Sunday Duvet Reading: September Edition
The sweetest of September, ready to tuck into with your cornflakes and cuppa...
This afternoon has felt like the perfect autumnal Saturday. Built up of lots of simple, otherwise ordinary things, but placed together have made a puzzle of particular magic. From car rides singing along with my little one- him selecting the songs I love and have passed on (not all that forcefully, might I add), a short but sweet coffee date with a friend who I don’t get to see often and a solo cinema date; something I don’t think I’ve ever done before but felt like I was truly doing something that I wanted to for me (she’s a grown up!!). I am now sitting post cheese toastie, in a cafe. The sun has started to get low and glimmer through the windows, making shapes on the wooden floor and there are people slowly sipping hot coffees and slices of cake. It’s all simple, but it’s really lovely. I am also writing this up which feels slightly miraculous given how chaotically I normally compose things- but the simple things will make you appreciate the calm next to the chaos, I suppose.
It always surprises me how quickly time passes between writing these newsletters. How much can change in a month or two and how heady that feels when I sit down to reflect on it all. Sometimes that’s big life changes or a day of developments and conversations, and sometimes it’s just the weather and how quickly things can shift. This month it felt like a seasonal switch had been turned on from midnight on the 31st of August, and from then it almost immediately became cardigan weather (and the kind of weather that meant I immediately noticed my thermostat had checked out and been on holiday for quite a while). But September has really been a chapter of joy and sadness. In many respects I know that’s to be expected of life. I know how lucky I am if a period of time passes when I’m only getting the sweet bits- but September has truly felt like a complete mixed salad of feelings and moments. Comfortable consistencies that feel like a still mind and woollen blanket and shifts so seismic I wonder if there’s any length of voice note lofty enough to begin to articulate the funny feelings to my best friends without feeling like I’m leaving some kind of long, boring podcast (with no celebrity guest) for them to listen to. Sometimes I forget how much can happen in a short space of time, and whilst sometimes that’s a difficult thing to navigate I’m constantly reminding myself that that can mean gorgeous, exciting things too (just think! two weeks ago we’d never seen Chris McCausland and Dianne dance together, and what a joy that has been)!
And in the sadness there has been so much joy too. Visiting friends in the beautiful homes they’ve made for themselves, 9:30am cinema visits to see Pixar films, dancing at gigs, roast dinners and discovering somewhere local that does both pigs in blankets and cranberry sauce pre-December 1st, feeling so lucky to have and enjoy work, feeling safe in love, fancy work dinners and days where I didn’t need my coat, train rides and card games, leafy walks, wet walks, macaroni on a Saturday night, supermarket trips and sitting in the trolley (Arlo, not me, disappointingly), double dinners, bagel lunches and always, always remembering to notice these things whilst they’re here and not when you’re nostalgic for them, as romantic as that is.
Anyway, I hope you’ve all had a lovely start to autumn; I hope it’s not been *too* rainy where you are (and if it has, I hope you’ve been able to appreciate the puddles and or wistfully stare out of cafe/train/backseat windows)- may October be filled with overspilling jacket potatoes, cold fingers in warm coats and ample left over Celebrations from your Trick or Treat bowl- here’s hoping!
P.S If the whole newsletter doesn’t display on email, it’s because it’s a bit long this week (when is it not)! Open on your desktop, in a browser or on the app for everything in it’s full glory!
It’s Sunday, you have a couple of hours and you’re up to date on Strictly and Bake Off (kudos, because Strictly is still at the beginning and is l o n g)! What to do with this abundance of free time I hear you cry?! Bake of course! ‘Tis the season for a kitchen to smell of a sweet loaf baking in the oven and will absolutely make your Monday afternoon slump all the more delicious when you remember you have fresh cake to have with your cuppa. Benji’s cardamon loaf loaded with lashings of jam and cream looks like the perfect fix (her book is also filled with other sensational bakes; the peanut butter and chocolate banana bread being a particular hit in my house and her newsletter is also a delicious new discovery of mine too)!
The wonderful people behind Self Space are excitingly opening their doors in Kings Cross this October; offering therapy at an accessible no-waiting list point of use. If you don’t follow them on Instagram they’re constantly sharing wonderfully comforting, conversation provoking content and will also be offering some of their wonderful ‘Decompression Sessions’ to give you a taste of what they’ll be offering. Held by a qualified therapist, these 20 minute sessions offer a moment of calm and ‘a space to bring that niggling thought, to catch your breath and decompress, to find your feet’ and I know they will be wonderful. The £10 ticket cost is also redeemable against a full therapy session, which is bloody brilliant if you ask me too.
If you want a moment of pure, unfiltered joy- may I suggest watching this interview with the wonderful Charlie Craggs talking to Will Ferrell and Harper Steele. I *cannot* wait to watch this this month, this alone brought me SO much joy.
Oh my god I love a wedding. Whether that’s driving by on a sunny Saturday at 1pm and hearing church bells in the village you’ve found yourself in, or scrolling on Instagram and catching a cool glimpse of Patti Smith doing some nuptials (imagine just saying ‘oh no we didn’t get a vicar, no, oh, have you, erm… heard of Patti Smith??’) I! Love! It! All! But my oh my- Karen Elson’s wedding to Lee Foster looked like magic. The Valentino dress! Electric Lady Studios! Leith Clark helping you get ready! Does it get more beautiful!? You can find me slowly weeping over this beauty for the foreseeable.
