The little things we’ve been taken with this month.
There is always more to notice than there is time to notice it. So, for August, we’ve decided to stop trying to keep up. Instead, we’re keeping a small record of the things that have caught our attention lately. From something sparkling on an otherwise ordinary object to a bag that looks as though it washed up onshore.
There is no particular logic to the list. These things simply stayed with us.
A Little More Sparkle
Rhinestones have escaped the places we usually expect to find them. They’re appearing on phone cases, headphones, coffee cups, skincare, cakes, and even cats. Over the past few weeks, the internet seems to have developed a particular enthusiasm for taking something ordinary and covering it in tiny pieces of light.
Perhaps that is what feels so appealing about it.
For a while, so much of what surrounded us was deliberately quiet: neutral interiors, pared-back wardrobes and discreet packaging, everything edited down until there was very little left to distract from the object itself.
Bedazzling has no such restraint.
A jean hem. A phone case. A plain white sneaker. A hair clip that already had quite enough going on. If there is room for another rhinestone, apparently another rhinestone must be added.
Part of its charm is the lack of pretension. Bedazzling does not try to be tasteful and it isn’t meant to be. There is no quiet-luxury logic explaining why less is more. It is maximalist in the most harmless way possible: gems applied simply because there was room for more gems.
It asks nothing of you except that you notice it. And perhaps catch your reflection somewhere in the sparkle and smile.
We’ve become rather fond of making ordinary things feel special, even when there is absolutely no practical reason to do so. In a season full of things to take seriously, that feels like reason enough.
Silly Little Bags
There is something wonderful about a bag that has no interest in behaving like one.
The bag used to be the sensible part of an outfit: something expected to carry your phone, your keys and, occasionally, your entire life. Lately, we seem to be rather more interested in what a bag can say before we even open it.
A shell clasped in pearls. Valentino’s little cat, whiskered and strange. A tiny satin pouch that looks more like an ornament than something meant to hold your things. These bags seem to have wandered into fashion from somewhere else entirely, bringing a little piece of the beach, a childhood toy box or someone’s imagination with them.
The silly little bag is not asking to carry much. That is almost beside the point. Hang a pearl-trimmed shell from a simple dress and the whole outfit suddenly acquires a character of its own.
We aren’t choosing these bags for what they hold. We’re choosing them for what they say: This made me happy, so I got it.
No further justification required.
Fashion will always have its practical bags. Perhaps August belongs to the ones with a little more personality than purpose.
On Repeat
Float – Olivia Dean
Some songs enter your life quietly. Others take over the speakers, the car and every walk that is conveniently long enough to play them one more time. This month, ours is “Float” by Olivia Dean.
There is something wonderfully unhurried about it. Even the title feels like a gentle suggestion: don’t rush to the next thing, don’t try to hold yourself above the water, just let yourself be carried for a little while.
The song is about finding that feeling of ease, of letting go and allowing yourself to move without needing to know where exactly you’re going. It feels like summer without trying to sound like summer. The kind of song you play on an afternoon you have nowhere to be.
We’ve had it on repeat all month, and we’re not ready to stop just yet.
Until Next Month
These are only a few things, of course. There will always be more to notice, more to save and more that briefly takes over the group chat.
For now, these are the ones staying with us.
Written by Urvi Rokde