But I do love a good beauty product!

I’m a creature of habit. When I find something I love, I stick with it. I don’t have a 12-step skincare routine; I wear pretty much the same makeup every day, and I’ve finally figured out a hair routine that works for me. I’m pretty low-maintenance when it comes to beauty, but I know what I like!

With the Sephora Sale happening, I figured I’d round up my tried-and-true favorites, plus a few things I’ve been eyeing. Because why not stock up on the good stuff when it’s on sale? And maybe knock a few gifts off your list…

And if you want to take a deeper dive into my routines, I’ve shared those here on Substack, too!

• My Hair Routine: What Finally Changed My Hair (After Years of Struggling With It)

• My Skincare Routine: Skincare Secrets at 37: What I Wish I Knew Sooner

• My Everyday Makeup: My Five-Minute Morning Makeup Routine

Depending on your Beauty Insider status at Sephora, you can save up to 20% on eligible products with code ALLONSALE. The sale ends November 9, so now’s the time to stock up on your favorites (or try something new!).

Shop All My Beauty Favorites

Makeup Favorites

• Cream Eyeshadow Duo: Okay, I finally retired my beloved NAKED eyeshadow palette (a true end of an era!) and switched to cream shadows. Why didn’t I do this sooner?! They’re so easy to swipe on, blend beautifully, and hold up during my long days filming and being on camera.

• Lip Stain: I’ve been reaching for this in the color Rosette. It’s such a pretty everyday shade and gives my lips a little color without feeling like I’m wearing a ton of makeup.

• Lipstick & Liner Duo: You know that perfect “your lips but better” color? That’s what this duo is all about. Easy, pretty, and perfect for everyday wear.

• Setting Spray Duo: A good setting spray is a must for my on-camera days, and I love this one. This set is a great value because you get the full-size bottle plus a mini for travel.

• Blending Makeup Brush: I’m not someone who owns a million makeup brushes. I have a few good ones, and this is one I reach for constantly. The quality is fantastic and it makes blending a breeze.

• Lash & Brow Serum Duo: I’ve been loving this prostaglandin-free lash serum and it works so well! I don’t need much help in the brow department (ha!), but if you do, I would def try this.

• Tubing Mascara Duo: I’ve become a tubing mascara convert! This is one of my favorite brands. Doesn’t clump, gives me sky-high lashes, and comes off easily with water.

• Mini Lip Balm Set: These would be so cute to split up for stocking stuffers, teacher gifts, or little extras for friends. Or just keep them all for yourself. No judgment here!

Skincare Favorites

• Retinol Hand Cream: Finn and I both keep these on our nightstands and use them before bed. I love that they’re refillable, and the packaging is pretty enough to leave out. Functional AND cute? Sign me up.

• Gentle Face Cleanser: I’m pretty locked into the skincare products I like, but I do test out various cleansers. I recently started using this cleanser and have really been enjoying it. It feels so refreshing, smells amazing, and leaves my skin feeling clean.

• Barrier Repair Cream: I’ve learned how important it is to maintain your skin barrier to prevent dryness, irritation, and more. This rich cream feels incredibly luxe on my skin.

• Resurfacing Glow Mask:This is one of those products I reach for when my skin needs a little extra love. It’s a great pick-me-up when I want my skin looking extra glowy.

• Body Care Set: You already know how much I love Nécessaire’s eucalyptus scent! It’s so fresh and spa-like. This kit includes some of their best body products, and I think it would make a fabulous gift.

• Hydrating Face Trio: My skin gets SO dry during the winter, especially with all the travel. I’ve got lots of trips coming up in January for my book tour, and this little trio is definitely coming with me. Anything that helps keep my skin hydrated on airplanes and in hotel rooms is a win in my book!

Hair Favorites

• Silk Scrunchie Ornament: I am VERY loyal to my silk scrunchies. They’re pretty much the only hair ties I use because they’re gentle on my hair and help minimize breakage. This adorable ornament packaging is perfect for a stocking.

• Travel Dry Shampoo: A good dry shampoo is essential for stretching out my washes, and I love that this one doesn’t leave behind a powdery residue or tons of buildup. Plus, the little keychain is so cute.

• Travel Hair Trio: I’ve been using this leave-in detangler for what feels like forever. It’s one of those products I always have on hand, and it even works wonders on Rory’s super-fine hair. Love that this set comes with travel sizes.

• Luxe Hair Dryer: I’ve talked about this hair dryer before, and it’s still one of my favorite beauty tools. It’s definitely a splurge, so a sale is the perfect time to grab it if you’ve had your eye on one.

• Upgraded Curling Iron: You guys, my previous curling iron was from HIGH SCHOOL. I’m not even kidding. I finally upgraded this year, and wow, curling iron technology has come a long way! This is now my go-to for styling my hair.

And there you have it! My little beauty roundup from a gal who would much rather spend her morning at Home Depot than Sephora. Ha!

I really do believe that you don’t need a million products or a complicated routine. Just a handful of things you genuinely love and will actually use.

October. Wow, you are truly magnificent.

I know I touched on this in my Chicago guide, but if you’re ever planning a trip to this amazing city of mine…come in October. The mornings are crisp, the afternoons are sunny and warm, and the evenings are perfect for a cocktail by the fire. And the COLORS. Omg, the colors on the trees are just incredible.

I’ve always loved the quote, “I’m so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers.” And I couldn’t agree more. It’s hands down my favorite time of year.

And with all this gorgeous weather, I’ve been a busy girl!

At the end of last month, I headed to a lake house for a weekend with 24 other DIY influencers. Now, I consider myself a pretty social person, but I was actually really nervous going into this trip. I only knew two of the women, and it seemed like everyone else was already friends. Eek!

Luckily, all that worrying was for nothing. Everyone was absolutely delightful! It was so refreshing to spend time with like-minded women who understand this wild job of ours. We swapped work tips and tricks, shared stories, and just got to relax and enjoy each other’s company. I came home feeling so inspired.

Speaking of inspiring women, some of those same gals attended my very first book event at Even Made! I wrote all about that empowering day right here, so I won’t rehash the whole thing. But the TLDR? Sign yourself up for a DIY class. You’ll walk out feeling like a total badass. I promise.

And then, two weeks ago, I got even MORE girlfriend time. Can you tell I really love surrounding myself with amazing women?!

My college girlfriends and I try to plan an annual girls trip. Usually, everyone comes to Chicago, we stay at my mom’s house, and we plan all sorts of fun escapades around the city. But this year, we decided to take things up a notch and headed to The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs.

Wow. What a stunning property! But as beautiful as the hotel was, the company was even better.

We hiked, we ate delicious meals, we stayed up chatting, and we laughed until our stomachs hurt. There’s something so rejuvenating about spending time with people who have known you forever and love you unconditionally. No expectations, no pretending, just being together. I came home with a very full cup.

And listen, I know how hard it can be to make these trips happen. Between the four of us, we have big, busy jobs and TEN kids! Finding a weekend that works for everyone is practically an Olympic sport. But I’m telling you, this is your sign to book the trip. Make the time. It’s SO worth it.

And I promise I didn’t ditch my family for the entire month. LOL.

We squeezed in plenty of family fun, too! We headed to a Notre Dame game together, visited the pumpkin patch, dressed up for our neighborhood Halloween parade, and soaked up as much of this beautiful season as we could.

October, I love you. And you’re not even quite over yet!

Also, can we talk about how excited I am for Halloween on a Saturday this year?! Tomorrow’s going to be quite the day. Bring on the costumes, candy, and neighborhood fun!

I hope you’ve had a wonderful October, too. Here’s to soaking up every last bit of it!

CREATIVE

• I know it’s lame to talk about wipes, but I really do think these are so creative and aesthetic. A cute container for flushable (!!!) wipes. Yes, please.

• A blanket with a heated foot pocket? My feet are always freezing, and I’m very tempted…

• A genius way to hang Christmas lights.

ADVOCACY

I already voted weeks ago by mail (they make it soooo easy in Illinois). But I know not everyone has that same luxury. Please, please, please get out and vote next week. It is an absolute privilege to exercise your right to vote and so much is on the line right now!

• Share this reel with someone who says they “don’t do politics”.

• Share this reel with the one-issue voters in your life.

• Are we great yet??

• What if you see ICE at the polls?

• To the people who aren’t planning on voting…

STYLISH

• If you need a personalized holiday gift, I’ve got a fab idea for you. I just got this engraved compass necklace in gold with my kids’ initials, along with this tag initial necklace in silver. Stunning, high-quality, and personal…triple threat!

• I don’t own a lot of red, which can make it tricky when I want to look festive during the holidays. I added this sweater and this one to my wardrobe, so I’m prepped!

• The change in weather hasn’t been making my skin happy. This hydrating serum is a godsend. I wash my face in the morning, put this on, and then add my sunscreen. Oh, and the Sephora sale just started. I’ve heard amazing things about this clean skincare brand and this barrier cream for winter.

• I don’t want winter to come anytime soon, but when it does, I’m excited to wear these cute boots.

