#lifeathome Archives - Northern California Style

How is your week going? After the Mother’s Day chill, it was back to the routine for me. I had a few errands and one was Whole Foods for a few family must haves. I dread the line, the shopping and I do my best to fly through and avoid aisles where there are people. I sometimes struggle to see my list through my mask and I was head down when a sweet woman, I think she was European, chatted me up by the liquid soap. My first thought was to back off a few feet, but she told me the French hand soap I was buying was very good in the orange scent and that it doubled as body wash nicely. I took a breath and I thanked her for the tip and she added, ‘You know we have to do what we can and improvise now.’ I responded, ‘It’s not so bad is it?’ She lamented about her out of control curly hair, which I thought was beautiful, and we both agreed that this pandemic has taught us what we really need and what we can live without.

I walked out of the store with a good feeling after that. I’ve rarely exchanged with anyone shopping since we’ve been doing this social distance thing and it felt nice. I like how we concurred on what we truly need now and what we don’t. It’s not by choice, but right now is a trial of sorts. Maybe we don’t have to get our nails, hair, eyelashes, fillers and all that done so frequently to look beautiful. We get a chance to see the real us for a bit, something we can’t when we regularly get colored, manicured, etc. In seeing the results we may be horrified- OR we may see more natural lovely version of ourselves and lose some of those high maintenance habits. Maybe we don’t need as much polish as we think?

I get frustrated with this pandemic and then try hard to look at the lessons it is teaching me. Maybe less is sometimes more. Natural is good. Did we need to shop that much and were we sometimes just shopping to shop? I know I did, but now I have found time for things like gardening and reading instead. Life was too convenient, too frantic and was lacking quality of another kind. That quality is only what can be found at home, with ourselves and our family. It’s everything the slow movement embodies and we are all getting a taste of it. You are either a fan of it at this point or you aren’t and though I miss many things about my previously busy life, there is a lot right now that is good.

Last week I noticed two things I have experienced in Europe only. First, there have been a nice amount of people reading and picnicking in our neighborhood park. In most European towns and cities you can find people reading the newspaper or books in the parks and in any green space and it always makes me appreciate their ‘slow’ kind of life. More than a few days I saw people stretched out with books or leaned against a tree with them. I also saw families on blankets having picnics. It was a nice to see and yes they were distanced from others.

Photos from Sorrento and England I snapped during past vacations of people enjoying slower pursuits.

Max and I have also noticed during the dinner dishes, the clinking sound we only hear in France when it’s dinner time. We have rented apartments in France and always noticed the wonderful sound of dishes and flatware clinking during the dinner hour that you don’t hear any place else. It means people are cooking and taking time to enjoy their lives and food and I love that. I’ll admit it can be a slog and some nights I am burnt out with it all, but most of the time the four of us share in the cooking and clean up and that has made it enjoyable along with the conversation -another unexpected gift. If this pandemic hadn’t happened we wouldn’t have had these leisurely dinners. The guys always had homework and Max was many times exhausted from his commute to San Francisco, or home quite late. Everything here has moved to the 1970’s kind of pace of my childhood and it is nice. Has anyone else felt the quality of life go up with slowing of things?

How are you managing shopping with the mask? I have a few good ones and still I struggle to breathe sometimes while doing errands. My neighbor Abby, who is a talented sewer and junior in high school made me a custom one from vintage fabric I gave her to use for donation masks and I love it…

I also found Lime Tree Designs, from a friend so bought a few there and I can highly recommend them as they arrived quickly, look, feel and fit terrific- and have a place for a filter or paper towel if you want added protection.

I thought this was a very hopeful article this week about the powerful impact of wearing masks when 80% of us comply. This study was based on Japan’s high compliance and they have a tightly crowded society and have not done quarantine. They have had a very low death rate that is just 2% of the U.S. with just 577 deaths to our almost 80,000.

If we want to get back out, we should get used to wearing them for the protection of others and for ourselves all the times we are out doing errand or interacting with others. Exercising in the open may be the exception. We need to stop worrying about what we look like and just make it what we do. The first step is having a few masks that you like wearing and feel comfortable in. The cloth ones are much preferable to paper I can tell you that having had both.

