether you’d like to try a capsule wardrobe to streamline getting dressed every day or you’re interested in what to pack for a trip, I thought it might be helpful to show a real-life example of what I wore over a chunk of time.

I pulled this particular capsule wardrobe together last fall to housesit for a friend. Because of the hectic nature of my life at the time (I was packing up everything I owned to move across the country), I pulled this wardrobe together in about 10 minutes. This is not a brag. Usually I’d spend some time thinking through what pieces to pack. But I was short on time and just had to grab stuff and go.

That ended up being a good thing, because I grabbed items that were tried and true. Hmm, maybe I should set a timer every time I pack for a trip from now on!

OK, here it is. Everything I wore for six weeks. (Sorry, I don’t have one of those cute little wooden clothes racks that other bloggers seem to have. All I had at this apartment where I was housesitting was the bed to take photos on. And the lighting wasn’t great.)

11 pieces of clothing, folded neatly, plus 3 pairs of shoes and a bag, all on a white surface

What I packed:

  • 1 puffy down vest
  • 1 lightweight anorak
  • 4 shirts
  • 1 hoodie
  • 1 sweater
  • 3 pants
  • 3 pairs of shoes
  • 1 purse/belt bag
  • 1 tote bag (not shown)

As you can see, I have a color palette going on. This made it incredible easy to get dressed. Everything went with everything. The base layer was black or black and blue. Sometimes I added a pop of color with the maroon anorak or some of the shoes.

OK, let’s take a closer look at each category.

Four shirts neatly folded into squares. Two are black, one is blue, one is blue and black.

Shirts (from left to right, first row to second row):

  1. Oak & Fort Boxy Shirt
  2. Eileen Fisher Brushstroke Top [review]
  3. Vetta Boyfriend Shirt [review]
  4. Everlane Shrunken Cotton Shirt

Though the colors are limited, there’s a good variety in these shirts. The Oak & Fort shirt is more casual (it has a sweatshirt-like feel), while the Eileen Fisher one, which is made out of silk and cotton, has a slight sheen to it and feels elegant.

The Everlane button down is classic. (I wish Everlane still made this shirt. The proportions are perfect for a petite.) And the blue Vetta shirt is convertible, which means I can get several looks out of it. I mostly wore it with the V-neck and buttons in front, but you can also turn it around for a rounded neckline. It also works as a layering item worn open as a cardigan.

Three pairs of pants folded.

Pants

  1. Eileen Fisher Cotton Cropped Pants [review, similar]
  2. Everlane Easy Chinos [review, similar]
  3. Everlane Track Joggers [review]

I kept it simple and went with black for all three items. I was going for comfort here, as evidenced by all the elastic waists. Usually I’d have a pair of jeans in here, but this was during a time when none of my jeans fit comfortably and I hadn’t gotten new ones yet.

The Eileen Fisher cropped pants are made from a jersey material while the Everlane chinos are more crisp. But they serve a similar purpose. In the future, I’d swap out of those pants for a skirt for more variety.

A purple hoodie and a black sweater, both folded into squares.

Sweatshirts & Sweaters

How about one of each?

  1. Pact Hoodie [review, similar]
  2. Everlane Cotton Boatneck Sweater [review]

A maroon anorak and a blue puffy vest.

Outerwear

  1. A New Day Anorak [review]
  2. Uniqlo Ultralight Down Vest

Got my bases covered with something lightweight for warmer days and a down vest to add for cooler days.

Three pairs of shoes: slip ons, animal print sneakers, yellow slide sandals.

Shoes

    1. Allbirds Wool Loungers [review]
    2. New Balance 574s
    3. DV Slides [similar look]

These are all on the more casual side. I was doing a lot of walking and knew the Allbirds and New Balance sneakers would be comfy. I didn’t end up using the sandals all that much due to the weather being not particularly warm. In retrospect, I should have chosen a pair of flats instead.

That’s 14 items. I also packed my trusty Everlane Pocket Tote [review] and Lo & Sons belt bag — something that can haul a lot and something for when I just need to carry a few essentials.

Here are a few of the outfits that came out of this capsule:

A person wearing a face mask standing outside wearing a maroon jacket, blue shirt, black pants. A person wearing a face mask inside a kitchen at Ikea wearing all black.

A person wearing a face mask and all black jumping in front of a rock wall. A person standing in front of a green wall, with hand on hip. Wearing black and blue shirt, with a blue shirt over it, and black pants.

A person standing in front of a wall with white painted leaves, holding a stack of books, wearing a blue and black top and black pants. A person standing on a median in San Francisco wearing a black base layer, a maroon jacket, a red face mask.

This capsule wardrobe served me well for the activities of daily living: working from home, shopping, and running errands. It also worked for outings to restaurants with friends, a trip to the museum, and easy hikes.

While I did tire of wearing the same things by the end of six weeks, this capsule wardrobe reinforced to me that I truly don’t need a lot. I can stretch 14 items, which all fit in my carry-on suitcase by the way, into lots of outfits. Not thinking too much about what to wear every day was also refreshing.

Three skirts on metal skirt hangers with coated clips.

