A Colorful Philly House With Three Cats and Herbal Tea on Tap

I have a pretty postcard of Joan Didion on my piano. Plus I framed a black and white photo of Nora Ephron in a turtleneck. Then there’s a little Golden Girls altar as well. Those Golden Girls dialogues are (still) soooo good… It’s so much fun to have all these wise ladies in my house, keeping me company ❤️

I liked this story where you can see people’s sectionals in their homes/thoughts on them. https://nymag.com/strategist/article/steal-my-sectional.html Also, if I’m considering furniture, I always throw the name of the item into Craigslist to see how it holds up over time based on how it looks when people are selling it down the line. It feels especially useful in terms of how back pillows on couches hold their shape. (You can just adjust your search radius if you live somewhere smaller / don’t have 5,000 people selling a West Elm couch in your vicinity.)

Ahh Alex this is so incredibly helpful! Bookmarking – thank you!

Sending you love, Steph! That’s so hard. When I got divorced, redecorating was a huge part of feeling like I had a fresh start. Walls in the color of a warm hug would probably do a lot to boost your spirits <3

Hi Amber! Ikea’s IVAR shelving unit with cabinet is similar. Art and Emma ended up getting their shelving unit custom made when almost everything was sold out/backordered during the pandemic. Slightly different, but I also like the new LÅDMAKARE shelving system from IKEA, which has both open and closed storage. And the BROR shelving unit with cabinet is metal, not wood, but similar in shape/size to IVAR.

Alex thank you so much for this thoughtful response! I completely missed the note in the story about the shelves being custom :)

It is something and something to be proud of and delighted by :-) There is a part of you in so many people’s homes, hearts, and minds. I’m sorry you are struggling with a difficult diagnosis and I wish you well <3

they’re from Article: https://go.shopmy.us/p-21185558 thank you! xo

This sounds terrible!

I need to hear more about the performance velvet! Did it work?!

If performance velvet is available, why would we mess with any other velvet?!

Performance velvet should be a standard offering.

I have two performance Velvet Article chairs and I can attest to their awesomeness..one I had for 8 yrs and I sit in it every night to read. Still looks almost new. 🩵

I have a joybird sectional in performance velvet, along with two young cats and a child who is prone to spills. We bought it when my daughter was one (before the cats) and eight years later, it looks like new. Liquid and everything else just beads up on the couch and doesn’t sink in – they’re amazing.

What bookstore do you work in? I’m visiting Philly and I’d love to pop in and get this book! I’ve got Uncle Bobbie’s on my list to visit because I love Marc Lamont Hill, but I’d love to come to yours to get Housemates!

Just put a hold on this at my library after reading this post!

I loved Housemates !

@Kay from Queens, also try Harriet’s Bookstore, Hakim’s Bookstore has an extensive kiddie book section if that’s your thing, Big Blue Marble Bookstore is also great…have fun!!

We painted my daughter’s room with the most gorgeous glowing white/peach/pink Backdrop paint. It is sophisticated, like being in a shell, and reads so differently at different times of the day (it photographs way more pink than it is is). The paint was great to work with – highly recommend.

Those colors jumped out at me, too! Who wouldn’t want to spend 36 hours in Marrakesh? I never pay attention to warm/cool/color-wheel/hue kind of stuff and always just pick the coolest name (I don’t want “white,” I want “Westhighland.” I don’t want black, I want “Celestial Void.”) But my bedroom is whatever odd yellow the previous owner liked and now there are too many choices! Good luck, Maryn! And thanks for the inspiration, Emma & Art.

I feel the same way. I absolutely loved this tour and, like Catherine Newman’s, will probably return to it when I start to feel pressure to do big kitchen renovations or something because my neighbors are all getting them. Nothing makes a house more beautiful than feeling really welcoming and honest. This house is a house you want to be in.

Wouldn’t that be amazing? Someone please invent!

I know it has to be doable, but not sure the logistics. Smith Tea has teas on tap in their shops here in Portland, including a strawberry honey bush and a chai on nitro! It’s just like a kegerator in a bar but tea

I am firmly of the opinion that the library system is way overdue for an overhaul. Everything needs to be centralized and electronic access needs to be more readily available. Librarians should be available online and the library should be in peoples homes and (mostly) not in buildings.

oh but I love visiting the library!