• I’ve added this scent booster to my sheet & towel loads (don’t worry, it’s paraben- and phthalate-free) and I feel so damn luxurious every time I go to bed!

ENTERTAINING

• So many people shared this reel with me, and I am in!!

• I started the HBO Max series Rooster on the plane to Colorado and loved it! I have two episodes left, so no spoilers.

• I am almost finished with this new parenting book, Notice & Do. It’s all about sharing the mental load with your family, and I cannot recommend it enough. So freakin’ good.

YUMMY

• I love a good hot take on champagne.

• These teriyaki chicken ramen bowls look legit.

• High-protein green dip. I love me some Good Culture cottage cheese.

This month’s Community Spotlight is extra special because I’m highlighting a college friend who’s doing big things.

Meet Rachel from Plainspeak

Rachel and I went to Notre Dame together and were on the pom squad (throwback!), and she recently launched a wellness company called Plainspeak with two other women. Their mission? Cut through the noise, fearmongering, and complicated wellness advice, and make self-care a whole lot easier.

Their first product, Strength Water, is a strawberry lemonade drink mix packed with protein, creatine, collagen, calcium, and vitamin D3. I’ve tried it, and it’s SO tasty! I love the idea of getting so many of the nutrients I want in one easy drink instead of juggling a million different supplements and a jampacked kitchen cabinet.

I’m so proud of Rachel and love seeing women supporting women. Go check out Plainspeak and give this new woman-owned business some love!

ICYMI: What You May Have Missed

• We added a playground to our backyard…and the installation was a BEAST!

• Take a peek inside this stunning Vienna apartment (my affiliate manager lives here!)

• Your September favorites are in!

• Two readers, two tricky living rooms. Here’s how I’d fix their layouts.

• Moldy shower caulk? Here’s how to get rid of it for good.

• Ask Casey: The pressure to keep renovating, how we divide the mental load, and what I’m really nervous about with the book launch.

• The secret to making pillows look just right on a king-size bed

• The biggest throw pillow mistakes I see (and how to fix them!)

• The textiles in my home I’d buy again in a heartbeat

• We need more places like this…seriously.

• Can you make an ugly wall vent practically disappear? I tried it!

• I rounded up the most realistic faux Christmas trees (some are SO good!)

• The moment I saw my book for the very first time!!! (Yes, I got emotional.)

• The easiest way to fix nail holes and make your walls look brand new

Catch up on my latest ABC7 segments:

• Power drills aren’t as intimidating as you think! Here’s how to use one.

• Caulk 101: The basics every homeowner should know

• The trick to filling nail holes for a flawless finish

Looking forward to tomorrow’s Halloween shenanigans. I’m dressing up as Elphaba with my little Dorothy, while Finn and Ellis will be Batman and Joker. Should be a fun day!

We’ve officially reached the end of Textiles Week!

I’ve spent the week talking about all those soft layers that can make such a big difference in how a room looks and feels. We’ve covered everything from how to style pillows on a king-size bed to my best throw pillow tricks, and today I thought I’d wrap things up with one big list of the textiles we actually use and love in our home.

Some of these have been favorites for years. Some I own multiples of. And a few are newer finds that have quickly earned a spot on the list.

BEDDING

Our bed needs to look good, but nothing about it can be too precious. I want comfortable, washable, easy-to-maintain layers that still make the whole room feel pulled together.

• Cooling Mattress Protector: You gotta protect your mattress! We use this cooling mattress protector from Leesa. It protects the mattress, adds a little extra cushion, and helps keep things cool and comfortable. And make sure you’re cleaning and rotating your mattress regularly…here’s how.

• Budget-Friendly Sheets: These are my go-to sheets if you want something affordable for everyday use. I use them as my backup sheets.

• Quince Bamboo Sheets: If you want to upgrade, these are fantastic. They’re incredibly soft and comfortable and have become one of my favorite bedding finds. My mom uses them too!

• Boll & Branch Waffle Blanket: We layer this onto our bed during the cooler months. It’s cozy without being too heavy, and I love the texture it adds to the bed.

• Quince Waffle Duvet Cover: One of my favorite things about this duvet cover is that the waffle texture hides wrinkles. Because I love a beautiful bed, but I am absolutely not ironing a duvet cover.

• Quince Duvet Insert: This is what we use inside our duvet cover.

• My Favorite Quilt: Funny enough, I originally bought this for Ellis’ bed and ended up stealing it for ours. It looks so good layered at the end of our bed. Sorry, Ellis!

• Beckham Bed Pillows: We use these on pretty much every bed in our house. They’re comfortable, affordable, and have held up really well for us.

• Pillow Protectors: Don’t skip these! A washable pillow protector means you don’t have to deep-clean your actual pillows nearly as often. And when it is time to wash them, this blog post walks you through how to clean them.

BATH

Good bath textiles are one of those small luxuries that make everyday life a little nicer.

• Quince Bath Sheets: If you’ve never used a bath sheet before, you’re going to wonder why your towel is ginormous. Then you’ll use it and never want a normal-sized towel again. We are officially a bath sheet household.

• Serena & Lily Shower Curtain: This is the one in the kids’ bathroom. It’s not extra long, which usually goes against my shower curtain rules, but it’s extra cute, so I let it slide.

• Extra-Long Shower Curtain: In general, this is the way I prefer to go. An extra-long curtain instantly makes the room feel taller and more polished, and you can always have it hemmed to the perfect length for your space. This is the one we’re using in our first-floor bathroom.

• The Company Store Bath Mat: A little pricier, but a really good one that has held up well for us.

• My New Bath Mat: I’m currently trying this one and really liking it so far. I’ll keep you posted on how it holds up!

• Weezie Makeup Towels: I own two and desperately need more because they’re constantly in the wash. They’re navy, say “MAKEUP” on them, and save my nice white towels from mascara and makeup stains. Genius.

• Weezie Robe: So plush and cozy, plus you can have it monogrammed. This would also make such a good gift.

• Kids’ Washcloths: We just got these a few months ago, and I love the size and softness. Plus, the striped colors are cute.

LIVING + A FEW EXTRAS

A little bit of a catch-all category, but these are the textiles we use constantly throughout the rest of our home.

• Barefoot Dreams Blankets: Hands down the most coveted blankets in our house. We have a bunch of them in different colors scattered around, and somehow everyone still wants the same one. They’re ridiculously soft and cozy.

• Throw Pillows: I don’t have one specific retailer I always use for throw pillows. Instead, I pay attention to size, texture, pattern, and whether the cover is removable. I put all of my best tips into this post if you want to give your couch pillows a little upgrade.

• Beckham Pillow Inserts: These are a great price point for inserts. My biggest tip is to buy an insert that’s 2–4 inches larger than your pillow cover to get that nice, full look.

• Quince Pillow Covers: They have some really beautiful options, including a lumbar pillow I’ve been eyeing for a bed. Some styles go in and out of stock quickly, so if you love one that’s sold out, get yourself on the waitlist.

• Our Dish Towels: We’re not going down the kitchen textiles rabbit hole today, but I couldn’t leave these off the list. These are the dish towels we use every day in our kitchen.

That’s a Wrap on Textiles Week!

I think textiles are one of the easiest ways to make your home feel warmer, more comfortable, and more finished without taking on a huge project.

They’re little things, but they’re also the things you touch and use every single day.

I hope you found a few new favorites this week and picked up some tricks you can use with the textiles you already own. And if there’s a textile in your home that you swear by, send it my way. I’m always looking for a good recommendation!

P.S. A few products to share before heading into the weekend…

• I think this is going to be the kid gift of the holiday season. My kids are obsessed. Use code DIYPLAYBOOK10 for $10 off.

• I have a big artificial Christmas tree roundup hitting the blog soon. During my research, I spotted this pre-lit porch tree. I love a good porch styling moment and the price is right on this one!

• I’ve raved about Biom wipes before (the packaging is just so cute!) and they just came out with flushable wipes! It has plastic-free fibers and breaks down like toilet paper once flushed. Plumber approved!

• We can only use the wet brush on my daughter’s fine hair for tangles. This 3-pack is 25% off this weekend and I’m scooping it up!

• Now that the weather has changed, I’ve been applying this product before my daily sunscreen. It keeps my skin hydrated all day, even with colder weather.

Picture a room full of women, power tools scattered across the tables, caulk guns in hand, and everyone talking and laughing over one another. Some are trying these skills for the very first time. Others have years of DIY experience. Everyone is getting their hands dirty, asking questions, and cheering each other on.

It was loud, a little messy, and SO much fun.

And I left thinking one thing: We need more places like this.

Last week, I brought together a group of Chicago influencers for a hands-on DIY workshop at Even Made, and I haven’t stopped thinking about it since.

I’ve been to plenty of influencer events over the years. They’re usually beautiful, with delicious food, gorgeous decorations, and lots of time to mingle. And I love those events!

But when I started planning a gathering to celebrate my upcoming book, I wanted to do something a little different. I didn’t want everyone to just show up, chat, take a few photos, and head home. I wanted them to actually do something.

