Side Order: The Vanity

27 little luxuries

Few things in the world bring me more joy than a treat. A mid-afternoon cookie. A new lipstick. A candle burning on my desk. I probably spend more money on little luxuries, both of the food and object variety, than anything else. Leisure is one of my top 5 priorities at all times, so the dopamine hit that comes with a special little something is something I’m chasing often.

I’m also a very ritualistic person; I like doing certain things in sequence over and over. Rituals bring me a sense of calm and control, the balance I need against urgent emails, “I hate all my clothes” days, and unexpectedly altered plans.

So, with all this in mind, I decided a few years ago to overhaul my morning routine. There’s something sort of voyeuristically fascinating about other people’s processes, as evidenced by the popularity of things like money diary columns and “get ready with me”s. I remember watching Liv Tyler perform her 25-step beauty routine on Vogue’s YouTube channel and thinking, okay, I don’t want to add 22 steps to my morning, but maybe I can upgrade the experience of getting ready from sitting on my floor in front of a full-length mirror to something a little more enjoyable.

Princess Margaret’s morning routine.

So I bought a small vintage desk on Craigslist to turn into a sort of makeshift vanity table, then added a vintage tabletop mirror and a little wicker stool. I made it nice: I wiped my makeup down and organized it in trays, I threw away several probably-expired mascaras, and I lined all my perfumes up in a neat little row. Now, every morning after I’ve taken my vitamins, finished my Duolingo lesson, and put my contacts in, I make my way to my little Corner of Beautiful Things to do my makeup and putz around until I run out of time.

Dressing tables are nothing new—in fact, they’re very old. In the late 17th century fancy Europeans started commissioning furniture with built-in mirrors and matching stools, but ornate boxes made for storing perfumes and cosmetics go back all the way to ancient times. It was 1920s Hollywood films that made the vanity a popular symbol of luxury and glamour, and since then everything from brass versions in the 1950s to acrylic versions in the 1970s have been designed and produced all over the world.

A 1920s French Art Deco number.

I will say, taking a sort of boring routine I do every day and zhuzhing it up a bit really made a difference. Things as simple as putting my cotton rounds in a lidded container and consolidating my 100 lip balms into a single vessel make the monotonous act of getting ready just a little less blegh. So this week’s Side Order is dedicated to the vanity, or whatever you call the place you keep your little things (your nightstand, a drawer in the bathroom, a shelf in the closet). Maybe you too will find some pleasure in making the process of getting ready each day a nice one.

Lady Mary’s vanity was practically the fourth Crawley sister in Downton Abbey.

Also, free subs: this one’s a freebie, but if you upgrade to a paid subscription you’ll get a Side Order every month. Past themes have included the color red, academia, and The Parent Trap. They’re fun!

• Customized comb, Officine Universelle Buly, €16+ — Buly combs come in these cute little velvet pouches AND you can have them engraved with your name or initials! I have The Righter of Wrongs in Ivory but they have a comb for literally every need (including one dedicated to your eyebrows).

• Fantasia Vegetables Box, Ichendorf Milano, $48 — The perfect little vegetal glass canister for your loose bobby pins.

• Hammered Brass Circular Dish, LoQ, $33 — I have a shocking number of ring dishes placed around my house for various purposes and I use them all.

• An Atlas of Natural Beauty, Officine Universelle Buly, €28 — I’ve been thinking about buying this encyclopedia of ingredients ever since Aishwarya Iyer recommended it in her At The Table With interview.

• Akoya Nail Polish, J. Hannah, $22 — This polish is the most pearl-like pearly polish I’ve seen yet, and I’ve searched far and wide. 

• Pewter Canister, Salter House, $130 — This cute little acorn-topped one, if it were mine, would be my Q-Tip holder. 

• Equestrian Silk Scarf, RiverMinami on Etsy, $35 — Here’s my trick for drying my bangs in place: when I get out of the shower I pin them in a little curtain formation, then I loosely tie a silk scarf around my head to keep them in their proper position until they’re dry. Spritz with Oribe Texturizing Spray and voila. 

• Clubhouse Bow Hair Claw Clip, Anthropologie, $12 — I know I know I know…we’re done with bows. But I guarantee we’ll be back into them by the fall thanks to Prada and Chanel, and I like this twist on the claw clip. 

  

• 1800s French Dressing Table Photo, DandaProductions on Etsy, $60 — I debated even showing this antique photo to you at all because I want it for myself, but how could I not? Danda is one of my favorite shops to cruise for art, by the way.

• Acrylic Storage Shelf, Homary, $56 — For those without a lot of space to work with, this pretty double-decker tray solution may be for you.

