Cheryl Shops

My boyfriend is not exactly hard to shop for, but I definitely agonize over what to get him for his birthday or Christmas, and while gifts aren't his number-one love language, I always want to give him something that he'll use and enjoy. I will award myself a pat on the back for giving him an Oura ring last year at Christmas; he immediately loved it and I could tell that he was using the data it provided to help him make subtle improvements in his health. I decided to get one for myself after seeing him enjoy it so much, and while not every data point has been a big surprise, I've learned some interesting things about my health. 

I have the Oura ring in gold—as you can see, it's a little more yellow than the 14k gold ring on my middle finger.

I've casually mentioned this a few times in the last several months, but I co-wrote a book and it's finally available today! It's called Live Natural, and on the surface, it's a coffee table book filled with gorgeously photographed West Coast interiors. But if you actually read it—and I hope you do—it's filled with a ton of actionable tips on how to improve your indoor air quality, design and decorate more sustainably, and create a home that's healthier for you and for the planet. The author, Ali Davin, is my longtime client, and more importantly, she's an incredibly talented interior designer with an incredible eye and a deep well of knowledge on natural, nontoxic materials. I am so proud of this book (working on one was a lifetime dream of mine) and I hope you love it as much as I do.

So in honor of Live Natural's publication day—and considering it's peak beach reading season—I thought I'd share my favorite books that I've read recently. I don't talk about books much here outside of gift guides, but I am a voracious reader, mostly literary fiction. I read every night before bed, on planes, at the hair salon, or pretty much any chance I can get. In no particular order, here are my top 10 books from the last 5 years. 

After the hustle and bustle of our 5 days in Tokyo, I was looking forward to taking it down a notch in Kyoto, which while still a city of 1.4 million people, is much smaller and calmer than Tokyo. Kyoto was the capital of Japan until the late 1800s and still remains a spiritual center—there are roughly 2,000 religious sites, several of which are UNESCO heritage sites. What makes Kyoto special in my mind is that it was virtually untouched during World War II, so unlike Tokyo with its gazillion skyscrapers, it feels very traditional, with low wooden buildings and majestic temples that have been around for centuries. Much like Tokyo, Kyoto is a choose-your-own-adventure kind of city: you can spend the entire time temple-hopping, you can eat exclusively in Michelin-starred restaurants, you can tour the imperial palace, you can party with the locals in all manner of nightclubs, you can go hiking in the mountains,  you can go sake- or tea-tasting, you can shop in high-end boutiques....you get the point. We tried to do a little bit of everything, but with not quite three full days, we definitely didn't do it all. (Pro tip: I'd recommend at least three, if not four full days in Kyoto if you can swing it, ideally during the week.) Here's what we did during our 3 days in Kyoto. 

Have you ever traveled somewhere and almost instantly started plotting how and when you can return? That's how I felt about Tokyo. It was not an immediate feeling—Tokyo has 38 million (!!!) residents, and it can seem incredibly overwhelming at first—but halfway through our second day there, I started to get a sense of the different neighborhoods and their unique character, finding the quiet moments of discovery amidst all the hustle and bustle. Having several Japanese (and Japan-loving) friends, we were armed with a wealth of recommendations for where to eat, what to do, and how to get around, and we barely scratched the surface. So obviously a return trip is in order (and next time, maybe not in summer when the temperatures are above 90 degrees every day)! But until then, here's everything we did during our 5-day stay in Tokyo. 

I've lived in my San Francisco apartment for nine years, making it the longest I've ever lived anywhere as an adult. While I've definitely experienced some life changes here—my ex moved out, I lived here alone for several years, then Sean moved in almost five years ago—I hadn't done much to update the décor that entire time. We kind of absorbed much of Sean's furniture and bought some new things over the years, but what really set things in motion was the Jenni Kayne rug I bought myself for my birthday earlier this year. (And yes, you know you're in your 40s when your birthday present to yourself is a rug.) While I had been obsessed with this rug for months, I hadn't considered how it would make everything else in the room look...not quite right. In other words, instead of pulling the room together, it kind of tore it apart. But that turned out to be a good thing. I decided to completely overhaul my living room design and make it the cozy, cohesive, intentional space I've always wanted. Here's a tour of my new and improved living room.

I've always been fascinated by which posts attract the most clicks on this blog; some get a bunch of views from Pinterest, others pull in heavy search traffic, and some are good old direct load. No matter how you're getting here, I'm glad that you've come, and I hope that you stick around. And by looking at—and analyzing—the most-viewed posts of the year, it helps me create even more compelling content for you going forward. But before we move into 2023, here are the top 10 most popular posts of 2022. 

