Life

(Image credit: Jeff Roffman) From Kitchn → 7 Times That Are More Magical on the Front Porch

(Image credit: Marisa McClellan) From Kitchn → A Short History of the Mason Jar

(Image credit: Kimberley Hasselbrink) From Kitchn → 25 Make-Ahead Summer Breakfasts

(Image credit: Kelli Foster) From Kitchn → A Back-to-School Survival Guide for Grownups

When done for pleasure, travel is almost always fun and exciting. After all, you get to see brand new places, try out new cuisines and maybe even relax a little. Business travel, however, feels a lot more like, well… work. Traveling for business purposes is fairly common in the U.S.: The Bureau of Transportation Statistics says that Americans rack up more than 405 million long-distance trips for business each year.

(Image credit: Samantha Bolton) From Kitchn → 10 Southern Sayings Everyone Should Embrace

Ahh summer vacations. We never want them to end. One of the highlights of returning home, however, is being able to infuse your space with some of those unforgettable memories. I’m a big fan of collecting travel treasures, but another way you can keep the vacation vibes going all year long is by allowing the local flavor of the destination itself to inspire your décor.

(Image credit: Sur La Table) From Kitchn → 4 Tools to Grind Spices for Better Flavor

When you read about a woman who makes only a Mason Jar worth of waste per year, it’s hard not to think you’re doing life wrong. We all want to do right by the environment, but getting started along the path to a more sustainable lifestyle can seem daunting. The good news is it really is easy being green. By making small modifications in your daily life, you can significantly reduce your waste output.

You know those people who never seem to struggle with their finances at the end of each month? They’re the ones who’ll likely cash in their stocks and savings to retire into a sea of green (dollar bills, y’all!) when the rest of us are still trying to figure out stocks and savings. We want to be like those people. So, without further ado, here are five things money-savvy people always do that we less money-minded mortals should pick up post haste.

(Image credit: Cathy Pyle) From Kitchn → 5 Tips for Organizing Your Spices

It’s entirely possible I coordinate my summers around when and which national parks I can visit. I’m pretty sure I owe this moderate obsession with America’s coolest outdoor spaces to the brainwashing I received as a child (thanks, Dad), but because today is the 100th anniversary of the National Park Service, a little extra national park love is definitely in order.

(Image credit: Samantha Bolton) From Kitchn → 31 Essential Ingredients for No-Cook Meals

(Image credit: Leela Cyd) From Kitchn → 15 New Ways to Use Your Slow Cooker This Summer

There’s a common realization many remote workers are having, likely while sitting in front of a computer at home still in their PJs (I speak from experience). It goes a little something like this: “Hey, wait a minute… I don’t have to work from home. I could actually work from anywhere.

(Image credit: Rebecca Flaum) From Kitchn → August Is the Month at the End of the Rainbow

(Image credit: Melanie LaForce) From Kitchn → Appalachian Porch Parties Taught Me Mindfulness, Country-Style

In polite company, most people prefer to steer conversation away from the topic of money. And even if you do broach the subject of, say, buying a home with your friends, it’s likely that nobody in the circle will ever throw out a real dollar amount when discussing how much they’ve saved or spent in their quest to complete the American Dream.

(Image credit: Fab.com) From Kitchn → 9 Trays to Serve 9 Summer Entertaining Situations

Anyone who’s ever been the victim of consumer fraud or had their identity stolen can tell you that it strikes without warning, and more than you think. According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, more than 17 million people were the victims of identity theft in 2014.

You might think that sitting behind computers all day makes us all soft, but you’d have to think again! Here in our NY Offices and also remotely, all of our employees are a part of a super cool, digital wellness network that tracks our exercise, prods us along (we can compete with other companies) and keeps up our fitness awareness. Founded by my brother, Oliver Ryan, Count.it is an awesome addition to our company culture, so I’m proud to share this short video he just made.

Most students and teachers can’t help but feel a little sad about the end of summer, at least until it’s time for back-to-school shopping. There’s something thrilling about starting a new school year and taking the opportunity to refresh your life a little. But loading up on new clothes, decor, technology and school supplies can get a little pricey. Actually, really pricey. The good news: Many retailers offer discounts for students and teachers with valid school IDs or .

(Image credit: Esteban Cortez) From Kitchn → How I Staycation: San Francisco

The Birthday Problem paradox suggests that if you put 23 people into a room, there’s a 50 percent chance that two of them share the same birthday (and that probability jumps to 99 percent chance with just 60 people). The math is based on the assumption that every date out of the 365 days a year is equally likely for a birthday, but apparently that theory is way off.

