The summer I got a pair of jewelry pliers
More is more when it comes to jewelry, mustard, and blocked accounts
Brand to look for when shopping secondhand
Monet vintage costume jewelry.
This was the summer I moved to New York, the summer I spent unemployed (for the first time since age 14), the summer I finally secured a Real Adult Job (whatever that means), but more importantly, it was the summer I started shopping for jewelry on eBay (and got a cheap pair of jewelry pliers too). Guided by the “more is more” ethos, the aforementioned unemployment budget, and an addiction to Having Something Coming in the Mail, I turned to eBay for accessories. One brand that kept popping up, especially in my 40-pages-deep charm necklace perusals was Monet.
Monet Jewelry was originally called the Monocraft Products Company and began by manufacturing monogrammed handbags and personalized car decals in Brooklyn, NY. In the late 1930s, the company changed its name and switched over to producing costume jewelry under the leadership of former Cartier jewelry designer Edmond Granville. Capitalizing on post-Depression hits to the fine jewelry industry, they offered more affordable options to everyday consumers. If I was well-versed in economics I’d draw parallels here with the current pandemic period of recession/inflation, but I’m not. I am also not implying that my rash and (honestly) kind of stupid decision to move to New York unemployed was a comparable situation to the average 1930s American consumer, but this is my silly Substack where I’m writing about affordable jewelry and I’m providing context or something…
Monet was actually the “first costume jewelry brand to stamp each piece of jewelry … with their hallmark,” making it easy to identify their pieces today – and there are thousands of pieces up for auction at any given time on eBay (even when you filter to “Pre-Owned”/“Used,” which I always do, there are currently over 47,000 listings in the “Jewelry and Watches” category).
*Note: several of these listings’ bidding times will have ended by the time I post this; this is more for inspiration/to showcase Monet jewelry more generally.
Puffy heart pendant (evidence that everything “trendy” has already been made – and that participating in trends does not have to mean buying fast fashion).
“Happy birthday” charm bracelet.
ANOTHER “happy birthday” charm bracelet (I’m kind of obsessed with the wishing well charm).
Heart bracelet (kind of like a gold, gaudier, bracelet version of the “Return to Tiffany” – or “Return to Sandy Liang” – necklaces).
What I’ve been reading
Heather Hurst’s new Substack, PIGPEN.
I first followed Heather on TikTok, which quickly became one of those accounts I actively searched for every couple of days to make sure I didn’t miss any content. I am also a 20-something-year-old who recently moved to Brooklyn with her best friend, avid fan of charm necklaces (see above), and a person with an alliterative name, but the similarities end there, because Heather has what my mom would call “THE EYE”: personal style, good taste in every realm (from fashion to interiors to food), and influence in the truest sense of the term (I never gave bed skirts a second thought until I saw her apartment tour, and now I need one). Her newsletter, named after her dog Piglet (of “the daily Pig” Instagram story fame), in her own words:
Would highly recommend any of her accounts/platforms if you love maximalism, well-curated lists, detailed and honest reviews, antiques or estate sales, and/or the Elote Bowl from Sweetgreen.
Recipe on repeat
Bánh bò nướng (pandan honeycomb cake) – on repeat because my first attempt was a true failure. What I learned from my first failure:
There is such thing as too much pandan extract
When the cake is finished baking, DO NOT take it out of the oven right away (mine deflated when I did this); turn off the heat and crack the oven door just a little bit, and wait at least 30 minutes before taking it out
MOST IMPORTANTLY: there IS a big difference between double- and single-acting baking powder (I couldn’t find single-acting BP at any grocery stores, so I made my own using this recipe)
I found success on the second try with this recipe, posted in 2013, from “Jules Food” on Blogspot. I accidentally added one less egg - but wouldn’t change anything about the texture, so would definitely recommend 5 eggs instead of 6. That being said, I used large eggs, so if you’re using medium eggs you may want to stick with 6.
Way to say “I love you”
Offer to scrub their social media accounts for them. By “scrub” I don’t mean go back and delete embarrassing photos or anything that could prevent them from being hired for a job (which, according to my mom, includes improper grammar in my Instagram captions). I‘m referring to unfollowing, blocking, or muting accounts/types of content ranging from unhelpful/annoying to outright damaging.
When my friend was in eating disorder recovery, I offered to go through her social media profiles and block certain accounts/click “not interested” or “see fewer posts like this” on posts that were unhelpful or damaging (i.e., “eat this, not that” graphics, “what I eat in a day videos,” anything with calorie counts or the term “clean eating”). It’s impossible to make social media a truly “safe space” – but sometimes completely cutting it out cold turkey is just not a realistic option, so showing your love to someone might mean making their accounts safer spaces.
Things that feel important, but aren’t
Apologizing for “not looking your best”/“having a bad hair day”/not wearing makeup
Buying new clothes instead of going to the laundromat
Things that don’t feel important, but are
Having multiple kinds of mustard (you can’t tell me that grainy, dijon, and yellow mustard are interchangeable…)
Tipping your barista (the baristas at the coffee shop near me make $10/hour in NEW YORK CITY – if you can afford a $5 coffee, then you can afford a tip on that coffee)
A few extra inches of height on a mattress (sleeping at my Airbnb in Philadelphia, I could feel the metal slats of the bed frame under the thin mattress, and I begrudgingly decided to order a slightly more expensive, taller mattress for my new apartment instead of the $120 6-inch one I had in my online shopping cart)
I love the idea of having the eye!! I think about this a lot
Omg I loved every bit of this I’m so happy I subscribed!!