Springtime Light & What Pinterest is Selling Me
Pearls, boxers, clogs and nostalgia
The springtime light in Stockholm (when not concealed by clouds) never fails to surprise. It’s like we’ve collectively forgotten how light and bright the city can be during the evenings and early mornings. And after months of darkness, it’s also nearly impossible to fathom that this type of light actually exists.
On another note… As I have now removed Instagram from my phone’s homepage (baby steps), I'm exploring alternative apps to curb my scrolling habit. Too much news intake often leads to anxiety and dissecting the weather forecast can only occupy me for so long, so I find myself turning towards Substack and Pinterest. And as I believe I've mentioned in earlier newsletters, Pinterest holds a special place as my first social media love.
Pinterest's algorithm has been quite the persuasive salesman lately. It’s clear that platform’s algorithm absolutely reigns supreme, and I find myself buying what they are selling. Well not exactly buying, but obsessing over their perfectly curated recommendations.
And as I am sure your mail server will likely truncate the bottom half of this post for the email being too long, let me first share some things I’ve enjoyed reading lately:
“Fun Fact: We found the best place on the internet," by
shares a heartwarming reflection on the joys and challenges of raising a neurodivergent child, particularly one with a strong special interest. In order to spread the joy of these kids, she has created a supportive online community called "Special Interests Sharing Aotearoa," on Facebook aimed at celebrating the special interests of neurodivergent children.- “Barely-cooking cooking” is actually embarrassingly inspiring for someone like me who is not the primary cook in the family and who wishes that every meal only took 5 minutes to prepare.
I love
‘s writing (I really need to get around to reading her book “Mominfluenced”). In her Substack conversation (I’m a bit late - it was published in September) titled "Jessie Spano deserves a You're Wrong About episode," Sara speaks with Kate Kennedy on themes from Kennedy's book, "One in a Millennial: On Friendship, Feelings, Fangirls, and Fitting In." Kennedy's book delves deep into the nostalgia surrounding girlhood and its profound impact on shaping individual identities. Sara and Kate explore a wide array of topics, including consumerism and motherhood and the intricate dynamics between girlhood and womanhood.- ’s “How do I translate inspiration into real life” - The Pinterest junkie in me is all dialed into this.
A colleague shared Bafta-nominated filmmaker and photographer Karni Arieli’s Instagram earlier today, and I went on to read her conversation with
. Karni launched the Eye Mama project during the pandemic, aiming to depict motherhood truthfully through images contributed by photographer parents worldwide. She also discusses the concept of the "mama gaze," emphasizing the need to show both the beauty and challenges of motherhood. When asked Lynn’s question “How’s everyone doing?”, Karni compares the journey of parenting to learning to surf: navigating ups and downs with hope for better days ahead. Ultimately, she highlights the power of showing up and giving love each day in the “lifelong project” of parenthood.
Below you will find what Pinterest is serving me on a silver platter.
Pearls - I’ve always been drawn to pearls, but my fascination deepened some years ago when I fell down a rabbit hole of research on the Japanese "ama" and South Korean "Haenyeo" pearl diving women. There is a beautiful film by Patagonia called "Lessons from Jeju" that follows Kimi Werner, a professional freediver who is seven months pregnant, on her journey to Jeju Island in South Korea. There, she meets the haenyeo, a group of diving women who are considered Korea's first working mothers. Kimi explores the intersection of motherhood and her career as a freediver, ultimately finding inspiration and a deeper understanding of her own journey among the haenyeo.
While the pearls rolled out by today's brands may not match the caliber of those retrieved by pearl divers, nor are all of them real, they really do have a knack for elevating a t-shirt and jeans combination (my jam).
Some fun options:
Garden Clogs - The garden clog obsession lives on. As most of us know, the Gardana clog has been making its rounds on social media for more than a year now, and it is almost always sold out. But then we have the Crocs “Dylan” (I know, I know, but we all know that they are surely the most comfortable of them all), the Birkenstock “Super Birki”, and even the Italian Garden Heir version.
J.Crew Vintage - So as a long time follower of @lostjcrew, and a New Englander at heart (hi Boston, I miss you) I am obviously totally okay with being bombarded by vintage J.Crew catalogue images on Pinterest. Ah, the nostalgia these images evoke. If they don't immediately don’t make you want to rummage through vintage shops for some good ol’ J.Crew pieces, or have you dreaming of Cape Cod clambakes and summer evenings, well, then we can’t be friends. Ok, we can, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it that way. But the below, they're a real trip down memory lane.
Boxer Shorts and Pants - All hail the comfy feels in a pair of boxer shorts or pants this spring & summer. Comme Si has the best selection of colors and materials, but then we have our Scandinavian players like Aiayu and Tekla who are superior to the loungewear world. P.S. See above - J.Crew was on the boxer-pant-train at one point too.
Etsy Finds - As someone married to a man who appreciates restaurant matchboxes as much as I do, I was not at all confused by the Pinterest algorithim feeding me the match-themed things below. More pearly things like spoons? And the ceramics? Well, I’m always on the look out for new bespoke pieces. So, bullseye, Pinterest.
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