People are always doing the switcheroo on the latest, greatest shoe.
I wish people, myself included, would just wear one thing into the ground.
I want to see repeats.
I think repeats are cool.
There's a thing that you won't know
unless you live in something for so long that every day you put your foot in it, it's just forming to your foot until every other shoe or boot is like wrong.   
​~John Mayer 

June was cooler than usual where we live. I spent most of the month enjoying wearing outfits like a navy tee + navy soft pants or linen overalls + tank. When I had to wear shoes, there was only one choice to make...sandals. Jo + I made a trip to our favorite thrifting spot here. I did a little sewing + tried some fair options as well. In the end I added a couple of white tanks to my wardrobe. 

In all honesty, I'm still trying to figure out some presentable, everyday, hot weather outfit options. I have one pair of shorts + one pair of lightweight pants that I am willing to wear outside of the house. I can wear either of those with my small collection of tanks + tees. I'd like to add a couple of bottoms +/or a dress or two. I'd also like a pair of comfy, cute shoes that I could walk for hours in. In trying to put a positive spin on things I can say that I'm learning about what I do + don't like and what does + doesn't work on my body.

A few June fairdare observations:
​-The fairdare is more about what we wear than what we want to wear. 
-It is as much about what we don't add to our wardrobes as it is what we choose to add. 
-It's more about creativity + perspective than the size of our budgets.

For accountability's sake (June) ::
bought fair: 2 white tank tops

Love,
Jane

Many of us have learned this lesson in some area of our lives...maybe through putting in the time + effort to study in school...or maybe through eating well for a period of time. I've been particularly surprised by how decreasing the amount of my possessions has changed my thinking. The desire to find something to bring home from a trip no longer tugs at me. Wandering through the mall once a week no longer appeals to me. Packaged junk food doesn't have such a hold on me. 

Having experimented with dressing with less + living with less, I now find it easier to recognize enough in my closet...in the decoration of my home...on my bookshelf...and at the grocery store. I feel like I've inched a tiny bit further away from illusion + closer to Reality. I still live in the midst of illusion + I am still affected by it, but I am also aware of its shifty + deceptive nature. I look forward to more discoveries in this direction...the direction of Reality.

Love, 
​Jane

Once upon a time I read books about homesteads + small scale farming. I scoured the area for homes with land...just enough to sustain us. We looked at an old house on one acre of land. The sellers had a few sweet cows in the small barn. I read books about suburban families who grow enough food to sustain them on their suburban plots. We attended classes about backyard chickens, visited working farms + went to hear Joel Salatin speak. Midway through this studying + dreaming, we finally had some space to start a garden of our own. 

My current gardening strategy is not to stress out about growing all we need (though I admire that greatly). I focus on growing the most expensive things that grow well where we live (+ that we love to eat). For us that means tomatoes, peppers + strawberries. We grow other things too, but tomatoes are my main priority. Fresh tomatoes are a highlight of many summer meals. Tomato sauce is the base for soups, pasta sauce, salsa + other meals all year round. We avoid all the transport, the cans + lots of expense by growing our own. 

This jar held the last of the tomato sauce from our 2018 home-grown tomatoes. I used it this week, and it's almost time to start picking this year's tomatoes.  :)

Love, 
​Jane

We grow up being told so many times, 'This is the way the world is. This is the way things are.' I think we forget that we can choose the way the world will be, and that it can change. The number of real pressing concerns we are looking at today is unprecedented in human history...and this is the moment that we will be accountable for. You don't have to have children to feel it. You just need to be a part of the world right now and say: 'I don't think that putting the world on cruise control + letting transnational companies run the show has worked. I don't think governments have been the full answer.' Too many of us have resigned ourselves to the process, as if it's something we can re-engage in later.
​The entire system needs addressing. ~Andrew Morgan

Tidy landscaping is not my forte. My preferences lie with nothing but beachgrass...like some of the homes near the lake where I grew up...or a front walk surrounded by nothing but a tangle of wildflowers + a back yard filled with nothing but vegetables. My gardening leans more toward wild...with nature firmly in control.  :)

Wherever we find ourselves, I try to plant native plants that are about as thirsty as the conditions provide for. Growing things in New Mexico is quite different from growing things in London, but I've attempted it in each place + learned by trial + error...lots of error.  :)

We have a big planting bed on the side of our house in which I've tried everything from tomatoes + cucumbers (not enough sun) to potatoes (not sure about the work to yield ratio) to a butterfly + hummingbird garden. I prefer plants that produce food to purely pretty things, but food for butterflies, bees + hummingbirds makes me happy too. This year I wanted to have a view of the flowers + their visitors, so I devoted the backyard bed closest to our kitchen window to them as well.

Lately it seems that a new type of flower pops up every day or two in this well-rained-upon tangle of color. The bed hums with bumble bees + I'm keeping an eye out for the first fleeting hummingbird sighting of the year.

Love,
​Jane

I recently heard someone say that there were really only three essential pieces of furniture for them. I think in their case that included a bed, a desk + a couch. They were able to use the bar in their kitchen for meals. I would personally count chairs + barstools as furniture, but I did find the original statement intriguing. 

I'm not against having more than a few pieces of furniture...and now that we've lived in the same place for eight years (rather than our previous average of two)...we don't really need to be quite so nimble either. I just like keeping things tight (+ useful) in terms of stuff. I also think that checking in periodically with what is truly "enough" promotes my happiness with what I already have.