More specifically, I wanted everyone to experience that little rush you get when you figure out how to fix something yourself. That moment when you step back, look at what you just accomplished, and think, Wait, I actually did that!

Because there’s something pretty badass about knowing you can do things yourself. And I knew exactly where to make that happen.

Meet Kelly, the woman behind Even Made

Kelly is one of those people you meet and immediately think, Wow, she’s doing something really special.

Her dad was an electrician, so she grew up around the trades and learned all sorts of hands-on skills along the way. Now she’s turned that knowledge into a business that helps people feel confident using tools and tackling projects themselves.

And I think that’s just so cool.

At Even Made, you can sign up for hands-on classes to learn everything from drywall repair to rewiring a lamp. Real, practical skills that so many of us were never taught.

But what I love most isn’t necessarily what they’re teaching. It’s the environment Kelly has created.

It’s a welcoming space where you can show up knowing absolutely nothing and feel comfortable asking every question that pops into your head.

No judgment. No feeling silly because you don’t know what a certain tool does. No pretending you understand something when you really don’t.

Many of the classes are taught by women, and it’s so refreshing to learn in an environment where you feel completely comfortable being a beginner.

Kelly understands that. She’s patient, knowledgeable, encouraging, and genuinely wants people to walk away knowing how to do things themselves.

I wish every neighborhood had a place like this.

Even the DIYers learned something!

For our event, we set up stations where everyone could practice caulking and drywall repair.

About half the women who attended already had DIY experience, while the others were newer to it. But everyone walked away with a new trick or two. Even me!

I’m almost entirely self-taught when it comes to DIY. I’ve spent years watching tutorials, making mistakes, and figuring out what works. And sometimes, you find a way to get something done without necessarily knowing the proper way to do it.

Learning directly from Kelly was such a treat. She shared techniques I’d never picked up before, and I walked away with tips I’ll absolutely use on future projects.

That’s one of my favorite things about DIY. No matter how many projects you’ve tackled, there’s always something new to learn.

And seeing everyone so excited to try these skills made the morning even better.

Women supporting women

Another thing that made the morning so special was the group of women who came together.

One attendee, Grace, is an amazing baker who had never really done DIY before. It was so fun watching her try her hand at caulking and drywall repair.

At one point, I told her, “You need to teach me how to cook, and I’ll teach you how to DIY!” And I really meant it!

We all have things we’re good at, and I love the idea of women sharing those skills with one another.

Grace also brought the most delicious muffins for everyone, made with her protein-and fiber-packed baking mix. Such a fun treat, and another female entrepreneur doing something really cool.

Between the DIY lessons, the conversations, and all these talented women sharing what they do best, I left feeling like I was on cloud nine.

Okay, but can we talk about the goodies?!

Of course, we had to have a few fun surprises for everyone, too. One of my absolute favorite details was the adorable sage green toolbox from TINKR that everyone got to take home.

I’m adding it to my holiday gift guide because I think it would make such a great gift, especially for someone who’s just getting started with DIY.

We also had the cutest custom coffee cups, treats from Foxtrot, drinks from Recess, mini Biom wipes to take home, and so many other thoughtful details.

A little something for my Chicago readers!

If you’re local, I really, really encourage you to check out Even Made.

Grab a girlfriend and take a class together. Make it a date night. Or sign up by yourself and try something you’ve always wanted to learn.

You could learn how to tile, reupholster furniture, or pick up another practical skill that you’ll actually use around your house. And remember, you don’t need to know a thing before you show up. That’s the beauty of it.

Kelly was also sweet enough to offer a special discount for this community!

Use code PLAYBOOK10 when booking a class at Even Made for 10% off.

I also think this would make such a fun experience gift for the holidays. Instead of buying someone another thing, you could give them the chance to learn something new.

And if you’re not in Chicago, they do offer virtual workshops so you can learn a new skill over Zoom!

More of this, please.

We’re all so busy running from one thing to the next, checking things off our to-do lists, and staring at screens way too much.

There’s something really refreshing about getting together in person, learning a new skill, and making something with your hands.

And there’s something even more special about women creating spaces where other women feel comfortable being beginners.

That’s what Kelly has built at Even Made: a place where you can show up, try something new, and leave feeling a little more capable than when you walked in.

I’m so grateful to Kelly and her team for welcoming us, to everyone who helped make the event happen, and to all the women who showed up ready to learn.

I hope this was the first of many gatherings like this.

And if this little recap inspires even one of you to sign up for a class, pick up a tool, or try something you’ve been putting off, I’ll consider that a win.

What's one skill you've always wanted to learn?

As always, these questions come from Instagram DMs, story replies, and comments here. Let’s get into it!

Do you ever feel pressure to constantly improve your house because of your job?

Oh my gosh, YES.

I feel like I talk about this often, but that was my life as a DIY creator for a long time. Project after project. Renovation after renovation. Before and after, before and after.

And eventually, I ran myself ragged.

In the spring and summer of 2023, I reached a breaking point and dealt with horrible insomnia. It forced me to really look at how I was running my business and realize that I couldn’t keep creating at that pace.

That’s when I started pivoting more into home maintenance, and it was honestly the best thing I ever did. My business grew. I eventually hit one million followers. I created and sold my digital home maintenance guide. And now, of course, I have an entire BOOK about home maintenance coming out!

So I’m really grateful I figured out another way to do this job.

But do I still want to do projects? Absolutely.

I genuinely LOVE having a project. My recent office refresh was so much fun. I’m planning to add wallpaper to Rory’s room. There’s always something around here that I’m tweaking.

And once the book comes out and I’ve had a little breathing room, I know I’ll start wondering…What’s next?

Do I want another big project? A second property someday? A lake house? A new house eventually? I HAVE NO IDEA.

For now, I’ve found other ways to scratch that DIY itch without tearing apart my own house every three months. I started my DIY House Call series, where I tackle smaller projects at friends’ and family members’ homes, and that has been SO much fun. In a couple of weeks, I’m actually helping my friend Jess Keys wallpaper her powder room!

There are creators who constantly renovate and produce incredible before-and-afters, and I love following along. That was me for much of my career. But I’m really grateful I finally realized that it doesn’t have to be the only way I do this job.

How do you and Finn divide the mental load at home?

I’ve talked about this quite a bit over the years because one thing that really changed how Finn and I run our household is the Fair Play method.

If you’re not familiar, there’s a book and a deck of cards that essentially help you name ALL of the invisible jobs required to run a household and then figure out who owns what.

The goal isn’t necessarily 50/50. It’s figuring out a division that actually works for your partnership.

For us, Finn handles almost all of the grocery shopping, keeping the fridge stocked, and the majority of the cooking. I probably do 90% of the laundry, although we’re slowly getting the kids involved. They put away their clean clothes now, and we’re working on folding!

I’m definitely the calendar person. I manage the cleaners and cleaning schedule. Finn is much more of the organizing/purging person.

We each have our strengths, and having actual ownership over different areas has worked really well for us.

Something else I HIGHLY recommend is having an off-site family meeting once or twice a year.

We usually book a meeting space and take an afternoon off work. Getting out of the house makes it feel official, and we’re not distracted by the kids or trying to have some giant life conversation at 9 p.m. when we’re both exhausted.

We talk about finances, upcoming travel, savings goals, the kids, what’s working, what isn’t working, and anything big coming up. It’s basically an overall health check for our family.

It sounds very Type A because…it is. Ha! But it works REALLY well for us.

Are you the same person offline that you are on Instagram?

I would say yes!

Last summer, my college girlfriends came to visit, and I took them to my gym. We were hanging out at the pool and having lunch when a follower came over to say hi.

My friends thought the whole interaction was so funny and told her, “Just so you know, Casey is EXACTLY the same in person as she is online.” And that made me really happy!

Obviously, you’re not seeing every second of my life online. You don’t see every bad moment, every time I cry, every time I lose my patience with my kids. I’m a human being.

But overall? What you see is what you get.

I know “authenticity” gets thrown around a lot online, but I really do hope that if you meet me in real life, you walk away thinking, Yep. That’s exactly who I thought she was.

And speaking of meeting me in real life: PLEASE COME SAY HI.

I absolutely love meeting you guys. People will sometimes come up and say, “I’m so sorry to bother you…” and I’m always like, YOU ARE NOT BOTHERING ME!

Come say hi if I’m with Finn. Come say hi if I’m with my mom. Come say hi if I’m with the kids.

Most recently, someone recognized me at a bar when I was on a neon-themed bar crawl with my friends…WHILE I WAS WEARING A HOT PINK WIG. Honestly, I’m still impressed she spotted me.

Do you ever get nervous meeting followers in real life?

Not at all! I LOVE it.

I’ve realized that I’m much more comfortable having a one-on-one conversation with someone than I am standing in front of a room full of people.

It’s probably why television and video have always felt pretty natural to me.