Oh to be as articulate (and talented and beautiful- but if I must pick one) as Ms. Kate Winslet! Her interview with Elizabeth Day was a truly wonderful listen, and this quote (amongst many) was particularly wonderful:
“There is so much negativity that young girls are hearing from the world just because of how the world is, but also because very sadly, so many of them are on social media and are exposed to an unnecessary level of negativity every day of their lives.
If we do not tell them that they are beautiful and that we are so proud of who they are, they might not hear it from anyone else. So you have to say it. There's also a way of saying to your child, I love you and you're amazing.
There's that, but there's also, do you know what I love? The way you see the world and the way you dress with so much pride. I just really admire that.
That will land on a teenage girl's ear. Much better than, you look lovely darling.”
My dear friend Caroline (behind the genius Knickers Models Own) is a true force of joy, good and true inspiration and this piece of writing about her remarkable career in sustainability, the anniversary of her mother’s death and the work Rennie Grove Peace are doing is a really special read.
Katie’s Instagram account is the kind of account that makes you look at the world with fresh eyes. Look a little bit closer at the colour on the walls in the coffee shop you’re in. Notice how the red of that woman’s jumper matches the bus stop she’s stood at. Her eye for the special and simple is outstanding and makes you realise how there really is something delicious in every day.
It seems almooooost unfair to be so talented at singing and well dressed (but I know that being jealous won’t make me any cooler), but my GOD Olivia Dean what are you doing to us?! I am pleased to announce I am making myself Unofficial Chairwoman of the Olivia Dean Outfit Appreciation Society because everything she wears is *chefs kiss*.
As I type this I am an hour out of having just seen One Hand Clapping and you can bet your bottom dollar that I am going to be down a Paul, Linda and wonderful Wings shaped rabbit hole for the next three weeks (as if I wasn’t firmly stuck down there already). But, oh- what a watch! A real intimate snapshot of a truly special recording session with some of the most talented musicians of our generation. It always feels like such a privilege to have a peek into these often incredibly private moments; to see how the process comes together and the messy, candid moments that make it. If you get the opportunity, I urge you to head to the cinema to go and see it; loud, on the big screen and with an audience who enjoy listening to Band On The Run as much as you (so much so we all clapped at the end which was a beautiful thing).
Ugh, THE JOY!
Also, during the adverts they showed the trailer of ‘In Restless Dreams’; a documentary about Paul Simon showing on the 13th of October nationwide for one day only?! What did we do to deserve this! It’s got perfect Sunday viewing written all over it.
P.S I also spotted the below on Instagram, so see me going for the triple on brilliant music films this month! Heaven!
I’m often a little late to seeing what treasures the fashion week shows present, but Vivetta are a brand that have had my heart for as long as I can remember (I saved up for a dress of theirs about 7 years ago and still pull it out year on year) and this collection for grown ups and little people alike is so, so beautiful. The yellow dress is as close to a lemon meringue as it gets whilst still bearing wearable, and it is *exactly* what my heart desires.
I met Bertie at an event this month and instantly I fell in love with her outfit and warmth, noticing the exceptionally cool necklace she was wearing immediately. “Where is it from?!'“ I asked barely stopping for breath, and lo and behold, it was her own brilliant brand, Studio Bowe. All of her pieces are made from carefully selected vintage beads and trust me when I say they are stunning and unlike anything else I’ve seen.
I have not stopped thinking about this Bug Girl x Paramore Cool Babies t shirt. There is not much to say other than it is excellent; and if it’s good enough for Hayley, it’s good enough for me.
This month I have jumped straight back into a deep set love of Vinted (not just because I am due a huge upload and clothes sort out), but have been perfecting my scrolling so the algorithm knows me better than I know myself- which is an important use of my time, if you ask me. Since doing so I have acquired some excellent Oshkosh Dungarees, a perfect denim jacket and some cracking red Converse for a fiver for Arlo and do not intend on slowing down. This Liberty kilt came up yesterday and I’m wondering whether I enter autumn fully embracing the ‘Winter at Balmoral’ look? Answers on a postcard!
I hope you have a peaceful rest of your Sunday and a beautiful end to this month, and start of October. If you’d like to subscribe for more chatter, heart-to-hearts, diary posts, vintage recommendations and so much more, you can do so below for all my additional weekly send outs for £1.25 a week. Thank you for all of your wonderful support, it really means the world.
The Sentimental Wardrobe is solely supported by you, lovely readers. To receive new posts into your inbox and support my work, it would mean the world if you might consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. No worries if not/thank you anyway!!
The very best way to start my Sunday morning! What a lovely newsletter Liv! PS those BEADS! PPS: yes yes yes to the little moments in amongst the big xxx
This was such a lovely and uplifting read! Made my Sunday morning that much better (it was already lovely with sunlight through the windows, two cups of tea and one of coffee, buttered toast with apricot jam and the sound of my cat and boyfriend pottering around the flat). Looking forward to the next one! <3