Anthropologie has the biggest collection and choices I have seen. They carry these below by Sanctuary that are 3 for $24 which are cute, have an adjustable nose bridge and a removable polypropylene filter. Antho will donate $5 (the cost of a mask) if you tag #sliceofhappy, @anthropologie, and @getusppe each post to GetUsPPE. Founded by physicians and medical researchers, GetUsPPE works with communities to get PPE to the healthcare workers on the frontlines of the Covid-19 pandemic. I think that is a win-win purchase.

They also carry this bunch by Sanctuary that include a few my guys would wear..

Anthropologie has huge choice of masks from many companies with beautiful fabrics- so you can find your own style here.

Madewell has a pack of three that uses their fabric leftovers and comes with a filter. They are backordered until June 3 right now. Madewell and it’s partner J. Crew have donated 75,000 single use masks to Montefiore Medical Center in New York.

Masks can be found at every price point like these made of vintage Hermes scarves. All 100% of the proceeds go to buy an assistance dog for a diabetic child. You can also send in your own Hermes scarves as a donation and she will make you two masks and keep the rest to sell to raise money.

There are also these very cute Liberty of London fabric masks.

And this version..

You can find a page full of Liberty of London fabric versions on Etsy.

Some of you have made your own and some are wearing scarves. Whatever you do make it easy and something you will get in the habit of wearing. Everyone in your family needs their own designated masks and it is good to have more than one -you need them for the car, your purse, at the front door, so you can always grab it or have it with you.

Finally, have you been finding some good shows and books to chill with? I am wondering if anyone has watched this series, based on the very popular My Brilliant Friend – aka Neopolitan Novels which follow two friends in Naples throughout their lives. I never finished the books, but this looks very good. This is the trailer for the second season..

I love it for the backdrop of Southern Italy. If we can’t travel now maybe we can do it virtually?

On that Italian note, I have it on good authority (thank you Contessa), that this book, The Mother-in-Law’s Cure, is a good escape and funny so and I have just ordered it.

My all time favorite film, which always makes me dream of Italy and travel is Room with a View. If you haven’t seen it or just haven’t in a few decades, it’s one to watch again with the family or all alone absorbing its beauty. Just look how young Maggie Smith and Judy Dench were – mere babes, and Helena Bonham Carter? We played some of the soundtrack for my wedding. Dreaming of Italy…

Ciao for now

Kim

Photo on top from Vanity Fair article linked above. Some links on this post may generate a small commission. Thank you for supporting the blog.

Hello everyone, how are you all doing? It’s been a crazy last few days and I think we as a nation are realizing how the serious the threat of this corona virus is. Yesterday we heard my high school senior will be home now for at least three weeks and the college kid is coming home too- for how long, we are not sure.

Today Max and I went to the store and bought a few weeks worth of food for the freezer and the pantry. We delivered some things to my 80 year old dad also- left on his door. We don’t want him exposed to us or going out now.

All we truly know right now is that we have one sure defense and that is to keep isolated with our families to prevent this thing from growing. That can only really be done by staying in. If we can all just do this for a few weeks we can change the outcome. Even if you aren’t afraid of catching this thing, you need to do this for others. Like vaccines, this only works if we all do it. When we all do it, we lessen the chance of carrying it and we will protect the most vulnerable among us by slowing the spread and not overwhelming the hospitals.

My biggest challenge right now is trying to help my 18 year old son understand he needs to stay in the house, not fun. We are having a real struggle and I’ve tried to explain that we, his parents and grandpa, are vulnerable as we are older, and we are scared. At this age they are very self-centered and I am sure right now, this also is such a disappointment to him. This is his last part of his senior year, which is supposed to be fun after all the hard work he has done. He has Hawaii and ski trips planned, grad night and proms coming..all that unsure now. The college kid is another thing. He worries about nothing and thinks we are all hysterical.

To save our sanity, Max and I have been walking every day in the immediate neighborhood, away from people, but taking in all the lovely blossoming trees and flowers. I’ve been sharing many photos of our walks on my Instagram. What has struck me on these walks is the unusual quiet in the air. I hear almost no traffic noise now and a whole lot more birds. It’s amazing and wonderful.