Even back when I worked in TV news and technically thousands of people were watching, in the moment it was really just me and a cameraman. Or now, when I do a segment with Tanja on ABC, yes, there’s a camera there, and lots of people will eventually watch it, but in the moment it’s just the two of us having a conversation while I show her how to do something.

That doesn’t make me nervous.

Put me on a stage in front of a room full of people? VERY DIFFERENT.

And that’s something I’m definitely thinking about as we get closer to book tour season. There are going to be events and speeches and rooms full of people, and that pushes me outside my comfort zone much more than meeting someone one-on-one.

So if you see me out somewhere? No nerves. Please come talk to me!

What’s one thing about your 20s that you miss?

I don’t think this is so much about being in my 20s as it is about being pre-kids. The freedom!

Finn and I lived in a condo in a really fun neighborhood in Chicago. He worked in an office. I worked in an office and eventually started working from home.

And our schedule was just…ours.

What are we doing tonight? Where should we go? Who wants to get brunch? Should we watch three episodes of our show and stay up until 11 pm?

We didn't set an alarm on weekends. No Saturday morning activities. No juggling pickup schedules. No figuring out who needs to be where and when.

Life was just much less scheduled.

And I LOVE our life now. But every once in a while, I definitely miss that feeling of waking up on a Saturday morning with absolutely no idea what we were going to do that day.

What’s one thing about your 20s you are VERY happy to leave behind?

Again, I don’t know if this was necessarily my age as much as the stage of life I was in, but I really don’t miss the feeling of not knowing what I was doing with my life.

Career-wise, my 20s were pretty confusing.

I was freelancing. I was doing TV. I was working on The DIY Playbook. And I dreamed about being able to do The DIY Playbook full-time, but there was so much insecurity surrounding that decision.

Being a full-time “influencer” back then was NOT what it is today. I didn’t really know anyone doing what I wanted to do, and leaving a more traditional career felt like a huge leap.

Eventually, I told myself, You can always go back to TV.

I wasn’t going to suddenly lose those skills. Those jobs would still exist. And I was also very fortunate that Finn had health insurance through his job. Honestly, if I had needed to figure out insurance completely on my own at that point, I don’t know if I would have made the leap when I did.

So I definitely don’t miss that feeling of, What am I doing with my life?!

I think a lot of people probably feel that way in their 20s, and I’m very happy to be on the other side of it.

Also? Hangovers. VERY HAPPY to leave those behind.

Although, let’s be clear, I’ve certainly had a few in my 30s too. I’ve just gotten smarter about avoiding them!

What are you most nervous about when it comes to your book coming out?

To be honest? A LOT.

Right now, my publisher is happy with our preorder numbers. So that should make me happy, right?! Except I have a goal in my head.

I’ve been a high-achieving, Type A person my entire life. Give me a goal, and I don’t just want to hit it. I want to CRUSH IT.

And my big, scary, slightly ridiculous dream is to make the New York Times bestseller list.

My literary agent has told me that around 11,000 copies during the preorder window would put us in a good position, but there are no guarantees with these lists. And we’re not close to 11,000 yet. So yes, I think about that number. Probably too much.

And I also know I need to take some of that pressure off myself.

Because when I zoom out, I WROTE A BOOK. A real book! Soon it’ll be in people’s homes. You’re going to read it, hopefully use it, and learn something from it. That’s the part that actually matters, and I want to let myself enjoy that.

The other thing I’m nervous about is the events.

We’re still in planning mode right now, and I think once tickets are actually available and people start signing up, I’ll feel better.

Chicago doesn’t make me quite as nervous because this is home. My family is here. My friends are here. So many of you are here. I can picture those events being packed and fun.

But then we’re talking about doing an event in Charleston, and I’m like…

What if no one comes?! I don’t really know anyone there! Hopefully some of YOU are there?!

There’s definitely a little imposter syndrome that comes along with putting yourself out there like that.

So yes. I’m excited. I’m proud. I’m nervous. Apparently all three things can be true at once.

That’s it for this month’s Ask Casey!

Apparently this one turned into a lot of talk about getting older, figuring out what works for you, and trying to take a little pressure off yourself…something I am clearly still working on. Ha!

Have something you want me to answer next time? Leave it in the comments. I’m always looking for good ones!

I know, I know. It’s barely October and I’m already talking about holiday shopping. But hear me out.

Amazon’s Fall Deal Days are happening today and tomorrow, and I actually think this sale is more useful than some of the bigger shopping events later in the year. If you already know you’ll be buying holiday gifts, replacing something around the house, stocking up on things you use all the time, or getting your home ready for winter, why not see if you can get it for less now?

And a little disclaimer before we get into it: I know Amazon isn’t everyone’s favorite place to shop. You absolutely do not need to shop this sale, and you definitely don’t need to buy something just because it’s marked down. My approach to these sales is always the same: start with what you already need or have been planning to buy, then see if there’s a deal.

To make that easier, I combed through the sale and pulled out the things we actually own, use, and recommend, along with a handful of finds that caught my eye.

• These Blink outdoor cameras are always a popular find when I share them, and they’re a great price right now.

• We got so much use out of our Thermacell mosquito repellent this summer. Definitely one to grab now and tuck away for next year.

• Finn uses these outdoor grilling baskets for veggies year-round.

• I don’t even want to think about snow yet, but this cordless snow shovel is the kind of thing I’d much rather buy on sale before the first big snowfall. We got it last year and OMG it’s so cool.

• You don’t realize how handy a headlamp set is until you own one. We use ours for projects all the time.

• I love layering this large buffalo plaid welcome rug under our doormat on the front porch.

• These reusable paint storage bags have completely changed how I store leftover paint. They take up less room than cans and make touch-ups so much easier.

• I love these outdoor solar lanterns for adding a little ambiance to the backyard.

• Between soccer and all of the kids’ activities, our double camping chair gets a lot of use during sports season.

• Not the most exciting purchase, but every car should have an emergency kit. This one is a great price right now.

• My beloved espresso machine is the best price I’ve seen. I use this thing every single day, so this is definitely one of my top picks from the sale.

• These are the pillows we use throughout our entire house. If you’re due for a pillow refresh, they’re included in the sale.

• We love this sheet set for a comfortable and affordable option.

• Our thermostat is included in the sale too.

• These inflatable toddler beds have been so handy for sleepovers at Jan’s house.

• I use these microfiber cleaning cloths constantly for cleaning around the house.

• If you’ve been wanting to swap out your food storage, these glass food containers are almost half off.

• Our living room area rug is marked down right now too.

• These acrylic drawer organizers are great for tackling junk drawers, bathroom vanities, or office supplies.

• I’ve lost count of how many of you have bought this trio of gold frames after seeing them in our house. They look so much more expensive than they are!

• After switching to this menstrual disc, I wrote about my experience and so many of you agree it’s simply the best.

• My favorite travel wrap is definitely a splurge, but this travel wrap has a similar look for a lot less. It looks so cozy for travel or just lounging at home.

• I’ve been loving this brand lately, and this travel skincare duo would make such a cute gift.

• I have a few pairs of sunglasses from this brand and have been really impressed with the quality for the price.

• My favorite lash serum is marked down right now.

• If a Shark air styler has been sitting on your wishlist, now might be the time to grab it.

• I’ll definitely be stocking up on my favorite lip mask.

• Finn’s favorite body wash is on sale too.

• I’ve been meaning to try this collagen wrapping mask. I have friends who rave about how glowy their skin looks after using it!

• I bought this cleaning pod when I had Invisalign and still use it for my retainers every single day!

• Finn swears by this hair cream.

• And I swear by this sleep bonnet. I wear it every night!

• So many of you have raved about these leggings, so I wanted to include them while they’re marked down.

• This matching lounge set looks like such an easy travel outfit.

• If your closet is mostly basics like mine, this affordable belt trio is an easy way to make an outfit feel a little more pulled together.

• After switching to these over-the-ear headphones, there is no going back. I love them!

• I’ve been lifting heavier weights lately and love how strong I feel. I have these adjustable weights for workouts at home.

• This adjustable kettlebell is such a cool concept, especially if you don’t want a bunch of different weights taking up space.

• Finn’s favorite charger is on sale, and you know that man researches every tech purchase within an inch of its life.

• I haven’t talked about my weighted vest in a while, but I still love throwing it on to make a regular walk a little more challenging.

• Finn also loves this battery organizer, which even comes with a battery tester. Very Finn, but also genuinely useful.

• I always have this portable charger with me when I’m traveling or know I’ll be away from an outlet all day.

• This Theragun is another good fitness find, especially if you’re lifting and want something for recovery.

• A smart WiFi deadbolt is one of those home upgrades that makes everyday life a little easier.

• We also love using WiFi smart outlets to put lamps and other lights on schedules.

Before You Shop...

My usual sale reminder: you’re not saving money if you’re buying something you didn’t need in the first place.

But we’re heading into the holidays, winter, and a season when a lot of us are buying gifts and spending more money anyway. If something on your list happens to be marked down during the sale, take the win.

And if Amazon isn’t your thing, skip it! I’ll continue sharing finds and gift ideas from plenty of other retailers as we head into the holiday season.

