Happy holiday weekend, friends!! However you may be celebrating this weekend, we hope you get lots of fun time with family and friends and we’re so grateful you chose to spend a little bit of your time with us today! We’re ready to party together by dropping in our favorite links this week including a jaw-on-floor kind of home tour, a gardening hack, a really wild swimsuit, Emily’s book rec for the week (of course), and a BUNCH more. So here we goooooo!
This week’s home tour is a BEAUTIFUL project designed by Hoedemaker Pfeiffer and it is NOT one you want to miss. They perfectly blend Spanish architecture with modern furniture pieces (along with lots of awesome vintage finds) to create this fresh new space. The giant arched windows will make your heart skip a beat and you already know the Lawson-Fenning sofa + side table combo is totally up EHD’s alley. Check it out, it’s VERY GOOD.
From Emily: The Wedding Date by Jasmine Guillory. This book is so fun IMMEDIATELY. I flew through it in a day (so did Caitlin and Jess) and when I recommended it to my friend her only response was “who is going to feed my children breakfast now?” because she didn’t want to put it down. It’s about strangers that meet in an elevator in a hotel and one ends up being the date that night to a wedding. I think you know how this goes, but if you want a steamy comfort read while you are chilling this weekend, this is the one. Also, Jasmine Guillory has a new book coming out on July 13, and I’m very excited to read it 🙂
From Caitlin: GAME-CHANGING GARDENING DISCOVERY HERE, FOLKS. My mom recently bought this super lightweight expandable garden hose and it’s awesome – it is so easy to carry around the backyard when I’m watering and hanging it up is a breeze. I’m dead serious: I’ll never go back to a standard rubber hose again.
Also From Caitlin: Jess and I are full steam ahead on our balcony MOTOs and I’m making my final orders this weekend! After a lot of thought and consideration, I’m ready to pull the trigger on the swing seat of my dreams (and the one that I put on my OG moodboard, hah). Serena & Lily is offering 25% off this weekend so the timing is right – let me know if you scoop one so we can match!!!
From Ryann: I wanted to give y’all a little update on this You Swim Bikini I bought a few months ago. I am not exaggerating when I say it fits me better than any swimsuit I have ever worn in my life. I wore it all last weekend and got so many compliments on it and I just feel insanely good wearing it. It has the right amount of coverage plus a high leg which I love. I recommend this brand to everyone I know and even my 7-month pregnant friend loves them!
From Mallory: You know when you watch a Pantene commercial and they say “Got dry, damaged hair?” in my mind I’m like “yeah, I do!!!” pretty much every time. I’ve been bleaching my hair since high school (omg you bleach your hair and live in LA? Unheard of) and it’s starting to get to the breaking off, turning green phase — well the turning green thing is a different story (something is up with the water in my apartment building) — that’s for another time. Regardless, this head of hair has seriously been put through the wringer, so it’s about time that I try some repair-esque products. Everyone keeps talking about this one… What do you think?? Did it work for any of you???
From Albie: The mini got this unicorn sprinkler for her birthday and while we knew it would come in handy during the summer, this week it’s EXACTLY what the mini (and us) need while we endure a week of excessive heat warnings. Back-to-back days of 90+ degree days requires LOTS of hydration and opportunities to stay cool, but we can’t keep her cooped up in the house all day. We’re finally inflating this baby so she can have all the summer fun her heart desires in the backyard.
From Jess: Em has described that blinding rush of adrenaline when you see something YOU HAVE TO BUY. There is of course nothing that we “have to buy” but I think we can all relate and/or know that feeling intimately. So here’s my story. I was watching Alvin Wayne’s “3 Ways to Curate Your Kitchen Countertop” IGTV on Domino’s feed when I saw the absolute cutest cordless mini lamp of my life. I rushed to the comments to see if there were any clues as to where I could purchase this magical little item. SUCCESS! Someone knew the name so I was off. Guess what?! The super mini one is under $30! And they come in a million colors, are chargeable, last 6 hours, and like I said… are the freaking cutest. So I’m going to be honest with you. I got mine on Amazon because the color I wanted wasn’t available anywhere else. I promise I looked. BUT they also sell them at Nordstrom. So if you want gold, silver, or dark blue you are in luck! I want them in more colors but I’m going to wait until I know I have a place for them:)
Also From Jess: I know I’m super late to the game but when I’ve asked my friends and family recently if they’d seen Full Bloom on HBO Max they all said no. So maybe you haven’t seen it either? If that’s the case, GO WATCH IT. It’s the most incredible floral competition and the love and support the contestants and judges have for each other is so beautiful. I believe Em has recommended this show too, probably in her DesignStar post, so you now have two people telling you it’s worth the watch! I actually got my dad hooked on it and he’s called me multiple times to discuss. It’s a show for everyone. They are a little over halfway through the second season (it comes out every Thursday) and I REALLY want a third one so again, please watch:)
Fourth Of July Sales
Hi, hello, Caitlin here! Taking a break from my big sale roundup posts to just bring you the best of the best this weekend. I took a peek at your favorite retailers and pulled together the sales that y’all seem to be the most interested in! Without further ado, here’s some details for those looking to spruce up their homes…
- The Target sale is REALLY great – up to 25% off furniture, outdoor furniture, and rugs PLUS an extra 15% off select items. This is the best sale I’ve seen from Target so far in 2021!
