5 Things People Always Ask Me About (And Why I’m Obsessed)
Five things people stop me about in real life — my hair, my lips, my pans, my Spanx, and my garden beds. Here they are, with links, so you don't have to hunt them down yourself.
I get asked about these things constantly. In real life, on Instagram, in my DMs. So here they are — with links — because I'm done answering one at a time.
01. The Shark SmoothStyle Heated Comb + Blow Dryer Brush
The tool behind the blowout. Worth every penny.
I have been asked about my hair more times than I can count. The honest answer used to be "my colorist is a genius" — and she is — but the other half of the answer is this tool.
It's a heated comb and blow dryer brush in one. No more holding a round brush in one hand and a blow dryer in the other while slowly losing feeling in both arms and sweating through my shirt. One tool. One pass. Salon blowout.
But here's the part I love most: I wash my hair once a week. This keeps it looking fresh on day three, day four, and honestly day five if I'm being real. A few passes and it smooths, flips, or softly waves depending on what I need that day.
$119.85 on Amazon — currently 20% off. Comes with a carrying case. Worth every penny.
02. Spanx Clothing (Yes, the actual clothing, not just the shapewear)
I'm a Spanx partner because I love them so much! All opinions are my own. And they’re all glowing.
Most people know Spanx for the shapewear. I'm here to talk about the clothing line.
I get stopped regularly and asked about my jeans. My shorts. My tracksuits. The answer is almost always the same: Spanx.
Are they a little pricey? Yes. Are they worth it? Also yes. Here's why: they know how to clothe a woman's body. They smooth the right things, they're long enough if you're tall, and they actually last. I've had pieces for years that still look brand new.
The jeans especially. I've had people tell me they look expensive. They do. Because they are. But you wear them constantly so the cost per wear ends up being embarrassingly reasonable.
If you've only ever tried their shapewear, go look at the clothing line. You can thank me later.
Spanx jeans are good enough to wear on TV! I wear them all the time on tour dates. This was a live performance on Channel 4.
I live in the Spanx Air Essentials separates. This color is my favorite around the holidays.
Enjoying this? I wrote a letter I wish someone had sent me at 35 — plus a playlist to go with it. Both are yours, free. Grab them here.
03. Rosebud Salve
Not lip gloss. I promise. Just this little tube doing all the work.
I have been stopped and asked what lip gloss I'm wearing more times than I can count. The answer is always the same: it's not lip gloss. It's this.
Rosebud Salve is a lip moisturizer that pulls double duty as the softest, most natural-looking lip stain you've ever seen. No gloss, no sticky, no "I just applied something" feeling. Just hydrated lips with a hint of color that looks like you’re glowing from within.
I buy the three pack every time. One in my purse. One in my car. One on my nightstand. Because I hate needing it and not having it within reach.
It's on Amazon. It's inexpensive. It's one of those things you'll wonder how you lived without.
Shop Rosebud Salve on Amazon →
04. Our Place Always Pan & Perfect Pot Set
Christmas gift. Used every single day since. The pot with the strainer lid changed my life a little.
I got these pans as a Christmas gift and I cook with them every single day. Every. Single. Day.
Last night I toasted pine nuts in one while boiling pasta in the other. That's a Tuesday.
The pot is the thing I can't stop talking about. It comes with a lid that has a steam vent on one side and a strainer on the other. So you can drain your pasta without hunting for a colander. It has a built-in spoon rest on the handle. It's nonstick. And it is light as a feather. You're not getting a weightlifting workout just moving dinner from the stove to the table.
Listen, I love a good heirloom pan for my favorite family recipes. But for everyday cooking — the weeknight pastas, the quick sautés, the pine nuts you're toasting at 6pm because you promised your family pesto — this is what I reach for every time.
They come in the most beautiful colors too. Mine is Spice and I'm not sorry about it.
05. Raised Garden Beds
Three weeks in. Everything looks intentional. The tomatoes are lying.
I started my first vegetable garden this spring and I built it around these cedar raised beds. They are beautiful. Like, genuinely beautiful. My husband wants to know why I'm outside at 7am talking to my tomatoes. Valid question.
I have two of them set up alongside a galvanized stock tank and one very ambitious horseradish plant that won't be ready until fall. Together they hold my lettuce, cucumbers, tomatoes, herbs, and marigolds. The beds are sturdy, well-built, and elevated enough that you're not breaking your back every time you need to water or weed.
If you've been thinking about starting a garden and just need a reason to commit, well, this is your reason.
Fair warning though: I am three weeks in and my tomatoes are already staging a protest. Read the full tomato story is over here if you want to feel better about your own garden struggles.