• Dior Addict Lip Glow Balm, Dior, $40 — I’m positive I’ve written about this before, but for as long as I can remember this has been my go-to lip product of choice. I like the shade 01 PINK.

• Tabacco Toscano Eau De Cologne, Santa Maria Novella, $150 — This is the perfume I’ve worn most days for the last several years. When I went to Italy last year I stocked up on it and I keep the box out on display, too; it’s just as pretty as the bottle.

• Glass Candle Cloche, Maison Louis Marie, $24 — This is going to be one of those things you roll your eyes at, but listen: if we learned one thing from the David Beckham documentary, it’s that we should be keeping our candles clean, trimmed, and dust-free between uses. I have one on my coffee table and it makes any ol’ candle look 10 times fancier.

• Liberty of London Tissue Box Cover, KayeHTextiles on Etsy, $35+ — Why Kleenex cannot just make solid colored boxes for their tissues is beyond me.

• Heart In Square Frame, Match Pewter, $151 — Match Pewter makes the prettiest stuff and I think this frame would be something you would keep on your dresser forever. If I had one I’d put a picture of a bowl of spaghetti pomodoro in it.

• Antique Brass Mirror, Mymillienroses on Etsy, $159 — I found my vanity mirror on Etsy. There are tons of good ones!

• Cuticle Cream Onicina, Santa Maria Novella, $30 — This tube comes just in handy during the “it’s dry because it’s hot out” months as it does during the “it’s dry because it’s cold out” months.

• Barr Candle, Amoln, $85 — I’m very interested in these monochromatic Swedish candles, partly thanks to their great labels and tonal wax, but also because of descriptions like this: “A scent evoking the imaginary journey of a fairylike forest. Go astray, and infuse your senses with old blasted Swedish pine, fir needles, resin collected from Swedish coastal forest, sandalwoods, cinnamon and a chorus of discrete herbs.” SOLD.

• The Long Robe, Idle Sleepwear, $178 — I’ve been on the hunt for a long, silky robe that actually stays closed and makes me feel like I live in some sort of a manor. I love this cupro option, which comes in lots of colors and goes up to a 3x.

• The Neck Serum, Necessaire, $65 — Even though my skincare routine is about 1/5th of Liv’s, this is the one ultra-specific product I still use. Maybe it’s because it forces me to pay attention to my neck or maybe it’s because of all those peptides (what is a peptide?), but I think it actually works.

• Silver Plated Dish, Fog Linen, $32 — One last little dish for the road.

• Vagus Pillow Spray, OSEA, $38 — I have a hard time shutting my mind off at night but I LOVE to sleep, so this pillow spray is the VIP of my nightstand. I spritz it on my pillow, take a few deep breaths, and inevitably drift off within a few minutes.

• Colour Storage, HAY, $16-$24 — I like to have back stock of one of everything I use ready to go in case I run out, so boxes like this come in handy to keep it all organized and tucked away until needed. Plus, so many good colors!

• Rose Dew Facial Serum, Kindred Black, $145 — I don’t use this, this is 100% on this list for the beautiful bottle. Take a look at the rest of KB’s stunning beauty products, too; they’re all different shapes and colors. Imagine collecting them all!!!

• Forever Eye Mask, Dieux, $25 — Okay, I KNOW I’ve mentioned these before. I don’t use a dedicated eye cream but I slap these babies on my eye bags after I put moisturizer on and I *swear* they help with fine lines and dryness. 

• Grand Chalet Incense, Astier de Villatte, $60 — All of the AdV fragrances are great but this one is my favorite. I don’t burn incense often but when I do it really makes my whole apartment smell like heaven (but not in that overpowering perfume-y way a candle can).  

• Oro Parfüme Öl Bijou, Bernard, $88 — Because the Santa Maria Novella scent up above doesn’t come in a rollerball, this is what I keep with me to reapply on the go. I think it’ll take me 10 years to go through because despite it being only 0.5 tiny little ounces, it only takes one single dot to do its job. 

Okay, and just for fun, one last skincare rec that’s too ugly to include in a grid above: the Therashield LED mask ($90 right now, but it's often marked down for even less). I’ve debated saving up for the Dr. Dennis Gross LED mask ($455) or the Omnilux one ($395) for ages, but per the suggestion of my very smart friend Victoria, I decided to test out a cheaper one to see if I even stick with it or if it does anything. And guess what? I did! And it does! 

How do you make the mornings less morning-y? Do you have anything you use or like to have around to make them not so blegh? Let us know in the comments.

x

Ali

Reminder, next week I’m doing a Q+A! There’s a thread in the chat where you can drop questions in or feel free to respond to this email and I’ll add it to the list. See you then!