The Best Slim Space-Saving Skirt Hanger

Published by welcomeobjects

Welcome to part 2 of my hanger review, which is all about skirt hangers. In part 1, I shared my pick for the best slim space-saving shirt hanger. Then, I searched for the best slim skirt hanger, which turned out to be more challenging.

When I moved across the country recently, I ditched all my skirt hangers. (I don’t recall the brand, but they were chrome.) While they were sturdy, they had one big problem: they gripped too hard, leaving marks on many of my skirts. This led to me trying to protect my skirts by placing a foam layer between the skirt and the clips. But the clips instantly flattened the foam. So then I cut pieces of cardboard to go over the foam. This double layer of protection went on all my skirts before I clipped them.

This was way more work than I wanted just to hang up my skirts.

My Skirt Hanger Search Criteria

In searching for new skirt hangers, here’s what I looked for:

  • Durability
  • Ease of clipping
  • Sturdy and grips well
  • Does not damage fabrics
  • Slim and space-saving

Sherry from Save Spend Splurge told me that she favors skirt hangers with a clamp design. These don’t leave marks, she says. However, I’m working with limited closet space here, so I wanted something slimmer. This limited my search to hangers with clip designs.

I ended up testing out three different hangers. I tried each hanger on several skirts of differing materials, from polyester crepe to wool. Each skirt was left alone for three days on the hanger before I checked on it.

The skirt hangers that I tested:

  1. Marie Kondo Serene Matte Metal Pants & Skirt Hanger
  2. Mawa Non-Slip Pants & Skirt Hanger
  3. Helthlyes Adjustable Pants Hanger 

Marie Kondo Serene Matte Metal Pants & Skirt Hanger

Marie Kondo partnered with The Container Store on a line of home organizing goods, including hangers.

Price: Sold in a set of 3 for $8.99, the Marie Kondo skirt hanger is the priciest of the ones I tried.

Construction: Aluminum and bamboo. The bamboo on this skirt hanger looks really nice, though it doesn’t add anything function wise. (The aluminum bar goes through the center of the bamboo.) The clip itself is metal, though the padding that grips the clothes is plastic. I also noticed small plastic discs on the outside of each clip. Perhaps to help keep the clip in place?

A hand holding open the clip on a Marie Kondo Container Store skirt hanger.

Close up of the clip part of the Marie Kondo Serene Pants & Skirt Hanger.

Pinch Situation: These hangers leave a thin mark on some items. Note the “teeth” marks on the pink skirt (made of a polyester) and the wool blend skirt.

Three images of clip portion of a Marie Kondo hanger and the impressions they left on skirts.

The Marie Kondo Serene Pants & Skirt Hanger left marks on some fabrics.

What I Liked: This hanger is the most aesthetically pleasing of the bunch with its clean and minimalist look. The aluminum comes in white or black.

What Concerned Me: The plastic parts. How durable are they? What if they break after a couple years and ruin the hanger?  

Mawa Slim Skirt Hangers

Since I ended up choosing the Mawa Silhouette Ultra-Slim Shirt Hanger as my every day hanger pick, it only made sense that I should try the skirt hanger from this brand.

Price: I bought these on Amazon, where the price fluctuates, and was able to snag them at $2.22 a piece. However, the current price is the same as the Marie Kondo hangers at $3.00 a piece.

Construction: Alloy steel with a non-slip rubbery coating.

A hand holding open the clip part of a Mawa skirt hanger.

Close up of the clip part of the Mawa Non-Slip Pants & Skirt Hanger.

Pinch situation: Compared to the Marie Kondo hanger, the coated clip on the Mawa hanger spreads pressure across more surface area. This hanger left a more gentle mark when it left a mark. You can see a slight impression on the pink and beige skirts below, which are both made from polyester.

Three images of the clip portion of a Mawa skirt hanger and the impressions they left on skirts.

The Mawa Non-Slip Pants & Skirt Hanger left less noticeable marks.

What I Liked: These gripped the best. They were gentle but still sturdy.

What Concerned Me: This hanger is the smallest all around. It’s 12″ across whereas the Marie Kondo hanger is an inch longer. The hook on the Mawa hanger is likewise small and barely fits on the wooden rod in my closet, which measures roughly 1 3/8″ in diameter. I need to grab the hanger by the stem of the hook in order to remove it from the rod. The hook part also jiggles because it’s not soldered on. It is kept in place between two bumps of metal on the bar. Due to these two factors, it’s kind of hard to move them on the rod. They get stuck in place when I’m trying to browse and push a bunch of garments over.

Closeup of the hook part of the Mawa metal skirt and pants hanger

Two small bumps on the bar keep the hook of the Mawa Non-Slip Pants & Skirt Hanger in place.

Helthlyes Adjustable Pants Hangers

I found the last option, the Helthlyes Adjustable Pants Hanger, on Amazon.

Price: At $15.99 for 10, they are the cheapest of the bunch at $1.60 a piece.

Construction: These looked similar to the Mawa ones with metal construction and a rubbery coating. Plus, the hook part was larger.

A hand holding the clip part open on a skirt hanger.

Close up of the clip part of the Helthlyes Adjustable Pants Hanger. Note the protrusions on the inside of the clips.