- West Elm is offering up to 70% off for their warehouse sale and the selection is GOOD GOOD. We’re talking $9.99 FOR FURNITURE, GUYS. (Not a typo or a mistake. Go peek at the inventory!!!)
- Wayfair is offering up to 60% off select items; AllModern is offering 15% off orders with code GET15. I am very into this round cocktail ottoman from the former and this SUPER cool console from the latter.
- Grab 20% off ready-to-ship furniture at Anthropologie (plus an extra 40% off sale items). Furniture sales at Anthro are RARE – even during holidays – so this is a real surprise treat!
- The Pottery Barn sale is okay. (I kid – there’s a lot of great stuff available, like this stunner of a bookcase, but I’m just bitter that my current dream bed did not go on sale.)
- Conversely, huge fan of the Rejuvenation selection this weekend. The lighting, decor & rugs (planters down to $38 from $129, guys!!!), and furniture sections are the real winners here.
- I already gave you the DL on the Serena & Lily sale, but all of their outdoor pieces are super beautiful and 25% off is a GREAT deal.
- St. Frank is an EHD favorite for beautiful textiles and decor (check out Key’s office for proof). They are giving 20% off the St. Frank’s summer getaway essentials with code: HOTHOTHOT.
- CB2‘s sale actually basically shot my eyebrows off my face – it’s way better than I expected. Up to 25% off in-stock furniture, up to 30% off outdoor, and up to 50% off clearance – it’s their best offering in recent memory. (Or at least, since I’ve been tracking sales stuff. Either way.) Highly recommend this trunk/bench for entryways and bedrooms and these bookshelves, which are worth every penny at any price TBH.
- World Market is offering an extra 20% off curbside pickup orders. Get out there, pal!!
- Grab 15% off fans and hardware at Schoolhouse. Big fan of this butcher paper holder and of these very sweet signs.
- Last but not least, there are a ton of limited-time sales over on Chairish this weekend. (If anyone wants to Venmo me $1800 bucks for these dining chairs…you know where to find me :))
And for those looking to fill any holes in their wardrobe…
- J. Crew is offering some NUTS savings – up to 70% off regular prices for their end of season sale. And don’t forget J. Crew Factory (aka my favorite store), which is offering 40% off site-wide. If y’all are about to head back into the office (!!!) or if you’re just trying to look a little more put together, these are worth checking out.
- Nordstrom has a bunch on sale, but IMO you should wait til the Anniversary Sale to pull the trigger on any orders. (Advanced previews kick off July 6th, though, so do some early browsing to score those deals when they come up!)
- Oh my, Farm Rio is offering 25% off sale items and you can bet that I bought this dress on Friday night!
- EHD fav Vitamin A is offering up to 30% off animal print swimwear. (If you need a refresher, you can check out how their suits fit our actual bodies in this post.)
- Grab an extra 50% off sale items over at Levi’s site this weekend. I’ve traditionally been a Madewell/Abercrombie loyalist when it comes to shorts, but some of these are looking REAL CUTE and REAL CHEAP.
- Use code SUMMER to take an extra 25% off sale items at Shopbop. (But also beware, because I somehow just spent a good 20+ minutes clicking through their inventory. What a well merchandised and curated selection!!)
THE END! Thanks for spending time with us this Sunday! Now go get yourself a hot dog. Bye!
