Big Moves, Vacation Reads and Home Buys We’re Eyeing
Plus, can’t-miss cookie recs for both coasts!
Hi everyone!
This month we’re covering one author’s move, the other’s pregnancy inspo + Paris trip prep and a hefty assortment of jewelry, home, book and beauty buys we recommend. We also weigh in on some cultural touchstones (Challengers! Sociopaths! Mob wife aesthetic!), share Sephora sale picks and tease two NYC restaurant openings we can’t wait for.
Happy eating/shopping/reading!
Rach + Cait
Open Tabs
CP: This past month has been a blur of pink Piece of Cake bins and expanding to do lists as we moved from Ft Greene to Tribeca! An early perk (and not NOT a consideration of the move) has been proximity to Manhattan restaurants on my “want to go” map. While we unpacked, I was delighted to learn that the pop-up location for Mission Chinese’s return to NYC and Shy’s Burger’s temporary residency at The River are both only five minutes from our new place. Also, hotly anticipated (by me) Elbow Bread and the third operation from the geniuses behind Harts/Cervos/The Fly, Eel Bar will both be within walking distance once they open. Counting the days!
My more practical open tabs are all interiors-based right now. I’ve been on the hunt for vintage deck furniture that isn’t too coordinated (weirdly hard to find!), a substantial black marble side table like this Fleur Studios one or this one and soft brown rugs like this and this to ground our otherwise mostly white furniture. I also have my eye on bobbin mirrors, fringed pillows, soft throw blankets, and vintage magazine racks for my ever-growing archive of Yolo Journals.
I was bummed to miss photographer Lucia Bell-Epstein’s event at Colbo a few weeks ago to promote her photography book, Digging for Clams. But, I will be pre-ordering it for sure. Can’t wait to get my paws on her gorgeous work in print form! I first became aware of Lucia through her photos for Jay Wolman’s residency at Mimi and have been obsessed with her photography ever since.
Some odds and ends that I have my sights on are this cool gua sha comb from new-to-me hair care brand Sandor. As a Do Son loyalist, I’m also eager to try the Regime Des Fleurs perfume Nitesurf Neroli this spring/summer. Lastly, wouldn’t be an OT issue if I didn’t lust after a Bree Nichols Nature piece! Her mixed-metal Passedat necklace feels so special and yet wearable. Might need to be an early birthday present from me to me!
RKH: So excited for you and your Manhattan adventure! And you know I love to vicariously live through a redecorating project. Not sure if you’ve seen these wavy rattan magazine racks, but I think they’re soooo cute. And the price is right on this one! Also always in support of an early birthday present for you - anything you want princess.
My open tabs lately have been a mix of baby inspo (and honestly looking at pictures of Rihanna’s pregnancy style), summer shopping, and of course home things. On the baby front, I’ve been looking at vintage baby books (specifically all things vintage Beatrix Potter), this monogrammable silver brush and comb from Ralph Lauren, this satin baby nest from Garbo & Friends, these hand painted floral photo mats, and of course many more practical things too. ;)
In my cart for summer: these Comme Si boxers (hoping for a restock of the Spritz Stripe!) or these gingham ones from Sonderhaus Studios, this pink crochet top, and beaded jewelry - specifically these floral earrings and this pearl flower necklace. I am currently obsessed with Reiko & Co, a local beaded jewelry brand. This sardine necklace or these mallard ducks (for sports!) are on my list. I’m also contemplating these silver slides, this Stone Cold Fox baby dress, this Zimmerman blue linen set (no like I NEED it!!) and the customizable lockets from Loquet - all of the little charms are so sweet. I am also late to the game in following The Vintage Marche, and the Gucci Tom Ford Slim Horsebit Hobo Bags she shares every now and then are taking up a lot of space in my brain (similar here).
Home things I’m into right now include these UFO silk pendants from Claude Home, the silk pillowcases from Kip & Co in Field of Dreams, art from Studio Celine W - so dreamy and beautiful - and this sunflower fairy tomato print! I also want a vase from Studio Naptime, the bedside carafe from Gary Bodker Designs (and the bowls!), and the gingham picnic tablecloths from Madre.
