Hey there, Virgil.

{ Floral Stripes & Arrows Blanket }

You know that t-shirt that you love more than any other t-shirt because it's simultaneously lightweight and cozy, and is equal parts cool-looking and comfortable? The blankets that we sell over on glam | camp are that t-shirt, except in blanket form. (I think I've told you this about ten thousand times now, but that's because it bears repeating: they are seriously THE BEST.)

{ Coogee Wave, by Gray Malin (from the A La Plage collection) | Lulu & Georgia Lamp }

For a little while in the summer of 2002, I lived in Coogee Beach, near Sydney. Well, technically it was
"squatting," and technically it was only for two months, but it sounds much more glamorous to say, "Oh, I spent the summer living in Austraaaaaalia." My college boyfriend had done his semester abroad there while I did mine in England, and my school year ended earlier than his, so when I finished up I hopped a quick 26-hour flight (via Japan, where I accidentally spent two hundred dollars on a sushi dinner because I couldn't read the menu and thought what I was getting was one roll, not a boat of rare fish the size of a piano bench) to spend some time reconnecting - because semesters abroad are many things, but "good for relationships" is not one of them.

My boyfriend had to go to classes every day, and it was wintertime in Australia so it wasn't quite warm enough to spend hours at the beach, and the house was...well, there's really just no other way to say it: it was fucking disgusting, in the way that only a house inhabited by nine 20-year-old boys and a rotating cast of female companions can be. Boxed wine, flies, dirty dishes, someone threw up in the bathtub, et cetera. It was fun for a party (and that happened basically every night), but not exactly a relaxing place to spend the day.

You don't need windows to make a place feel airy

Jordan,

My boyfriend and I just moved into a new apartment, and it's so dark the apartment literally feels like it's halfway underground. (It's not. We checked, and double-checked.) We also just found out we're expecting, so our budget is this side of none. How can I add some light to the place without spending a ton of money? I like the cozy feel, but I also don't want to feel like I'm living underground since I'm going to be spending so much time at home. Help, please!