love at first sight

there’s a very specific experience i have once in a while that i can only describe as love at first sight. its a magnetic force between me and an object that has somehow attached itself to me in the very instant i lay eyes upon it. there is something about each of these objects – their color, their shape, their sparkle or some other component – that instantly strikes me as a little slice of perfection. my desire for them is like a truth you know about yourself and the items i have fallen in love with that way remain some of the objects in my life that make me happiest. amazing how some decisions take days to make, while others are made before I can even find the words to discuss them.


i was almost in disbelief when i laid eyes on this hat - so wide it's almost, but not quite, silly; so perfectly floppy, yet molds and stays any way you position it. it protects not only my face and head in the sun, but also my shoulders and chest. it's like it's own little, fabulous, shaded world. my happening upon it was a moment where reason left me - i had no choice but to possess it.

the other wonderful thing about it is that it looks terrific propped on a bust in the corner of my bedroom - the colors and pattern pick up on the happy cacophony of colors and patterns throughout the room and it has become an item of decor as well as a wardrobe item.




these coffee mugs beckoned me. the electric mustard color called my name from across the store and their size and shape are perfect for morning coffee. i wasn’t sure how i’d like the mustard ones as everyday mugs at home, so I hedged my bets by also getting some in the tamer, though also pretty tan. the combination looks good together, but i will say it’s the unapologetic mustard ones i reach for most often, for coffee, for tea, even for an impromptu bud vase. they also look great with all the green items in my kitchen.




i made a beeline as soon as these gigantic, multi-faceted glass beads caught my eye. their gel-toothpaste color paired with their oversized scale and faceted shine made them a done deal before I even arrived at their shelf.


this one was a real coup - this beaded envelope bag glittered from the bottom of a densely packed suitcase of vintage bags at an estate sale and i absolutely love it. it’s actually displayed in my vanity because i so enjoy looking at it, rather than being stored – it’s too pretty to be shut away!

the back of it needs repair, so i will either have an expert drycleaner try to clean it, or perhaps have a new back made in a complimentary material. finding workarounds like that is worth it when you so love the bones of a piece.


these items and many more make up a home full of things that i love to look at, and so i was not surprised to find that what i experience as “love at first sight” is actually a pretty well-known ideology in design called “the divine law of the great chair,” a term coined by patricia gray.

writing on the subject, carrie and danielle, authors of style statement: live by your own design, pose the questions: “what if you really liked, even outright adored every material thing in your own life? what if the quality, shape, color, function, and feel of the things you owned gave you satisfaction, pride, and delight?”

they continue... "when you let go of things you don’t love, you create space for things that you do love to show up. even if…it was a gift, it was inherited, expensive, imported, exotic, or you truly loved it once upon a time -– if you don’t like something in your space, it’s dragging you down. this isn’t about old, or new, or what you can afford – this is about how stuff makes you feel.”

as a recovering pack-rat, this idea resonates so powerfully to me, and as i’ve been increasingly able to incorporate this mindset into my life and my home, i have felt its lightening, life-changing impact.