Last week I made our last smoothies with this blender. A few seconds after I poured the liquid over the frozen fruit, that liquid drained right out the bottom of the pitcher. I've been making-do with this blender for a decade. It has functioned as a blender, food processor + hand mixer in my trying-to-be minimal kitchen. It's only problem is that one little rubber gasket broke into pieces + ended up in our smoothies years ago. When I contacted the manufacturer for a fix or a replacement part, they offered no solution. I couldn't even purchase a new pitcher without buying a new base. 

So, I made do...until I couldn't make do any longer. Once we decided to replace the blender, I considered donating it to a thrift store. I didn't want someone to purchase it thinking it worked perfectly, so I would have added a note about the problem. The thrift stores always ask that we do not donate broken things, so I wondered if (after reading the note) they would have just dumped the blender away. I finally decided to offer it free on Craigslist (noting the problem) + had two offers to come pick it up within minutes. I really wish I could have fixed it myself, but in the end it felt good knowing that it would be useful to someone.

Letting things go responsibly often involves careful thought as to where the item has the best chance of getting used rather than ending up in a dumpster. Dropping off a car load of stuff at the thrift store is often easiest, but that doesn't alleviate us of the responsibility we took on when we decided to purchase all that stuff. 

Love,
Jane

Getting rid of stuff is the easiest, most affordable way to create space.
~ Jacqueline Schmidt

It's 96F here today (phew!), but cooler days are coming. Thinking of golden leaves crunching underfoot, cool breezes brushing faces + a few things I won't mind layering on helps to ease my thoughts toward the months ahead. Of course, I have a bunch of things already in my closet that...no matter how many times I wore them over + over again last autumn + winter...I will be happy to pull on again. I'm not looking to add too many pieces to my simple wardrobe, but that doesn't stop me from noticing a few of the lovely, fair things out there.

I think we'll be spending more days at home this autumn, so comfy might as well factor into my choices. Pansy leggings are my tried + true comfy, cozy bottoms of choice. A new pair in creamy, natural, organic cotton are on my list. I'm also curious to try Ripple Yoga's fitted joggers. 

Fair sweaters can be a bit challenging to find, but all of these cotton beauties are made in California! Trade out those Arizonas for some Bostons (Birkenstocks)...and eventually add some socks for cozy toes. Now all of that almost has me looking forward to autumn.  :)

All lovely photos via links.

Love,
Jane

Tackling zero-waste on a personal level is more about thoughtful choices than about the stuff involved...but there are some things that can be useful helpers. These are the items that have proven to be my most useful things in the pursuit of zero-waste:

• reusable water/coffee bottle :: saves countless disposable bottles, cups + straws from being made + trashed

• reusable bags :: save countless plastic + paper bags from being made + trashed

• smaller cloth bags :: save countless plastic + paper bags from being made + trashed

• old spray bottle full of vinegar + water for cleaning :: saves lots of chemicals from being made, sprayed around our home + running off into our water system...saves lots of plastic bottles from being made + saves all the energy it takes to recycle them...saves the sprayer top from the landfill

• cleaning rags made out of old tees + kitchen towels :: save a lot of paper towels + the plastic wrap they come in from being made + trashed

• tea + coffee strainers :: save a lot of tea bags (which are often made out of plastic), coffee filters or K-cups from being made + trashed

• reusable masks :: save a lot of disposable masks from being made + trashed

• glass jars :: save a lot of plastic packaging + saran wrap from being made + trashed

I most often think of waste as what ends up in my trash can, but creating disposables is hugely wasteful in itself. Resources have to be extracted, refined, manufactured, transported from the source + to every stop along the manufacturing process + then to the warehouse + then to the coffee shop, take-out joint or grocery store. All so that we can use it for a matter of minutes...and then send it off to the landfill where it may take 200 years to disintegrate altogether. Worse yet, it might blow into a tree or drainage ditch + be carried off into the ocean. 

We are using some of the items on this short list a little differently during the pandemic. For example, we can't use our reusable water bottles at a cafe, but we can still use them to keep water handy + cool in the house + at the park. The baggers at the grocery store won't put our groceries into our reusable bags, but we can. Our most recent addition to this list is the reusable mask. I can't imagine how many disposable masks our family of four would have used by now, if we hadn't chosen to use reusable ones.

It's pretty cool to remind myself that just a few reusable items (most of which I have been using over + over for more than a decade now) have saved so, so much waste from the landfill! Using these things is just habit now, so I don't often stop to think about the impact our teamwork has had.

We don't need a whole lot of stuff to move toward zero-waste!

Love,
Jane

,Leisurewear is having a good year. We all love to be comfy at home, and we are all spending a lot of time at home. Lett's comfy looking pieces are designed + made mostly out of cotton + rayon (+ a little spandex) in Los Angeles. I searched for cotton bike shorts this summer + wish I'd found the ones here before they sold out of my size. (Oh, I just remembered these!) I (like everyone else) am loving a matched set these days, and I love that there are lots of options for matching pieces here. Cooler days are coming + I'd love to cozy up with Lett.

All lovely photos via Lett.