(Image credit: Faith Durand) From Kitchn → 20 Salads Worth Packing for Lunch

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) From Kitchn → What to Eat Before, During, and After Your Workout

Summer is slowly coming to an end, which means it’s time to get serious about crossing things off your summer bucket list. If you haven’t already taken a summer vacation, make that a top priority. Yes, sunshine-drenched days at the beach and lounging by the pool sipping margaritas are limited, but there’s still plenty of time to plan an epic end-of-summer getaway. Here are seven reasons why now is actually the perfect time to indulge in a delicious summer vacation.

Wondering why birthdays and babies always seem to reach a fever pitch as summer turns to fall? According to data collected by the New York Times, September 16th is the most popular birthday for babies born between 1973 and 1999. Actually, all 10 of the top 10 birthdays fall in September. And August isn’t too far behind in the rankings. → See all the birth date data: How Common is Your Birthday? Why? Your guess is as good as mine.

(Image credit: Susanna Hopler) From Kitchn → Winter Is Coming, So Eat Something Outside Now

(Image credit: iravgustin/ Shutterstock) shutterstock From Kitchn → Why You Should Drink Hot Stuff When It’s Hot Out (Sometimes)

(Image credit: Susanna Hopler) From Kitchn → Why Summer Flowers Are Necessary for Your Kitchen

Is there anyone alive who doesn’t have a fascination with tiny objects? They’re just so darn cute, and require so much patience and skill to create. That’s why we’re squeeing over this mini version of Mindy Lahiri’s office from The Mindy Project. Mindy Kaling is pretty excited about it, too. Mindy posted a photo to Instagram this week, comparing the real life set to its miniature—and it’s pretty hard to tell the difference! Okay, this is insanely cool.

(Image credit: Hayley Kessner) From Kitchn → A Lazy Guide to Summer Cleaning

What better way to truly break away from your everyday routine than spending your next vacation at the home of a celebrity? On top of A-list amenities like cocktail bars, tennis courts and private beaches, you also get the added bonus of saying you slept in Leonardo DiCaprio’s bed (without looking completely crazy).

(Image credit: Hayley Kessner) From Kitchn → 10 Ways to Make a Staycation Your Best Vacation Ever

(Image credit: Faith Durand) From Kitchn → 4 Olympic Sports Show You What to Make for Dinner

A few key takeaways I learned from my time with the amazing Lucky Diaz and Alisha Gaddis: you can have both an Emmy and a Grammy and still have to scramble to find new housing when your lease is cut short. You can have a hit bilingual TV show and still ride your bike to an afternoon meeting. You can field phone calls about the Latin Grammys one minute and the logistics of your baby shower the next.

(Image credit: Maria Siriano) From Kitchn → 10 Foods You Should Eat to Celebrate the End of Flossing

(Image credit: Urban Outfitters) From Kitchn → Big Chill, Bright Colors: 7 Refrigerators in Eye-Popping Hues

I’ve spent far too much time telling anyone who will listen that my two goals this summer are: one, buy a variety of visors. And two, hang out around some lighthouses. I’m well on my way to knocking goal number one out of the park, but had to do a little more research to make my lighthouse dream a reality. If you’ve also been pining for a long stroll on a beach in a J.

(Image credit: Kim Lucian) From Kitchn → House Guests Are Coming: Your 4-Step Game Plan

(Image credit: Bag: Courtesy of Trader Joe’s) From Kitchn → 10 Things I Buy from Trader Joe’s for No-Cook Dinners

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) From Kitchn → Martha Stewart and Snoop Dogg Are Teaming Up to Make All of Your Reality Show Dreams Come True

(Image credit: [Stone] Tanglewood picnickers circa 1947. Photo by Erika Stone.) From Kitchn → Our Love Affair with Picnics — The Moveable Feast

In the mid 1970s my mother and her best friend, Emily, took me, my brother, and Emily’s daughter on vacation. They were two single moms exploring the world and trying to find a relaxing vacation with restless children. Years later, I discovered that Emily wrote down the events of the trip and I LOVED it. Below is her lighthearted account of what it was like to visit Grossingers, an iconic Catskills retreat for decades, catering to Jewish clientele from New York City.

5 things you need to know, now that it’s Monday. Dwell’s new site is Houzz meets Pinterest. Dwell released an iPhone app and a new site that “allows the design community to share, discover and collaborate like never before.” The site, built completely in-house, starts with their library of 300,000 images and encourages users to add and share their own.

