This week I am loving a handmade dress from India, a pretty popsocket, a salad from a local restaurant, my new outdoor furniture and a life-changing podcast!

Cotton Dress from India

I originally found out about this Etsy shop from Lauren Northup on Instagram who use to work for the Historic Charleston Foundation but recently moved to Western NC. I loved the easy breezy style and the pattern of the one she was wearing. I checked out the shop and it was hard to choose because I loved so many of the patterns! Of course I choose a blue one because blue is my favorite color.

I ended up having to have the waist shortened a little because I’m so petite (5”0) but if you’re over 5”2 I bet you wouldn’t have a problem. It’s a very light weight cotton, surprisingly perfect for summer in the south despite the 3/4 sleeves. Because of the style, I’m sure I will wear these into the fall/mid-October.

I already ordered a second one (pictured below)! FYI since they’re handmade in India, shipping isn’t speedy. It took about 3 weeks to receive my first one.

Kiki & Rye’s Farm Greens Salad

Last night TJ and I had a much-needed date night and I suggested Kiki and Rye in Mt Pleasant. I had been the week before with my friend and looooved the salad I had and I wanted it again!

It was the Farm Greens salad with feta instead of goat cheese, plus chicken (peaches, roasted corn, radishes, candied walnuts and some kind of herb vinaigrette). So fresh and delicious and filling! I’m pretty sure it is a seasonal menu item so you’ll have to go soon to try it out. Next time I’ve got to try the watermelon salad.

FYI I linked their menu in the title but it looks like it’s not completely current. The server said last night that they rotate menu items often.

Pretty Popsocket

I have my sister to thank for this one. It’s rattan but it reminds me of Charleston sweetgrass baskets, which I love. The sweetgrass basket weaving is a very special tradition here in Charleston.

From TravelerofCharleston.com: “Sweetgrass basket making can be traced back to West Africa, brought to the S.C. coast by African slaves. One of the oldest art forms of African artwork in the United States, Charleston is the only place where this craft is practiced in its original form.” I give them as closing gifts to clients sometimes. If you want to get a piece for yourself, there are several makers along Hwy 17 in Mt Pleasant on both the northbound and southbound sides.

If you ever see a true sweetgrass pop socket somewhere, please let me know and I will absolutely buy one and share it with all of you. In the meantime, this is the rattan one I got online.

Outdoor Acacia Furniture

Our new deck needed furniture! I looove teak, but my wallet doesn’t (yet), so I looked for acacia. Acacia is similar to teak, but less expensive, slightly less durable, and needs to be sealed to protect it.

We will be coating ours with tung oil. This is suppose to be a good one.

I found this set (minus the bench and plus two more chairs) on Wayfair and we are loving it. It comes with the cushions, so the seats are comfy. They’re a little on the wider side which I think adds to the comfort. I’ve tried to be good about putting the cushions away when it rains but admittedly haven’t done that most of the time and the cushions seem to be holding up pretty well despite getting wet.

The Life Coach School Podcast

I’ve been obsessed with this podcast since I randomly came across it probably 3 years ago, but I feel like I need to share it with you now! I’ve talked about it a bunch in my Instagram stories, so you may be familiar. I have listened to every single episode, and some more than once.

It’s like having your own personal life coach. Brooke talks about all sorts of different topics, struggles, emotions, etc so you are sure to relate to lots of her episodes, no matter who you are. She essentially gives you directions on how to work through the feeling you’re feeling about something. The titles usually say exactly what the episode is about so you could start by scrolling through and hand-picking some to see if you like it. I highly recommend checking it out!!! #getyourmindright