• It’s no surprise that you continue to love my favorite faux jeans.

• This backpack is one of my favorite splurges. The quality is so good, and it’s one of those pieces I know I’ll use for a decade.

• My platform bed continues to be a bestseller! The price point is just so good.

• This lip stain goes on easily and lasts all day.

• Another staple is my affordable watch band. I can’t believe it’s only $16!

• Now that it’s soccer season, we are using our camping sofa every week. One of those purchases I’m very glad we made!

• Keep your jewelry sparkly with this ultrasonic jewelry cleaner. I’ve had mine ever since I got engaged (14 years ago!) and it’s still going strong.

• I got the kids these Halloween pajamas that you can color with special fabric markers. A huge hit!

• A new-to-me skincare product is this resurfacing mask and it leaves my skin so glowy. I’m starting to feel a tad dry, so this has been nice to use once a week.

• I love this machine washable bath mat. I added it to our main bathroom.

• I’ve been wearing these silver & gold hoops on repeat.

• These loafers make me feel like the cool mom at school drop off.

• I can’t get enough cozy denim in my life. Just ordered these pull-on denim pants and I’ll keep you posted on how I like them.

• Every single copy of Your Home Playbook supports my small business, and I’m still overwhelmed by how many of you have preordered. Thank you!

• Save energy (without sacrificing style) when you add these solar lights to your backyard. We tucked them into all of our planters and they make the backyard feel so cozy at night.

• Apparently the color “espresso” is in for fall, so I’m very on-trend when I wear these waffle knit track pants.

• My iron came back low and my doc told me to pair my supplement with Vitamin C for better absorption. I’m using this Vitamin C.

• You know I love a good candle and this one smells incredible. Code DIYPLAYBOOK10 gets you 10% off and you support a female-founded, non-toxic, cruelty-free, USA-made small business.

• My kids’ favorite new toy is their Sticker Box. Use code DIYPLAYBOOK10 for $10 off.

• This product helps tame any frizz and keeps my hair nice and glossy. Code CFINN15 gives you 15% off.

• Amazon’s fall Deal Days are officially next week, but a few items are already on sale, including my beloved espresso machine.

• My go-to trio of gold frames is also already on sale. These instantly elevate any photo for your home.

One question for this community. Our 12th wedding anniversary is coming up and this year’s theme is silk and linen. Any ideas on what I should buy Mr. Finn? He’s not exactly a silk pajamas kinda guy. Open to any of your ideas!

Tell me in the comments below!

Oh, September, how I love you! We’re back in the swing of things (this girl loves her routine), and the kids are loving the new school year. During the week, we’re all heads down with school and work, but on the weekends, we’ve been busy with all of the fun stuff.

Saturday mornings are dedicated to soccer in the fall. Finn and I are coaching again, and it’s honestly a blast! I played soccer through junior high and loved it, and it’s been so fun seeing my kids get into the sport too. I wasn’t sure how coaching alongside my spouse would go, but dare I say…it’s been good for our marriage?!

Over Labor Day weekend, we left the kids with my mom and headed up to Green Bay for the Notre Dame vs. UW Madison football game. It was a fun day of tailgating, football, and hanging with friends, and we didn’t get home until 2:30 a.m.! We’ve got another ND game on the books for October, but luckily that one is a day game.

Ellis turned five, and we spent an entire weekend celebrating our little guy. I don’t talk about my kids much, but to know Ellis is to love Ellis. I refer to him as our “gentle giant” because he is just about the sweetest and friendliest kid…and at least a head taller than every other kid his age.

We threw a LEGO-themed birthday party at home, and he loved every minute of it!

We also had our third annual back-to-school trolley night with all of our neighborhood friends. This year, we did a neon theme, and it was hilarious. I donned a hot pink wig and skort, and we did a bar crawl to some of our favorite neighborhood joints. Again, I must reiterate how lucky I am to do life (and parenting) alongside such amazing people.

This weekend, I’m heading out on a new adventure. I’m joining 30+ women (all DIY influencers!) for a weekend retreat at a lakehouse. I’m a tad nervous because I only know two of the women in real life, but I have a feeling it’s going to be a blast. I’m excited to relax, talk shop, and spend time with other people who understand this crazy job of mine. I’ll report back, and stay tuned on stories for a behind-the-scenes look!

CREATIVE

• I can’t get enough solar lights in our backyard. We recently added this 12-pack throughout our fall planters, and I swapped a few fence-top posts for these LED ones.

• This DIY art idea is so special.

• DIY sports cards for your kiddos. This is my bestie, Bridget, and she is so freakin’ creative!!

ADVOCACY

• 66 things you can do to help win the midterms!

• NPR: New maps reveal massive gaps in access to affordable birth control in the US.

• He doesn’t get to rename Lake Ontario…

• Dolly Parton knew how to be human

STYLISH

• If you’re looking to elevate your comfy clothing game, may I suggest something from the brand Negative. These track pants feel like a cloud, these cropped waffle pants are on-trend, and I’ve been wearing this lightweight PJ set (top & bottoms) to bed all the time.

• I first learned of the brand Bleusalt through my sister, who recommended their signature wrap for long flights. I’ve since added a few pieces to my wardrobe, including this plum top.

• These double hoop earrings have been in heavy rotation for me lately.

• Umm, do I need this pretty pull-up bar???

ENTERTAINING

• This episode of Planet Money dove into the true story behind the movie, 9 to 5. It was fascinating!

• Annie Meyers (daughter of film director Nancy Meyers) just came out with a book, This Oak House, and it’s stunning. It chronicles her home renovation and offers lots of tips if you’re in the thick of the reno process.

• I just finished the book The Shampoo Effect, and it was a good beach read if you’re looking for something light.

YUMMY

• I’m always on the hunt for a snack that’s high in fiber and protein, and these seed crackers are my new favorite. I got this variety 3-pack, and the pumpkin seed was my favorite. I like to eat them with hummus in the afternoon. And love that it’s a women-owned and family-operated company!

• I truly believe that just about everyone would benefit from adding creatine to their diet. I mix this creatine with my morning electrolytes.

• Def trying this with my next Costco rotisserie chicken.

This month’s Community Spotlight is a fun one for all of my fellow personalized-gift lovers!

Meet Sara from Type League Press

Sara is the woman behind Type League Press, a small business creating personalized mugs, tumblers, and more featuring your favorite faces…kids, pets, you name it!

I especially loved that Sara was nominated by one of her childhood friends, who has watched her grow this from a little Etsy shop into the business it is today. And the products are SO cute. You simply upload a photo of your kiddo or pet, and Sara turns it into a personalized keepsake.

Check out Type League Press, give Sara some love, and keep this one bookmarked when you need a fun personalized gift.

• Behind the Book (Part 5): The drama with my book cover

• Making a DIY house call to my very first friend’s house

• August bestsellers

• My best tips to choose the right paint for your project

• Ask Casey: Will I ever get a 9-to-5? Will we move someday? And more…

• If you ordered my book, make sure you claim your free head start guide!

• How to use a brad nailer

• Weatherstrip your front door

• How long things last around your home

• How to install a dimmer switch

• My fitness journey over the last two years

• The best housewarming gifts

• ABC TV segments this month…

  • How to get rid of fruit flies

  • How to fix a closet door that won’t stay closed

  • Vacation-proof your garden

  • How to find your emergency shutoff valves

October is already shaping up to be a busy month. I’m heading to Colorado for a girls’ weekend with my college friends; I’m hosting my first book-related event; and we are planning some fun neighborhood activities around Halloween. Have a great weekend, everyone!

Over the past few months, I’ve gotten quite a few messages whenever I share a full-body shot of myself on Instagram.

Your arms look so strong! What workouts are you doing?

What’s your workout routine these days?

How did you get started lifting weights?

I always feel a little funny talking about this stuff because I never want it to come across as "Look at me!" Look at my body! That’s really not what this is about. Or that I’m some sort of fitness expert, because I’m definitely not!

But I am really proud of how strong I’ve gotten. And because so many of you have asked what I’m doing, I figured it was time for another little fitness update.

I’ve written about this journey a couple of times before. Last February, I shared how I got started with progressive overload training, and then last summer, I wrote about what happened after lifting three times a week for six months.

So I don’t want to repeat everything I’ve already shared. Consider this the next chapter.

How I Got Here

My right hip replacement was in November 2024, and that surgery really changed the way I thought about exercise.

I’ve always been active. I played sports growing up, danced through high school and college, and spent my twenties and early thirties doing all kinds of workouts. I was a big group fitness girl...kickboxing, yoga, HIIT, whatever ClassPass class my friends and I could find.

But I never really focused on getting strong.

If I was taking a workout class and the instructor told us to grab weights, I was probably reaching for the 10s. Maybe the 15s if I was feeling ambitious. Ha!

After my hip surgery, something shifted.

My word for 2025 was strong, and I decided I didn’t just want to recover from surgery. I wanted to build my strength back up and feel really good in my body again.