Anon, I respectfully disagree. Physically going to and being in a library is one of my favorite things about them! Especially random side branch locations that each have their own personality. Browsing and pulling books off shelves in familiar and less familiar sections is a real joy to me. I think digital access is important for many people but not at the expense of the actual buildings.

Hard disagree on libraries being mostly in homes; they are community hubs and their brick-and-mortar presence is so important to so many demographics! Many have teen-only rooms for safe socializing; my local is a gathering place for homebound seniors; the LA central library is an information hub for unhoused people in search of basic services; the one where I volunteer has a beautiful, wifi-equipped quiet study room for scholars of all ages, no coffee purchase or table-jockeying required. I’m all for amplifying their reach with the latest technology, but as the years go by I feel ever more strongly that they serve their pstrons in ways digital community alone just can‘t.

Oh my gosh, I can’t imagine Anon’s library vision. I mean, I want libraries available in people’s homes, yes, but I also want the physical place. I have loved going to the library my whole life, and have volunteered in public school libraries for over 30 years. Our oldest is a librarian, our youngest is access services manager for a university library, and his spouse is working on their MLIS. Our daughter is reference librarian at a community college, and many of her students need face to face help. Some don’t get tech, tech fails for many, some aren’t native English speakers, and some just can’t communicate well online. Plus, so many people need the community they find at the physical library. Some don’t have internet access at home. So many unhoused people find shelter and other resources at the physical library. Ok, I’ll stop now, but I could go on.

I’d be curious to know why Anon thinks the library should be in homes and mostly not in public buildings! I’m a librarian in a small town in the Midwest and I can promise you, the library is an important third place for many people. There’s a quote “libraries are one of the few public spaces where you’re allowed to exist without the expectation of spending any money” and that is an important thing in every community. Further, in many ways, the library can and does exist online–even my tiny library is looped into the state consortium of eBooks and audiobooks that can be checked out without leaving your home, and many libraries, including mine (serving a population of 950) offer online or phone help for information or research. You sound like you hold strong opinions about it so I’d like to know more about where you’re coming from!

I have to disagree, Anon. Our physical libraries here in St. Louis are precious community spaces for all sorts of activities that bring people together — classes (for job and tech skills as well as recreation,) lectures, voting, childrens’ activities and other events. Moreover, libraries serve as refuges from family discord and climate extremes. Of course they also offer peaceful places for people to study and read without having to pay for the privilege. I think physical libraries help to hold communities together and society would be immeasurably poorer without them.

Hard disagree, Anon 1! I love being in the library, and so do my kids. We love physically browsing books and asking librarians for recs. Fridays our branch had board games in the kids section. Our libraries also provide English courses, career development assistance, classes for kids and teens, and somewhere with AC for those that do not have it at home. It is a vital community hub that cannot be replaced digitally! Yes to online availability but its soul in the space can’t be replaced.

Not to mention that there are a lot of people who are not online. While access to phones, computers, and the internet feels ubiquitous, there are a lot of people do cannot or do not want to be online. When I’m traveling with my son a library is always a place we stop where he can play and we don’t have to spend money.

“What’s more punk than the public library?!” (-DC Mt Pleasant Library) Public libraries are so so so important to communities beyond the obvious books and community programs. They are safe spaces with AC, heat, bathrooms, internet, company, and seating for anyone who needs it. Kids, underhoused folks, even people traveling who need a safe place to rest for half an hour can count on the library to save the day. We do need more access to books and knowledge beyond public libraries, but they are still so vital!

So our next post is a roundup of librarians and the work we do right? Because there’s a lot here to unpack and I’d love to help show this wonderful community how we’re much more than just books and why we need to be in communities (and schools!).

Oh My God! My local branch of the NYPL has helped me get through some hard times! When I first moved to NYC (15 by myself) I used to spend hours at the majestic main branch. The NYPL is one of our cities’ greatest resources. My branch offers ESL tutoring, high school kids helping seniors with computing skills, story hour, book clubs, help with understanding immigration issues (yes!) and so much more. I’m going to remember them in my will. I think public libraries are one of the greatest things in our society, especially now.

