Hey, guys.
It's Chelsea.
And this week's video is brought to you by our own stuff.
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And this week, we are kicking off the new year
by talking about all of those things
that I left behind in 2022, like this queen who
makes an appearance every single year.
I have seven things to cover, and I
want to give a little detail on each of them.
So let's cut the bull-bull-[BLEEP] and get into the seven things
that I got rid of for good in 2022.
Number one is about 60% of my clothes.
Now listen, I can already hear you squawking in the comments.
Like, aren't you always on a clothes-purging journey?
Correct.
I am.
Listen, I am always in the process of unplugging myself
from the matrix that is consumer culture targeted at women.
I have bought too many things throughout my life, things
that I didn't end up wearing nearly as
much as I thought I would.
Lord knows I've talked at length on this channel about things
like my Robin's egg blue faux fur coat.
But I still find that on most season-to-season changes,
I am confronted with the reality of a good number of clothes
that I just didn't end up wearing.
And I think part of that is because in the past when I've
done purges, I have done just straight-up I take things
from my wardrobe, and they end up
getting sold, donated, recycled, et cetera.
And because it goes directly from my wardrobe
into gone forever, I typically tend
to be fairly conservative when it comes to the things
that I'll get rid of.
There have been a lot of items in each round of purging
where I'm like, oh, well, I didn't wear that this season,
but maybe I will.
I like it enough to keep it.
And lo and behold, I didn't end up doing it.
So I created a new system this year,
which is my now forever system, which
is partially inspired by the fact
that we do have a storage unit now in this building, which
is for a Manhattanite the ultimate luxury
one can experience.
But I think this would work just as well if you have some
like overhead storage or areas that you don't really
use that you could fit a few Tupperwares, where instead
of getting rid of clothes immediately,
I take everything that I'm pretty sure I'm not
going to need, and I put it into storage for three months.
And if after three months of full season basically
I don't find myself missing it or wanting to wear it,
then I know I can get rid of it safely.
And that has allowed me to be way more ruthless.
And we also talk a lot on this channel about fast fashion
specifically, which is something I do generally stay away from,
but which for many people is the most accessible or affordable
option when it comes to buying clothes.
And since a lot of these clothes are literally
made to be disposable at some level,
it's totally understandable that you would be constantly
in that cycle of accumulation, and then ultimately purging.
Now, I am not being paid to say in this video.
It is generally just my actual feelings on the matter.
But as some of you guys know, we've
been doing a partnership on the channel
with the clothing rental service, Nuuly,
which has honestly been amazing for me.
And I'm just like keeping going with it even
after the campaign is done.
And if you're interested in Nuuly,
I do recommend that you use our discount
code in the description.
But you don't have to, but it would be amazing.
And like I said, it's not an ad I'm being paid for either way.
So do with it as you will.
But clothing rentals, I think, if you
are someone who, like me, does tend
to be tempted more than some when
it comes to buying clothes, it's actually a great option.
I found that pretty much my entire desire to just buy stuff
has evaporated with the fact that I know that every month I
get to pick six new items from their beautiful online shopping
and just test them out.
And if I like it, I can rent it again the next month
and so on, or even buy it.
It just really scratches that itch that a lot of us
have when it comes to shopping, which
is more about the experience and the imagination
and the searching.
It's the same reason why a lot of people
like to fill up their online shopping carts and then
not actually check out.
And there are actually some environmental benefits
to renting over just buying a lot of items of clothing.
I've been wearing a lot of new clothing in my videos
and on my social media.
And if you're out there wondering is this [BLEEP]
always shopping?
No, I just rent [BLEEP] now.
All right.
Another thing I got rid of this year--
RIP to that-- is my bird of paradise plant, which sucked.
Here's a photo.
I loved her.
You used to see her in these videos.
And she died a painful and probably ultimately avoidable
death.
We're trying to be very conscientious about our plant
care in this house.
But one thing we really failed to take into account when
we bought our bird of paradise was
that they need to have a very warm, humid climate.
But they are, at the end of the day, tropical plants.
And we didn't realize that in the summer months when we're
using the air conditioner, it goes directly onto where
that plant is placed.
And it was just too cold for the baby-- too cold and dry.
For those thinking of getting one
because they are gorgeous plants,
they are generally easy to maintain
if you have them in the right kind of environment.
