020924: Things that made life special this week

A delicious health drink, a hair tool, a folk album, a filling salad, a repeatable date night outfit, and more

Hello and welcome to Things That Made Life Special This Week, a celebration of the pursuits that add a little something extra to the everyday.

Thank you so much for your wonderful reception of the new direction of The Bell! I’m so excited for this next era and I’m so happy you are too.

Watching: Series 6 of The Great British Bake Off

I know I’ve made this recommendation before (and this show is universally beloved) but my husband and I are both just loving the 2018 season. Plus, contestants Manon and Ruby are great Instagram follows and there are tons of recipes from this season that I genuinely want to make at home.

Eating (Drinking?): Variations of this functional lemon ginger tonic.

My friend shared something from this creator on her stories, and when I was checking out her profile, I thought this drink looked so good. I have made this two days in a row and it tastes like sunshine in a glass, and I can practically feel my cells getting healthier as I drink. Here’s how I make mine, slightly differently from

Ella Henry

:

Ingredients: 1 full lemon, 1 large nub of ginger, 1 scoop of unflavored Perfect Hydrolyzed Collagen Powder (for 10g of protein!), 1 packet grapefruit LMNT electrolyte powder, healthy splash aloe vera juice, healthy splash olive oil, coconut water to taste.

Preparation: Slice lemon into 1” pieces and peel and slice ginger into 1/2” pieces. Blend with around 2 cups water until smooth. Strain out solids. Rinse blender and return liquid to blender. Add collagen, LMNT, aloe vera juice, and olive oil. Blend again until frothy. Pour over ice in a pretty glass and top with coconut water.

Variations: If you want this to taste like a piña colada, add a few cubes of pineapple into the blender with the ginger instead of lemon before blending and straining, and leave out the LMNT.

You could do lime instead of lemon. You could do any fruity flavor of LMNT. You could make it spicy with a pinch of cayenne. You could add a nub of peeled fresh turmeric in place of ginger, or in addition. You could leave out the collagen if your friends aren’t into that and serve this as a delicious mocktail at a party. Or add vodka or tequila and make it a cocktail! The sky is the limit!

Using: My Aquis hair drying towel

I use this every time I wash my hair; it’s so ingrained into my routine I forgot to mention it until now! It’s super absorbent—I wrap my hair up in it right after squeezing out the water, and without any rubbing or roughing up my hair, it absorbs most of the water and leaves it damp enough to blow dry after about 10 minutes. My hair is very fine and I try to be as gentle with it as possible, and this towel is a game changer for less frizz and less breakage!

Listening: The Carpenter by The Avett Brothers

I returned to my favorite Avett Brothers album this week (probably my favorite—so hard to choose!) because I had to listen to the track February Seven on February 7th. Then had to listen to the whole album. Just, all the feels!

Moving: 30 minute Country Pop Ride with Ally Love on Peloton

You may not know this about me, but I love country music. This was such a feel-good way to move on a cold day, and Ally’s energy is always the best.

Doing: Going out to nice restaurants

I took my friend to a fancy birthday dinner last weekend, then my husband and I went on a midweek date night to one of the best restaurants in Boston, Contessa. I wore the exact same outfit both nights, down to the makeup look and accessories. I just slightly changed the hairstyle by adding a bow to my low bun the second time. Life hack!

Restaurant bathroom selfies forever.

Wearing: My trusty Gucci loafers

My Gucci horse bit loafers starred in this repeated outfit, because getting dressed up and wearing flats is the move. The rest of the look was a short black dress with long batwing sleeves, polka-dot sheer tights, my black leather evening bag, red lipstick, silver earrings, and a burgundy velvet bow.

Reading: The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon

I think I saw this book recommended by @Carly on Instagram? It caught my attention because it’s historical crime fiction set in post-Revolutionary Maine, which is definitely my thing. It follows a small-town midwife as she tries to solve a crime implicating many members of her community. There are a lot of characters to keep track of, but that was worth it to me. It paints a picture of everyday life at that time, it’s super engaging, and I stayed up too late several nights this week reading it!

Making: Eden Eats Roasted Bean and Artichoke Pantry Salad

This was a fantastic weeknight dinner that kept on giving with leftovers for maybe three lunches? You probably have all the ingredients you need on hand already. I’d recommend adding a few sprigs of fresh sage into the pan with the roasted artichokes halfway through, and coating them well with olive oil so they lightly fry. Then when you take the artichokes out, pull the leaves off the stems (they should be crispy but not burnt), chop the fried sage, and sprinkle it over the salad!

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Join me in the open recommendations thread on Substack Chat, where I’d love to hear what’s making your life special this week. Here’s how to download the app if you don’t already have it.

I hope you have a great weekend!

xx Jane

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