Confession: I am a candle lady. I almost constantly have one burning in my apartment, and I use them like aromatherapy, to enhance or boost my mood. As with perfume, there's a subtle seasonality to candles: in warmer weather, I go for lighter, more citrusy or floral fragrances, whereas in cooler weather, I want something more spicy and warm. To be honest, fall is my favorite season for many reasons—not for the pumpkin-spice clichés, but I do love more substantial clothing (like sweaters and boots), food (give me a bowl of pasta, please), and, yes, scents—the warmer the better. I tend to gravitate toward anything rich and woody, and bonus points if it smells like a wood-burning fireplace, which, in my opinion, is one of the most cozy, comforting things ever. Now that it looks like we've had our last hot day of the year (knock on wood), here are my five favorite fall candles. 

Now that the pandemic is endemic, restrictions are being lifted, and we can take travel once again, it seems like we are all THIRSTY for a vacation. Anecdotally speaking, the airports were packed when I flew last week, and based on an elementary understanding of supply and demand, ticket prices are definitely reflecting that. (I'm not going to tell you what I spent on my flight to NYC, but on a normal day, it would have bought me a flight to Paris.) Having not done much air travel in the last few years, I'm a little rusty, but so far I've found it's just like riding a bike—muscle memory kicks in right away. And of all the aspects of traveling, I think I'm a particularly good packer; this may be a surprise, but I actually tend to pack light. Over the years, I've perfected my formula, and since so many of you have asked me about it over the years, here's how I pack for a trip. 

Mothers: we've all got one—possibly two, and maybe a mother-in-law, a stepmom, a couple grandmas, or even a mother figure. And while I may not be a mom, I certainly know how to shop for them, as I have a lot of them in my life. Since May 8th will be here before you know it, here are 10 Mother's Day gifts that your Mom will love. 

On a Friday afternoon in March 2020, I grabbed my laptop and a few files from my desk, thinking I'd be working from home for a week or two until the whole Coronavirus thing calmed down. And here I am, two years later, still working from home. I miss seeing my coworkers' outfits and gossiping with them after meetings, but I really don't miss commuting downtown in a packed bus every day, nor do I miss my tiny cubicle with zero privacy. At first, I worked from our living room—it's nice and sunny there, plus our couch is super comfy—but when it became clear that I'd be working from home for much longer than a week or two, I decided a more permanent setup was necessary. I am lucky enough to have a two-bedroom apartment, and in the nearly eight years I've lived here, our second bedroom has functioned as a kind of multipurpose space—part guest room, part game room, part office. But as I noted in my bedroom makeover post last year, spending so much time inside has caused me to re-look at all the rooms in my home with razor-sharp focus. Since I'll be working from home indefinitely—and at least half the time once my office reopens—I decided that the second bedroom needed to be a dedicated office space (sorry, visitors, you can stay at the hotel down the street!). Here's how I gave my office a complete makeover. 

 As I noted last week, I'm changing things up a bit with my year-end recaps for 2021. I've shared my favorite outfits of 2021, so now it's time for your favorite posts of 2021. I was not super surprised to see that 6 of the 10 posts were from my honest review series—they tend to attract a lot of search traffic, but hopefully they're helpful for my regular readers as well. I have a whole new bunch of reviews planned for 2022, so stay tuned for those! I am going to take next week off to spend some quality time with my family and friends, but I'll be back in January with one last 2021 recap, featuring everything you guys bought this year. In the meantime, here's a look at the top 10 most popular posts of 2021, according to you!

Like many of you, I'm sure, I've spent more time inside my apartment in the last year and a half than I had in the previous six years I lived there combined. I realize this is a luxury and a privilege, as not everyone has a job that allows them to work from home, and I'm thankful that I'm in such a position. (I'm also not even remotely eager to go back to working in an office, but that's another topic for another day.) Spending so much time at home, however, allowed me to pinpoint what was and wasn't working in my space. For example, after doing little more than binging Netflix night after night, I realized that having our TV mounted above the fireplace was too high and straining our necks; we ended up completely rearranging the living room, and now it feels way more open and welcoming. Also, I finally got around to changing my kitchen hardware, swapping out the cheap-looking builder-grade knobs for a nice matte bronze. There are many areas of the apartment that are still a work in progress—I want to paint the office a lighter color, and I really want to renovate the bathroom—but so far, I'm the most pleased with our bedroom. Here's how we upgraded our bedroom during the pandemic.

It had only been a few months since we last took a weekend trip to Santa Barbara, but after the stress of the last month (we're ok, really!), not to mention the ridiculously cold and windy spring weather we've been having, Sean & I decided that we were in need of a long weekend of rest and relaxation. Our goal: to lounge by a pool, bask in the sunshine, and maybe roll out to a winery or nice dinner (or a few). With that in mind, we were lucky enough to snag a last-minute hotel reservation in Calistoga, which is one of our favorite little towns in Napa County. Here's where we went and what we did over Memorial Day weekend.

