Vibe Check: October 2024
Your Monthly Moodboard 🧚
At the start of each month, I share my own vibe check: a kitchen sink selection of recommendations, inspirations, and hyperfixations to set the tone—or the ~ViBe, if you will—for the month.
October is a time for celebration. For getting dressed up, treating your inner child, chasing the sunset before it starts at 4 pm. It’s when the heat breaks and before the seasonal depression kicks in. October is the time to party with friends before the rest of the year gets taken up by family and holiday obligations. I’m a big costume person (more on that next week) and this month feels more imaginative, more playful.
It’s a whimsical month. October is about fantasy and mystery and make believe. We’re getting dressed up for no reason. We’re making fancy drinks at home. We’re going out dancing. We’re trying crazy eye makeup looks and wearing ruffled socks with loafers.
Of course it’s also the witchy, spooky time of year. We should be eating fun-sized almond joys, getting tarot readings, dusting off the ouiji board. It’s the time to believe in ghost stories and spells and crack open our woo woo and spiritual sides a bit.
Here are some fun recommendations, inspirations and motivations for your October!
Just read and enjoyed The Many Lives of Mama Love by Lara Love Hardin 📚
I’ve watched Chappell Roan’s inspired VMA performance quite legitimately no less than 20 times 🗡
^AND her stylist, Genesis Webb, speaking with Interview about the looks
ONE more chappell item: Check out this Tap Studio doing choreography to her music they’re calling Tappell Roan or this one tap dancing to Charli XCX 😍
Alexandra Gater is an interior designer helping people with their small spaces and rentals. I can’t believe some of the inspo to reality transitions of hers! 🏡
Illustrator & designer Eliza Baucom and her sweet designs 💕
Jessica Walsh is an incredible creative director and multi-hyphenate, and her 6 Steps to Creating a Personal Style is a fantastic read. (Visual version here)
I would like for someone to please bake this chocolate raspberry cake for me, thank you. (OR the sheet cake version of it!) 🍰
For a really good Shirley Temple, get some 7Up and grenadine but plus it up with some luxury maraschino cherries. 🍒
I also want to try and make one of these wild at-home lattes ☕️
Loved this substack post on “being all the things” by Sara Schaefer
Speaking of substacks, check out my recent interview on Jacob All Trades
I NEED to try this DIY painting with my cat! 😻
It’s marigold season! I need to try an arrangement like this one! 🌼
There were two great articles about style in The Cut recently: How to Find Your Style According to 12 People with Style and What if my Personal Style Isn’t So Personal?
Speaking of style, I think it’s time I try a bow-covered blazer. Look at the inspo here and here! 🎀
This article on why Art Should be a Habit, Not a Luxury by Arthur C. Brooks 🖼
Looking for an intuitive or oracle reading? The lovely Aja Vines gives all different kinds of readings 🔮 (She does over zoom and many readings are a pay-what-you-can scale. She’s fantastic!)
Attend a Día de los Muertos festival in your area! 💀 If you’re in LA, the event at the Hollywood Forever is incredible. (See my look from last year and my costumes from the previous nine.)
I would be down for a handful (no pun intended) of these fall nail art ideas 💅
I KNOW the mounting controversy around AI art, and I understand the concerns, but Chaos Dreamland is an AI artist with some really cool dreamy Halloween art
Cute pumpkins! If you, like me, both dislike and are bad at carving pumpkins, rethink it with a pressed flower pumpkin (I’ve done this the past two years) or these adorable tiny pumpkin vases (I’m trying this ASAP!) 🎃💐
Polina Osipova is a Chuvash multimedia/interdisciplinary artist whose work I’ve recently become obsessed with.
I’m also crushing hard on Helle Mardahl, a Copenhagen-based glass artist. LOOK at this lighting installation!
Susan (Sue) McLeary is a floral designer and “instructor for the artful and curious.” She makes stunning headpieces with wire and flowers, as well as many other installations and unique projects.
What are you excited for this month?? Is there anything on this list you’re going to check out? Anything I missed?
I've been following Alexandra Gater for ages and just adore her! She has grown so much over the years and has built a great collaborative team. I always look forward to her posts and videos.