(Image credit: Rachel Joy Barehl) From Kitchn → The Flatware Set That Breaks the Rules

Food For Thought This week, as you read The Lean Startup think about how we measure or could measure better our success. How do we know when we are adding value? We put out our “product” every day and people come to us and “use” it, but how do we know what works for our readers the best? How do we know what works for our advertising clients best? Below is an excerpt to spur your thinking.

You might have started June with a bang, but are you still going strong? Don’t make the mistake of simply counting down the days until fall, in mourning prematurely, without appreciating the right here, right now. So — come September — you’re not wondering why you never saw your friends more than once this summer, and where did all that time go? Make a Quick Getaway: Every Friday marks the beginning of a mini-summer vacation.

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) From Kitchn → 5 DIY Tutorials to Get into Shibori

(Image credit: Julie’s Kitchen) From Kitchn → 10 Sunny Finds for Your Summer Kitchen

(Image credit: Husman Hagberg) From Kitchn → 5 Ideas to Steal from This Tiny Stockholm Kitchen

In the grand scheme of things, reading isn’t a very expensive hobby. But if you’re the type who loves to voraciously read every best seller or collect literary trophies for your bookshelf, you know all too well how quickly your book-buying habit can blow a budget. So we’ve rounded up 9 smart ways to save money on books, for every type of reader. Like Netflix for e-books, Kindle Unlimited lets you pay $9.

(Image credit: Adrienne Breaux) From Kitchn → Why You Don’t Feel Like Cooking Tonight, and How to Fix It

Kanye West keeps fanning the flames of a potential IKEA collaboration. The rapper/clothing designer talked about it on BBC radio this week. But IKEA Australia was quick to overshadow the interview with a hilarious Facebook post. The rumors started in March when Kanye stopped by IKEA HQ in Älmhult. On Monday, Kanye was on Annie Mac’s BBC 1 radio show, and said this about the Swedish giant: “I have to work with Ikea – make furniture for interior design, for architecture.

(Image credit: Adrienne Breaux) From Kitchn → 10 Summer Nesting Ideas for When You Don’t Want to Go Outside

(Image credit: Beekman 1802) From Kitchn → 11 Edible Summer Hostess Gifts Under $30

(Image credit: P.O.S.H.) From Kitchn → Nothing Could Be Finer than Eating on This Diner Dinnerware

Five things to know, now that it’s Monday. Lisa Frank continues to make Millennials’ dreams come true. First a coloring book, now an athleisure line. Yes, you can deck yourself out in rainbow unicorn leggings and dolphin crop tops to your heart’s content. Go forth like the ’90s never left. The internet got reaaaaalllly excited about a Harry Potter version of Pokémon Go. Unfortunately, it’s still just rumors.

(Image credit: Bridget Pizzo) From Kitchn → 5 Questions Everyone Still Has About Party Etiquette, and the New Answers

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) From Kitchn → How My Tiny Kitchen Taught Me to Love Cooking

(Image credit: Emma Fiala) From Kitchn → 10 Questions to Ask an Old Friend at the Dinner Table

(Image credit: Samantha Bolton) From Kitchn → Why I Hate B&Bs

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) From Kitchn → 10 Things You Didn’t Know You Needed in Your Dream Kitchen

(Image credit: Kitchn Video) From Kitchn → Recipe Roulette: What Should I Grill Tonight? Kitchn

Every year, around this time, my family and I take a trip from Minneapolis to Seattle. My husband and I first went when I was pregnant with our daughter. For our next two trips it was just the three of us. The following year the three of us were jointed by her little brother, in my belly. And now the four of us have been together twice. The reoccurring theme? Rushing!

(Image credit: Huzza) From Kitchn → Put the Night Sky on Your Plate: 5 Cosmic Finds

(Image credit: Desserts: Natalka Dmitrova) shutterstock From Kitchn → Match Your Snack to Your Zodiac Sign

Traditional 9-to-5 jobs can be tedious, but there’s a shift that tends to happen every summer in offices across the country. As jeans and sandals become part of the dress code, you’ll start to notice fewer people in the office. Everyone is either on vacation, getting ready for one, or just got back to a mountain of emails. Productivity slumps. Recurring meetings are cancelled week-to-week, and deadlines become a little bit more flexible.

(Image credit: Jacob Lund) shutterstock From Kitchn → 5 Mistakes to Avoid When Taking a Day Trip

Road trips are a great way to get out of town on the cheap, and record numbers of people are hitting the road on vacation this summer. But before you hop on the subway to pick up your rental car, it’s a smart idea to brush up on both driver’s ed and driver’s etiquette so you can be summer road trip savvy. It boils down to two things.