When I spoke to you at the end of May, I was in crisis mode. I was thinking about all of the people who lost their jobs, and their access to food, and when I finally felt like there were some community initiatives in place to help others, I then worried about everyone’s mental health. I could have never imagined all that June would bring. From more COVID-19 cases, political division, and racial tensions, to an economic recession, a dust bowl, and finally re-opening (followed by new closures)…June was unprecedented. I saw a meme that put it best: we basically lived through 200 hundred years of history in one month. Whew!

I’ve given a lot of thought to how I want to make changes in my personal life moving forward (thanks, in part, to the necessary conversations I’ve been having with friends and family), and how those changes will present themselves on the blog. With this in mind, I’m going to put a halt on coronavirus and racial conversations for the moment. That isn’t to say they are not on the forefront of my mind, but rather, I’m viewing this July 1 as a day one—the first day of the second half of 2020. So my plan (always tentative, these days) is to take the next few months to provide content that I anticipated sharing when I came back to the blog. As an aside, I’ve heard three people talk about Christmas today. I think people are looking for something joyful to look forward to. Who knows what the future holds, but I think for my own peace of mind, I need to focus on how I can be a part of providing that joy.

However, I would be remiss if I did not reiterate the importance of wearing a mask, for ourselves and for each other. As of today, there seems to have been a shift–everyone is encouraging others to wear a face mask. I’m glad that we are finally attempting to talk about masks without it being a political conversation. I’m trying to choose my words carefully, but what I want to stress is this: I’ve had conversations with people from all different backgrounds, all of whom have unique perspectives regarding the legitimacy of information they’re seeing. My take on masks is that it doesn’t hurt me to wear one, and if it protects me, all the better. But if it could protect someone else, and I didn’t wear one, I couldn’t live with myself. I’ve been wearing them since March, but up until now, I’ve chosen utility over style.  So before I start planning ahead for the rest of the year, I wanted to share a few resources for face masks that are equal parts style and function.

Monogrammed Linen Mask, $36 from The Monogrammed Home

Embroidered Linen Wildflower Mask, $40 from Julia B.

Liberty of London Mask, $25 from Hibiscus Linens

Madras Mask, $20 from Larkin Lane

Green Gingham Mask, $35 from Suzanna Dai

Red Seersucker Mask, $15 from Royal Jelly Harlem

*These images belong to their respective retailers and both the links and images are included for informational purposes. No affiliate links were used.*