Opening Image Credit: Design by Hoedemaker Pfeiffer | Photo by Haris Kenjar
Mallory — absolutely do Olaplex. From one bleacher to another, it’s amazing. I also really like New Wash. My stylist recommended it when my hair was literally falling out and it saved my life.
For Emily’s next smart and steamy beach read, I have to recommend Tia Williams’ “Seven Days in June.”
Just wondering, if bleaching is ruining your hair, why not stop? I’m not judging or even asking for an explanation for why you choose to do it. But for anything else in life, if what we are doing causes destruction, we change. Why, when it comes to hair, do we not?
Because she likes the look of lighter hair? Anyone who bleaches has to make some sacrifices, at the very least they’re paying a lot and on top of that may have to deal with damage and more intense upkeep. The same reason people wear heels despite it being awful for your feet – this is not an uncommon phenomenon.
Just bought the Garden hoses – super practical design rec – thank you! (I added smile.amazon with your link.)
We found those wonderful hoses last summer and put them on all three of our outdoor spigots….and then ALL THREE of them started leaking! The liner inside the hose eventually rips, leading to them becoming trash. So sad 😭 they were wonderful while they lasted…
This is good to know, but I find all hoses start to leak eventually at the connection. I’m not sure what’s going on, but I hate when I turn on the spout and all of a sudden, I’m getting soaked.
There’s a little rubber washer inside the metal part where it screws on and sometimes it gets dislodged or cracks over time. You can buy replacements for super cheap over by the garden hoses and sprayers at Lowes or Home Depot. I find that that often solves the problem!
Thanks for the tip, Lori! It seems crazy to keep buying new hoses.
Yeah, I have a 20 pack of washers from HD that I think I paid about $3 for. When I’m dead my kids will still be using it probably (but it didn’t come in a smaller pack, I’m sure it’s meant for professional Mr. Fix-its!). Shopping TIP: pull the washer out with pliers or a fork and bring it with you to the store, then the employee will be able to steer you to the right size, and you can double check for yourself too by holding it up to the package.
In addition to what Lori said (that is exactly right and a great tip), don’t buy hoses that have the brass colored connections. They are just too thin and flimsy. Buy the hoses with the really chunky stainless steel connections, you will have to hate how much you paid for a couple of day, but they hold up much better (they even come with a better-than-standard washer).
Latest reads: an older Kristin Hannah“romance “Home Again” and 2 not “happily ever afters” but good books nonetheless Stacey Swann’s “Olympus, Texas” and Flynn Berry’s “Northern Spy”. Also watched some great movies: quiet movie about oddball boy “Driveways” and two comedies “Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar” (laughed so hard) and “Buddy Games” (raunchy but good for some laughs).
UMMMM.. This LONG sorry but I have been thinking about this lately….. Not to be a bummer, but “that blinding rush of adrenaline when you see something YOU HAVE TO BUY” is your brain getting high off shopping. I know this blog makes money telling us to buy fast fashion and home goods from Target and Amazon for example, and thats the price I pay for reading free and often excellent content, but the “blinding rush of adrenaline from shopping” is not so good for the planet, for human rights for workers and packagers making and sending some of these cheap, landfill-ey items, or your brain. Shopping can be an addiction like anything else…..https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20161123-shopping-a-sale-gives-you-the-same-feeling-as-getting-high.. Full disclosure: I used to be a compulsive thrift/ vintage shopper. My mom is a compulsive antiquer and decorator, Her house looks amazing and so does mine- but its a slippery slope into obsession… as a child my training was to shop for recreation, and in our culture we are encouraged to do so at all sides. Esp. with thrift there is a feeling of uniqueness, scarcity, ” Its so cheap and unique” ‘I can sell it later’, an sometimes, esp now with thrift shops filled… Read more »
Just…everything you said…YES!!!
Yes to everything you have said here, emphatically. I live in Manhattan. During the lockdown and aftermath this point has been repeatedly driven home seeing the staggering amount of nearly new furniture, clothing, in fact everything, being thrown out so casually. They can’t even be bothered to get it to Goodwill or Salvation Army. In just my building alone at the end of the June when people moved out we rescued so much stuff from the trash, furniture, two computer monitors worth $300 each, a Barbour vest, unworn and expensive Italian shoes, nearly new air conditioners and so much more. It has become so pervasive dumpster diving is now called “stooping.” There are Instagram accounts for different neighborhoods showing furniture et al dumped on the sidewalk so you can pick it up before garbage collection. This is from a supposedly educated and affluent demographic. Tragic. The other thing I can no longer abide is the huge amount of polyester and nylon in clothing these days and we all know it is not just cheap clothing. They are petroleum products and plastic. All of this is so bad for the environment and particularly bad when you consider how much we have… Read more »
Can you not say “one size ACTUALLY fits all” when it’s really one size fits sizes 2-14? Multiple sizes exist on either end of that range and those are people too. Just say “versatile sizing” or “seven sizes in one” or ” accommodates pregnancy/weight fluctuations.” I understand that those clickbait links bring in affiliate revenue but they are disappointing and I see them all too often.