Joyful & hopeful librarian here! Love this discussion and love the love that libraries engender. They’re important and necessary and inspiring places.

Oh Jo and team, +1 to request a feature on the amazing librarians in the Cup of Jo community! Our local library is so important to our family and our kids have learned valuable lessons about borrowing with care, sharing what’s there, asking bravely for a hand stamp with kind language, the joy of making friends over a book recommendation, etc etc etc!

Seconding all this on 3rd places! When I was a new mom in a new city the mom friends I made at storytime became my best friends.

Jo can we have a new series on librarians and their libraries?

I read Anon’s comment and it was just so chilling! And then the long list of wonderful comments that restored my faith in humanity. Phew! – that was a close one. 😄

I’m so horrified at the idea of libraries being mainly in peoples’ homes and not an actual building. I literally wouldn’t have been able to get work without access to a library and computers and the internet since I couldn’t afford those things when I was working. They are spaces where people can talk to each other, classes are available for all kinds of literacy, people have cool places to be in hot weather and warm places to be in freezing weather. We need MORE free zones to gather with other people, not fewer!!

I wanted to share a little snippet from a recent edition of Rachel Karten’s substack where she interviewed the Digital Story Specialist for the Columbus Library. In response to “What do you love about the library” he says: “ Kids grow up here. People achieve those far-away dreams, and they get college degrees, and they start that small business they’ve always thought about opening. But people are at their lowest here, too.” There is no other place like the library! Hope we have convinced you Anon!

Yes, please, to hearing from the librarians! They are superheroes!!!

I met a woman who has retired and works at our local public library. They feed teens in the summer who have nowhere else to go, or get food. Also, my children have participated in free programs this summer including diy journals, Japanese flower arrangements, putt putt among the books, and many more programs. Librarians are not only heroes but life sustaining to those in need.

How about just …. LIBRARIES EVERYWHERE FOREVER!!!! They’re not pie – there’s enough library joy for all of us! Absolutely brick and mortar public libraries, but also those in schools, colleges, archives, neighborhoods, churches, and communities. Libraries do belong in homes, as well. Sometimes we just can’t physically access the library – some of us are housebound, lack transportation, or work (family care is work!) during library hours. Many public libraries provide telephone or email services and participate in regional consortiums that share resources. I don’t know if all states have offer an option such as this, but as a NYS resident, I hold a NYPL library card and can access their e-collections 24/7. (Also, great house, Emma and Art! Love your books, art, and cats!)

Hi, I want to chime in and tell you how a library saved my sanity: At 15 years I did a boring 3 years apprenticeship in a small town being surrounded by people who did not open up other worlds to me. Not their fault, simply wasn’t done at the time. I did not have a good time. Except on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays when thank all Gods the library was open: Never in my life was I so on top on world events (reading newspapers), on the English book section (I knew every new entry there), enjoyed the very comfy seats, athmosphere etc. I’ve come to the realisation that in the last 10 years my enjoyment of reading a book was replaced by – if at all – hearing the audio version whilst doing sth different and that in general I had and have a hard time concentrating or being immersed in and enjoying a book for more than 20 mins. I want to change this. I want my world back where I go into a library and be thankful that so many people want to tell me a story, live it and take my hand to guide me through it.

Also if you do a librarian feature can you announce it outside Instagram? Because I’d truly love to take part!

Oh yes! I would love to hear more from anon #1! I’m just so curious about that take. I agree that we should expand digital access, but the public free space that a library holds is so so so so important for a civilized, social society! I live in a small nyc apartment, so I don’t have a printer. On the rare occasion I need to print something, I go to the library and it’s 10 cents a page. I’m so happy it’s there! I also nanny in a very well to-do neighborhood, that is severely lacking in library access, and I feel it! I often will take the 4 year old to a book store to read a book after camp, and feel like I have to buy something small to do that. I yearn for a library where I can tell her to pick out 5 books.