But keep in mind, as Gardener's World puts it,
the "Bird of paradise plant is not hard to grow,
but it does need specific conditions--
warmth, bright light, and a humid atmosphere.
A south-facing room, bathroom, or conservatory is ideal.
And it also needs plenty of room,
as the leaves can reach up to 2 meters tall."
So we did have to let her rest in power.
But now we've replaced her with a fiddle-leaf fig tree,
which some people are like, oh, that's a bit passé.
Whatever.
I still like the way they look.
And more importantly, it's totally fine with the AC unit.
And she's been thriving for months now.
So we're all good in here.
But yeah, bird of plant was definitely a good lesson to do
a lot more research on the plants that you bring in, not
just for the immediate environment they're in, but how
that environment stands to change over the course
of the year, which taking accountability here, we didn't.
Number three is my fear of TikTok.
So I have avoided TikTok for the longest time
because honestly, I'm old and it scared me.
And also, I felt like I was equating it
too much in my head, I think, to Instagram,
which can, in its worst iterations,
engender a really high level of pressure
to present a certain image, and to be
consistent with that image, and to seem perfect and very
curated and all of these other things.
And I actually have found in the five days
now I've been using TikTok as of filming,
that it's actually pretty much the opposite.
I actually feel it's more akin in some ways
to Instagram stories or Twitter, in the sense of you're
just out here getting awesome content.
No one really cares what it looks like.
And it actually, to me, is more antithetical to the platform
to be overly curated in your presentation.
And when you see someone on TikTok
who's like completely perfect-- like it keeps recommending
this British influencer named Lydia Millen to me,
who's like insanely perfect in a very 2015/16 lifestyle
influencer way.
And I'm like, are we still doing this?
Like, what is this?
So I actually find TikTok relieves the pressure somewhat.
I've been embracing it wholeheartedly
because for some personal reasons
I would like to have a presence on the platform going forward.
But also because it's a really good outlet for me
to just post my cooking and domestic content
that I really enjoy, but doesn't really
fit into what I do here at TFD.
And I find that with Twitter becoming
more and more unusable by the day,
I really don't want to just be left to Instagram.
And while some people might take the opportunity
to just leave social media entirely,
I'm someone who really does rely on social media
for a lot of my work.
And I personally enjoy the role that it plays in my life.
So I don't want to give it up.
But I will say that I was pretty--
that I did have a big misconception about TikTok,
and I've actually been really enjoying it.
Shameless plug-- my TikTok is @faganchelsea.
It's also linked in the description.
And you should definitely go follow me
because it's a very wholesome side of my life, I think,
personally.
Number four is fancy sheets.
Now, I am not going to call this brand out by name,
but I'm sure some of you are going
to know who I'm talking about because they have saturated
that DTC market on the sheets and linens and bath towels
and all that [BLEEP] with a stunning level of universality.
Like, I think I've seen in my life in New York maybe
100,000 ads for this company.
It's on every subway car.
It's on every Instagram feed.
It's just everywhere.
And there are a few other brands of sheets and linens
that have a similar level of ubiquity.
But long story short is that I have tried several
of these higher end brands, like semi-higher end brands,
and those sheets are terrible.
Like, I have had genuinely so many issues
with some of the nicer sheets I bought--
like, horrible discoloration no matter what I do.
Like, one of them just like-- the bottom
of the duvet just like completely
ripped, like buttons popping off.
Like, it is just [BLEEP] quality.
And I've actually found that my favorite sheets
that I've ever owned are this linen set that I actually
got from Amazon, unfortunately, but less
expensive than some of these competitors,
and genuinely amazing quality--
100% linen.
I love these sheets-- can't get enough.
I will link you to those in the description.
And it will not be an affiliate link, so go forth and prosper,
whether or not you actually want them or not.
But it's actually not all in my head
that a lot of these sort of, quote,
"higher end" sheet and linen companies aren't actually all
that higher end, and are often the exact same stuff
that you would be buying on much lower end retailers
and drop ship companies.
And that's actually a huge problem in the retail world.
Now, don't get me wrong.
Some really high-end sheets can really be worth it.
But I am not going to be spending $1,000 on sheets.
So when we're looking in the mid-range section,
a lot of times you are getting these honestly
not that great products that are made
with a lot of synthetic blends to cheapen the production
methods, and are often literally identical
and made in the same facilities as ostensibly lower end
products.
And as I mentioned, this is a big issue
in retail, not just in sheets.
