Mini-digest #02
If you need something new to watch, read, or listen to, maybe you'll find it here.
It’s been more than a couple months since my last mini-digest so wanted to send a new one out given there is so much to consume over the summer days. Usually I post these as notes on the Substack app but unless you use the app, you won’t see them. This won’t be a weekly feature, more likely to be shared when there’s a decent collection of recommendations. Think of it as leaning more into the “bobs” part of the newsletter title rather than “Brands”.
Watching or Watched 👀
Trying
I think I have mentioned in the previous that one of the best TV shoes of all time (I truly mean this) is Trying on Apple TV. It’s wholesome. It’s heartwarming. It’s funny. It’s sad. It’s the total package. I have been waiting for this season and it is truly delivering. If you haven’t watched it yet, just give it a try. The episodes are short and there is a lot going on so you will put your phone away and pay attention. And if you do watch it, let me know if you like it! It PG-13 and truly worth the Apple TV subscription (in my opinion). If you liked Ted Lasso, highly likely this will be your jam.
Becoming Karl Lagerfeld
I don’t have a lot to add as I just started to watch it. I knew I would want to binge on this a bit so saved for when I would have a weekend to dive in. You can watch the show in English or in French. Sometimes when I want to unplug, I switch to French so I am forced to focus and not be on my phone. Given how much I liked The New Look about Dior on Apple TV earlier this year, I am hoping this proves to be of similar caliber. It’s obviously not a documentary so I can’t speak to its accuracy but I love the intermingling of all the fashion people. Also, have I mentioned that I “met” Karl Lagerdfeld back in June 2012?
DIANE VON FURSTENBERG: WOMAN IN CHARGE
I think we all know the DVF wrap dress, but how many of us know the story and the icon behind the revolutionary style? I definitely didn’t. It was an excellent documentary and I felt inspired watching the show. What an impressive photography collection DVF has of her life and people who surrounded her. An incredible story of someone I thought I knew, but clearly didn’t really know at all.
Reading or read 📚:
Reading has been a true struggle the last couple of months. My attention hasn’t been the best and if I read, it’s usually substack articles. In a dire effort to unplug from my phone, I pulled out two books from my ‘personal library’ that I haven’t read yet. They are not the newest or buzziest of books but I am enjoying both before bed.
The Remains Of The Day by Kazuo Ishiguro was recommended to me by my husband. He devoured this book and "Klara and the Sun" (both by the same author) while on vacation a couple of years ago. Since then, he's been recommending it to me, and I've only just gotten around to picking it up. Kazuo Ishiguro won a Booker Prize for this novel and looks like there is also a movie adaption by the same name (which I will wait to watch after I finish the book). So far I am just at the start so not much to share but it reminded that I have so many books that I have yet to finished from my existing stock pile so will be going through some of these older books while I wait for more buzzy ones to come out (like the upcoming Sally Rooney and Coco Mellors novels!!).
Modern Manners - I bought this book two years ago just before we moved house and totally forgot about it! I love The Gentlewomen magazine and this is “A selection of stellar contributors to the fabulous women’s magazine The Gentlewoman present a timely selection of thought-provoking, witty essays on manners, offering the modern woman viewpoints and advice on classic conundrums and totally contemporary matters.” It’s an easy read, especially before bed time and you never know what topic you are going to be reading about that night. Highly recommend if you are struggling with your attention flickering away.
Listening or Listened 🎧:
I have been listen to podcast like a lunatic. There are so many I love and I listen to them at 1.5x to make sure I can cover as many as I can during my hour long walks daily. These are the three I have been into the most recently.
Fashion People with Lauren Sherman
Again, it’s fashion heavy but that’s my jam so I love these. There are two episodes a week, one is newsy and conversational and the other is an interview. Both styles are great and I really enjoy Lauren’s reporting. Highly recommend if you want a varied view on the fashion industry. Lauren seems so honest in her review of the latest news and I appreciate her POV so much.
The MOTHER Podcast hosted by Katie Hints-Zambrano
Everything Katie does and touches is gold and her new podcast is nothing short of phenomenal. It covers everything from motherhood and career and all things in-between. There are three episodes so far and after every episode, I feel like a new insight has been divulged that I hadn’t thought of before. Katie’s questions aren’t run of the mill and her guests share such vulnerable stories that it feels like you are listening to a considered and thoughtful conversation rather than an average interview.
I love the Friday Rundown of what’s happening in the retail industry well as their in-depth interviews with industry insiders. It covers more than the fashion related gamut and paints a great picture of what’s happening within retail at large.
Beauty bits 💄🧴👁️
A few honorable mentions for the things I’ve been loving the last month.
Mustela Stelatopia Intense Eczema Relief - starting with the least sexy but most used. The Bay Area pollen has sent my contact dermatitis and eczema to a new level of painful itchy skin. The typical topical steroids don’t seem to help but a bucket load of this one is at least calming things down. I have gone through 7 or 8 tubes just this year. I originally bought it for my daughter, and seeing how well it treated her eczema, started ordering it for myself too.
Monastery Attar - Athena Hewett’s brand Monastery is exceptional. The one and only time I have had a facial in my life was with her - and oh my god, what a stunning experience that was. I have been a devotee of her products for a really long time and my absolute favorite is her ATTAR FLORAL REPAIR CONCENTRATE. I used to have the jar but felt queazy when I put my hands in to scoop it out on the days I forgot or lost my special spoon. I was thrilled to see her launch a travel size tube, which of course instantly sold out but I do believe they will be back in stock later. I love the dewy plumpness it gives my skin and honestly was the best thing after long days at the beach in Hawaii. All her products are incredible and level of detail and attention that goes into the formulation is impeccable.
I was never a mascara person - found cleansing at night to remove every speck too cumbersome. But recently, I have been dabbling a bit more with mascaras and wanted to try something new. Enter Merit Clean Lash Mascara. I have been using a couple other products from the brand (the lipstick and eyeshadow are top notch) so wanted to give this a try. The price feels reasonable for a product that you should toss every 6 months. I’ve used it twice and I liked it enough that I’ve added it to my makeup bag for my NY trip. Will share a full report on IG while I’m in NYC! And if you haven’t read
’s report on Katherine Power (founder of Merit and many other brands you probably know and love), you really should!And that’s all I’ve got for you! If you watch, read, listen to, or try any of these, please let me know your thoughts! Do you have recommendations for me? I would love to know!
I’ll be back next Wednesday with another brand & founder story 💌.
I'm definately adding "Becoming Karl Lagerfeld" on my to watch list. Love the suggestions, thanks girl