While I’m being a Negative Nancy, I’ll also add that Jasmine Guillory’s book The Wedding Party (which I mistakenly checked out of the library due to the similar titles) was the worst book I’ve read in years. It was so poorly written, had very little narrative tension and the only real “theme” is the main characters constantly eating pizza. I keep hearing such great things about The Wedding Date – can anyone confirm whether it is that much better? I really want to get into all these fun romance books and I love that Guillory writes books about people of color, but perhaps I need to try another author now.
Check out from your library, no cost, no commitment
All my books come from the library. Unfortunately I’m the kind of person who can’t not finish a book, so it’s at least 350 pages of commitment…
Agreed, so many of the romance books are so badly written. I did dive into audio historical romances this past year and a half and discovered an absolutely great one, and there aren’t many. The audio version of “Lord of Scoundrels” by Loretta Chase is so good. It was free from my library, available online. Suggestions for romances of that caliber are appreciated.
Wow, I loved that house tour! Gorgeous house, beautifully decorated. And a real butler’s pantry, too! Some of the furniture choices wouldn’t have been my first choice, and I found the one bedroom included a bit of a yawn, but overall a highly sophisticated yet welcoming home.
Love the tour, and most of the links,but was Sosa when the “actually one size fits all” suit wouldn’t fit my size 18 body. Bummer!!! Its gorgeous and I hope they’ll make a plus size of it!
Whoa, major typos. Was ‘so bummed’ not ‘Sosa.’ Lolol
What a fantastic post! I want ALL of these fun things! Keep these coming!
I just want to reiterate what a couple of other people have said that the (super cute!) bathing suit is definitely not “one size ACTUALLY fits all” as you put in the title of this post. The site says it comfortably fits US sizes 2-14. The average American woman is a size 12-14. This item is actually incredibly non-inclusive. They are clear on the site by saying what sizes it fits and labeling it as seven sizes in one so I think your label of one size fits all is actually disingenuous to the company as well as a problematic assumption about your readers. I definitely don’t have any issue with you endorsing something that is not fully inclusive but I’d change the headline, which is just ridiculous. Nothing is one size fits all except perhaps a scarf.
I clicked on this post so fast because of that title – it is basically impossible to make ANYTHING one size fits all – only to see that it’s Youswim, who has been criticized for a while for being ironically size exclusive by building their brand on a foundation of size inclusiveness. On their website they have multiple FAQs explaining why they don’t offer sizes beyond 2-14. At the end of the day, if your brand can’t provide clothing for nearly half the population (average UK dress size is equivalent to a US 12) then you simply aren’t ready to go to market. It’s slightly less of a problem on the smaller end of the range (since a 00 person could theoretically get it altered to fit them) but still not great. I’m really tired of brands treating extended size ranges as optional or extra – when it comes to plus sizes, some companies act like it’s too expensive to develop and produce “additional” sizes when plus size shoppers have tens of billions of dollars of spending power – you just have to give them a chance to spend it!! When historically size-exclusive stores do introduce extended sizes, they are… Read more »
Just a heads up that West Elm definitely does not have furniture for $10! What looks like a good deal on a stool is actually a *stool cushion* for $10. Same thing with the crib — you’re not buying the crib, you’re buying a conversion kit. Etc.
That said, there are some pretty good deals there! Just read carefully, as I just browsed through many many misleading listings.
I got Olaplex on a whim a while back and hated it at first. If anything I thought it made my hair less soft than before…. but my hair was healthy at the time. Recently, a few months of subpar hair-care (I have curly hair so it needs a lot of attention) left me with some damage, so I tried it again. And I am shook by how much it’s actually seemed to help. I definitely would not recommend it as an addition to a normal hair routine, but if you’re dealing with damage it’s great. Just remember to deep condition too, it’s not a conditioner!