Welcome to Perfectly Imperfect #107 👋

If you subscribed after any of our August guests, welcome! Perfectly Imperfect is a twice-weekly newsletter featuring good ol’ fashioned curated recommendations from real people and once a month we like to drop some hot recs of our own. Check out the archive for more and as always, join the Perfectly Imperfect Discord to keep the conversation going.

Without further ado

Tyler Bainbridge (instagram, letterboxd, last.fm)

🐊 🩴 Camo Crocs…actually…Camo in general

It all started with Miracle Selzter’s camouflage neon logo 5-panel hat, the best fitting cap I own, and just a few weeks later I was buying some Camo Crocs (s/o Walter Pearce) that’ve hardly left my feet. Super comfortable and look great when worked into slightly unconventional situations, like with pleated Dickies (see fit), or when worn super casually, the way God intended.

🍅 🥪 Tomato Sandwiches

I simply cannot stop eating em! Just grab two slices of fluffy sourdough (untoasted or v lightly toasted imo), cover both slices with Mayo, stack some tomatoes (adding a lil salt + black pepper on each layer), and if ur feeling indulgent drizzle some high-quality olive oil on top, that’s it, now you’ve got yourself the perfect refreshing summer sandwich. Just be sure to make as many as you can while tomatoes are in season and always remember: the messier the better.

🎵 Kanye West - Say You Will Remix (Ft. Caroline Shaw)

Kanye album cycles always have me diving into his treasure trove of unreleased songs, nearly forgotten singles, and live performances. Say You Will (Ft. Caroline Shaw) is one of those loosies that somehow slipped under the radar for me back when it dropped in 2015, but wow— this is a real gem. Such a beautiful & epic reimagination of an already great track.

🍶 Veladora Mezcal Cups

Pouring Mezcal neat into a rocks glass feels wrong and sipping a spirit out of a shot glass is kinda depressing. That’s where these guys come in, perfect vessel for enjoying some Mezcal.

😎 KD's X Sunglasses

🚨🚨🚨🚨 Stolen rec alert!! 🚨🚨🚨🚨 Shyan from Shy’s burgers said he might rec these for his PI feature, but he didn’t! So they’re still fair game! I’ve been rocking the rose tinted ones myself, but KD's $12 Polarized Motorcycle Sunglasses come in all sorts of frame + lens combos. If you’re indecisive they even sell them by the dozen. Truly doesn’t get much better than this.

🍴Sabre Flatware

My mom gave me a random assortment of dollar store flatware when I first moved out and I’ve been riding with those every since. It wasn’t until recently that I splurged a bit and bought some (aka 2 green & 2 white) nice looking flatware for my gf & I, and I gotta say, it feels good! Worth it.

🎵 The Radio Dept. - Where Damage Isn’t Already Done (2003)

I’ll always have a soft spot for The Radio Dept. from the time teenage Tyler stumbled upon Heaven’s on Fire after googling “cool indie music”. Fast forward 10 years and I’m very pleased to announce that a lot of their stuff has aged really well, especially the track Where Damage Isn’t Already Done off their 2003 album Lesser Matters. Noisey dream-pop greatness.

📺 Painting with John (HBO)

Real PI-heads might remember that I’ve already talked about Fishing with John on the sletter’, so I’m sorry for treading similar ground, but I just gotta tell you guys about Painting with John. I put off watching this for a long time because I was skeptical John could capture that same weird energy that made his 1991 show so captivating & fun yet he really does stick the landing here with some hilarious storytelling and odd moments. I really enjoyed it.

Alex Cushing (instagram, twitter, last.fm, goodreads)

📺 📕 Black Books

This early 2000’s sitcom is a diamond in the rough. I don’t know how I had never heard of it before, but I’m eternally grateful to have uncovered it in the depths of google, while on the search for my next show. It’s a short-lived dark comedy with only 3 seasons, about a book store owner (Bernard) who doesn’t feel like dealing with the troubles of owning a book store (having customers, restocking books, selling anything, accounting), his friend Fran who owns a knick-knack shop next door, and Manny, who’s just kind of out of left field. Each episode is a quick fun watch, the characters are great, the plot’s a little ridiculous, and the acting is also top tier.

