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Three fall cozies with Sway specs

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Cyber celibacy, or something like it

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Your thrift store checklist

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Use code SWAY20 @ ergoPouch for 20% off fall sleep sacks

Some clichés are true! The changing of seasons IS a time of transition: 

Goodbye, neighborhood pool. Miss you SM.
Hello, windows-open fall weather! 

Goodbye, Flodesk. 
Hello, Beehiiv! 

That’s right, this newsletter has been on a mini-hiatus because we’ve spent fake fall early autumn not-so-smoothly moving onto a different email marketing platform. But we’ve LANDED, we’re HERE, and we’re ready to get back into it. (On a Monday?! This is usually a Friday newsletter. Just go with it.)

It’s time for another reminder to throw all your windows open as much as possible to ventilate your space now that the brutal heat has cleared. Indoor air is often more polluted than outdoor air from sources like cooking emissions and the offgassing of furniture and finishes. Bringing in fresh air helps reduce the concentration of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), dust and allergens in your space. Just make sure to check airnow.gov to verify the quality of the outdoor air first: wildfire smoke isn’t exactly rare these days, whether it’s blowing in from near or far. 

Scroll for Sway-approved autumn cozies, deals, & musings on having a phone-free fall. (Or rather, some thoughts on breaking our addiction to social media so we can look at the leaves in peace.) 

HAPPY FALL!

Organic Basics, Weekend Crop Crewneck—100% GOTS certified cotton ($58 on sale)
Under The Canopy, Organic Cotton Chunky Knit Throw—100% GOTS certified cotton + OEKO-TEX Standard 100 certified ($60 on sale)
Luxey, 12 oz Original Reusable Coffee Cup—stainless steel & silicone ($40)

And: A reminder that you can still save 20% at ergoPouch with code SWAY20 for cozy fall sleep sacks for babies & toddlers…aka, warmer TOG than the light sleepwear for summer. Our baby wakes up in the pretzel print most days which is a delight for all of us. Check out our review of our long-loved ergoPouch sleepwear from a few issues back.

Fall is my favorite (fleeting! So fleeting!) season. Original, I know. For that and a million other reasons, I want to be as present as possible in this moment with my people, which basically means bricking my phone. I am so tired of social media, doom scrolling and general digital noise stealing little moments of my day (I really don’t need to know that the grocery store has blueberries that taste like peaches in stock…), sending me down rabbit holes and cluttering my already cluttered brain. Candidly, I don’t have the discipline to resist the urge to instantaneously Google whatever pops into my mind or see what’s happening in the world, so deleting apps and being especially mindful with my phone use is essential.

Sigh. Bring me back to landlines and flip phones. I actually think we were onto something with the family computer of the early aughts, you know? 

☎️ CYBER CELIBATE: A substack written by a tech journalist that celebrates the good ol’ days of iPods & Mapquest, and going analog, in general. This is a very fun click: find out how Tiff navigated her vacation with actual MAPS, for one…a very striking reminder of how our pocket computers, while convenient as hell, have drastically reduced our problem solving skills. 

❤️ HOW TO MAKE YOUR SMART PHONE DUMB: I recently found out about the term dumb phone and I like it very much. Click for tips on how to “turn your phone into a tool rather than a distraction.” I agree with a lot of these recs EXCEPT for making your phone background all white or otherwise neutral. My phone background is my baby inhaling carne asada and I have no plans on changing that. 

Related: Still thinking about how Taylor Swift recently said…“Think of your energy as if it’s expensive. As if it’s a luxury item. Not everyone can afford it…what you spend your energy on? That’s your day.”

And…a few more links, curated around ideas for how to spend a fabulous unplugged life this fall. 

🕯️ HOW TO THRIFT FOR HOME GOODS: For anyone who needs direction at the thrift store: Start with these five types of home decor. (Also: the irony of linking to Instagram after the above rant! Sigh…)

🍂 TOO EARLY TO MAKE A PLAN FOR PEAK FOLIAGE? NEVER: It’s your annual reminder from Sway that peak foliage is COMING and you will either be there for it, standing in a magical wooded lane with ombre leaves dancing all around you, or you won’t. 

🫛 IF I DON’T MAKE AN AIR DRY CLAY FRIDGE MAGNET SOON, I WILL BE FOREVER UNFULFILLED: Crafting will save us all. 

Not linked, but on my mind: eating seasonal shishito peppers, squash, beets, and APPLES (orchard time!).

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Hear the yelllll,
Jennifer @ Sway