10 Things That Got Me Through The February Slump
Not all of them are clothes-related!
Hello, my sweets!
I am currently UP TO MY EYEBALLS in blocking charts for this new production. Coincidentally/relatedly, this very week I arrived to the part of February during which time does not exist! It hits me every year. (Do you experience this?!) What are days? Do tater tots and blueberries count as a meal? Is it strange to still feel tired in the morning after a SOLID eight hours of sleep? Should I still be wearing sunscreen if all my outside hours are in darkness? [Okay, okay, don’t freak out my skin girlies, I’ll wear it. Probably.] But still—I am a human lump! And at this point, I feel I am doing more scrolling of the fashions coming out of NYFW than wearing any fashions myself.
So, let’s talk about something else! In case you, too, are prone to slumping this time of year, I thought I might share a bunch of lovely little things from the last few days that felt decidedly un-slumpy. The high blips on the EKG of my week. Maybe a few can be incorporated as the high blips of your week to come? I heard about something this week called a Joy List, which I think is basically a gratitude journal, but with more brevity and enthusiasm. Let’s call it that. [And buckle up, I guess my week was more joyful than I thought—slump be damned!—because Substack is yelling at me that this post is too long for email. Consider this your warning that you may see “View Entire Message” somewhere near the bottom of this post.]
Let’s do it.
PRESENTING: MY FEBRUARY JOY LIST
1.) The eucalyptus hanging in my shower.
I have been hanging eucalyptus in here since my once-future-now-present-husband tricked me into moving into a junior one bedroom apartment six years ago. (JK I love it here!) Our bathroom has no windows, so we can’t have actual plants in here, but these branches last a surprisingly long time and it’s giving spa vibes and I recommend. (Trader Joe’s has for cheap!)
2.) These gold coffee spoons in a tiny little mason jar.
Okay so I am not a morning bird, and I never will be unless I decide to breed and I am forced into it by a screaming child. But I still have to get up and go to work, and one way I make that less painful is by making the coffee experience easy and pretty. And that is my truth! That is made possible byyyyy: these cute lil coffee spoons. A tiny mason jar that I found in a box on a stoop. This electric kettle. My best friend from college gave me my favorite coffee mug—it’s off-white glazed ceramic and it says TEXAN in little brown letters (which is about the extent of hometown pride present in my apartment). If I make my coffee to-go, I do it in this thermos.
3.) Wearing color.
Okay so the HUMP in hump day was really giving MOUNTAIN this week, but I got my groove back in these bright orange leggings. I don’t know what it is y’all, I am not a scientist, but a burst of color really does help my mood. (In fact I produce and direct a show about this very topic!)
Related! A red lip! Listen to me when I tell you that, in New York City, I am pretty sure a red lip will make ANY outfit look hip. You could literally be wearing a cardboard box as a top, and if you put on a red lip people would think you were doing performance art. As a general rule, if I am out in the world, I almost always have two things on my person: a pen and a lippy.
4.) My little baby gold hoops.
Hubs gave me these earrings for Christmas this year, and I love them. I am trying to embrace my natural face (my skin needs a BREAK, and also, have I been scammed by the beauty industrial complex?), and these little beebs with no makeup is good vibes! They go with literally everything. If you’d enjoy the acquisition of a similar style for less shillings, I’ve had great success at Awoke Vintage in Brooklyn, and at Madewell, believe it or not! And this is coming from me, President of The Itchy Girls Club! [Cheap metals give me a rash/I am a delicate flower.]
Related—these silver ones are a more recent purchase from gorjana in Brooklyn and they are SO FUN. I feel very cool when I wear them. They are kind of heavy for all day (for me), but very excellent for a fun dinner out.
5.) Bougie chapstick.
Every time I notice my lips are chapped, I’ve been trying to respond by chugging water (to address the real source of the problem)—but I still love a luxurious chapstick, I am who I am! My favorites are: this one (made by a derm, and can be used for a plethora of skin ouchies! I buy the 3-pack), this one (I intentionally buy this jumbo size because it’s the size of a glue stick and this is really fun to me), and this one (lol which I think we’ve all been using since high school?).
6.) Too-big sweatshirts.
This one is kind of a duh, but sometimes I need a hug all day long, and that’s where the oversized sweatshirt has got my back. For this (and also sweater iterations), my first recommendation is to go vintage/secondhand and look here. For my non-NYC-based Costume Change friends, I once bought a jumbo-sized sweatshirt from Aerie when I needed a heavy layer in a pinch, and it has become one of my faves. (I was wearing it last week.) Here’s another inexpensive option.
7.) This recipe:
We had a couple of our neighbors over at our place a week ago, and this bean dip was so easy, wow, but also kind of a hit? I stole it from the New York Times but I made a couple edits so here we go, my version, heavily inspired by NYT Cooking, my favorite app:
Ingredients!: 2 cans pinto beans, 1 12 oz. can salsa verde, 1/4 overflowing cup cilantro (leaves and tender stems), 1 green pepper roughly chopped, 1 jalapeño roughly chopped, and a mix of Monterey/Pepper Jack cheese.
Turn the oven to 400. Cook the peppers in 1 tbsp of neutral oil in a cast-iron skillet (or oven safe pan) on medium-high for a few minutes. While the peppers are cooking, rinse the beans. When the peppers are fragrant and starting to blister (3 minutes?), add the beans, along with the salsa verde and cilantro. Cook for another ~4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally. (I like to smash the beans a little bit with the back of the spoon). Cover with cheese and pop that cutie in the oven. I did 10ish minutes so everything got all melty and yum, but if you’re not a coward like me you could use the broiler instead for just 2 minutes so it gets a little crispy on top. And that’s literally it! Garnish with leftover cilantro and serve immediately. We served with chips, and then ate the leftovers the next night with rice and chicken thighs. 10s across the board!
8.) Thick socks.
They’re just good really thick socks. I think the legwarmer-esque ankles make my basic-a$$ leggings look cooler. I’ve had one pair for a couple years, and then my sister-in-law gave me a three pack in our sibbo gift exchange this Christmas (thanks Jules!). They’re thick enough that wearing them around the house is kind of like wearing slippers.
9.) A silk pillowcase.
A slightly curly-girl specific rec, but I just cannot sleep in a bonnet or with my hair wrapped. I sleep like a banshee and I need to be free. Enter this pillowcase! Which has truly extended my time between wash/reset days. Literally paid for itself with the money I save in using less hair product. Good for the face too!
10.) The combo of femme/vintage gold earrings with a baseball cap.
This one was DEEPLY inspired by my friend Monica’s rehearsal look this week (hey gurl!), but the contrast between shiny/fancy earring with a sporty cap is pretty fab IF YOU WANT TO KNOW WHAT I THINK.
And as a bonus, this dance move made by yours truly, inspired by the “no, girl” emoji. You know, this one.
Okay that’s it! I hope the remaining days of your February are full of lots of little joys. And, if you are so inclined, feel free to share any fun joys of your week with the [Costume Change] class!
Ta for now, my cutes. See you next Monday.
Costume Change is a styling newsletter (vs. a shopping newsletter). There’s no spon-con above. Thanks for reading, and reminder to keep those comments kind!
okay monica shout out!!!!