Designer brands often source their cosmetic products
from the same manufacturer as drugstore brands.
If you knew your $25 mascara came from the same source
as the $2 drugstore mascara, would you
think twice before buying?
Spoiler alert.
Much of your makeup comes from China, not Paris or Milan,
as the brand's advertising might suggest.
And here are just a few examples of how absolutely ubiquitous
this problem is across all kinds of manufacturers and brands.
So long story short is that if you
are paying a premium for a brand name,
do everything in your power to research that that brand
name is actually worth it and not literally the same product
you could be buying for half the price.
Number five is my old kitchen.
Now, to get the full breakdown on my kitchen saga,
you're going to need to watch this members only video--
ahh-- where I go through the whole financial and logistical
reality of that experience and share kind of all my insights
and stuff like that.
And it will be linked in the description,
but you can also just hit the Join button and get it.
But long story short, just to kind of summarize this.
So I did do a kitchen renovation this year.
And overall, I would classify that purchase
as having been worth it.
I wouldn't do it in exactly the same way next time,
but I definitely would do it again.
I really, really enjoyed the outcome.
My kitchen is my favorite place.
I love being in there every day.
I love cleaning.
it's just-- it's my happy place.
And now with my TikTok being like heavily
food and domestic content, that [BLEEP]
getting some shine on social media.
So all of that is to say I definitely
think it was a good investment.
But I have also become quite chastened
about the entire prospect of home renovation.
For example, we had a few other planned renovations
over the course of the next year and a half to two years
in our apartment that I'm now like not
stopping, but definitely pumping the brakes on.
We're planning to open up a portion of a wall
to create a breakfast bar.
That I still definitely think is worth doing.
But I'm probably not going to do it for at least
a year, if not more.
Just because I know how, a, expensive and budget this stuff
tends to typically be.
But also, how long it takes compared to what
you're initially planning.
And you really have to plan for your life
to be substantially disrupted when this happens to an extent.
But the one I'm like not totally 100% sure will never happen,
but at least not for the next few years,
is a bathroom renovation.
We have wanted to switch to a stall shower from a bathtub.
If there's a way to do that is minimally invasive, maybe.
But it's likely that it will not be minimally invasive.
And honestly, given that our bathroom
was fairly freshly renovated before we moved in,
and given that it's probably the most disruptive part
of your home to redo and has so many components in it that
are really potentially complicating,
such as plumbing and all of that other stuff,
it's just not worth it right now for us to do.
So I think I'm going to make some other changes,
like probably put some wallpaper up on the walls
and do some stuff like that to make it feel fresh,
change out some light fixtures and whatnot.
But yeah, I'm very realistic denial about the fact
that when you do a renovation in your home,
you have to expect it to take twice as long as you thought,
go at least 30% over the budget you had initially planned for,
and have all kinds of issues that you could literally never
have predicted or budgeted for.
Like, for example, basically, a wire
short-circuited in our refrigerator
during the renovation.
And it's a model--
it was an extremely expensive refrigerator.
It was like almost $10,000.
We didn't buy it.
It was here from when we moved in.
But it's like custom fit to our cabinetry,
so we couldn't change it.
And it's really expensive to replace parts for it.
So it was $1,000 just for that one refrigerator issue.
Just poof-- gone.
And we never could have foreseen that.
So I am not in any rush to do something like that again.
But I did get rid of my old kitchen.
And despite the pain, I think it was worth the gain.
But hold up on doing any more of that.
On a better note, another thing I got rid of pretty much
forever now is ever working five days a week again.
So we have discussed a fair amount at TFD
about our four-day workweek experiment, which
we're more accurately calling our 32-hour workweek
because sometimes you do work a little bit on Fridays.
Or like tonight, I'm actually doing an event for TFD,
so I won't work much tomorrow.
But I'm working kind of late tonight.
It just really depends.
But we didn't do any salary cuts.
We didn't really change any of the workload.
It was really just about working smarter.
So we put all kind of parameters around how we meet,
for example.
Like, 30-minute meetings can be 15-minute meetings.
15-minute meetings can be emails.
They only fall in certain days of the week.
Basically, just finding ways to eliminate redundancy
and waste and unnecessary work that ultimately leads people
into thinking they need to spend a lot more time at work
than they actually do.
And this is, by the way, a very well-demonstrated phenomenon.
Like, most people in professional jobs
don't actually work the full 40 hours
that they're being contracted to work.
