Well. That sucked.

Photo Source: Nico Krijno

It's not possible to put into words what we're all feeling after this election. I can say that I've never wept over politics before. (The tears I cried when Barack won were of an entirely different sort than the ones that came like a flood yesterday morning, as I read this.)

I'll just say that with a man at the helm who has proudly treated women with such disdain, who has normalized abuse, empowered the men of America to treat us as playthings and put us in a new kind of danger, it's more important than ever that we come together to protect, support and champion each other. And when he tries to legislate us into a position of inequality, every single one of us needs to be there to shut that shit right down.  

Love to you all. We've got this. xoxox

Shine Theory

"When you meet a woman who is intimidatingly witty, stylish, beautiful, and professionally accomplished, befriend her. Surrounding yourself with the best people doesn’t make you look worse by comparison. It makes you better." - Ann Friedman

That's pretty much the gist of this whole entire thing. 

It was Ann Friedman (who has an excellent newsletter to which you should subscribe ASAP) who first put Shine Theory on my radar - but it's not her theory. It's her friend Amina's, who Friedman describes as "effortlessly stylish...frighteningly intelligent...and beautiful, too" - just the kind of gal that usually intimidates rather than inspires.

But Amina says, when it comes to the women she surrounds herself with, "I don't shine if you don't shine." Women have a tendency to compete with one another, holding our own gifts and accomplishments up against those we see around us and, often, finding them lacking. But when we support each other, work together, lift each other up and cheer not only our own successes but every win that a friend scores, we all shine a little brighter. 

Let's do this.

I've been really lucky. My first job surrounded me with an unusually high number of hyper-talented women at the top of their game, who collaborated day in and out to create incredible work. Spending years in that environment was a double-edged sword: it was an amazing way to develop my skills, but when I changed jobs, I entered a smaller, less female-centric workplace and noticed how much I valued - and missed - that level of interaction with my peers.  

But then I realized, I didn't have to miss it - I just had to build it back up again. 

So that's why we're here, or why I'm here. I want to reconnect with all of the amazing women I know - and connect with all of the amazing women they know - and give us all a place to showcase our work, share what we're into, talk about our process and be creative just because.

We might see a photo essay, a new recipe, an article, a painting in progress, a poem, a storefront. All I know is, I've seen what we're all capable of, and it blows my mind. I'm ready for what's next. So, let's do this.