Happy Sunday! We hope that all our parents’ first days of school went great:) It’s that “let’s get reorganized” part of the year, which we actually secretly love. Hope you all are still enjoying the sun and are ready for some great links! Here we go:

This week’s home tour is actually just an incredibly charming MCM kitchen. The home was originally designed in 1950 by Anatol Kagan, so it was important to the homeowners and the designer to honor its history and footprint. You have to see the cabinet fronts, which were inspired by the originals, and the beautiful mix of pattern and materials!

From Emily: The Armchair Expert this week with Chris Young was so inspiring, I can’t stop thinking about it. He’s a man who was dealt an extremely bad hand, and through subsequent events he was given two life prison sentences for non-violent crimes during the 3 strikes and you are out program. For those of us who, at times, wish that we were harder on crime as a parent in a big city, I also wish that it wasn’t such a revolving door; it was such a great reminder of the circumstances that drive kids to join gangs and commit crimes in the first place, and an important reminder of their complete humanity. Extremely powerful and such a great listen for literally every human on earth.

Also From Emily: Well, OK Zac Posen!! The Gap’s new campaign is another fantastic feat of mixing art with advertising to get us enthralled (it worked). It’s super entertaining – both in music and choreography (I didn’t know this Malcom dude, but I do now!). Of course their sale is huge, and hoping that the pants that I wore three days in a row (the camo Leset knock-offs) are on it because it was 95 degrees out today and my legs didn’t notice because they are so airy and breathable (while having structure, not drapey linen).  I know that not everyone can get behind fast fashion and big business, but it’s fun to appreciate the artistry of these campaigns regardless.

From Mallory: If you have a dog and have ever struggled with training or just flat-out not knowing what to do…might I recommend Baxter & Bella?? It’s AN AMAZING training site – my sister used it for their adorable puppy Kiwi and recommended it to me. It’s a little over $200 for a lifetime membership, and that includes classes, courses, games/activities to do, and access to a trainer email/zoom calls so you can get your dog training questions answered whenever you need – FOR LIFE! It’s only been two weeks since we got our little Brisket, and he can already sit, lie down, come, and be gentle with his toys…I’m FLOORED (and I think we also got a smart puppy, so that helps). But highly recommend Bella & Baxter if you’re looking for some dog training!

Also From Mallory: I got marketed for this Ralph Lauren sweater and immediately got it now that I’m a golden retriever mom hahaha. Comes in so many cute colors, but I got it in the navy. What’s not to love about a dog sweater, am I right?

From Marlee: Every summer I’m so grateful for this mini cooler – I use it SO much. It’s so great for longer car rides or picnics at the park. I love a soft cooler too, but I love that I can literally just hose this one down when something leaks, or it gets dirty outside. Not to mention it’s so cute:)

From Arlyn: There is SO much content out there to read and consume; it can make your head spin. But I’ve got another one for you if you love tablesetting and beautiful things for your dining room. A friend and past coworker of mine, Katherine Shurick, is an immensely talented table stylist (yes, these exist!), and she started a company last year where people actually hire her to make their dinner parties beautiful. Well, she recently launched a Substack, and I want to promote her here as I know how much some of you readers appreciate beautiful, thoughtful things. What I love about Katherine, besides that she’s an amazing human being, is that she has great taste with a flair for the artistic. Not the usual stuff you see everywhere online already. She knows how to dig for the good stuff that’s unique, intentional, and artful. Give her a follow, why don’t you?

From Gretchen: I’ve shared this link before, but I must share it again because I really love it and use it that much. My mini portable sticker picture printer. This little gadget is so fun and is the gift that keeps on giving–literally. Baby’s 1st birthday? Check; I printed out a bunch of cute pics of baby and his parents and tossed them into the card for mom (my bestie) to either peel and stick in her scrapbook or pin to her fridge. 10-year anniversary party for my friends? Check again. I printed out a super cute picture I took of them and slapped it on a Trader Joe’s $1 card to give it a personal touch. They loved it. Dude friend’s birthday? Triple check! Bought him a bottle of whiskey and stuck a silly pic of him to the front. Instant, custom gift! These were all gifts I needed to pull together within the last week or so, and having this little printer on hand just made it so easy and fun.

From Jess: In case I haven’t said anything yet, ha, a couple of months ago I got my first brand new car, like a 2026! I was more or less forced into it because my last one decided it no longer wanted to run without LOTS of money poured into it. So after only having my new one for a week (after a two-month wait), I was off on my trip to Greece. I parked it in front of my friend’s place that was near the airport. Unfortunately, I didn’t think about sprinklers, and she forgot too (of course, not her fault!). Needless to say, after only a week of driving my new whip, WATERSPOTS were EVERYWHERE. And while I’m not a “my car must always look perfect” type of person, seeing it all spotted after only 3 weeks under my care really bummed me out. I feel I need to preface that I do not come from a car family. When there was a problem, off to the professionals it went. However, when I called to get a quote, it was $250. I’m sure if they saw it in person, it could have been less, and I could have called more places, but I told myself, “Jessica, you are a capable adult, and you will not ruin your brand new car if you try to clean it yourself”. That’s when I did some research and found The Chemical Guys. I bought this water spot gel, this speed wipe quick detailer, these applicator sponges, and microfiber towels. Y’all, once I got some confidence, it went great, and my car looks beautiful! If I can do it, so can you! The only other two things to know are: 1. Your car should be in the shade, and 2. It should be cool to the touch. So if you have water spots and don’t want to pay a lot of money, I really recommend these products.

Also From Jess: Some new friends of mine are heavily involved in helping underserved communities in Los Angeles. I was pretty blown away hearing all the ways they are truly trying to make a difference on a personal face-to-face level. Naturally, I asked if there was a way to be able to promote and support the organizations they are a part of and love…and luckily there is:) The donations made now for these organizations, NDLON (National Day Laborers Network) or NELA Food Distribution, will be used to purchase school supplies for children in need. The QR codes above go directly to those two organizations from a great event they just hosted yesterday. Next time, I’ll get the event info for any locals in enough time! Or if you’d rather purchase items from the back-to-school wishlist, here’s that link! So if any of you are able to give a little, it would make such an important impact for these kids. Thank you!!

From Caitlin: Just because everyone around me seems to be throwing their back out lately: this is the best heating pad on the market, bar none. I know, I know – the price tag is bananas, but I swear that it’s worth every penny. It delivers heat DEEP into your muscles and tissue (and it’s actually designed so you can lay on it safely, unlike the cheap ones from Walgreens and CVS), plus it offers incredible temperature and time control. You can trust my opinion here, because I have multilevel degenerative disc disease, 3 totally desiccated discs, 3 bulging discs, retrolisthesis, bursitis, arthrosis, a once-broken L4 and L5…and, well, that isn’t even everything wrong with my lumbar spine, but the point is that I have tried nearly every heating pad and THIS ONE WORKS! I know it’s hard to believe that it’s functionally different from a normal heating pad, but it just penetrates to the source instead of just being hot on your skin, and it’s a miracle on those days where I’m stiff or achy or having a sciatica flare-up.

Also From Caitlin: BRB, crying over Ordinary Abundance. (The quote under “Memories kept” was the one that really got me weepin’. The rest of them kept the tears flowing. You’ll feel like breaking out a gratitude journal by the end. We’re so lucky!)

Thank you for this little piece of your day, and see y’all tomorrow!

Opening Image Credits: Photo by Kaitlin Green | From: Our Guest Cottage Upstairs Meeting Room Gets Its First Internet Debut (+ Great Fall Dining Room Ideas)