Pinch Situation: While the clips are coated, there are raised lines on them that extend down into the clip part and make contact with your clothes. They leave marks. Behold the little vampire marks on the beige skirt below.

What I Liked: Well, they’re sturdy. But honestly, I did not like these. Given their similar look to the Mawa hanger, I thought these might be the solution. But nope, the quality isn’t as nice.

What Concerned Me: These hangers pinched the hardest out of the three. They also require more pressure to open the clip. I think they’d be hard for someone with arthritis to use.

The Winner

A metal skirt hanger from Mawa holding a pink skirt.

The Mawa Non-Slip Pants & Skirt Hanger is my pick for its gentle grip.

If my wooden rod was skinnier, it would be a no brainer. The Mawa are the gentlest while still having a good grip. But the small hook part of the Mawa made them a bit of a hassle to get off the rod. I wondered if I should go for the runner up hanger, the Marie Kondo one.

After sharing my dilemma with a friend, she asked why didn’t I replace my rod or try to plane it. I thought about borrowing a car to buy a new rod. But in the end, I decided to sand it to slim it down. While the hangers don’t fit perfectly now, they fit much better. So far, I’m pleased with the hangers. No more ridiculous double layer of cardboard and foam to protect my clothes!

UPDATE 11/9/24 – After the supports for my wooden rod failed, causing it and my clothes to crash to the floor, I’ve since installed a metal rod, which has a skinnier circumference and doesn’t cause any problems with the petite hook of the Mawa hangers. Also, while looking to get more of them, I just discovered there’s a longer version of the Mawa skirt hanger that’s 15 3/4″ in length.

This post contains affiliate links but was not produced in partnership with any brand.

Light link cherry blossoms, and brownstone buildings in the background.

Low Buy 2022: Q1 Shopping Check-In

Published by welcomeobjects

It’s spring and I’m loving all the cherry blossoms and flowering trees. I’ve started to wash and pack away my warmer sweaters. I pretty much only wash my cashmere and wool sweaters once a year — when I’m cleaning them to store them away. (More on clothing cleaning and storage here.)

With the change of seasons, I thought it’d be a good time to check in on my consumption. While I didn’t set any specific shopping goals for this year, for the past five years I’ve aimed to have a low buy year. And 2022 is no exception. So far, I’m doing great. In the first quarter of this year, I’ve only bought two pairs of Everlane Original Cheeky Jeans in different colors, which I reviewed here.

I’ve also been slowly going through my wardrobe to weed. So far, I’ve removed 10 items from my closet (12 if we’re counting jewelry). As I purge, I keep a list and write down the reasons why I’m getting rid of things in my wardrobe. “Doesn’t feel like me anymore,” is one of the top reasons lately, along with the usual issues with fit. One thing I learned this time around is that while I like the idea of jackets with asymmetrical collars, I don’t like to wear them in real life. I decided to sell two jackets with this design.

I also started making a spreadsheet of all the items in my wardrobe. And honestly, I’m not sure why. I didn’t start the spreadsheet with any specific intention (like tracking wears). I just like making lists, so I guess it’s a natural thing for me to start a spreadsheet. As I’m listing each item, I categorize it not only under a broad category (like pants or skirts), but also a subcategory (casual? special occasion?). It’s another way of seeing what I have by quantifying things.

As we approach summer, I suspect that my shopping will pick up. Coming from San Francisco, where hot days were not common — they did happen, but when they did, they felt like freakish global warming events — I don’t have much in the way of cool summer clothes. I’m not well prepared for hot, humid NYC summers. (Guess I better shop for AC units too.) I’m also yearning to add some fun pieces, like colorful dresses. But I haven’t come across anything that’s really calling to me yet. Yes, consider this an invitation to drop links to dresses you love.

Welcome Objects 2022 Wardrobe Count To Date
Additions: 2
Number of Additions That Are Secondhand: 0
Subtractions: 10

What I Read & Watched

Ikea is making its secondhand furniture business permanent in the U.S. after a successful pilot program. The program applies only to used IKEA furniture (but not to beds, upholstered items, lighting, and various other items). I’m glad to see them doing this. It keeps things out of the landfill and promotes reuse. As one person interviewed in the article says it probably won’t impact Ikea much financially either way, but it provides a customer benefit.

When I moved recently, I sold or gave away a lot of my furniture, a good deal of it Ikea. But I would have considered taking part of this program. It would have saved some hassle of trying to get rid of things one by one. Sellers get store credit, not cash, for their wares. But I don’t mind. I mean, when I landed in Brooklyn, I ended up at Ikea to buy all sorts of things, including plants and food.

Speaking of Ikea food, here’s a more in depth story about an Ikea store with a rooftop restaurant and how the company continues to evolve. The subhead asks, “Will a vegetarian-leaning menu and rooftop terrace take Ikea from a furniture store to a full-on lifestyle brand?”

I also saw Everything Everywhere All at Once in the theater (mask on) and I haven’t stopped thinking about it since. I loved it so much. It’s a blast, but also heartfelt. This is the immigrant family representation I didn’t know I was looking for!