If you’re like us, you’ve probably wondered what famous people add to their carts. Not the JAR brooch and Louis XV chair but the hair spray and the electric toothbrush. We asked actress Ayo Edebiri — who co-stars in the Hulu show The Bear — about her fancy socks, notebook for writing jokes, and kitchen knife that makes her feel like a real-life chef.
Every day of my life I go around town like I’m supposed to — buying oat milk, ruining a barista’s day with another oat-milk order. But once every few months, I’m like, Wait, why am I doing this? I can absolutely process dairy and I actually love it. So I buy a family-size box of Frosted Flakes and I have it with whole milk. When it comes to cereal, I’m a milk purist. It is the perfect cereal. It never gets too soggy too soon and it leaves the best post-cereal milk. I eat it for basically every meal until the box is done, and that’s my truth.
I got this sunscreen when I was traveling and ran out of my old one. And now, 20 years later, here we are, more in love than ever. I use it every day on my face and body. It never feels too heavy or oily. And it doesn’t leave me white-cast or blue, which I love! Brown-skinned people, do you see this? Do you read this? Hello.
The perfect pen. That’s all there is to be said. Except, actually, I will say this: Muji, please bring back the 0.25 pen. I think about it every day of my life. I had a pack of ten that I bought in bulk on eBay, and I just ran my last one. It’s devastating.
This stuff is beautiful and makes my skin feel moisturized. Their whole line is bomb, but this exfoliator specifically helps me get rid of all my little strawberry bumps after a couple of washes. It felt incredible the first time I bought it because it’s the type of thing a wealthy woman in a Nancy Meyers movie would own. Sometimes you just have to make yourself feel like a wealthy white woman with a seated kitchen island and Keanu Reeves besotted over you.
I was debating including this. Frankly, I really want to gatekeep these socks, but it’s not the humane thing to do. People should experience the feelings of these socks. They’re a thick, terry-cloth material. These also make you feel like a rich white lady, but times infinity. You have a clawfoot tub. You have a plush robe. You’ve got the candles lit. You’ve got a writer calling you and an architect emailing you. You’ve got these socks.
I think I’m the most dehydrated person I know. I’m always a little bit dry. I have one of these, and it does help just with the sense of guilt. I got really proud on the set of The Bear because I got to a point where I would finish one at the end of the day. Then Chris Storer, the creator and director, was like, “You should be drinking like two or three of these a day.” That really rocked me. It didn’t break my spirit though. Life is a journey of growth. I will get there one day.
I use this diary for planning and scrapbooking random things I collect throughout the day. I have absolutely zero memory. I couldn’t keep my head on by myself if I had screws, but this planner rocks. It’s got monthly, weekly, and daily sections that you can use and organize as you see fit. Plus there’s pages with grids, which I think is the superior layout to write with. It makes me feel like a scientist, even if I’m writing things as simple as “Do laundry” and “Seriously, please do laundry.”
Lauren Ashley Smith was one of my first bosses and gave these to us as a wrap present when I was working on The Rundown with Robin Thede. Now I don’t go anywhere without it. I love carrying it around and feeling like a moody little artist, while I write jokes about absolutely nothing of consequence.
Jeremy and I had to attend kitchen training before the pilot and while shooting some of the first episodes of The Bear. We went to the Institute of Culinary Education in Pasadena and then worked in different restaurants in New York and Chicago. This isn’t the knife I used in the show, but Chris Storer, the creator, and Cooper Wehde, a producer, gifted this knife to me before my training. I love it so much. It’s well made and fits really beautifully in my hand and makes me feel like a cool, actual chef, which I am not. I am an actor. But that’s okay. It’s good to dream.
I bought this in a bookstore because I’m an intellectual. Really though, I just liked the cover. Something about it felt very immediate and then it turned out to be a very immediate read. I’m so glad I bought it. It’s urgent and comforting at the same time. It’s a beautiful case for radical thought in the face of feelings of hopelessness. There’s one million things that seem wrong every day. While it can feel overwhelming, this showed me there are people who have been doing the work for so long are there to guide us and things we can do about it, like joining local groups, or if you’re not in a position to spend your time, you can spend your coin.
I found out about Sister Song through Poppy Liu, who’s on the show Hacks. Reproductive rights are human rights, and I wanted to shine a light on this organization. It’s really empowering to see an organization that’s prioritizing the reproductive rights of women of color and also has a lean toward education. I set up a recurring monthly donation with them. There are so many other wonderful organizations to donate to, like National Network of Abortion Funds or National Bail Fund Network or Sunrise Movement, but there are also local orgs for whatever cause is close to your heart, probably in your own backyard, that you could donate to and even work with. Sorry to be out of anything particularly witty to say on this one. It’s the whole state-of-the-country thing.
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