As I mentioned last month, I'm making some changes around here and featuring more things I've actually bought. In this particular case, I thought I'd share some of my favorite things that would make great Mother's Day gifts. So considering Mother's Day is less than two weeks away (early this year, yikes!), let's dive in. Step into my living room, and pardon the clutter...

In case you were wondering, the editor is me! Hi, dear readers. I feel compelled to warn you that this is going to be a somewhat introspective and very personal post, but hopefully one that you'll appreciate. I know what you're probably thinking and no, I am not going to stop writing this blog, at least not anytime remotely soon. I feel just as inspired as ever, and restarting Cheryl Shops nearly five (!!!) years ago has given me a wonderful creative outlet that I wouldn't give up for the world. Not to mention, I've met a bunch of friends both IRL and on the Internet, and I love the support I receive from my fellow bloggers, Pinners, and Instagrammers (sorry not sorry, I'm not going to use the I-word). The past year has been the strangest one of my life thus far, and I don't think I would have made it through without you. It has also given me a lot of time to think about where it—and my life—is going, and to become very conscious of how I'm spending my time and energy. So I'm going to make a few changes around here. 

My birthday is in early March, and exactly a year ago, we spent it in Paris and London. Since that trip—which now feels like a million lifetimes ago—we took a road trip to Big Sur and Yosemite last summer but haven't traveled at all since then. So not only were we both going stir-crazy in our apartment, we were really just wanting a change of scenery for a few days. Luckily, restrictions in California are starting to loosen, so Sean surprised me with a weekend trip to Santa Barbara. It's a town I'd visited a few times for a day trip, but I'd never spent a lot of quality time there. After two full days and three nights, I now understand why Harry and Meghan landed in nearby Montecito. Here's what we did on our long weekend trip to Santa Barbara.

Amazon has finally announced that Prime Day is October 13–14 (technically two days) and while I know it's popular to boycott it, I think Prime Day is kind of fun. I love refreshing the page to see what the hourly deals are, and let's be real, the deals can be pretty amazing. I do realize that Amazon undercuts small businesses, has a rather large monopoly, and probably has more data on me that I care to think about—plus there are some tax implications that need to be addressed on a federal level—but we can also thank Amazon for making user reviews, personalization, and search capabilities so widespread. Online retail wouldn't be what it is today without Amazon. I do try to buy things locally from small businesses as much as possible, but that said, I have found some amazing things on Amazon over the years. So in honor of Prime Day, here are six things that I've bought on Amazon that I love, and that I'd highly recommend. 

Here we are, five months into the Covid-19 pandemic, and since things are not getting better, more than 30 states are now requiring that masks be worn in public. Yes, they are slightly uncomfortable and not as easy to breathe in as you'd prefer, but wouldn't it be nice if everyone just wore one for the next month or so and then we'd have the virus contained and life could go back to normal? Since April, I have been wearing a mask every time I leave the house—even to walk my dog or ride a bike—and while I keep trying new ones in search of my holy grail mask, I've found that the key is figuring out what's most comfortable for you. Here's what I look for in a face mask. 

In spite of the fact that I'm not a textbook outdoorsy person, Big Sur is one of my favorite places on earth. I've day-tripped or driven through it multiple times, but had never actually spent the night there. So when my company announced that we had to take a mandatory week off—and flying anywhere was out of the question—Sean and I decided to take a road trip, and Big Sur seemed like the perfect place to hit first. Depending on traffic, it's about three and a half hours by car from San Francisco, and I highly recommend taking the scenic route, Highway 1, which goes along the Pacific. Big Sur is a magical place; it's surrounded by mountains, heavily forested, with a river running through it, and it stretches along some of the most gorgeous parts of the coastline. It's also incredibly peaceful and relaxing; on a usual vacation, it generally takes me a couple days to totally relax, but I felt completely mellow by the end of our first night. We spent four nights in Big Sur, but whether you're spending an entire week or only one night (considering we had a different neighbor every night, I think that's what most people tend to do), there are a gazillion things to do. Here's what we did in Big Sur.

As I alluded to in last week's post, having a dog is an incredibly rewarding experience on many levels, but you also need to put in a lot of work. There's the physical work, like exercising your dog, and there's mental work, which is often the more challenging kind. In order to make life easier for you and your dog, a certain level of training is in order. The most basic is housebreaking, followed by sit, stay, and come; you can get fancy and teach your dog tricks, and if they have the right temperament, they can be trained to be a service animal. However you train your dog, repetition and reinforcement are key—we practice training Zuni every single day—and in order to make it stick, you need to reward your dog. Some dogs respond better to action-based rewards, like getting to play with a favorite toy, whereas others respond best to treats. Zuni falls into the treat-based category, and when she's being stubborn (which is fairly frequently) it helps to have some that are really rewarding. Thankfully we've discovered Old Mother Hubbard, and Zuni loves them so much, she'll do just about anything for one.