The Catch-Up | Vol 10
A mini Mother's Day gift guide, life-changing organization tips, tabletop finds, homemade gummy bears, and more.
Hello friends! Happy Thursday and welcome to the tenth edition of The Catch-Up, my weekly column that arrives in your inboxes every week. The Catch-Up consists of everything that has caught my eye, heart, imagination, interest, and family throughout the week. I can’t tell you how full our weeks have been lately. Mothering three busy boys is, well, busy! I have an idea around sharing more on this soon but in the meantime, I’m really excited about this week’s Catch-Up! I’ve curated Mother’s Day gifts, shared a life-changing photo organization tip, spilled on the placemats y’all can’t get enough (I’m hooked!), and broken down the most delicious, healthy, fun activity I have done lately with my kids (if you are a parent, I know you will love this!). I hope you enjoy it!
If there is anything in particular that you like seeing from me, please don’t hesitate to drop me a comment and let me know! Thank you for being here and for reading my thoughts, inspirations, and obsessions. P.S. If this post is ever too long for email, simply click through to read it in Substack.
A few quick things:
The dress I wore to Henry’s little birthday party was the most popular item I’ve shared with y’all in awhile (this dress + the placemats I chat about below). I couldn’t believe how many of you love this dress in the apple green stripe as much as I do! I now own it in 3 different prints - one from this year, one from last year, and one from the year before. Important to note: I wear an XS in some silhouettes from Hill House but wear a small in this dress.
These easy + delicious oat balls are at the top of my “recipes to try” list
My girlfriend Chelsea is an all star incredibly talented interior designer here in Charleston. Her work is just beautiful and utterly unique (a hard feat in today’s day and age). I’ve been meaning to share this quick interview she did for awhile now - from her life motto to her forever favorite fabric, you’ll want to read it.
I shared on Instagram but I loved this sweet podcast episode from Gwenyth called For the Love of Food. It is just easy listening while folding laundry and I found it to be a happy, wholesome, and lovely take on food and the effort that goes into preparing food for your family.
P.S. If this post is ever too long for email, simply click through to read it in Substack.
what caught my eye
what caught my heart
Mother’s Day is around the corner. I truly love Mother’s Day! I love having the extra opportunity to remind my mom of just how incredibly grateful I am for her and the way she still lives for her children (and now her grandchildren too) even though we are all now grown and out from under her roof. As a mother myself, I also love the day for me. It just feels special. I feel light on my feet, energized, loved, and pampered. Can’t beat that combo. I’m really looking forward to it! On Mother’s Day, I also think about my own mother losing her mother when she was about my age and my heart aches. I think about my oldest friend who has lost her mother already, she was like another mother to me and my heart aches for her absence and for my dear beloved friend. I think about the three babies I have lost due to miscarriages and send it up to Heaven above that I will love them forever. Motherhood is so huge, layered, emotional, beautiful, heart-split-wide-open-can’t-put-it-into-words-everything-and-more. Mother’s Day can be that way too. I hope it is a happy day for everyone! I don’t know about you but I’m hoping for a quiet afternoon with reading, needlepoint, and/or a nap. It is a holiday where it’s really the thought that counts but I’d be remiss if I didn’t have a few recommendations for y’all. So, gifts! What about gifts?! Here is a mini Mother’s Day gift guide + click here but more beautiful and thoughtful gift ideas from me!
I actually need this stair basket tote. Every single day I spend time carrying things up and down to the proper floors in our house. It is a full time job thanks to my children. I’ve always thought about a stair basket but it wasn’t until I saw how beautiful the ones from Underwater Weaving Studio are that I was hooked on the idea. They also have the most beautiful baskets in general. This one would be so nice to hold a throw blanket in a family room.
The everyday chic comfortable shoes I think every woman’s closet needs - the raffia is just so good.
I’m super intrigued by Goop’s brand new 3x Retinol Eye Lift Serum (they are also bundling it with their retinol face cream!). It is the newest beauty release from GOOP and sounds like one of those items I want but don’t want to pay for myself - aka the perfect gift! I’m all for improving the texture and tone of the skin around my eyes so I might have to try it regardless, ha! Plus, I know from listening to the GOOP podcast that they are running a beauty promo right now with code GOOPEYES for 15% off your first GOOP beauty purchase.
No surprise here, the Aerin x D. Porthault collaboration is beautiful. Perfect items for gifting!
Splurge-worthy here but is this not the most cheerful purse you’ve ever seen!? I love it!
I could wax poetic about this beautiful book on mothers. It is one of my most given gifts to mothers + I have used it as the guest book at two baby showers I have hosted. It is special and gorgeous.
This ocean color - chefs kiss! Use code JILLIAN-15 for 15% off. I have this dress in white and wear it ALL the time.
Custom plates for the mother who loves to entertain - How fun!
Swim wraps don’t get chicer than this combo: swimsuit + skirt.
The brand new play quilt every mother will love to use with their littles all summer long for picnic/beach season.
The perfect sweet, easy, and really affordable gift for new moms - use code JILLIAN20 for 15% off.
I would legit jump for joy to get a week of Sakara as a Mother’s Day gift, omg! Hard to imagine anything better with how busy life is right now.
Now, this is a fantastic gift! It is the season when we all want our doors flung wide open. Every mother will love this gorgeous door stopper so their kids can run free inside and out. Use code JILLIAN10 for $10 off. Great summer housewarming/hostess gift too!
For the mothers interested in a bit of culture + reading. A slamdunk gift.
Moms on the go will love this HOLY GRAIL hair product! It extends your hair and works brilliantly. A must-have.
