What Lauren Weisberger Can’t Live Without

This is how it started: I got hooked on the Drunk Elephant marula oil, which is amazing, but like $80 an ounce even though the only ingredient is marula oil. Someone told me that if you search on Amazon for the cold-pressed, organic marula oil, it’s the same thing, so I did that and use it every single day. Now, I feel much better about it. What’s the difference? You know, I think it’s exactly the same. They each only have one ingredient! Unless there’s some cold-processing difference I’m not aware of. I use it as a moisturizer day and night on my face and also under my makeup to help it go on smoothly. Now, I have these giant bottles of marula oil for no money that I go through like crazy and don’t have to ration or feel guilty at all.

This is kind of crazy to be putting a $45 mascara on the list, but I’ve tried a couple of times to do the eyelash extensions, and I cannot stand them. They always felt so weird and uncomfortable, and I was always so aware of my ridiculously long, fake-looking eyelashes. I’m not sure of the appeal of them, and with most of the people I know who do them, I really just end up staring at their eyelash extensions. So this is the only mascara that’s ever made it look like I have long eyelashes. I swear by it. I’ve actually tried the stuff that makes your lashes grow, the Latisse, but I was not into the idea of changing my eye color, so I stopped.

I have a whole bunch of these, and I just feel like they’re bright and colorful and fun, and beyond that, just a little bit sexy. And whether or not you can get into a bikini post–two kids, I kind of feel like you shouldn’t — or I feel like I shouldn’t — so these are kind of my compromise because they’re low-cut and sexy, but still definitely a one-piece that doesn’t look like my mother’s.

My friend bought this for me, and I didn’t like it at first because I felt obligated to use it. I used to be a journaler when I had time pre-kids, and I loved keeping diaries for years and years, but now it’s all gone out the window, and the last thing I want to do is write anything down. This is a five-year journal — but the years can start whenever you’d like, so you don’t have to throw it out once 2018 is over — and the nice thing about it is that it has space only for one sentence per day, which is about as much as I can manage. So I can put in something one of the kids said, or a fun thing we did that day, and at the end of five years, it’s really fun to look back that on May 15 for the last five years, we have done this one thing. All with very minimal work. I’ve actually completed one and am on my second. It’s even a nice gift, completed or brand-new.

I am wearing them now. Of course, the new book is about Lululemon, so I’ve been spending a lot of time in Lululemon stores. I may be delusional and need a reality check, but these are Lululemon pants that are like regular pants. I’ve convinced myself that they can be worn in real situations, so I’ve worn them to meetings with Simon & Schuster and during my regular day-to-day. I can’t vouch for the fact that they look as good as I think they do, but I love them. They have the elastic waist and are cropped, and the material is kind of crêpey and silky and hangs better than they have any business hanging. They’re dressier, too, and definitely not leggings. I don’t wear a lot of real pants — I wear a lot of yoga pants and jeans, so these are kind of my bridge to real pants.

Heather Bauer, the nutritionist, turned me on to these almond-butter to-go packets that are exactly 90 calories. Now, there are like 50 of them in my purse. I put them on crackers or even lick them straight from the packet, which is a bit gross, but delicious. I’d so much rather do that than eat an apple or a cheese stick or some other gross diet snack.

The Instant Pot is not so unique, but I’m a convert. It makes me look like a semi-competent cook. I make a really amazing steel-cut oatmeal that I can throw in the night before so that it’s ready when everyone comes over. Or when I’ve forgotten dinner for the kids, I can throw in frozen chicken — how disgusting is that? — and it’s done in ten minutes. As far as a time-saving thing, it’s perfect. I don’t know how to use it as a slow cooker, which apparently you can do. I use it only as far as putting something in, pressing the button, and having it ready ten minutes later.

I feel a little guilty about this one, but I read exclusively on a Kindle. I absolutely love it — it’s so minuscule that it weighs nothing. I can sit or lie anywhere and read on it. It’s made it so that I almost never read real books anymore. I feel guilty. It’s so tiny that I keep it in my bag at all times, so anytime I’m waiting or traveling somewhere, I can read. It’s only marginally bigger than my phone, but it’s a lot better to read on — right now, it’s Meg Wolitzer’s new The Female Persuasion.

Everyone knows about these, but I really can’t live without them because I can’t write anywhere with noise. Coffee shops are a nightmare, and even when I’m in my home or office, if I can hear a murmur of a phone or a hint of music, I want to kill someone. I wear these at all times. I’ve never found a pair of comfortable earbuds, so I prefer the over-ear kind. I don’t actually listen to music — it’s mostly just for the noise-canceling. Sometimes, I can listen to classical music when I’m reading, but if I hear lyrics, it’s over.