Love,
Jane

We carry within us the notion, carefully nurtured by advertising,
that the more products + services we can afford, the happier we will be.
But, in fact, above a certain point, material goods rarely alter our levels of happiness,
unlike emotional experience.
Historically, the wealthier we have become, the more unhappy we are.
Having can never replace being.
​~Ilse Crawford

I've been considering adding a crisp, white button up shirt to my wardrobe. This is not a crisp white shirt.  :)

As always, when it comes to adding a fair garment to my wardrobe, I mainly look to these three choices: buying secondhand, making it myself + purchasing a fairly made garment new. It was difficult to find a secondhand, white shirt that's free from stains online. I considered sewing one, but couldn't find just the fabric I wanted to use. Shirts are very detailed + involve quite a lot of work, so I value + am willing to pay for a carefully constructed, fairly made shirt. I found one online, but when it came in the mail this week it was too sheer.

Finally, I decided to venture out to a thrift store for the first time during this pandemic to extend my search for a secondhand shirt. I didn't find a white shirt, but did decide to take this one (+ one more) home. This shirt is quite oversized, made from a crisp fabric, inexpensive + already existed (so no new resources needed to be used). 

When I got it home, I decided to remove the collar + sew the stand closed. I was reminded of both Jess Brown's lovely shirt + the beautiful shirt I posted yesterday, which confirm this as a look I love. Not only do I like the style, but this men's shirt's collar was a bit oversized on me. Removing it makes it look less ill-fitting. With sleeves rolled up + the bottom buttons left open, I like this shirt over shorts (or as a sort of morning cover-up) now...and imagine it will layer well over almost everything later. Now it looks like my shirt...and I like it very much. (+ I might still keep my eye out for a white one next time I go to the thrift store.)

Love,
Jane

Just a few things that have been catching my eye lately. I'm trying to hold onto summer right now, but know that autumn looms on the horizon. These lovely items could be useful almost any day of the year, but seem to bridge that transition especially well. A barely there dress to wear now with bare shoulders + bare feet...and later with a sweater + socks. A meticulously made blouse to wear with rolled up sleeves over shorts now + to throw on over that dress or jeans when the evenings cool. An aromatic lotion that promises to be "a reminder of stability in times of flux". And a chai blend to drink iced now + hot in the weeks to come.

All lovely photos via links.

Love,
Jane

Every so often I go through my fabric scraps with a thought toward making them into something useful. There are often long quite large scraps left over from garment sewing...pieces that are too big to throw away, but not often big enough for other garments. These are great pieces for sewing masks, but I also had a couple of long, skinny pieces of fabric that I wondered about being able to make into something a little bit more permanently wearable.

The free Peppermint Peplum Top pattern turned out to be a perfect pattern to squeeze onto these leftover bits (especially in a smaller size...just right for my girls). There is a pieced shoulder that makes this an especially stash busting pattern. I had no idea there was a whole top hiding in my scrap bin!

Love,
Jane

-You don't need new desks or a school room. We tried desks, but the girls ended up at the coffee table or kitchen table. The schoolroom was our shortest lived experiment. I needed to be moving about my day + liked having them out in the open where they were accountable at least in the morning + early afternoon. 

-Do (+ finish) the hardest subjects first. For us, that was always math. ​

​-Every subject doesn't have to happen every day. We did math every day, but science + history on alternating days for longer time periods. This way they can get more deeply into a subject, rather than breaking away just as the learning kicks in.

-Take advantage of one-on-one learning. It can be so much more effective than classroom learning. No tangents. No waiting for everyone to sit down or quiet down or catch up. No shyness about asking the questions that are meaningful to them (encourage that). ​

-Recess isn't the only reason to get outside. Now science can involve using a nature journal...noticing which birds come + go when...studying the different types of trees in your neighborhood...planting a garden. 

-My intention is not to try to influence anyone away from being tethered to the school's resources, but I will say that homeschool resources are designed for at home learning. Science experiments often use the kitchen as the laboratory. In middle school + high school, the textbooks are designed for student led learning. Kits of microscope slides + chemistry experiments are available. Math books are designed for us, as parents, to track alongside our children...no prep time is needed...we just read through the lesson with our child, work through practice problems with them + then know the methods that are being utilized in the day's lesson. Each assignment (in the curriculum we chose) has problems from previous lessons in order to facilitate knowledge retention + the lesson number is listed beside each problem for easy referral (by student + parent).

-I personally feel that choosing homeschooling for a year will not disrupt your child's tracking with the neighborhood school's system...especially during this year of global educational upheaval. Our girls were able to go in + out of school (even in a different country), because we chose rigorous homeschool curricula. ​

​-At home learning teaches personal discipline, time management skills, provides time for individuals to come to answers without peers blurting it out first, promotes self-learning, increases reading + comprehension skills (because this is a primary mode of learning as they get older). Students can benefit from these lessons this year.

-Instead of spending time shopping for just the right desk (though, I realize that might be a priority if your student needs to sit at a computer for hours each day)...spend time preparing yourself for what is to come. Set intention with your attitude...your outlook...your expectations.

-Take time to step back + see the big picture. This is one semester...one year in your child's life. What opportunities can you take this year? What could this experience add to their childhood or adolescence? 

OK. I meant to keep this short + as succinctly meaningful as possible. I'm not sure I did either of those things, but I love this topic. It has been my unintended, but pleasurable work for a lot of years now. Please feel free to reach out. I would love to chat with you. Comments don't automatically post publicly, so if you'd rather keep it private just let me know. I am cheering all of you amazing parents on! Our children are not just our future, they are our incredible now! 

Lots of love,
Jane