EDITOR'S NOTE
I
LOW-KEY LOVE THE POST OFFICE. I like to go there and send stuff to people I care about. Somehow when I do, I feel so accomplished. Is that a low bar? Perhaps. But putting an outgoing card above our home’s mailbox, where our carrier will certainly grab it, doesn’t cut it. I want to visit the place, stand with the people, make small talk with the folks at the counter, and do what humans have done for centuries: pass a card, letter, parcel, whatever, into another’s hands, knowing it will pass through many more and go wherever in the world I want it to. It’s just so darned Norman Rockwell—even though, these days, I know it will first be scanned, its progress digitally tracked.
This is the kind of small joy I’ll be leaning into this season, after another hard year for all of us here on earth. As I write this, the news has been downright horrific. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed by it. I keep a running list of worries in my mind, like a note on my phone, adding to it constantly and scrolling through it at inconvenient hours. (If you’re awake at 2:30 a.m. ET, call me!) We worry for ourselves, for our children, for our country, our planet, humanity.
That’s why we themed this issue “More joy now!” It sounds like an order. And maybe it is. Because our job as humans living in our flawed human world is to find the glimmers and celebrate them. And what better time to do that than the holidays?
I’m taking the mandate to heart. I’ll find joy in making a festive meal (page 110) and sipping a pretty champagne cocktail (page 36) with my beloveds. Maybe I’ll finally get a cookie-baking day on the books (page 144) so I can swap with the generous (and organized) people I know. I will definitely add cheery flourishes to my home and myself (pages 154 and 126, respectively).
These are small things. They’re not going to end wars or stop climate change. They will, however, bring some much-needed sparkle to the world. Some joy. Wishing you a holiday season filled with it, from the entire REAL SIMPLE team.
Lauren Iannotti
EDITOR IN CHIEF
LET’S CONNECT!
Follow me on Instagram at @laureniannotti.
(Shh, don’t tell.)
A BETTER HOST GIFT
This cognac-based coffee liqueur is so good, and so gifty. Spirit of 1737 Chêne, from $36; pourrichards distillery.com
PALETTE FIT FOR A TEEN
My big one, a master makeup artist, will work magic with this. Too Faced Pop-Tarts Brown Sugar Cinnamon Mini Palette, $27; ulta.com
COOL COOKWARE
Can Stanley Tucci’s pots get my little sister to do more of the cooking? Let’s fi nd out! GreenPan Stanley Tucci Ceramic Nonstick 11-Piece Cookware Set, $700; williams-sonoma.com
Photograph by Felix Wong
STYLING BY LIZZY ROSENBERG; HAIR BY CLAY NIELSEN USING LEONOR GREYL; MAKEUP BY DEBORAH ALTIZIO FOR CREATIVE MANAGEMENT USING GLOSSIER; MAKEUP ASSISTED BY ALYSSA ZABAWA
COFEE LIQUEUR: BRIAN HENN; PRODUCT IMAGES COURTESY OF MANUFACTURERS