Shop the Raised Garden Beds on Amazon →
These are the things that genuinely make my daily life better. Not sponsored, not gifted — just five things I actually use and get asked about constantly. If you try any of them, come back and tell me what you think.
And if you have something I absolutely need to know about, I'm listening.
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Everything I actually use. Everything I actually get asked about. Links to all of it in one place.
Five things I get asked about constantly. All of them worth every penny.
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My Tomato Leaves Are Yellowing — Here's What I'm Trying (And What You Should Too)
My tomato leaves are yellowing and falling off in my hand. I'm a first-time gardener in Nashville and I'm figuring it out in real time — here's what's wrong and what I'm trying to fix it.
Three weeks in. Most everything looks fine. The tomatoes and I are having a disagreement.
I planted my first vegetable garden about a month ago. Everything was going great until it wasn't.
Two of my tomato plants started developing yellow leaves about a week in. I did what any reasonable person does — I ignored it for a few days hoping it would resolve itself. It did not. So this morning I went out to investigate, clipped the yellow leaves off, and about half of them just fell off in my hand before I even touched them. Which is either completely normal or deeply alarming. I genuinely don't know which.
Here's what I do know: I'm a first-time vegetable gardener in Nashville, it's May, and my tomatoes are struggling. So I did what I always do when I don't have the answer: I Dr. Googled. Here's what I found.
Why Tomato Leaves Turn Yellow: The Most Common Culprits
There are actually several reasons tomato leaves yellow, and not all of them are catastrophic. Here's what I'm working through:
1. Overwatering (or inconsistent watering) This is the one I suspect most because, well, it’s me watering them. Even when the soil feels dry on top, the roots can still be sitting in too much moisture underneath. Yellowing lower leaves that fall off easily (like mine did) is a classic sign of overwatering stress. I'm backing off the water and letting the soil dry out more completely between waterings.
2. Not enough sun My tomatoes get direct sun from about 10 AM to 2 PM, then shade the rest of the afternoon. That's technically enough (tomatoes need 6-8 hours), but in Nashville's heat, I'm wondering if the combination of intense midday sun followed by cool shade is creating stress on the plant. Something to watch.
Exhibit A. Those yellow leaves fell off in my hand this morning. We're figuring it out.
3. Pests — specifically spider mites I checked the undersides of the leaves this morning for spider mites — tiny bugs, webbing, or small spots. I didn't find anything obvious, but spider mites are small enough to miss, so I'm keeping an eye on it. If you're seeing yellowing plus tiny dots or a dusty look on the leaves, that's worth watching more closely.
4. Nutrient deficiency Yellow leaves can also signal that your plant needs more nitrogen or magnesium. If the yellowing is happening mostly on older, lower leaves, that's often a nutrient issue rather than a watering one. I'm considering adding a balanced tomato fertilizer this week to rule this out.
5. Natural leaf drop Apparently, some yellowing and leaf drop on the lower leaves is completely normal, especially as the plant grows and focuses energy upward. If it's only the bottom leaves and the rest of the plant looks healthy, it might just be the plant doing what plants do.
What I'm Actually Doing About It
Here's my plan, and what you might want to try if your tomatoes look like mine:
First, I clipped all the yellow leaves off today. “Clipped” is a loose term. More like, they effortlessly fell off in my hand as soon as I touched them. Either way, the yellow leaves are gone. This stops the plant from wasting energy trying to save leaves that are already gone.
Second, I'm adjusting my watering. Less frequent, deeper watering rather than a little every day. I want the roots to reach down for moisture, not stay shallow.
Third, I'm adding tomato fertilizer this week to rule out nutrient deficiency.
Fourth, I'm checking for pests every few days — undersides of leaves, any webbing, any unusual spots.
And fifth, I'm watching and waiting. Which is the part of gardening I'm horrible at.
Enjoying this? I wrote a letter I wish someone had sent me at 35 — plus a playlist to go with it. Both are yours, free. Grab them here.
The Honest Update
I don't have this figured out yet. That's the truth. I'm three weeks into my first vegetable garden and I'm troubleshooting in real time, just like you might be.
I'll be back in six weeks with a full update — what worked, what didn't, and whether these tomatoes actually made it to summer. Come back and find out with me.
In the meantime, my cucumbers are thriving, my herbs are doing exactly what they're supposed to, my beautiful cedar raised beds are saving my back, and somewhere in a very large pot, horseradish is establishing itself for the fall. So it's not all bad news out there.
he cucumbers are thriving and very smug about it.
Marigolds and lavender doing their job as pest control. At least someone is on task.
This is the horseradish. Won't be ready until fall. I'm already excited. That's a whole other story.
[STAY TUNED — Part 2 coming in six weeks]
What have you tried that’s worked for your yellow tomato plants? Drop me a comment below and give me any tips! I’m learning right alongside you.
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