Issue #253: just some really good blankets 🛏️

Friday edition: Our best recommendations for your downtime.
Issue #253 ~ January 14, 2022

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Editor's Note

It’s cold! Let’s just talk about some really good blankets.

Read on for cozy recs from GNI readers.

by Alisha Ramos, Founder at GNI

Good morning, and happy Friday!

Here in D.C. it’s been gray, snowy, and just plain freezing. That, in combination with the fact that we’re mostly staying indoors and isolating during this Covid surge, means that 🔥 amping up the cozy factor 🔥 this season has been critical.

Last week, we asked you for your favorite blankets and you delivered. I was delighted to find so. many. emails. in the inbox with some rather impassioned responses. If there’s one thing I can appreciate after years of writing this newsletter, it’s a strong opinion about the best fleece, sherpa, mohair, and chenille layers out there.

So! Without further ado, please scroll down to enjoy the fruits of our collective labor in search of warmth and comfort this season. Which is all we can really ask for right now.

Until next week,

Alisha

weekly picks

this week's picks and reads were curated by Alisha Ramos

Listening for pure entertainment. My friends Kelsey and Alex collaborated on a funny new podcast called Normal Gossip. The first ep is about “a messy grad school cohort" who "go on a camping trip with a dog named Pancake.” It’s exactly what we all need right now.

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Shuffling around the house. My MIL gifted me with these “gripper slippers” from Bombas—they’ve been practically glued to my feet while working from home. So toasty.

Keeping myself busy. I’ve been searching for brain-nourishing things to do this winter that are not doomscrolling, so I’ve started attending virtual bookstore events from indie shops around the country. I enjoyed a recent Books Are Magic chat with Jean Chen Ho, author of the book Fiona & Jane and am looking forward to Anna Malaika Tubbs and Traci Thomas discussing The Three Mothers with Loyalty Books.
Appreciating my saves. A new habit I’m practicing this year is making it a point to go back and revisit my Kindle highlights and notes after I finish a book. I’ve found a lot of joy in pausing to revisit what sentences stopped me in my tracks before zooming onward to my next book.

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Organizing the inbox. Recently, I owe the slightly more calm state of my brain to a tool I’m using called Mailman. It batches up emails and delivers them at times that you set in advance. No more compulsively checking my inbox and getting distracted. (Disclaimer: this is my personal referral link.)

Finding some digital calm. I recently reorganized my phone screen to this more calming version. My goal was to remove any app that’s newsy, notifications-heavy, or social media. To do this on an iPhone, long-press on your home screen to group apps together, add your calming widgets, and remove unnecessary apps from cluttering the home screen. Ahhhh, serenity.

the best blankets, according to our readers

Snuggle up! (Image courtesy of reader Katie G.)

Thanks for sending in your recommendations! Time to find that perfect spot on the couch…

The blankets that were mentioned over and over again:

The Costco Pendleton Blanket. If I had a Costco membership, I would definitely buy this $30 blanket that looks oh-so-cozy. Pendleton is usually in the triple digits! It’s also huge: “Queen size for the win! It makes all other blankets feel small,” says reader Allison F.

The Chappywrap. A lot of you recommended this brand! I actually have two Chappywraps (disclaimer: both were gifted to me) and love them—their medium weight feels secure, and the texture is best described as smooth and soft, rather than bulky or suffocatingly poofy. By the way, my friend Grace just launched her collab with them if you’re looking for cheerful and happy-colored throws.

This Eddie Bauer oversized down throw. This was another popular rec. It feels like a classic, safe choice. It’s the stable one you rely on night after night. The sensible one you can gift to your most practical friend whose comfy shoe collection you admire. Also, it’s on sale right now.

The Sophie Faux Fur Blanket from Anthro (see photo below, courtesy of reader Eliza L.). This one appears to have a dedicated following because everyone who emailed about it specifically called it “the Sophie faux fur blanket from Anthro.” It goes on sale a lot, according to readers. "I have purchased three of them. 🙈" says reader Meghan S. The runner-up was this Pottery Barn faux fur blanket.

The Barefoot Dreams blanket. If I had a dollar for every Barefoot recommendation…. “They're worth the hype, my nieces and dogs and cat love them as much as I do,” says reader Leigh J. It’s also on sale!

A dupe for the above blanket. "I bought this blanket because TikTok said it was a dupe for the Barefoot Dreams blanket,” says reader Monica K. “It shed a little when I first got it, but now it's the perfect winter blanket. It's essentially the only one I use now, and it lives on my couch so I can stay cozied up.”