Libraries are one of the best things civilization has come up with. Growing up, my mom who didnt really speak English well as a new immigrant, wife and mother, took us to the library every 2 weeks religiously. She couldn’t read to us, but she made sure we had access to books. My school library was wonderful and where I discovered The Babysitters Club in 2nd grade, but Ms. Rappaport, our school librarian only had a limited supply of BSC books. To my sheer joy, my little public library had all the books in the series, plus the mystery and adventure specials! Plus we borrowed books that helped us with our science and social studies projects but also Bobbsey Twins, Boxcar Children, All of a Kind Family! Fast forward 40 years later- my library has all the latest reads and an incredible backlist inventory on the shelves. They help with resume building, English classes for adults who are learning the language, provide, cultural passes, they are currently serving lunch everyday to children over the summer, they have Family Friday Movies, book clubs, a printer where you can print for free, kids clubs, gardening clubs, we vote in our library, my family had our passport appointment at a library a few towns over in Long Island. We have so many cultural events, the Mets host a back to school party every summer and hand out free bookbags, school supplies etc. Ain’t now way libraries are meant to only be digital. Side note- one of my favorite moments when we visited Los Angeles was popping into the gorgeous main library. We decided to walk around DTLA and it was so hot! We popped in to use the bathroom, rest and cool down and we stumbled upon storytime in the kids room. My kids plopped themselves down on the carpet and enjoyed that 1 hour of story, arts and crafts and socializing with other children their age. Libraries are magic.

I’m just here for the LIBRARY LOVE Although I am genuinely curious how a library would be in peoples homes ?

I have hundreds of books at home, but a public library is a public good. Anything for the public good is under attack in this country now but it is worth fighting for. Strengthening community is essential to survive as a society and public libraries are one of the best places to do that. Love your home and the little free library!

Fellow Philly rowhome dweller back from a glorious multi-hour visit to our local public library today. I made new friends. My young kids socialized with teens who were leading a craft. My very little one played with toys and let me read him board books. We got a free pass to the art museum for participating in the summer reading program. Libraries forever! Love digital access, but let’s implement that alongside real (and well-funded) brick and mortars.

Love that this became a place for everyone to champion libraries! Adding my *yes please* to the request for a post that takes a peek into the lives of libraries/librarians. My daughter and I bop around to the libraries around us all the time, and it’s always a life-affirming experience to feel part of the community. Libraries are truly a beacon in hard times.

I have so much to say in support of libraries, but really so many have already said it! Let me add this: we have been moving around a bit and the first thing I do in each community is join the library. It’s been fun to visit new libraries, everyone is friendly, but the one thing I miss is – some of the libraries use self-check out and return, and I miss the interaction with the librarians! I can order a book online, come in and take it out and later return it without talking to anyone. The other day, as I left a library, I realized how much I miss this interaction; I got to know the staff at the libraries at home through conversation when coming in, dropping off, and checking out; I guess I could go on trying to explain this, how it takes away from the whole experience, but really – losing this sense of community is hard. The libraries here offer great programming and the people really are wonderful, but this goes to anon’s argument of having ‘libraries in homes’ – the personal interaction with actual human beings is so important! I don’t understand this distancing. Maybe we all need distancing sometimes, but community is community and we need to build it!

Libraries! Over the summer we go so often! I live near the borders of three counties and have cards for all three library systems. I love being able to tell my five and seven year olds to choose whatever they want; we usually get about 25 a go and exchange them every few days. The girls have a blast getting take home so many at once and will spend ages coming through them. Plus! One of our local libraries has cool Nordic ware cake pans you can check out! And microscopes! And telescopes! And games!! And the summer programming for kids has been awesome—a magician, a reptile show, music and more. And this is all in rural South Carolina. Hope Philadelphia can find a way to make libraries work a bit better for the community. And yes yes yes to a librarians / libraries series. Would love! Thanks to Cup of Jo and this section for all the incredible. <3

Came to the comments to say the same thing – lol!

hahahah me too. when I was editing it, I was like “where’s the link for a show called Pandemic” and then I realized it was a joke lol this couple is so cool!

Oh my gosh, I didn’t even clock it until I read this comment! I read that line, understood it and moved on – didn’t even stop. Now that’s a good line!

Oh my gosh, me too! I wrote sad poetry during season one.

Same! I also came to the comments to say I loved the season 1 line; I laughed aloud when I read it and then instantly sobered when I imagined a season 2!

head out to West Philly where you will find what you are looking for1