The most perfect, flattering dress you’ll ever put on - use code JILLIAN10 for 10% off. I have it in white and adore it. My mom has it in every color. It’s that good.
Know a mom going on a child-free trip this summer? Pick her up a sweet deck of cards so she can make her vacation happy hours extra memorable.
The thing everyone wants a fresh version of but no one wants to actually buy themselves - new towels! I love these scalloped one - use code JILLIAN15 for 15% off
Y’all know I absolutely love this face moisturizer. It’s a great gift because it works wonders and is useful (like the Augustinus Bader Rich Cream but wayyyyy more affordable).
I personally want this little cutie for myself! Use code JILLIAN15 for 15% off.
Sculpting swimwear - yes and yes! They are the Spanx of swim.
Thoughtful and pretty - especially if you put a printed photo in it.
The two best scents - my forever favorite gardenia delivery and the yummiest summertime candle in the world (it can be personalized). Home run gifts.
Chanel on sale for Mother’s Day! Yes, you read that right.
We got this for our mom last year and it has been on her countertop full of fruit ever since. It’s perfect.
When in doubt, go vintage.
what caught my interest
The other week, I saw someone post the most clever tip on Substack that has held my interest - aka I started doing the tip and have kept up with it. It is small but feels life changing to me. Are you ready for it? Here you go, the best little organizational tip you’ve heard in awhile (big talk here!): every morning when you wake up, open your photos on your phone and search the date of the present day. It will pull up every photo on your phone taken that date over the years (including screenshots taken that date). From there, go through and delete photos you don’t need and/or organize photos into proper folders on your phone from there (I have sooooo many screenshots on my phone and keep finding treasures like 12 photos of the exact same flower from 9 years ago, woot!). It feels like a super manageable way to take control of your phone photo organization. It also provides some laughs when going through old photos!
what caught my imagination
I’m feeling so inspired to set a pretty table soon for an occasion or just because. We went out for Easter brunch this year so I’m feeling a creative itch in the way of entertaining as I didn’t set a table at home or at my parents’ house. It was Easter that really sparked my imagination and got me thinking about different color combinations and flower arrangements but it was also the arrival of a new set of reversible wipeable placemats I ordered from Tuckernuck Home. I shared them on my Instagram stories and y’all flipped for them so I thought I’d give them a little more love for anyone not following along with me over there (p.s. I’d love to have you!).
I’ve kept a close eye on Tuckernuck Home this year ever since they brought on the ever talented Tori Mellott as their senior director of home and lifestyle. It is exciting to see them expanding more into the home space as I know they will do a phenomenal job (especially with a creative eye like Tori’s at the helm). These placemats are the first product I have ordered from Tuckernuck’s home line and, if they are an indicator of what else is to come, then boy are we in for a treat! I love them. For starters, they are reversible so you essentially get two placemat sets in one. They are also good thick quality and wipeable so they are FANTASTIC for families with kids and INCREDIBLE for indoor/outdoor living. It is the time of year where I want to be outside as much as humanely possible so, in my humble opinion, these are a must-have right now. I ordered them in the “Scarlet Sonata and Ikat” print but they come in 9 different reversible prints so there’s a set for literally everyone. I picked the Scarlet Sonata and Ikat print because I loved the red, white, and blue colors for the upcoming summer season but I shared my other 2 favorites below. These would make a really wonderful summer hostess gift or an easy Mother’s Day gift too!
A few other Tuckernuck Home items that my tablesetting imagination is caught up thinking about:
Reversible Wipeable Placemats (yes, the ones I just gushed over) in the “Cerulean Ikat” and “Caned Floral and Fresher Buds” colorways.
Tablecloth in “Bellflower Blooms,” “Caned Blooming Floral,” and “Scarlet Sonata”
Printed Napkins in “Rain Striped Bouquet”
White Eyelet Embroidered Napkins (these look so sweet and even more special than they are)
Link Napkin Rings in every colorway
Scalloped Napkins in every color (particularly in “Dusty Blue” and “Sage” for right now)
Rattan Footed Bowl (LOVE these)
Are you imaginative creative juices flowing now with tablescape potential!?
what caught my kids
Homemade gummy bears! In an effort to cut down on some totally unnecessary sugar intake for my kids while simultaneously not cutting down on any of the fun of childhood, I decided we should make our own homemade gummy bears. In truth, this exercise has brought the fun - they think it is a riot to make their own gummy bears! I saw this super easy, gut-restoring, gelatin gummy recipe from Carlisle Bee make waves on social media and thought it looks so fun and easy! I also loved the sounds of these real fruit homemade gummies so we have been playing around with different recipes and fruits etc. - orange creamsicle gummies, strawberry gummies, tart cherry gummies, adrenal cocktail gummies, mixed berry gummies, whatever-your-heart-desires-gummies. It’s been fun and easy + gelatin is anti-inflammatory so you can use this as an opportunity to take something with negative health benefits (store bought gummies) and turn it into something with actual health benefits (homemade gummies). I'm not a regular mom, I'm a cool mom.
Here is what you need:
Silicone gummy molds with dinosaurs, hearts, and bears (this mold is also super cute for water bugs or this mold for gummy bear purests)
Vitamix (if your recipe calls for it)
Reusable Nut Milk Bag (if your recipe calls for it)
Thank you so very much for reading this week’s edition of The Catch-Up. I can’t tell you how grateful I am that you are here. Feel free to drop a comment below and we can chat if any of this strikes a chord with you. See you next Thursday with vol 11!
