November 12, 2024

Photo: Fanny Singer

When contributor (and The Green Spoon co-author) Fanny Singer bought a house with her husband, a major selling point was the tiny cabin in the back that made for the perfect office and occasional guest accommodation. Thing is, she wanted the space to be more office than bedroom. “Thus began my agonizing, six-odd-month search for a sleeper sofa I could endure looking at all day while working but that could also be a serviceable bed,” she explains. 

Those six months were filled with infinite late-night Googling, polling IG followers, and in-store shopping disappointment (“The idea that you might want to, you know, test the thing out seemed anathema to brands”) — in fact, the whole thing was so bamboozling that when she found the “one,” the browser window “stayed open for a month” before she hit “check out.”

Also on the site: Contributor Laura Fenton asked fellow New Yorkers — who live small like she does — about their small-space essentials; four aggressive moisturizers told us about their winter routines; and here are the expensive toys that are actually worth it.

SALE

ICYMI

Amelia Jerden loves a white-elephant exchange, but she’s realized just how many of those gifts ultimately end up in a junk drawer or donation box — or, worse, the trash. Finding something that is fun and non-junky (but still thoughtful) is “a tough balance to strike,” but this list is full of really delightful things, like this soap. (Also consider this ever-useful bucket o’ salt.)