Hope everyone is having a good Sunday. We will always do our best to bring you great design and lifestyle content every day, but please know that in weeks like these and in the many before, we are all deeply affected by what’s going on here and abroad. If you feel the same, we are with you. Be safe, and let us all take action in any way we can. Ok, here are this week’s links for a little needed lightness<3<\/p>\n\n\n\n
From Emily: I am IN LOVE with this drawer and car vacuum<\/a>. I honestly didn’t know that I needed it. I thought it would be another appliance that I’d buy and store, but I’m stress cleaning my house this January – every drawer, every cupboard, and I’m using it all night and through the whole weekend. I even used it in my freezer – to get into the corners where little bits of breaded chicken nuggets got, and I can’t get out with a rag. I used it in my vanity, and it picked up all my rogue hairs and tiny bits of who knows what in my deeper drawers or in the back of the cabinet. It is rechargeable and has only 2 parts. Don’t get me started on my spice drawer!! Now the suction isn’t so high that I’d recommend it JUST for cars, but certainly works (but if you are a consistent car detailer, then you might want something stronger). IT also engaged my kids a lot as they helped with the “great January re-org” at the Henderson house. I read a lot of reviews, and there were many that were much more expensive or some that were oddly cheap, but at $38, it felt like the right amount for an investment. Now I just need to invent an apron that has a pocket big enough that I can keep it on my person all weekend long (think like a pistol holder, but for a small vacuum).<\/p>\n\n\n\n On that note, if you are purging and in Portland, I have a FANTASTIC new place for you to give your used home goods to (and not just gently used – they’ll take most things!). Community Warehouse<\/a> is a massive bank of home goods that serves people transitioning out of homelessness. They work with their caseworker to come in and shop (for free), and they need everything- yes, used mattresses, used Tupperware, dishware, sheets, towels, furniture (obviously), art, lamps, working coffee makers – all the things that you might donate to Goodwill. But don’t donate there (Goodwill is fine, but its for profit). This serves our local community, and they make it SO EASY. There are three locations – NE Portland, Tigard, and Gresham- and you don’t need to make an appointment. AND some of the better stuff (vintage or just new and nice) goes to their estate retail thrift store, and it’s LEGIT good. The profits from that go to support the massive overhead they have. I’m so grateful to know about them. OH, and they’ll pick up larger pieces of furniture for $50, which is WAY less than even going to the dump. Community Warehouse, folks. It’s where it’s at (and hopefully more to come with them this year – we are trying to figure out the right way to collaborate to help these families outside of just donating all our leftover goods from shoots).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Also From Emily: In case you missed it, yesterday we soft-launched<\/a> a more personal newsletter that Brian and I are co-writing (separate posts, but doing it together). While some personal stuff will always live here (highlights, struggles, AMAs), if you want to get even more personal, that would be the place. You can sign up for free for a week to get the first two posts to make sure it’s something you want to spend your $5\/month on. Head over there<\/a> to check it out if you are interested. xx<\/p>\n\n\n\n From Cailtin: Are you freaking out? Does everything feel terrible? TRUST ME, I GET IT. And I have a nice, accessible, quick read to recommend: the aptly-titled\u00a0Reasons Not to Worry: How to Be Stoic in Chaotic Times<\/a><\/em>. I’m a big philosophy dork, albeit not usually too into the Stoics (I’m more of a Platonist fan –\u00a0this one from Boethius<\/a>\u00a0is my all-time favorite!), but the title jumped out at me at the bookstore for obvious reasons. It’s relatively breezy, it’s very easy to read – I was able to focus on it, even in the chaos of a hospital! – and it made me feel a little better (or, honestly, maybe even a lot better?) about the world spinning out of control around me. You’ll fly through it in an afternoon or two – think of it like a beach read, but a beach read that might prevent you from having a mental breakdown. I think we could all use a little wisdom from the Stoics right about now, don’t you think? (And thank you all for the kind words last week. They warmed my heart more than you\u2019ll ever know. I\u2019m so grateful to have \u201cmet\u201d all of you over the past 6.5 years!)<\/p>\n\n\n\n We thought, since there are a fair number of you that aren’t on Instagram, that we’d start embedding some of our favorite posts we created here! Our social team works so hard to also create helpful, fun, and interesting content, and we don’t want you to miss it either. Enjoy!<\/p>\n\n\n\n