What are you going to wear? Sometimes it’s good to look at a few suggestions then add your own tweaks and ideas. That’s what these are for. There’s practically no better time to read a book than on a dreary night, and the transition from late winter into early spring often provides plenty of those. Plus if you have trouble getting to sleep and are used to staring at a screen in the evening, establishing a non-digital reading habit might just help you re-train your brain to fall asleep faster.
The Suggestion: Turn off your phone. Going analog for an evening is a treat. No social media, no texts, no notifications. Nothing.
The Book: March Violets: A Bernie Gunther Novel – $16. Private investigator noir fiction. Like a Travis McGee novel, only if the History Channel produced it.
The Sweater: Banana Republic Factory Washed Ribbed Cardigan – $66.30 ($130). Garment dyed for some visual depth, ribbed stitch for even more visual depth, shawl collar for… actual depth around your neck. Perfect.
The Henley: Banana Republic Factory Textured Henley Tee – $22.95 ($45). Relatively affordable, looks all kinds of right, and the BR Factory model happened to be wearing it under the sweater. Looks good? Looks good! 66% combed cotton, 34% polyester.
The Pants: Target Goodfellow Pintuck Joggers – $25.49 ($29.99). Target’s refined joggers. Because yes that’s really a thing. On sale too. No need to break out the snuggie.
The Watch: Orient Ray Automatic – $163 w/ aftermarket Crown & Buckle Supreme “Vintage Bond” Nato – $34. Some of us feel like we’re missing something if we aren’t wearing a watch. That and, again, the strategy is to turn the phone off. Too easy to get pulled into the doom scroll if you check the time on your phone.
The Shoes: Rothy’s The City Slip On Sneaker – $109 FINAL ($139). This one is for those who don’t like wearing slippers, yet like having a pair of easy on easy off, comfortable SHOES around the house. Rothy’s makes comfortable, machine washable shoes from plastic-bottle-waste. Great for having around the house when it’s cold, and also terrific for those warmer days out and about when you’re keeping it casual. Final sale though, so they’re a risk. Review of their lace-up sneakers can be found here.
The Lamp: Brightech Austin LED Floor Lamp w/ Adjustable Head & Rustic Glass Teardrop Shade – $106.99. Just say no to overhead lighting. It’s harsh and it does nothing to set a relaxing mood. Especially on a dreary night in with a book. Good looking lamp, that. The glass shade is a really nice design element.
The Chair: Rivet Aiden Mid-Century Modern Tufted Leather Accent Chair – $673 ($785). Nothing will ever beat the Stone & Beam chesterfield for $317. That was insane. But this looks pretty good all the same. Another Amazon exclusive brand, and it should ship and return for free (granted never tried to return a big piece of furniture to Amazon, but it’s what they claim).