The Unhide Blanket. This new-to-me brand kept coming up as a recommendation. They sell a blanket called “Marshmallow”; clearly someone in their brand and marketing department is doing something right.
The Rumpl blanket. These weatherproof, outdoor-friendly blankets deserve an honorable mention because they just look really cool! Plus, you can become a burrito like reader Alexa E.: “One of my best friends got me this Rumpl Original Puffy blanket for Christmas in 2020. I loved it immediately but then the Texas Snowpocalypse hit in February of 2021 and it became my saving grace—I spent the entire week wrapped in it like a burrito. It kept me warm, is light and packs up small, and best of all it can be worn like a cape! I'm sitting with it wrapped around me right now as we head into a chilly weekend here in Austin.”

Image courtesy of Tuesday Bassen

A few more blanket options, for extra credit and to make sure we…cover everything:

A couple o’ fancy (read: pricey and beautiful) options that we’re dreaming about are: this Fabrek quilt (Mary Anne), these painterly mohair blankets (Megan), and this soft and textured throw by Morrow Goods (Alisha).

“My MIL bought me this for my birthday this past fall and it immediately became another limb for me during my first trimester of pregnancy. I napped in it, I (constantly) felt ‘blah’ in it, I played hide-and-seek with my toddler in it. Bonus: It washes easily and doesn't shed lint!” - Carey, GNI team
Not a blanket person? First of all, are you reading the right newsletter? Kidding! :) Second of all, perhaps you’d like a wearable blanket instead? Reader Gina G. recommends this from LL Bean.

Shockingly, the ubiquitous weighted blanket did not make an appearance in most of your recommendations. But in case you’d like to bury yourself in a 20-pound blanket, the Bearaby seems like a solid option. One reader, Alexis F., even bought two: “one for the bed” and another “kids' napper as a couch blanket.”
Finally, for those of you looking to transport back into the 19th century and cosplay some Dickinson with me (true fans know what I’m talking about), you could quilt your own blanket, like it sounds like several of our readers have done:

Image courtesy of Tina C.

Image courtesy of Courtney C., who recommends Lo & Behold Stitchery.

weekly reads

I appreciated this newsletter on how to reduce food waste in your home, “the low-hanging fruit of climate solutions.” My favorite tip is to start a “food waste audit” to understand just how much food goes into the bin in our home. (30 Days of Climate Action)

I love following Zeba Blay on IG so I was delighted to read her beauty uniform. (Cup of Jo)

How do you break up with a friend? (Downtime Dilemma by GNI)
An educational and critical look into the industry of audiobooks and how trans authors and voices are often left behind with smaller advances and less critical attention. (Catapult)

Given the recent cold snap, I have the intense urge to lovingly wrap my freezing head in a fuzzy wool balaclava. Here’s how to knit your own. (Amateur Hours)

Any Ted Chiang fans out there? The title of this piece from 2020 is really something in and of itself: Anxiety Is the Dizziness of Freedom. (OneZero on Medium)
I’m guilty of lapping up daily routine videos on TikTok like they’re a soothing sip of tea. Here’s what they actually show us. (The New York Times)

take action and take care

Have extra or unused blankets at home? Consider donating them to a homeless shelter or animal shelter near you or taking it to a local textile recycler.

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reader ❤️ from our inbox...

“I discovered you guys in 2021, and when I say yours is an email I look forward to every week, I mean it. Friday is my favorite day for lots of reasons, but GNI makes it that much better. I can’t tell you how many tiny tidbits I’ve scattered into my life because of your letters.” —Susan W.

Issue #253: just some really good blankets 🛏️

Editor's Note

It’s cold! Let’s just talk about some really good blankets.

Read on for cozy recs from GNI readers.

by Alisha Ramos, Founder at GNI

weekly picks

this week's picks and reads were curated by Alisha Ramos

the best blankets, according to our readers

weekly reads

take action and take care

Share GNI with a friend.

reader ❤️ from our inbox...

“I discovered you guys in 2021, and when I say yours is an email I look forward to every week, I mean it. Friday is my favorite day for lots of reasons, but GNI makes it that much better. I can’t tell you how many tiny tidbits I’ve scattered into my life because of your letters.” —Susan W.

Older messages

how to break up with a friend 🙅‍♀️

Issue #252: base layers, bold hairstyles, making room for change 💫

how to start an exercise routine that sticks 🤾‍♀️

Issue #251: good books, comfort food, and new rituals 📚

how to get out of a reading rut 📚

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