When it comes to living rooms, priorities are, of course, quite individual. Some enjoy sitting on the floor. They decide to go without conventional living room furniture (though I think a rug would be helpful). Children can especially enjoy this type of living which offers lots of room for play.

On the other hand, people often shop for houses with entertaining in mind, + I know that there are those amazing souls who practice almost daily hospitality. We have known a few + I am eternally grateful for their generous acts of friendship. Most of our time at these friends' homes was spent around a large table. The gathering rarely moved anywhere else at all.

If simplicity is at top of mind, we might consider prioritizing family living in the living room. At our house, a comfortable place to sit + a source of light are what I'd most like to have in this space. These things are true luxuries, if I stop to think about it. These two elements are surely "enough".

There are three main ways of making a living room that appeal to me:
​-a couch (because I liked to have room to cozy up with my girls + a book...or with my guy) + a chair or two
-four comfy (enough to nap in) armchairs around a big circular stool ​​​
​-one comfy sectional + stool

Four full-grown humans live in our home right now, so these formulations are made with that in mind.  :) A couple (even one with small children) may be happy with two comfy chairs or one compact couch. Another note: we furnished our entire home with pieces from Craigslist + inexpensive vintage shops, when we moved back to the states from overseas. I was just patient + choosy.  :)

We are not the only ones without a television these days. Laptops work well for viewing a show, + projecting movies onto a blank wall or a screen that rolls out of view is an appealing option as well. Drinks + a couple of library books are happy on the floor. Again, a light + a comfy place to sit are the main elements in a living room (in my opinion). A few chairs from the dining table or desk can be pulled in for added guest seating. 

Knowing "enough" can help stave off the quest for more. It can allow us to find peace + to rest in contentment (in regards to the acquisition of stuff). It allows us to live with a spirit of generosity rather than hoarding things from others. It is less costly for our natural resources. It might even allow us to sit + enjoy one of those comfy seats with someone we love.  ;)

All lovely photos via links. Previously: inspiration :: enough :: bedroom. 

Love,
Jane

Call out the small moments that add meaning to your life,
that fill you up on a deeper level, and seek out more of those experiences.
This is the truest, most timeless form of self-care.
It costs nothing other than your attention,
asking that you live with your eyes open.
​~Leigh Patterson

I love the idea of versatile dresses that can not only be worn on their own, but can adapt to many uses, occasions + seasons. The images above come from Richer-Poorer, + I think they've captured this idea to perfection! 

A classic, black, slip dress is always the first versatile dress that comes to my mind, but there are so many other options as well. There may even be a dress or two in one's closet with possibilities previously untapped. Here are a few less-basic dresses that would be just as comfortable with trainers as they'd be with strappy sandals...a sweatshirt or a blazer...a cropped tee or a cashmere cardigan. 

When looking for a versatile dress I think of all the pieces that could work with a dress + then I consider if they would layer well with the dress I'm considering. A few things I keep in mind:
-a non-waisted or raised waist dress will work well with shorter + longer tops...a dropped waist limits these options
-a sleeveless dress has more potential to layer over + under well without any extra bulk or bunching at the shoulders
-look for dresses that would be breezy summer options on their own as well 
-a little wiggle room in fit is good for layering over other pieces
-keeping the neckline from being too high increases the ways that things can layer on top
-natural fabrics layer best...no static cling

A carefully chosen dress can be layered under + over lots of the things already in one's closet...over a slim tee or merino turtleneck...or under any number of things. I love the versatility of layering a dress under a tee, sweatshirt, tunic or even that same slim tee, so that dress becomes a skirt without any extra bulk or tightness at the waist. I've tried to stick with some basic layering pieces here, but trying not-so-basics like a flouncy sleeved top or smock could be great layering options as well.

I love that a single piece can wake up so many other piece already in one's closet. Suddenly many of those pieces can be appreciated in a whole new way.

All lovely photos via links.

Love,
Jane

Every so often I like to look around + try to see our space with new eyes. I try not to look for things to add. I try not to be dissatisfied with what is. I just like to hit the reset button. Are things working? Are we still using that desk? Is that stool necessary? 

We've moved often enough to know that "more" is almost never the answer...but "more" is often what we think will improve things. When I instead change my perspective to look for what is truly necessary, my contentment grows. 

A little "enough" therapy is sometimes in order. These images point me toward what is necessary...and also restful + beautiful. All that a bedroom needs...really needs...is a place to sleep. A light + a plant might be nice...but a bed...a bed is an incredible thing! A soft place to stretch out + dream. It never ceases to make me smile, when I sink in at night. 

We can take a bed for granted. It's a given. We are going to have a bed in the bedroom...now what else can we add? But if we start to see a bed for what it really is...we can start to value it for the fantastic thing that it is all on its own. Now instead of seeing the room as lacking a certain chair or thing to hang on the wall, we can see that we already have all that we need.

I can't write this without thinking of all of those who don't have a safe place to sleep at night. Donating to a local shelter, organization working with refugees abroad or those closer to home would be a great way to manifest our "enough" with generosity + to share a tiny bit of comfort with others. I've linked just a few options...there are so many others.

All lovely images via links.

Love,
Jane