That’s when I started getting into progressive overload training. Basically, you do similar movements and reps over time while gradually increasing the weight. Instead of constantly changing your workouts, you keep challenging your muscles to do a little more.

And wow. It has completely changed the way I work out.

How I Started

When I first started lifting, I used the Playbook app (aptly named, right?!), and I still think it’s a great way to get comfortable with strength training.

There are tons of trainers and programs to choose from, and I loved being able to walk into the gym knowing exactly what I was supposed to do that day. There are videos showing you every movement, and you can record your weights and reps so you know what you did the week before.

That structure was exactly what I needed because, let’s be real, the weight room can be intimidating when you have no idea what you’re doing.

I followed programs on there for quite a while, but over the past year, my routine has evolved.

My Workout Routine Now

These days, most of my strength training happens in a class at my gym, Midtown, called The Pit.

It’s a small-group strength class with only 12 people, so it almost feels like having a personal trainer, just in a group setting.

I usually take the total-body class three times a week. It’s an hour long, and we rotate between the squat racks, free weights, and cable machines. Every class is different, but we’re doing things like squats, deadlifts, chest presses, rows, lunges, and all kinds of other movements that target different muscle groups.

And the goal is to lift heavy.

There is one slightly annoying part: There are only 12 spots, and they open an hour before class. So I usually get to the gym early, grab my spot, and sit with my laptop and get some work done until class starts. I’ve actually gotten used to the routine, and it works pretty well!

I aim for three classes a week, and that’s really the core of my fitness routine right now.

I’m Lifting Heavier Than I Ever Have

This is probably the coolest part for me because I can actually see my progress in the numbers.

If I’m doing a chest press, for example, I might have reached for 20-pound dumbbells a year ago. Now I’m using 35-pound dumbbells.

I’m adding more weight to the bar when I squat. I’m deadlifting heavier. I’m reaching for dumbbells that I would have looked at a few years ago and thought, Absolutely not.

And yes, my body has changed too.

I have a naturally athletic build, and over the past year and a half, I’ve lost some body fat and gained muscle, so that muscle has become more noticeable. My arms and legs look stronger, my clothes fit differently, and I feel different in my body.

But what I love most is knowing that I’m not just looking stronger. I actually am stronger.

And I can prove it every time I pick up something that I couldn’t lift six months ago.

Oh, And About That Pull-Up...

If you read my six-month fitness update, you might remember that I had one big goal: I wanted to be able to do a real, overhand pull-up.

At the time, I could do a chin-up, but that darn pull-up was still eluding me.

Well...

I can now do TWO pull-ups in a row. Say what?!

This still kind of blows my mind because when I first set that goal, ONE felt impossible.

It’s been a good reminder that progress doesn’t always feel dramatic while you’re in it. Most of the time, you’re just showing up, doing the same exercises, adding five pounds here, squeezing out another rep there.

And then one day you realize, Wait. I can do that now. Very cool.

The Best Part Might Be the Women

One thing I didn’t expect when I started taking The Pit was how much I would love the community aspect of it.

My friend Meghan takes the class with me a lot (you may recognize her from a recent House Call video!) and she is super strong. I’ve also met a few followers in the class who have become gym friends. Hi, ladies!

During class, we’re in groups of three, and there is something so motivating about working out alongside other women.

Sometimes someone in your group loads more weight onto the bar than you would have chosen for yourself, and you’re like...

Okay, I guess we’re doing this. And then you realize you can!

I know I’ve pushed myself harder because of the women around me. If I were working out alone, I might automatically grab the weight I know I can lift. Being around other strong women makes me much more likely to try the heavier one.

It’s just a really fun, encouraging environment, and I’ve ended up loving that part of it almost as much as the actual workout.

Oh, and I’ve convinced Finn to go with me a few times and one time he almost barfed. So that tells you how intense the workout can be. Ha!

I’ve Also Realized I Need to Eat More

This has probably been one of my biggest lessons lately. For a while, I don’t think I was eating enough for how much energy I was expending during these workouts.

I was training hard, but I wasn’t always fueling properly beforehand. And I definitely wasn’t always eating enough protein or enough food in general to support what I was asking my body to do.

So I’ve become much more mindful about that.

I try to have a substantial breakfast before my workouts and make sure I’m getting plenty of protein throughout the day. I’ve shared more about my protein goals here if you’re interested because that’s a whole other topic!

But overall, I’ve had to shift my mindset from thinking about eating less to making sure I’m eating enough to have energy and build muscle.

I’m still figuring this part out, but it’s something I’m paying much more attention to these days.

But What If You Have No Idea Where to Start?

This is probably the question I get most often when I talk about lifting. And I get it.

The weight room can be intimidating! Squat racks are intimidating! Cable machines with 4,000 different attachments are intimidating!

You definitely don’t have to walk into a gym tomorrow and start deadlifting a barbell.

Maybe you work with a personal trainer for a few sessions to learn proper form and get comfortable.

Maybe you try an app like Playbook, so you have a program to follow.

Maybe you find a small-group strength class where you can get a little more individual instruction.

Or maybe joining a gym isn’t something you want to do, or something that’s in the budget right now.

You can absolutely strength-train at home, too. We have a set of adjustable dumbbells that go from 5 to 52.5 pounds per dumbbell, which means one set can replace an entire rack of weights. They’re a nice option if you want to start building a little home setup without buying a million dumbbells.

My Biggest Takeaway

I think if I’ve learned anything over the past year and a half, it’s that I spent a lot of my life underestimating how strong I could actually be.

For years, exercise meant cardio, HIIT classes, sweating a lot, and grabbing the smaller dumbbells.

Now, at 38, I’m lifting heavier than I ever have before. And I really love it.

Of course, I appreciate the changes I’ve seen in my body. I’m human! It’s nice when your clothes fit well, and you feel good when you look in the mirror.

But the bigger thing for me has been feeling capable.

I want to carry heavy things without thinking twice. I want to haul bags of mulch around the yard. I want to work on my house. I want to pick up my kids. I want to travel, stay active, and hopefully keep doing all of those things for a very long time.

And after having a hip replacement in my thirties, I think I appreciate that feeling of physical capability more than I ever did before.

So when women ask me what I’m doing differently these days, the answer is actually pretty simple:

I’m lifting heavier things. Consistently.

If you’ve been curious about strength training but have felt intimidated by it, maybe start small. Grab the next weight up. Try a beginner program. Ask someone to show you how to use that machine you’ve been avoiding.

You might be stronger than you think.

And if you need me, I’ll be over here trying to get to three pull-ups.

I mean, I knew I had a lot to say about homeownership. I’ve been writing The DIY Playbook for more than a decade, so there was certainly no shortage of material. But every time I worked on a chapter, I’d think of something else. Oh, I should explain this! Or, wait, homeowners really need to know that. Or I’d remember some lesson Finn and I learned the hard way in our own house and immediately want to find a place for it.

And eventually, my editor basically had to tell me: Casey, there are only so many pages in a book. Ha! So things got cut.

Not because they weren’t helpful, but because there simply wasn’t room for everything.

At the same time, I kept thinking about all of you who were going to preorder this book months before it actually arrived. You’re ordering it now, and then...you wait until January?!

That felt like a long time.

So somewhere along the way, those two thoughts came together, and The Homeowner Head Start Guide was born.

I wanted to make something that would give you a little taste of what’s coming in Your Home Playbook, while also helping you get yourself (and your home) ready to start fresh in January.

And, admittedly, I got a little carried away.

P.S. Very good timing if you haven’t preordered yet…

Barnes & Noble is having a rare preorder sale through TODAY (9/11)! B&N Members can get 25% off Your Home Playbook with code PREORDER25… and membership is free. Premium Members get an additional 10% off.

So you can snag the book for 25% off and immediately claim the Homeowner Head Start Guide for free.

PREORDER FOR 25% OFF

So what’s actually inside?

This isn’t a two-page printable I whipped up one afternoon. It’s 28 pages! It’s basically a mini companion to the book, filled with the things I couldn’t fit into the manuscript, homeowner resources I think are genuinely helpful, and some fun behind-the-scenes extras from making the book.

There’s a section called 12 Things to Buy Before January that covers the basic tools and supplies you’ll see me reach for throughout the book.

There’s also How Long Things Actually Last, which might be my favorite section because I REALLY wanted this information in the actual book. How long does a water heater typically last? What about a furnace? Your roof? Your dishwasher?

These aren’t hard-and-fast expiration dates, but knowing the general lifespans of the big things in your home can help you plan ahead rather than be completely blindsided when something goes kaput.

I also included a little Homeowner Terms Everyone Should Know cheat sheet because I have absolutely been the person nodding along while a contractor talks about something like “flashing” and thinking, “Yep, yep, totally... no idea what you’re talking about.”

There are also the lessons I wish I could go back and tell 2019 Casey when Finn and I bought our house, plus a whole behind-the-scenes section about making the book. Some of the rejected cover concepts even made an appearance!

Basically, it’s all the good stuff that didn’t quite have a home anywhere else.

