Stuff we are seriously LOVING lately (that we will love just as much post-quarantine)

Can we just take a minute to give a collective shout-out to UPS, Fed-Ex and the USPS?!

I would be going certifiably, bat-shit crazy if our mail and packages stopped coming right now. And, because of the hard-working people who make sure we get all the stuff we order online week in and week out, I’ve discovered some fun new stuff I can’t wait to share with you (and a little hack that I know you’ll find useful).

First, these new placemats from Food 52. Made in Italy by Uashmama, these placemats are my new every-day favorite. For many years, we’ve had some reversible vinyl placemats that look like vintage oil cloth — retro floral on one side and gingham check on the other. They are our go-to for casual dinners at home because they can just be wiped off and put away. Enter the Essential Placemats, and we have a new weeknight dinner regular. They’re made of thick PAPER, with a waxed finish. Seriously, paper! They actually look a bit like leather in real life, they’re water and stain resistant — and they come in a rainbow of colors (and in oval, rectangle and round.) LOVE. You can find them here. And I borrowed pix from the Food52 site because their photography is perfect.

We are also seriously LOVING this tequila — because even Brad and I can’t drink wine all the time. Casamigos Blanco Tequila is so good, and the brand was founded by George Clooney and has his signature on it… WIN! It’s too nice to use in a margarita, so I went in search of a more boozy, grown-up tequila cocktail. And I found it in Death & Co.: Modern Classic Cocktails (my go-to book for classic and innovative cocktails). It’s like a grown-up margarita.

Flor de Jalisco 2 oz. Siembra Azul Blanco (obviously, we subbed in the Casamigos Blanco) 3/4 oz. fresh lemon juice 1/4 oz. agave nectar 1 tsp. orange marmalade

Shake with ice and strain into a coupe.

Speaking of cocktails, one of our favorite Instagram people, Kate E. Richards (@drinkingwithchickens) just released a new cocktail book: Drinking with Chickens: Free-Range Cocktails for the Happiest Hour. It’s packed with great cocktail recipes and chicken pix — and pictures of chickens WITH COCKTAILS.

Follow her on Insta — and then buy the book. Who doesn’t love cocktails AND chickens??? Speaking of, we got four tiny, baby chicks yesterday. They’re all four dark Brahmas — final names to be determined when we can tell them apart a little bit. We brought them home and put them under our black hen, Vader, who has been broody for weeks. Thankfully, chickens aren’t that smart, and she thinks they hatched right under her and they love their new, warm chicken mom!

The chicks are ALL OVER Vader — half the time, two or three of them hop right up on top of her. Photo by Bliss Bonner

And I have to tell you about my favorite new skin-care line. Founded by Megan Ulrichs in nearby Bozeman, Montana, glō luxury oils are 100% natural and organic and are blended by hand weekly. I picked up a bottle of the Eye & Night Oil and one of the Regenerative Oil last year in Bozeman (the RSVP Hotel has samples in their rooms — AND it’s pet-friendly!). I immediately loved the scent of carrot oil in the Regenerative blend — it’s so good and fresh. However, they aren’t cheap (though I’ve found they last for months!), and I mainly used them intermittently with other products. Until quarantine time… I started using both the glō oils regularly in place of other products, and I saw a vast improvement in my skin.

I’ve struggled with bouts of hormonal acne for the past few years, and it’s been beyond frustrating. A week of using the glō products was enough to convince me that I was on the right path. I have since purchased the Acne Prevention Oil and the Blemish Free Hydrosol Spray (among others), and my skin looks better than it has in years. You can check out the full line here. Megan is doing a live facial workshop on Tuesday evening on Instagram. While it’s too late to get products for this workshop, you should follow her on Instagram (@glo_luxury_oils) to learn of other workshops in the future. In the meantime, do something nice for yourself and order some of the glō products.

That’s all for this week. WAIT — I almost forgot the hack I promised. Do you ever get credit card rewards cards as prizes or something (I sometimes get them for completing design industry surveys and stuff)? It drove me crazy that, if you tried to spend more than was on the card and use it as a partial payment, most online platforms just declined the transaction. So, I mused on this for a bit and learned that you can use the card to purchase an e-gift card in the exact amount on most sites. For example, I used my latest $50 reward card to buy myself a $50 gift card to Anthro, which I can combine with other payment forms if I want to make a purchase that totals more than $50. YOU’RE WELCOME!

That really is all for this week. If you’ve discovered any cool, new must-have’s during the LONG quarantine weeks, please tell us about it in the comments below.

Take good care of yourselves and each other. LOVE!