Hi, I'm Nina Iordanova and this is the 38th edition of Something Good, a newsletter filtered through my 🧠, 🖐, and ❤️. Coming your way every two weeks, I hope you find something good here.
Gooood morning!
You know what I love?
I love well-designed objects. A pen that’s comfortable to hold and has smooth-flowing ink. A thermos with a grippy bottom that doesn’t slide around on the counter. Velvet coat hangers that keep the straps of your clothes from slipping down.
When an object is well-designed, it means that someone spent a lot of time thinking closely about you. They thought about your day, what you do, what’s important to you, what you’d notice. And they designed that object to fit your needs, to make something in your life easier. They’re never going to meet you and they’re never going to know you, but they’re still taking care of you every time you use it.
Wow. I love that. It lights up my heart when I see it.
I wanted to share a few things I have in my house that are truly a pleasure to use. Because maybe they’ll be in a delight in your life as well and give you that same feeling!
Glass straws ($2). My dad gave me one and then I was hooked and went to buy a pack from the dollar store. I love it because it feels nice to drink from and makes whatever you’re drinking - water, sparkling water, a cocktail, etc. - feel fancy. I find that metal straws have a weird taste and a sharp mouth opening, paper straws melt after a while, and plastic straws just feel wasteful. These are perfect! The link says $5 but seriously just go to the dollar store and find them for half that.
Starfrit can opener ($10). This can opener cuts the side of the lid off instead of the top of the lid! I was so suspicious about it but then my can opener (which was hard to use, made jagged cuts, and never bit down properly) died and I got this one and wow, game changer. I used to dread any recipe with more than one or two cans required because of how much work it took to open, now it’s a breeze!!
One Pot of the Day cookbook ($39). If I could only keep one cookbook, it would be this one. It’s 365 one-pot recipes that change with the seasons. It has a lot of photos but not too many. Every time people flip through it at my house or try something I’ve made from it, they go and buy a copy for themselves after. I plan to hand it down to my children’s children.
Do you have any favourite objects that make you happy every time you use them because of how well they work?
Let me know in the comments, I am OBSESSED!
✨
Warmly yours,
Nina
Thanks for reading and I'll see you in two weeks! 👋