If you’ve already preordered…

If you’ve already preordered Your Home Playbook: THANK YOU. Seriously. I know I keep saying that, but every single preorder still blows my mind.

And you already get this!

Head to this page, scroll down a bit until you see “Claim Your Free Guide”, enter your email, and it will be sent your way immediately!

Still thinking about preordering?

If you’ve been thinking about preordering, today is a VERY good day to do it.

Through today, September 11th, Barnes & Noble Members can get 25% off Your Home Playbook with code PREORDER25. Membership is free, and Premium Members get an additional 10% off.

And once you preorder, you can immediately claim your free 28-page Homeowner Head Start Guide.

I wanted to give you a little extra thank-you for buying the book early (and for patiently waiting until January for it to actually arrive!). The guide is only available during the preorder period, so once the book comes out in January, it’s gone.

[Preorder Your Home Playbook for 25% off here]

I hope you love the guide and find something in there that makes you feel a little more prepared for January. And truly, whether you ordered on day one or you’re just now deciding to preorder, thank you for supporting this book. I cannot wait to finally get it into your hands!

Oh, and there are some great Labor Day deals happening this weekend, so make sure you scroll all the way to the bottom.

• I continue to be blown away by your support for my book. Preorders make a huge difference in the publishing world, and I’m so grateful for your enthusiasm! You can shop the book here.

• Several of you purchased this Land’s End pajama set. It’s so cozy.

• This retinol hand cream is an essential part of my nighttime routine, and many of you added it to your nightstands too.

• The comfiest “soft pants” that I have convinced every woman in my life to buy. It’s hard to wear real jeans after getting these. You’ve been warned.

• It’s no surprise that you also adore this cleansing balm for removing makeup. It feels so luxurious.

• A budget makeup find that’s easy to apply? Say no more.

• My most popular product for skipping the nail salon while still looking polished.

• No better way to start the new school year than with one of these.

• I recently added this cream top to my wardrobe, and I’ve received so many compliments. It’s a bit on the pricey side, but it’s on final sale!

• This chic travel-themed coffee table book brightens my day every time I see it. Oh, and did I tell you yet…we’re going to Greece next summer?! More to come on that…

• A Prosecco-scented candle. Add to cart immediately.

• Every night, I use a Sleepy Tie to keep my blowout lasting for days. They recently sent me their curl version, which helps create heat-free overnight curls. There’s a bit of a learning curve, but I’m getting the hang of it!

• A girl can never have too many lip products, and this stain has earned a place in my current lineup. I put it on in the morning, and it gives me a nice tint all day long.

• I love my nail concealer and have no plans of giving it up, but I tried this at-home gel manicure kit with a friend for girls’ night and was super impressed.

• My sister recommended Bleusalt’s cozy travel wraps in her travel post. I scooped up a wrap, ballet top, pants, and crewneck. OMG, they are all dreamy!

• This new-to-me brand sent me a pair of their Palazzo jeans, and they’re perfect for fall.

• Two eyewear brands I recently discovered are Vicci Eyewear and Freyrs. Vicci supports The Vision of Children Foundation and The Pink Agenda, and Freyrs is local to Chicago. My affiliate manager is loving her new prescription glasses, and my new sunglasses are comfortable and chic.

• Finn oversees most of the kids’ clothing, but I couldn’t help grabbing a couple pairs of shoes from this brand for Rory. She is rocking this ballerina style and these brighter ones, too. They’re cruelty-free and made with 100% recyclable materials.

• We use cleaning wipes every. single. day. Biom wipes work well, are safe to use around kids, and come in a dispenser that I don’t mind leaving out. I even keep one in the car for spills.

• This is probably the coolest kid item I’ve discovered recently. My kids have a blast anytime we play with it, and I love that it lets them be creative without making a big mess. They’re offering $20 off right now.

• After switching to my new filtered showerhead, I totally get the hype. I love that this one blends right in with our existing bathroom fixtures and still works so well.

• Coco & Eve — 30% off sitewide

  They make my beloved Miracle Hair Elixir, and their self-tanner was a top contender in my Casey Crowdsources issue.

• Summersalt — $30 off with code GET30

  If you have any warm-weather trips planned for fall or winter, now is a great time to grab a swimsuit.

  • My faves: One-shoulder suit + wrap suit

• Tumble — up to 40% off

  We now have two Tumble rugs in our home, and I love that they’re washable, easy to install, and have corner grippers to keep them in place.

  • In our home: Laundry room rug + hallway rug

• Boden — up to 20% off sitewide

  We buy Rory’s special dresses from Mini Boden, and I’ve found some really nice pieces for myself, too.

  • My picks: Sweet cherry dress · bubble hem style · perfect fall dress · chic fall flats

• Wayfair — up to 70% off

  Wayfair always does a good holiday sale, and there are some great finds this time around.

  • My picks: Storage bed (70% off) · Wingback bed similar to ours · Swivel armchairs · Rory & Ellis’ mattresses

• Curling iron — 69% off

  I upgraded my curling iron this year (my last one was from college!). You can get a brand-new one in “perfectly imperfect” packaging for 69% off. Such a steal!

• Biom — $4.99

  My everyday all-purpose wipes (that I keep in all of our bathrooms) are only $4.99 right now. I’m mostly a fan because of the stylish refillable container!

• J. Crew — Extra 40% off Sale

  J. Crew has some great finds. They’re at least 40% off.

  • My picks: Thin suede belt · my leather & raffia bag · silver sculptural earrings

As always, I keep my ShopMy Page and Amazon Storefront updated with discounts, purchases, and products I share on different platforms. So be sure to check there for any link you might need!

As always, these come from Instagram DMs, story replies, and comments here. If you have a question for the next one, leave it in the comments!

If social media disappeared tomorrow, what would you do?

I mean, I’ve obviously thought about this. When you’re self-employed, there’s always that thought in the back of your mind of, What if this all just stops?

But I’ve also been doing this for 14 years now, and really, it’s just a continuation of what I was doing before.

I studied film, television, and theater at Notre Dame and focused on broadcast journalism. I interned at pretty much every news station I could, worked as a news reporter and anchor, and then worked as a producer and host.

And really, all of those jobs come down to storytelling. How do you tell a story? How do you tell it succinctly? How do you tell it through video and keep someone interested? That’s still what I do now.

So I don’t really think social media is going anywhere. Will I be an influencer forever? I have no idea. Probably not? But I do think all of my skills have built on each other over the years, and whatever I do next will probably be another continuation of that.

But between storytelling, video, writing, and being extremely Type-A and organized, I feel pretty confident I’d figure something out.

Has becoming successful online changed any of your real-life relationships?

Not really, but there is one part that’s kind of weird.

When I see someone I haven’t seen in a long time, we’ll start doing the normal catch-up thing. What have you been up to? How are the kids? What’s new?

Except…they already know everything I’ve been up to. Ha!

They know what projects we’ve done around the house, what’s going on with the kids, what I’m working on, etc. Meanwhile, I have no clue what they’ve been doing!

That part is always a little funny to me. People know a lot about my life even when I don’t know anything about theirs.

But I actually think being online has helped me meet MORE people in real life, too. I’ve met women at the gym because they’ll come up and say, “Oh hey, I follow you!” Then we start talking, keep seeing each other in class, and eventually become friends.

So if anything, I think it’s opened the door to more friendships, which has been really nice.

Do you ever wish you had a “normal” 9-to-5 job?

Not in the corporate sense. Oh my gosh, no.

I cannot imagine going to a bunch of meetings I don’t want to be in or having a manager tell me what to do. I’ve been working for myself for WAY too long. I don’t think I could do it.

But there is one part of a more traditional job that I definitely envy.

My sister is a nurse AND a flight attendant, and when she’s not working, she’s not working.

She doesn’t have emails to catch up on. She doesn’t have a computer sitting there reminding her that she could get something done. In fact, she doesn’t even OWN a computer because she doesn’t need one!

So when she travels, she’s just…traveling. When she’s off, she’s off. That sounds pretty amazing to me.

When you own your own business, there is always something you could be doing. I’ve gotten much better about not working all the time, but it’s still there.

So corporate America? No thanks.

But truly clocking out and not thinking about work until my next shift? Yeah, I envy that.

Does your house ever actually stay clean?

NO.

Our cleaners come every two weeks on Mondays, and while the kids are at school or camp, I’ll walk around the house thinking, Ahhhh, this is amazing. Look how clean everything is.

By dinner that night? Disaster.

Okay, maybe not disaster. But there’s stuff on the floor, someone spills something at dinner, the floors are already dirty again, there’s toothpaste in the bathroom sink.

And pee. So much pee.

Ellis somehow gets pee everywhere around the toilet. We actually just got these little stickers that go inside the toilet bowl so he has something to aim at and THEY ARE WORKING. I’ll link them because if you have little boys, you get it.

So no, our house definitely doesn’t stay clean.

I do think we keep it pretty tidy, though, and there’s a difference. The house can be picked up and everything can be in its place while the floors desperately need to be cleaned and there’s toothpaste all over the sink.

