Happy Sunday and happy first MOTO week to Gretchen! In case you missed her incredible room reveal go check it out NOW. We are so proud of her but also not surprised because this gal is talented. Jess is headed up to Portland for a quick but exciting trip. More on that to come and today marks the official one-month countdown to our team retreat. Can you tell we’re a bit excited?? Alright, let’s get into these links…
This week’s house tour only proves that light blue is likely the color trend of the year (as we predicted) and that exposed brick, a stunning art collection, and oversized floral arrangements are always in style. This converted warehouse has so many cool details so go take a look here.
From Emily: I read three books over spring break (THREE). Turns out I’m not necessarily a big sit by the pool and do nothing gal so I flew through books while the kids swam (and after they went to bed as we were sharing a room – shout out to Kindles – no reading light necessary). Ok first up: Bad Luck Bridesmaid. Terrible title, but so was “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days” and it’s nothing but rom-com genius, so don’t judge the name. This one is by the same writer as Maybe Once, Maybe Twice which I loved more (mostly because I loved the ending more) but BLB is so fun, the writing is friendly and smart, and I want to be friends with everyone in the book. I just utterly enjoyed it. Great for those of you who are not necessarily sure you want a forever partner as it gives a really personal perspective toward that. Then I moved on to Bride, the new Ali Hazelwood Romantasy which I COULD NOT PUT DOWN. I don’t think there is one Ali book that I haven’t read but I have to say that this is in the top 2 or 3 for me (if not my favorite). It has a pretty high spice level (biting is involved – it’s a vampire/werewolf story) and is just very romantic and hot. 4.5/5 for me. Lastly, I finished with Yellowface which is more LitFic (not romance) and is an “inside publishing” fictionalized story about a white writer who, well, I don’t want to give too much away but let’s just say there is racial appropriation, theft, death, and a lot about social media and cancel culture (both within the publishing industry which has certainly deserved it at times and at large). There were moments I was frustrated as I was waiting for the other shoe to drop for so long, but the last 150 pages were riveting (as were the first 60) and I really enjoyed it (and it was thought-provoking and very entertaining).
From Arlyn: I was in need of some new no-show socks because I’ve been finding my normal low-cut athletic socks hit my ankle at a weird spot with my sneakers and it looks and feels bulky. I picked these up on a whim during my latest Target stop and I’m so happy with them! They’re cut low enough that they actually don’t show but not so low that it’s just basically the tips of your toes covered. They have a little gel strip in the back so they don’t slip down below your heel (grrr!) and are thin so they don’t add width to your foot if your shoes are already kind of snug (wide feet problems).
From Gretchen: If you saw my bedroom makeover this week (thank you!) you might’ve seen that I added a shelf to my window ledge. I didn’t really touch on the how-to of it because it was pretty darn simple thanks to this clever device! It’s called a contour gauge and it’s awesome. I wanted the shelf to tuck all the way into the window, but have the sides of it curve out and around to hug the front of the frame a bit. To get that exact shape or measurement would’ve required some expert eyeballing or clever tracing with some kind of paper template. Instead, all I had to do was push this gauge into the corner to “record” the shape, then take it to my piece of wood to trace the contour and cut it to size. It fit perfectly, first try! For about $12, it’s such a handy, timesaver tool to keep around, especially for all my DIY-ers out there.
From Caitlin: YAY, I’m glad there are some calendar nerds out there! Last week, I spilled the beans on the email tool that’s made my inbox far more manageable – and now, I have to share the calendar app that pulls me straight out of my “oh my God, I have too much to do and no idea where to start” spiral and places me right on track. It’s called Motion and it’s GENIUS. I write all of my tasks down, assign them a priority level, choose a deadline, and Motion organizes them into a schedule for me around any existing meetings or events! So now, I can jump straight into my day because it’s all been planned for me. IT ROCKS. If you also have ADHD or if you feel a little lost when trying to decide what to tackle first every morning, Motion will be a total game-changer. I’ve been using it for a year and I love it!!! (They usually offer a one-week free trial, but either of the links above should get you a two -eek free trial! I hope you also love it!)
From Mallory: Jeans are haaaard to shop for because as we know skinny jeans are out but then finding pants that are baggy/straight-leg that simultaneously make the back peaches pop is damn near impossible. I also notoriously struggle to find jeans that fit the entire length of my leg – I’m a 5’7 glad with a lengthy bottom half so it’s come to my attention that 90% of my jeans are cut just a little too short and we had to do something about it. ENTER THESE $30 PANTS THAT CAME OUTTA NOWHERE!!! The other day I took me a lil trip down to H&M where I picked up a random pair of jeans and was feelin a little too lazy to try them on so I just bought them in hopes that they would work out AND SURPRISE! THEY DID! I bought them in the regular denim wash in a size 4 but I also just purchased them in the lighter wash because I’m so thrilled to find a pair of jeans that check all my boxes!! Yay!
From Jess: This week’s haircare product rec is Pureology’s Color Fanatic Heat Protectant Leave-In Conditioner! It came highly recommended so I grabbed the travel size first to make sure I liked it. Well, clearly I did and ordered the full size since it’s the Sephora Savings sale…and I was almost out. So if you are looking for a leave-in conditioner (something I was always afraid to use for fear it would make my hair heavy and greasy- lol not the case at all!) this is a wonderful one. It makes my hair feel great and bonus points that it’s also a heat protectant.
Thanks for stopping by and y’all tomorrow. xx
Opening Image Credits: Design by Gretchen Raguse | Styled by Gretchen Raguse and Emily Henderson | Photo by Kaitlin Green | From: Gretchen’s First MOTO Reveal: A Tiny Bedroom Comes Alive With The Perfect Pieces From Article (And Fabric On The Walls??)