CP: I’ve been meaning to visit the Comme Si outpost at Hudson Wilder — this is a great reminder! Also, the Tom Ford for Gucci hobo feels like something Camille Charriere would unearth at one of her favorite Portobello Road vintage stores, in the best way.
1. Gary Bodker Designs 2. Bree Nichols Nature mixed-metal Passedat necklace 3. Parachute Rib Wool Rug 4. Madre gingham picnic tablecloths 5. Zimmerman blue linen set 6. Claude Home UFO silk pendants 7. Customizable Loquet lockets 8. Yolo Journal 9. Kip & Co Field of Dreams silk pillowcase 10. Silver slides 11. Beaded floral earrings 12. Pink crochet top 13. Studio Naptime 14. Franca Studios side table 15. Vintage rattan magazine rack 16. Gua Sha comb 17. Fringed Pillows 18. Diptyque Do Son 19. Regime Des Fleurs Nitesurf Neroli 20. Studio Celine W 21. Rihanna aka our pregnancy style muse 22. Comme Si boxers
Closed Tabs
CP: We went on a full-fledged Brooklyn “farewell tour” ahead of moving. Which was, honestly, just a convenient excuse to revisit all our favorite places. 🙃 The process did elicit a lot of literal closed tabs, though! Including but was not limited to: an ideal al-fresco meal at Romans, BK’s best martini (opinions are my own!!) next to the infamous dog lamp at Long Island Bar, a smashburger and truly excellent cookie (made by designer + Jack’s sister Rachel Antonoff) at Montague Diner, pink peppercorn chèvre at the beautiful new bar With Others, crepes and chicken liver mousse at Agi’s Counter, perfect cocktails at Margot, a leisurely afternoon glass of orange wine and honeycomb cheese plate at Rhodora and maybe the thing I’m most sad not to have a block away anymore — coffee with the good (pebbled/“hospital”) ice at Paulette.
Post-move, we cosplayed as Gen Z and stood in line for Apollo Bagels (very worth the wait!), grabbed an iced cortado/took in the historic murals at Conwell Coffee Hall, made sure the nachos at the second location of Commodore Bar kept the integrity of the original version, and had a delightful pet nat + fresh oysters at Cellar 36. After further “research,” I’ve also decided that some of the most underrated baked goods in the city are at Raf’s breakfast service. Specifically, the amaretti cookie. The fluffy-but-dense texture and hint of orange is so nice! Looking forward to becoming a regular there now that it can be incorporated into dog walks. Also been pleasantly surprised by the bounty of takeout options now available at our new spot. Already racking up delivery fees for things like the superb nicoise salad from Buvette, sweet chili wings from Kopitiam (a #TBT for the circa 2019 Bon Appetit fans) and insanely good coconut crab curries from Thai mainstay Fish Cheeks.
Beauty wise, I recently tried the Hermes Rouge Casaque nail polish at ph7 and can confirm it is my platonic ideal orange-y red. Plus, it lasted twice as long as a normal manicure. I also ordered the new Roz Air Thickening Spray when my tried-and-true Oribe Texturizing Spray ran out. Excited to see if it will give me an Oscar-winner worthy air dry! Lastly, I couldn’t help but snag the Sofia Coppola x Augustinus Bader lip collab after endorsed it in Feed Me as “lipsticks to make out in.”
RKH: I *also* have an amazing cookie to rave about in this issue - the chocolate chip cookies from Showstopper. I have been thinking about them since I ate the last one in the bag I picked up at the Portland Bazaar spring fair, where I also snagged this hat that feels very OT (I’m feeling very OT as I write this actually - drinking a Ghia Lime and Salt spritz out of an Upstate Frankie glass!). We had family in town recently and had some very delicious meals - the top highlight being our dinner at Phuket Cafe! I am still thinking about the strawberry rhubarb dessert. Honorable mention also goes to the samosas at Akadi.