The Wall Street Journal actually recently
had an article about white collar workers
who shuffle between two or more full-time jobs carefully
aligning their schedules to avoid meeting overlaps
and doing their best to keep multiple gigs
secret from each other.
Many of the workers in the article
noted that only a small share of their time at the first job
was spent doing productive work, enabling the multiple job
bait and switch.
According to the Journal, one software engineer
said he was logging three to 10 hours of actual work
a week back when he held down one job,
with the rest of the time spent on extraneous meetings
and busy work.
And when we look at all of the different metrics of success
at TFD-- our profitability, our productivity,
our number of successful contracts and clients
and business-- everything is way up
since switching to the four-day workweek,
again, without having to reduce salaries.
My colleague, Caitlin, who heads up finances at TFD,
has actually written a few really fascinating articles
on our LinkedIn about this, and I'll just quote from her now.
"At first glance, these results seem counterintuitive.
In fact, shortening our working hours
actually increased our team's self-measured ability
to meet deadlines and manage their workload.
As I wrote previously at the start of the experiment,
we had agreed as a group that if we can't get our work done
in the allotted 32 hours, we'll move the deadlines
and deliverables so that we can.
Instead of creating stress, this allows the team
to own their time and set deadlines
that feel realistic instead of restrictive.
Interestingly, our employee survey actually showed
a decrease in the metrics related to work-related
satisfaction, including a 9% decrease in agreement with
the statement, 'my work gives me a feeling of personal
accomplishment,' and a 6% decrease in the statement,
'I am proud to work for this company.'
While this may not be the ideal result,
I'm quite intrigued by the idea that our team is perhaps
deriving less satisfaction from their identity as part
of this company and more satisfaction
from their ability to find satisfaction outside of it.
An unintended consequence of our transition to a shorter
workweek may in fact be that our work defines us less
when we spend less hours doing it,
allowing us to explore our full selves
and feelings of accomplishment from endeavors not related
to work."
I definitely have been experiencing this myself.
I've been branching out into all different kinds of side
projects and hobbies that I feel enrich me and define
me in many ways just as much as my main job.
And I actually think that's a really great sign, personally.
But she's dead on in the fact that we've
been doing more with less.
And there's absolutely no reason to go back.
And as far as any decrease in satisfaction,
our employee retention has been 100% since we started this,
so no one seems that unhappy.
Lastly, something I got rid of permanently in 2022
is [BLEEP] plastic Tupperware.
So my Tupperware collection used to be
an absolute mess of leftover containers
that were repurposed, and really crappy mismatched stuff
that was like stained from spaghetti
sauce however long ago and half-melted in the microwave.
And just like-- it was atrocious.
And now in my current kitchen, the cabinet
that houses my Tupperware and storage and stuff like that
is actually glass front so you can see it.
So I was like, this is reason enough.
Let's let vanity drive a better decision here and actually
switch to much better stuff for a long-term storage
solution, especially as someone who
cooks big batch pretty much as a rule
and is constantly storing food.
So some of the items that I have now
are these kinds of Le Parfait glass jars.
I like to reuse these larger milk
jugs from Ronnybrook Farms.
I have a few sets of Pyrex storage, which
are also really functional because they
can go into the oven.
And aside from not having all of those potentially hazardous
chemical-seeping issues with plastic containers,
glass is also a much better long-term storage solution
environmentally.
When it comes to durability, longevity, and its ability
to be recycled, glass outperforms plastic
on environmental impact.
If properly cared for, glass can outlast the lifespan of plastic
in the kitchen.
Where plastic is prone to melting or discoloration,
glass remains a durable and long-lasting solution
for food storage.
Additionally, glass is 100% recyclable.
And so long as it is properly disposed of,
you can recycle glass at a designated facility.
Unfortunately, due to the wide variety
of plastic products available, many recycling plants
only offer recycling to a few types of plastic.
Anything nonrecyclable is tossed into a landfill, where
it remains for many years.
Therefore, glass wins the argument
for most environmentally friendly, and chic as hell,
which is what we're going for.
Anyway, that's just some of the stuff
that I got rid of in 2022.
Bye, [BLEEP].
And I would love to hear in the comments
some of what you guys got rid of.
And otherwise, I am so excited for a lighter
and more productive 2023.
It's all about doing more with less this year,
and I'll see you there.
Bye, guys.