I kept seeing the same charming San Diego-themed greeting and post cards around boutiques here, and finally I had to ask, “Who makes these??” And that’s how I came to know of Katie Hart, a stationer and illustrator whose line Odd Daughter Co. (named for her mother’s middle school nickname, which was a clever play on her last name “Evenson”) is full of witty, whimsical and adorable paper goods. I love this one:
Perhaps even more amazing is her recent venture, Paper for Good, a line of products, like this Improve the World print, which gives $5 of every purchase to UNICEF to aid Syrian refugee camps. I’m a wee bit obsessed with her paper products and even more in awe of her success at a young age. Click on to hear about how she brings fall to San Diego and what she does while watching her favorite TV shows.
I’ll be honest: I don’t particularly like downtown San Diego. I had my concrete fill in Chicago and New York and moved here not for more tall buildings and car-filled streets; I wanted greenery, outdoor space and calm. (Fact: I really love living in a residential area now!)
But if I were to live anywhere near downtown, it’d be in Little Italy. It’s a tiny ‘hood made up of just a few blocks, but it’s quite charming with plenty of restaurants and interesting boutiques to keep you busy. I took a break from my computer on Monday afternoon to tour the area. I didn’t stop to snack or shop. I just walked — in and out of stores, past beautiful urban gardens and through the ocean-facing blocks. And here’s a little photo diary of it all:
For me, September just sort of came and went because there was so much going on. Eaman turned 30 and as a surprise, I flew his sister in for a weekend of Funfetti cake, Bananagrams, hiking and sunset-viewing. I also went to Riviera Magazine‘s To Dine For event, which pairs the best in San Diego fine dining with A-list interior designers, hiked the Rose Canyon trail with my friend Gloria and got Teddy neutered.
He wore a cone for 8 days, which was kind of a disaster because he trotted around the apartment like it ain’t no thang. He bumped into the coffee table, dragged it with him and broke the cone, so we taped it up, then he ate the tape, then he broke it again a different way, and it went on like that for 8 days. Anyway, the last scene in the video? That’s probably the most realistic portrayal of things — dog toys on the floor and Teddy distracting us from work (and we don’t hate it).
I love a well-made product with a story behind it, but I wasn’t always like that. (Cue: image of bags upon bags of short-lived Forever 21 clothes.) Ever since watching artisans make incredible crafts and wares within small communities in South America and Asia, though, I’m so much more interested in supporting small business owners in my own country.
Enter: The American Edit, a new site founded by fashion and housewares industry vet Rita Mehta, who had trouble finding fashionable womenswear and home decor with a Made-in-America stamp and decided to fill the void herself. TAE is like a beautifully curated encyclopedia of the best in American-made goods — things like jewelry from Catbird, wood products from A Sunny Afternoon and a whole lot more organized by location, maker, purpose or product. I love the quick-hit header that explains what each shop is known for, the bright, airy photographs and the site’s slick layout.
An inspirational woman with a revolutionary idea? Obviously she needed to share her rituals. Read on to find out about why she heads back to bed in the mornings and what her 30-before-30 list is all about.
When we went backpacking for a year, one of my main concerns was that I wouldn’t be able to slather on body lotion post shower. I’m a skincare freak. I’m obsessed with face scrubs, diligent about washing my face before bed and you’d better believe SPF is no joke to me.
Remember how I recently found out my beloved Neutrogena Sheer-Touch isn’t as great as we think? And remember how I recently blogged about wanting to use a skincare routine to achieve some calm? Around the same time, I also heard about Beautycounter, a new L.A.-based skincare brand that’s committed to responsible, healthy and safe skincare products. Here’s a little food for thought: 1300 chemical ingredients are banned in the European Union; 11 are banned in the U.S.
For their part, Beautycounter prescribes to a Never List, a lengthy list of harmful ingredients that you’ll never find in their products — obvious ones like parabens and phthalates as well as not-so-obvious ingredients like mineral oil, which sounds totally fine, right? (Mineral oil is actually a by-product of petroleum distillation that can cause contact dermatitis. Yikes!)
Here are a few of my favorite (Beauty Counter) things:
Eaman and I have started a new Sunday tradition: Each week we pick a different breakfast breakfast or coffee spot and practice Farsi. (If you’re late to the party, Eaman is Persian and fluent in Farsi.) Back in New York I had a Farsi tutor and was pretty dang proficient, but then we went traveling and and Spanish, Vietnamese, Thai, Burmese, Malay and Hindi vocabulary pushed all the Farsi knowledge out of my brain.
I’m getting back on track, and for yesterday’s class, we went to Cardamom Cafe & Bakery, a simple spot in North Park. Our French toast was solid but way too huge, and the huevos were certainly nothing to write home about. So why bother talking about this place at all?
Two words: almond croissant, probably the best you will ever have and the cafe’s most popular pastry. It goes well with the house coffee, which is usually so tasteless in restaurants that I almost always go for a latte. But I was pleasantly surprised to find that Cardamom’s coffee is actually really wonderful. Beyond the baked goods, the outdoor patio is super pleasant and always filled with dogs. Yesterday we met Teddy’s brother from another mother (not really), an Anatolian shepherd. Fun fact of the day: Anatolian shepherds have six toes!
While window shopping in South Park’s Graffiti Beach I spotted some uber-cool sunglasses and discovered they’re made by a San Diego-based line called SOLO Eyewear. Started by Jenny Amaraneni and Dana Holliday, SOLO sunglasses are made with recycled bamboo and each pair purchased funds eye care for people in need. Sweet combo, no?
Today these talented entrepreneurs are talking about beach runs, mentoring students and chinchillas. (Their rituals make me seriously excited to live in SoCal!)
Yesterday I went swimming in Balboa Park’s outdoor pool. Two days ago, I went for a walk in shorts and a tank top. I still sleep in shorts and a tee. It’s safe to say that it’s nowhere near fall out here in San Diego, and I don’t totally hate it — the weather is, of course, why we moved here — but I’d be lying if I said a part of me wasn’t missing the ceremonious switchover from flip-flops to boots, the swapping of sunglasses for scarves.
And yesterday in Trader Joe’s, it was as though I were walking through a parade of fall’s most glorious bounty: pumpkin! Canned pumpkin, pumpkin latte mix, even decorative pumpkins on branches in the flower section, and then I saw the jar of TJ’s pumpkin butter and all my memories of baking in my crappy Manhattan kitchen came flooding back. (Fact: I had zero counter space in my last NYC abode.)
So even though temps are in the 70-80s (don’t hate me), I’m looking forward to ushering in my own fall within the confines of our apartment. Here are four pumpkin recipes I’m excited to try:
