Discover more from All's Well by Nadine Zylberberg
Hi! Happy Sunday afternoon, wherever you are. Surprised to see me in your inbox? Me too. My cadence is off, but I’m hoping to get back into a posting rhythm soon. Bear with me. Until then, some easy things on my mind and browser:
Well Read
I’m emerging from a summer of very little reading and, suddenly, there are a lot of exciting new books on my radar. Four that I can’t wait to get my hands on:
“Be Ready When the Luck Happens,” Ina Garten’s new memoir! To add to our ever-expanding collection of Ina Garten cookbooks.
“Intermezzo,” by Sally Rooney. I loved Normal People so much, I read it over the course of a weekend on my cell phone. Excited by the promise of this novel, too.
“Empresses of Seventh Avenue,” by Nancy MacDonell, about the rise of the modern American fashion industry.
“The Last Dream,” a collection of Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almodóvar’s writings that amount to what he calls a fragmentary autobiography of sorts.
Well Observed
I love that painter Amy Sherald (remember that Michelle Obama portrait? Her.) treats painting like directing. She finds sitters through casting agents and poses them and photographs them endlessly before turning to her canvas. To give a sense of the uniqueness of her work, Nancy Princenthal writes in The New York Times:
“Among the most striking aspects of Sherald’s work is her restriction to shades of gray for representing her subjects’ skin. Historically, the use of grays — known as grisaille— has been associated with paintings of stone statues, obdurate and inanimate. But Sherald infuses her grays with great warmth, bringing faces and hands to life against colorful but insistently flat settings.”
But just as compelling as her paintings, perhaps, are the photos of Sherald herself in this piece. A picture of shameless optimism.
Well Watched
There’s a lot of great TV these days (finally!)—Only Murders in the Building is back, Slow Horses is back, A Perfect Couple has debuted, we have more Emily in Paris to blaze through, less than two weeks until Great British Bake Off—but there’s plenty of time to get into that in the coming weeks. For now, a few short videos (none over 12 minutes) that I’ve enjoyed lately:
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It’s been ages since I’ve seen Will Ferrell in something (aside from Barbie, I guess)—and never quite like this. In his new Netflix documentary (streaming September 27), Will & Harper, he takes a roadtrip with a dear friend from his Saturday Night Live days who recently transitioned and came out to Ferrell. It seems expansive and full of heart, and I’m excited to watch.
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Is Jennifer Garner just the most welcoming host ever? I can’t say for sure, but I feel confident that, after watching her Architectural Digest home tour, it’s likely a resounding yes. I’ve gone down a rabbit hole of celeb home tours lately and this one does not disappoint. The light woods, the navies, the openness of it are inspiring and warm, and the way Garner takes us through the spaces is the best.
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You know you’re deep in kid land if the Fisher Price purple monkey song means anything to you. Well, dad of four (and EGOT winner) John Legend sang it to his baby in a video that’s a year old, but resurfaced now that Legend has made his foray into children’s music.
Well Worn
Lots of talk of “work pants” and “chore jackets” as we head into fall. I’ve gravitated towards the former already and am looking for my favorite version of the latter. Here are some selects:
Renggli Studio’s work pant looks promising and, given that it’s influencer Morgan Stewart’s brand, drops are buzzy and product goes fast.
I got Raquel Allegra’s version of the pant, which I love for its super soft material. Feels almost like a sweatpant, but more refined; and the blue is that perfect mid-blue I love.
My friend Katherine spotted these Ulla Johnson jeans on the street months ago and I’ve been pining after them ever since.
I love this two-tone pair from Rachel Comey with exposed buttons.
This one is simpler than the others, but it still has a hammer loop, so you know it’s meant for work (“work”). I can confidently say that Jesse Kamm makes universally flattering, and very long-lasting, pants.
Different material, same vibe is this carpenter pant from Leset.
Moving onto chore jackets…
The modern go-to is probably Alex Mill’s Britt jacket, which is the right color, material, and fit.
If the saturated blue is too much, Ralph Lauren makes a nice, lighter one (on sale).
How about a casual denim version from La Ligne?
I like the beige and the oversized pockets from Lemaire.
Buck Mason has a shirt version of what we’re talking about and I might just get it.
But really, the answer might just be on Etsy, where you’ll find countless vintage styles like here, here, and here.
More soon! x
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Weekly links and musings from my little corner of the Internet