Cool people like cool things, which is why we asked cool person Emma Orlow to come on Perfectly Imperfect & redistribute her good taste.

Emma Orlow is a Brooklyn-based reporter at Eater New York covering the restaurant industry— you can send her tips here! You can also find her words in The New York Times, New York Magazine's Grub Street, Bon Appétit, Vogue, and more. She’s written about everything from going nighttime apple picking on a Brooklyn highway to a new Palestinian restaurant that opened earlier this month. In addition to her writing, Emma’s Instagram is a great source for style, food recs, interior design inspo. Emma has great taste and lucky for us, she’s here to tell us what she’s been into.

Without further ado

Emma Orlow (instagram, website)

🏡 Tiny Doll House

I don’t care how old I get, I will always be obsessed with dollhouse miniatures. They’re also a very practical thing to collect if you live in a cramped New York City apartment. One of the few, cool places on the UES is this store that’s been around for thirty years, that sells things like mini cheese balls, boba, a lava lamp, and teeny tiny orange Crocs. Relatedly, I am also fond of those trick fake food sculptures that look like milk spilled that you can get online. 

🐌 Snails

Years ago, one of my best friends Tyler (a fashion designer you should also check out), brought me home a stowaway snail she found at this plant shop she worked at at the time. Unfortunately, despite my best efforts as a pet mom, it escaped from its tank (rude...and trust issues-inducing!!!!). I’ve since left showing my love and respect for the slime balls to the tattoo of a snail under a disco ball I have on my arm and the framed needlepoint snail that hangs above my mantel.

💆‍♀️ Head scratcher 

One of the ways I self-soothe when I have a really bad migraine (they’ve plagued me my whole life) is I’ll whip one of these bad boys out. They double as a way that I love flirting with a crush by encouraging them to massage my scalp with these ;) 

🦷 Gap teeth 

Growing up, I was sometimes ashamed of my gap. Now I find it to be one of my sexiest qualities. I’m so thankful my parents never pressured me into getting braces (also thankful for the documentary Gap-Toothed Women (1987) that helped pave the way against whatever lingering stigma). I know I can’t  “recommend” you get gap teeth, because, obviously, you either have them or you don’t. But, there was a kid I went to middle school with who would put a paperclip in between their front teeth everyday to DIY their own gap. Anything is possible if you believe in yourself enough…

🥒 Pickle soup

Huge pickle fan over here. Just know that I am the kinda gal who will always ask you if you want your spear at a diner!!! I’m devastated that Brooklyn doesn’t have more options for Polish pickle soup. Karczma in Greenpoint is one of the rare spots that does it but there are some recipes online if you don’t live near there and want to give it a go on your own. As the temperature drops, I can’t recommend it enough — it’s the perfect balance of tart and creamy. Sometimes I dream of owning my own lunch counter with pickle soup and pickle backs on deck.

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Check out her writing on her website

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