Hello, lovely friends,
July. The frostiest, most unapologetically wintery month, and honestly, I kinda love it. Most mornings here in Raglan, a frost settles over everything overnight, and the kids continue to be genuinely shocked by the thick layer of ice on the windscreen each morning as though they have never seen anything like it. I hope you are keeping warm and cosy out there, wherever you are!
My partner and I snuck away to Melbourne for a few days this month. Just the two of us, sans kids, which felt equal parts luxurious and strange. We wandered the city at our own pace, drank plenty of coffee, ate extremely well, and fell infinitely more in love with the city all over again. The food scene, the cafes, the vintage shops dotted all the way along Brunswick and Smith Street… I could live there, truly I could, if the small matter of children and schools and co-parenting logistics didn’t exist. Perhaps one day a house swap? I’m manifesting it.
We stayed at The Standard in Fitzroy, and I can’t recommend it highly enough. The location alone ~ a stone’s throw from everything worth finding ~ made it perfect. Contemporary, considered, with that particular kind of urban warmth and charm that Melbourne does so well.
I’m a few days late with this newsletter (hello August!) but here’s a midwinter wander through everything lovely from July…
Reading...
Like what feels like half the world right now, I’ve been reading Yesteryear, and I have mixed feelings about it. I’m about three-quarters of the way through and completely hooked, despite ~ or perhaps because of ~ the fact that the main character is deeply unlikeable and occasionally quite unhinged. Dark humour with a satirical edge. I’ve heard the last thirty pages are where all the juicy parts are. I’ll report back. Have you read it? I’d love to know what you think.
Wearing...
I have been searching (patiently, but somewhat obsessively) for the perfect grey fuzzy cardigan for years. I had a very specific vision. Soft as a cloud, the lightest possible shade of grey, relaxed and cosy without a slightly cropped boxy silhouette. And this month, finally, after what feels like an eternity of near-misses: I finally purchased her. The Olivia mohair cardigan from Surprise, sized up to a medium for that perfect, slightly oversized drape. I have worn it every single day this week and feel no shame about it whatsoever. For those in New Zealand, you’ll find the brand at Chapman Store and Uncommon.
Waiting for…
A small but significant update on my coffee corner: my beloved La Marzocco Linea Micra and I have parted ways (the machine was on loan to me!). A partnership I’ll always cherish. But new beginnings! I’ve ordered a Moccamaster in white, and I’m very excited. There’s something so nostalgic about a drip coffee machine, and since both my partner and I love a simple black coffee, it feels exactly right for us.
Eating...
Pretty plates. This has been my great joy this month ~ the simple, slightly meditative act of arranging a simple throw-together lunch as though it matters. Because it does! Fat medjool dates, split open and tucked with good cheese or almond butter and a flick of sea salt. Local sourdough with whatever feels right. A small pile of olives. Sun-dried tomatoes. Soft-boiled eggs. Juicy fruit. The kind of lunch assembled from whatever happens to be in the kitchen ~ but then arranged, thoughtfully, on a beautiful plate. That last step is everything. It transforms the ordinary into something you actually want to sit down with.
A handful of other things to gander and admire...
~ This London kitchen renovation I stumbled across recently is gorgeous. The use of colour, the natural textures, and above all, that bench seat. I love a bench seat!
~ My hair is the longest it’s been in years, and being curly it’s usually terribly unruly. I’ve relied on the same tortoiseshell claw clip to contain it when I get sick of wearing it out, but this month I discovered this braided barrette from Ola Ro. Made right here in New Zealand, and being red, you already know it’s my colour.
~ Now, a little styling secret I share with clients all the time, and one I keep coming back to myself: if an outfit feels flat, it’s almost always a texture problem. Cotton/linen/denim worn together, head to toe, will always feel a little dull ~ not because any either is wrong, but because the sameness flattens everything. Add something sheer, something silky, something that catches the light, and the whole look shifts. Which is exactly why I’m besotted with these silk organza trousers from By Malene Birger. They look very dressy at first glance, but pair them with sandals or ballet flats and a simple knit or tee and you have something that feels quietly effortless and elegant. Organza is having its moment, and I am entirely here for it.
~ Speaking of which… I recently had the loveliest morning shooting my beautiful friend Cat in new season ANNIE, and I haven’t been able to stop thinking about the Juliet blouse in deep plum organza ever since. The shell buttons. The sheerness. The way it looks thrown over simple jeans as though it’s the most natural thing in the world. It would also make an extraordinary evening top.
~ I recently discovered the brand Hai and their silk bags, and my first thought was: I don’t go out enough to justify such a bag. By why do I wait for an occasion that’s worthy of them? Perhaps that is the whole point of something this pretty - to make the ordinary day feel like an occasion that you can wear an impossibly beautiful silk bag!
~ And finally, a shoe discovery that I simply had to share with you. About Arianne, a Spanish brand makes the most softly romantic, minimal, quietly whimsical shoes I have ever come across. The Bielle in white ~ with that delicate lace detail ~ would make the most beautiful wedding shoe. They would also make a beautiful shoe for absolutely any other day of the year.
And that’s July, all gathered up and handed over with love. There is so much beauty to be found in the gloomier months ~ in frosted windscreens and pretty lunch plates and the all the cosy knitwear and winter outfits. I hope something here made you feel it too.
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Lots of love, Eleanor x
Ohhhhh will add this to hopefully a future bookclub book sounds interesting 🌼 thanks for July edits ❄️
You are SO forgiven 💛