I’m proud to say that I was actually *very good* in the recent Sephora sale and only refreshed things I actually needed (what a concept!), but did grab the Goop Vita-C Brightening Eye Cream to try and am loving it so far. I also snagged the Merit Flush Balm Cream Blush in Fox, a warm reddish hue that I think will look so pretty when my skin isn’t literally the porcelain of a sickly Victorian era child.
1. Romans 2. Long Island Bar 3. Apollo Bagels 4. Also Romans 5. Rosie breaking in her new rooftop 6. Montague Diner
Open Books
CP: Multiple “9/10” NY Metro Weather days (IYKYK!) has put me in the mood for a frothy, immersive, cusp-of-summer read. I’m bought in for anything Taffy Brodesser-Akner writes after inhaling Fleishman is in Trouble and this Tom Hiddleston interview (that highlighted in Books + Bits) where Taffy gets Tom to talk about both Taylor Swift AND bolognese at length. So, very excited for her new release Long Island Compromise. Wait also looks to be in a similar vein. Thirst is a more fantasy-adjacent but equally as compelling contender on my “to be read” list.
I picked up the short story collection Sleeveless by Natasha Stagg at Mast Books earlier this year and recently got around to reading it. I’d recommend it to anyone who wants a quick dose of gossip from the NYC fashion world of the early 2000’s.
RKH: Finally had a chance to get to our girl Dolly’s latest, and it absolutely did not disappoint - if you’ve yet to read Good Material, move it to the top of your book stack. I also enjoyed Alice Sadie Celine, and flew through Between a Wolf and a Dog (so good, and sad). Gaw recently picked up a funny mystery for me about a group of pregnant gals trying to solve a murder in their town called The Expectant Detectives, and while I definitely would not have picked that out myself, I thoroughly enjoyed it!
Downloaded to my Kindle for my flight to Paris this week: Sociopath: A Memoir, Boy Parts, Disorientation, Beautyland, Worry, Antiquity and Friends in Napa. A girl needs options when at the mercy of airplane WiFi, ok!
CP: A perfect mix! Speaking of “Sociopath” — I really enjoyed the Armchair Expert interview with the author, Patric Gagne. Overall fascinating perspective and made me reflect on how society has fixed assumptions about those affected by sociopathy. Especially as someone who listens to stories about usually undiagnosed sociopaths on other weekly podcasts (s/o to my fellow Murderinos!). Will be curious what you think after you read!
Open Obsessions
CP: When the move logistics started to really take over my brain, escapist TV became a sanity-saver. We got super into the quietly intense Shogun, specifically the explosive (pun intended) penultimate episode. I also devoured The Gentleman, a show where Theo James finally plays a *mostly* good guy! His co-conspirator, the character Susie Glass, was so aspirationally cool and collected (she’s not a mob wife, she IS the mob) and her immaculate couture wardrobe reignited my desire both to cut bangs and buy a red suit.
RKH: For escapist (albeit stressful) TV, also have to rec Baby Reindeer! It has really stuck with me since we finished it this week. Also had the chance to see Challengers last weekend, and it has renewed my interest in becoming a (casual) tennis girlie. Honestly mostly for the outfits.
I’m currently obsessed with the Palm Heights Grand Cayman hotel - I can’t stop looking at photos of it! It was first introduced to me in this Harper’s Bazaar interview with Amrit Tietz last year, then I read about it again in ’ Substack a few weeks ago, and now it looks like Melanie Masarin is there on vacation. Not sure if they’re running a low key cool girl influencer campaign or what, but it’s really working on me. I want to be sitting under one of those yellow umbrellas, drinking a blended drink and WARM. On my vacay vision board!!
CP: Sounds like we found the location of our first official OT offsite?!
RKH: YES PLEASE.
That’s all for issue #8! To see photos of what we mentioned above, follow our Instagram @opentabsletter! Or, shop our archive of all past product links on ShopMy!