We also have been planning out our meals and making some nice dinners in- tonight lasagna. It’s not been all bad having a sous chef and willing dishwasher around. We are trying to enjoy the slower pace that has suddenly happened on us all, lighting candles, playing some music, turning off the news for a while.

So how about you all? Are you hunkering down like us? If so, what things have you done to get ready to self-isolate? Are you also concerned for your older family members? Are you having challenges working from home or figuring how to deal with kids at home too? I’d like to hear from you guys.. Also advice or tips you want to share would be great. I want to make this a space to help and support one another. Can everyone leave a note below also with one great book, show or even a project they recommend to everyone else while we are all stuck in? I would so appreciate it and others will also.

A few things to distract you right now, if you need ideas on what to do with yourself- read my previous post,What to do When You are Staying in Because of the Coronavirus.

This is the time to get into a few good books. We all spend so much time online and we forget how great it can be to get consumed by a good book. One of the most awaited new books, you may have already heard about, that I just ordered is Untamed by Glennon Doyle. It’s about self-love and how we need to start listening to the voice within us and stop trying to live up to the expectations of the world. I can’t wait to read this.

We all may be looking at a lot more nights of cooking in. I know I am always searching for recipes that are new, using mostly fresh ingredients and simple. For that reason I love anything from the Half-Baked Harvest blog. Everything Tieghan does has a different twist on the usual and is pretty as it is delicious. Her new book, Super Simple, is for those looking for uncomplicated and yummy meals that get you out of a cooking rut.

I will share more about the remodel and what we’ve done lately, soon, but I wanted to let you all know that my dear Serena & Lily is having their Spring Design Event and everything is 20% off until March 16 if you use code, FreshMix. So if you have been considering any of their beautiful things, this is the time to get them. My favorite latest home additions were these darling Edgewater Lounge Chairs, seen here in my main room. We love the look and comfort of them! They give the room some California feel.

My other recommendation would be their beautifully luxe bath towels- especially these Healdsburg towels with the darling fringe. Love them! They kind of make my bath area. Their new outdoor collection is super pretty too.

With all the uncertainty right now for retailers, there are a lot of sales happening and a few that caught my eye..

The new J. Crew California Dreaming Collection. Fresh colors I really love and it’s now an extra 30% off many of the items until the 16th with code GOSHOP.

I’m also crazy for this darling floral silk dress from their special collection series. This looks like something my mom once wore.

Cropped white jeans that are not tight on the leg, are on my list for spring and these Vintage Straight Jeans really look cute. I don’t think they are part of the sale, but just what I am looking for.

Banana Republic is also having a Friends and Family 50% off sale. My picks for the sale would be these leather sneakers with the pink sole, ( I have them in black super comfy), and this polka dot pleated skirt ( so fun for spring and summer-worn so many ways).

Other distractions that I can share here are the series Outlander, which I have gotten almost all my friends hooked on. I may have talked about it here before, but mentioning again because it’s a lot of hours and would be a good one to get into right about now! Thanks to the wonderful strong characters- a WWII nurse and a hot Scottish highlander from the 1700’s that have amazing chemistry it’s very transporting. I’ve also learned a ton of history from it. (Warning also steamy- not for family viewing.) My husband and I also really enjoyed The Kominsky Method about the struggles, funny and real with Michael Douglas and Alan Arkin. It features many of my favorites like Jane Seymour and other greats making cameos. I got my dad hooked on it too.

I also am rereading my old books still in my library like The Shell Seekers and September from Rosamund Pilcher ( who knew we’d have time), and am enjoying this fun book, Ze French Do it Better, a lifestyle guide. I am also working through Gail Collin’s book, No Stopping Us Now, The Adventures Of Older Women In American History.

Another rabbit hole to jump into is the huge amount of Beauty Secret Videos posted by Vogue. There are 145 videos to learn from! This one is Cindy Crawford’s morning routine. So many here to watch and a few tricks to learn on each one.

That’s all for today, but let’s stay in touch here on my little page. I want you all to know this is a space you can come to for support and to vent and share through this whole crisis. I am here for you friends and I’ll try and keep updating things here and please follow on my NorthernCalStyle Instagram and subscribe on the sidebar if you want to get my posts in your email. If we have to be stuck inside, so let’s hear from each other here and share what is helping.

Hugs to you all,

Kim