The Crush Letter No 174: YES, US Open!, Nine Products Our Readers Are Crushing On, Dishing
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Hello Crush,
Hellloooo US Open!
Thank god for the US Open — it’s my personal “soft landing” to the end of summer. My favorite sporting event of the year. It’s already been exhilarating. That five set match between US men’s players Tiafoe and Ben Shelton was a thrill. And I’ll be glued to the rematch coming up Sunday between Coco Gauff and Emma Navarro, whose emergence at Wimbledon this past summer was a stunner. The American players are so fun to watch — they seem to genuinely love and support each other.
So while some of my favorites — Alcatraz, Osaka, Shelton — are already gone, we’ve still got matches coming up with some of the most exciting players to watch: among them Pagula, Fritz, Paolini, Sinner, Nakashima!, and POPYRIN!
So long, summer. But US Open? Bring it on!
Since it’s Labor Day week end and most of you are frolicking somewhere, we’re eschewing stories this week and loading you up on a bunch of products that CRUSH Readers have told us they’re crushing on.
Have fun!
In This Letter. +Nine Things Our Readers Are Crushing On. From CRUSH Readers Bea, Jess and Paul +Social Media I Loved This Week. +Our Song of the Week I’m in love with the world / Through the eyes of a girl
In this series, readers like you share recommendations for the things they love the most, right at this moment.
Three Things I'm Crushing On: Jess
I will never go back to kibble for my beloved Winston. I conceptually signed on to the “fresh, healthy food movement for dogs” a while back but couldn’t find the right, convenient product that worked for me, since I move to different spots in the winter and summer. Winston didn’t like The Farmer’s Dog, and I didn’t like its mushiness, messiness, smell or packaging. I learned about MAEV and I can’t rave about it enough. I love the packaging, which is so easy to keep in my freezer and Winston loves the food.
I LOVE a hands-free dog leash, and I’ve tried a few. The Fable Fable is the best designed, most functional and beautiful version of the hands free leash. I love that you can use it as a slip collar, and it can go around my waist (Winston is 75 pounds). For smaller dogs you could slip it diagonally off your shoulders, but I like the extra stability of it around my waist. I bought the pink one! It’s so smart!
Winston has high noise anxiety. Not just fireworks, but also thunder, the lawn mower, the sound of hard rain against the window. The Thundershirt does not *completely calm* him for sure, but it goes a long way toward helping. If I am going out and rain or thunder is predicted, I always slip the Thundershirt on before I take off. He wears it when I’m home, of course, but there’s no way I’m going to leave him home alone without the support of the Thundershirt if bad weather is in the forecast.
Three Things I'm Crushing On: From Crush Reader Paul
My wife and I needed a really good twin-sized mattress and frame to pull out for visits from extended family and friends. When our house is full with our kids and their kids, we needed a “real bed” that could fit in an existing guest bedroom, but then be taken out and stored when they leave (for less clutter). We did not want to go the “blow-up bed” route — we wanted a better, more “permanent” bed offering. A friend recommended the Nectar with the foldable frame and it’s been great. It’s solid! It doesn’t squeak. With a mattress pad and bedskirt it looks and feels like a real bed — because it is – and we even kept one up in my office as a day bed / extra bed for guests.
This is another great thing we started doing whenever we are hosting a crowd. We order the 18 bagel bunch with cream cheese to be delivered the day of our guests’ arrival. It is there, in our fridge and pantry, for everyone to help themselves — until it all gets eaten up. It is SO CONVENIENT and EVERYONE LOVES IT. Really good bagels! If there are any left, we just freeze them.
We got a bunch of monogrammed weezie towels and the pool lounge chair cover-ups this summer. We have a pool and are also near a beach. We needed a fresh set for the summer, and love the look and feel of these towels. Plus, there’s a big advantage to being able to monogram towels when people are taking them to friends’ houses, to the beach, etc. We found that a lot more of them found their way back to us.
Three Things I'm Crushing On: From Crush Reader Bea
There is nothing like slipping on a cool poplin “short pajama set” after dinner for lounging and then slipping into bed. This set is “guest appropriate” to be seen in grabbing coffee if you’re staying at a friend’s and oh-so-comfortable. After wearing the short set all July, I ordered the cami nightgown for August. So cool. Loved it just as much.
Thanks to your piece on the importance of using European sunscreen (and where to get the good stuff — The French Pharmacy & Care to Beauty), I discovered Anthelios products. That led to their Age Correct Gel Cream, which I use daily because in addition to providing sunscreen, it helps to minimize wrinkles and dark spots. Love it when I can find a product that multi-tasks.
The other product I fell in love with this summer is the Ilia Hydrating Lip Crayon. I have admired this brand for a while and have many friends who have been longstanding fans, but it is the ease, simplicity and beautiful look of their lip crayons that brought me in.
Thank you to Bea, Jess and Paul for sending us their current CRUSHes!
Yo! Do you have some things you’re crushing on? Send them to us, please.
Things I thought you might want to know about. Some of them require a subscription, but you can decide whether it’s worth it to you (or not).
A nuanced consideration of the darkness that underlay Kate Spade’s witty style, from WJS Style.
How the relationship between Harper and Eric from Industry became the most fascinating one on television, from The Guardian.
A definitive guide to the fair way to split the bill at a restaurant, from Bon Appetit.
Extremely detailed notes on hiking the Dolomites, from Ann Friedman’s substack Culture Study.
An easy, perfect, delicious no-cook pasta recipe for your in-season tomatoes, from Epicurious.
For fans of the dark Irish comedy Bad Sisters, there’s good news about a Season 2 (finally), from Deadline.
Social Media I Loved This Week
Song of the Week
Say Yes by Elliot Smith
Say Yes is one of the poppiest, sunniest songs Smith made, even though technically it’s a break-up song. It was one of three songs that appeared in the movie Good Will Hunting, all from Smith’s critically acclaimed 1997 Either/Or album.
It can be hard not to dwell on Elliot Smith’s struggles with addiction and tragic, shocking death when coming across one of his songs on a playlist. But life teaches us that we have to hold the good and bad at once. If there is any song in his repertoire that feels hopeful and resilient, it’s Say Yes.
“Situations get fucked up and turned around sooner or later”
Thanks for being here, and get out and enjoy some sun over this last, long summer week end.
Dish
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The Crush Letter
The Crush Letter is a weekly newsletter from Dish Stanley curating articles & intelligence on everything love & connection - friendship, romance, self-love, sex. If you’d like to take a look at some of our best stories go to Read Us. Want the Dish?