📹 YouTube Premium

That’s right, I’m dumping more money into Google’s deep pockets, but at least less than I could be — I got YouTube premium back when it was more affordable and branded YouTube “Red”, so I’m grandfathered in at the old rate (I would probably be willing to cough up the 15/month if I wasn’t though…). There’s pure joy to be had in the freedom to leave the YouTube app while still listening to a video, or download a video to my phone to watch later, all without ads. Aside from music streaming, this is probably my most used monthly “service”.

👒 Emily Levine

If you know me, you know I’m all in on headwear. I just think there’s so many interesting options that could and should be adopted more frequently. As you’ve likely seen in several PI guest recs, one of the budding trends in headwear is crochet hats. What’s especially great about these particular ones is the price is fantastic for the quality, so naturally, I had to get one for each family member. Not only are they a great and really affordable, but the designs are sweet: perfect color blends, browns and tans as well as bright summer combos, in swirling and checked patterns. 

🎵 🎤 Creation Never Sleeps, Creation Never Dies: The Willie Dunn Anthology - Willie Dunn

Willie Dunn is a Canadian folk/country artist who made his name performing reflections on the history of indigenous life in early Canada, and if you take the time to look into the background of some of these songs, he really touches on some heavy stuff. This anthology is a collection of some of his best work exploring these topics. Beyond the meaning, which is often thoughtful and honestly beautiful, the music itself is top tier. His deep voice sounds timeless as he tells tales over classic finger-pluckin’ acoustic folk. 

📐📕 The Architectural Review

I’ve had a growing interest in “premium magazines”, I love reading something in magazine format that’s put together with a little extra care,  bound with a solid spine, and a more substantial paper stock. My most recent foray into premium mags is the architectural review - which explores different architects (dead or alive) and their work, with building plans, final products, reflections, collages, and so much more. It’s a joy to flip through, both to appreciate the art of the architecture itself as well as the layout and design of the zine.

📺 🌴 Bachelor In Paradise

The best reality TV show is back baby, kick back and watch the drama on the beach unfold.

Serey Morm (instagram, twitter, vsco)

👖 Gramicci G-Pants

Summer on the east coast has been scorchin' and I haven't really threw on pants, but when I do, my go to has been Gramicci's classic G-Pants. I've owned a black pair for about 5+ years now and they basically last forever. I keep going back to them because they're timeless and it's really the all-occasion pants. It's that pair of pants you kinda throw on you don't know if you're just gonna be chillin' or goin' on a spontaneous hike.

💆 Prose Custom Hair Care

It has been one and a half years since I've switched from my regular old head & shoulders shampoo to Prose. Prose let's you select goals for your hair, and custom scents that are updated every season. I've always had extremely oily hair which instantly causes my hair to be super flat, so my goal was to control oil for better volume. The custom formula they've concocted for me did exactly that. Their custom scents are also a huge plus. I've gone from Jasmine to smokier Bergamot, and it's super nice to always switch it up without actually changing the formula.

🥒 Cucumbers

It all started with a single cocktail I got at a local restaurant a few months ago. How come no one told me cucumbers can be so refreshing? Ever since June, I don't think I've taken a single wrong turn with cucumber, seriously. Homemade pickles? 10/10 Cucumber Cooler Cocktail? 10/10. Adding it to my salads? Also can't go wrong there. My fruit pick of this summer is officially cucumber.

🧴 Blueland + Automatic Soap Dispenser

Okay, I think Blueland has basically made itself onto everyone's feed via ads at this point. I've basically ignored it because my family has had bad experiences with their dispensers. So recently my sister told me that she swapped out the containers for an automatic dispenser, and I can attest that it is a life changer. The Blueland soaps are basically mentos sized pills that you create foaming soap with, so it's super easy to store. This is probably the greatest duo ever.

🪑 Cliq Chair

If you're lookin' for a reliable, portable chair that fits in your tote, this is it. Its size is advertised as water bottled sized, but I gotta admit, it's slightly bigger, but don't worry, the chair itself opens up into a huge chair that is really comfy. And trust me and the chair, you can lean back without worrying about it tumblin' over.

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