But that’s just our stage of life right now. Two little kids live here. It’s going to be messy.

If money were no object, what would you change about your house tomorrow?

A GUEST ROOM.

This is probably the thing about our house that makes me the most sad. Finn’s family lives in Texas, so when they come to stay with us, I hate that they don’t really have their own space to go rest and recharge. It just gets chaotic.

If money were truly no object, maybe we’d pop the top on our garage and make an entire guest suite up there. A bedroom, bathroom, little kitchen…the whole thing. That would be AMAZING.

Or maybe we’d dig down in our basement and get taller ceilings. We have storage underneath our kitchen, so maybe we could dig all of that out and somehow create a guest room down there?

Or we could build into our side yard and make the house bigger that way.

Clearly, I’ve thought about this. Ha!

But the thing is, it’s not even JUST about money. It’s also…do I want to live through any of that?! We’ve done enough renovations over the years that the thought of taking on something that massive sounds terrible.

So honestly, if we ever get to the point where having more space and a guest room becomes really important to us, I think we’d probably just move.

Someday. Not anytime soon!

What’s one thing you and Finn are complete opposites about?

Finn is a perfectionist. I am VERY much a done-is-better-than-perfect person (which I think surprises people!).

I didn’t fully realize this about him until we started doing DIY projects together years ago.

If we’re working on something and a piece of wood is a tiny bit off, I’m like, “It’s fine! We’ll caulk it!”

Finn is like, “Absolutely not.” And then he’ll go cut the piece of wood ten more times until it’s perfect.

He also has ADHD, so he gets really excited about starting something and will crush the first 90% of a project. But that last 10%? All of those little finishing details? That part can be really hard for him.

I’m the complete opposite. I NEED IT DONE. Finished. Finalized. Crossed off my list. Out of my brain. That is my dopamine hit. Give me that checkmark!

So we definitely approach projects differently. He probably makes me slow down and do things a little better, and I make sure we actually get across the finish line.

What’s something you’ve become less Type-A about?

Weekends! I’m honestly really proud of myself with this one because I’ve gotten SO much better at actually unplugging.

Years ago, if the kids were napping on a Saturday afternoon, I’d immediately think, Okay, what can I get done?

Laundry. Emails. Work. Something around the house. There was always something.

After my burnout episode, this was one of the things I really wanted to change. I didn’t want every open pocket of time to automatically become productive time.

Now? On a Saturday afternoon, there’s a very good chance you’ll find our entire house taking a nap. IT IS GLORIOUS.

I’m still Type-A in about a million other ways, but I’m much, much better at letting myself do absolutely nothing sometimes.

What’s something you’ll probably never become less Type-A about?

Planning ahead. Every Friday, I look at the next week. If I’m busy on Friday, I’ll do it Thursday. But I HAVE to know what’s coming. And it’s not just work. It’s everything.

What do the kids have? What appointments are on the calendar? What am I filming? Where do I need to be? What’s happening at night?

I just need to know the lay of the land. You can read more about how I plan out my weeks right here.

I don’t necessarily need every second planned out, but I like having an idea in my head of what the next week looks like so I can prepare for it. I don’t think I’ll ever stop doing that.

And honestly, I don’t want to! I think being organized and planning ahead is a huge part of how I’m able to juggle everything I do.

That’s it for this month’s Ask Casey!

Have something you want me to answer next time? Leave it in the comments. I’m always looking for good ones!

If you had asked me two years ago what I wanted the cover of Your Home Playbook to look like, I actually had a pretty clear answer. I didn’t picture a photo. I didn’t picture myself holding a hammer or standing in a perfectly styled room. I pictured something that almost felt like a beautiful journal. Maybe a textured cover with embossed lettering and a ribbon bookmark so you could keep your place as you worked your way through the year.

Basically, I had a very specific vision and even gave this mood board to my publisher.

And the cover sitting on my desk today looks...absolutely nothing like it.

Let me explain.

What Does a Home Maintenance Book Even Look Like?

Before Bridget and I took a single photo for the book, we gathered probably 30 hardcover books spread out in front of us. Cookbooks, interior design books, coffee table books, how-to books...anything we thought might give us some inspiration. We were looking at how photography was used, what kinds of covers felt elevated, what we liked, what we didn’t like, and most importantly, what the heck a cover for my book should look like.

Because we had a bit of a problem. This book doesn’t really fit neatly into an existing category.

It’s not an interior design book, so putting a gorgeous photo of a living room on the cover didn’t make sense. It’s not a cleaning book, so I didn’t want a photo of me wiping down a countertop or holding a spray bottle. And it’s not one of those traditional DIY manuals with a toolbox and a bunch of hammers and nails on the front. Nothing wrong with those books, but that wasn’t what I was trying to create.

From the very beginning, one of my biggest goals was to make home maintenance feel approachable and, dare I say, beautiful. I wanted this to be a book you actually left sitting out in your home. That’s how Bridget and I landed on the journal idea. Maybe the outside didn’t need a photo at all. Maybe it could just be really beautiful and textured, with all of Bridget’s photography waiting for you once you opened it up.

I loved that idea. The publisher...not so much.

Okay, Fine. Maybe We Need a Photo.

Their argument was pretty simple: the cover needed to tell people what the book was about. Which, okay...fair.

They were thinking about the person who had never heard of me or The DIY Playbook. Someone walking through a bookstore needed to glance at the cover and understand what they were picking up. Even more importantly, someone scrolling online needed to understand it from a tiny thumbnail.

That was something I hadn’t really thought about. I was picturing how the book would look stacked on a coffee table. They were thinking about how it would look at two inches tall on Amazon. Both matter.

So we started talking about photography, and one of the first big questions was whether I should be on the cover. My initial answer was no. I really didn’t want to be.

I’m not Martha Stewart. My face isn’t selling this book. And more importantly, the book isn’t really about me. It’s about the system. I wanted someone to see it and think, I need this for my house, not, Here’s a book about Casey.

Plus, I’m already all over the inside. Unlike a cookbook, where you might see the author a few times and then mostly see beautiful finished dishes, I’m demonstrating these projects step by step. My hands are everywhere. My face is everywhere. You get plenty of Casey once you open the thing.

But if I was going to be on the cover, what exactly would I be doing? That became the next problem. We couldn’t do a cleaning shot because then it might look like a cleaning book. A beautiful room could make it look like an interior design book. And I certainly didn’t want to stand there smiling at the camera holding a drill.

Safe to say, we thought through every possible angle.

The Cover Shoots Begin

Interestingly, Bridget and I hadn’t actually photographed anything specifically for the cover during our big summer shoot. We had talked about it, but since we still had no idea what direction the cover would take, we decided to wait. If we needed to squeeze in another shoot later, we’d figure it out.

Well...we needed another shoot.

Our first attempt was in my mudroom. Those built-ins had just been added in fall 2025, after we’d wrapped the main photography for the book, so they’re not really featured inside. I was working on the cabinet hardware with my drill, and you didn’t see a ton of me. There was a beautiful room in the background, but you could also tell I was actually doing something.

Personally, I really liked it. It felt like a nice balance between the pretty, elevated look I wanted and the practical DIY side the publisher wanted.

They didn’t like it.

I was definitely disappointed, but okay. Back to the drawing board.

So Bridget and I scheduled another shoot. This time, we tried caulking. We did one photo by my windows where I’m more in the background, caulking the windowsill. I liked that one because it felt natural and pretty without screaming, LOOK! CASEY IS DOING DIY!

The feedback was that you couldn’t really tell what I was doing. Okay.

We also shot one of me caulking a baseboard. In that one, you could very clearly see what I was doing, but then the feedback was that there was too much of me.

At that point, Bridget and I were basically like...what do you want from us?! 😂

And Then Came the Covers

Meanwhile, actual cover designs were starting to come in, and just like the interior design process I talked about last week, there were definitely some stomach-drop moments.

There were versions with me smiling at the camera. There were hammers and nails worked into the graphics. Some felt a little cheesy. Others had colors that didn’t coordinate with what we’d already established for the interior of the book.

I remember opening some of them and immediately thinking, No, no, no. This is exactly what I didn’t want.

And yes, I cried. More than once.

I know. It’s a book cover. There are much bigger problems in the world. But by that point, I’d spent almost two years on this thing. Bridget and I had obsessed over every photograph. Nicole and I had worked so hard to make the interior feel elevated and cohesive. We’d thought about the tiniest details, and I was afraid we’d done all of that work only to wrap the whole thing in something that didn’t communicate what was actually inside.

Honestly, my biggest fear was that it would look cheap. I wanted someone to feel comfortable leaving this book sitting on their coffee table or stacked on a shelf. I wanted the outside to feel just as thoughtful as everything we’d put into the inside.

Every time another round came through, I’d send it to Bridget and ask what she thought. I purposely didn’t ask a million other people for their opinions because I knew myself well enough to know that ten different opinions would only make me question my own instincts even more. There was already enough noise in my head. I didn’t need to add to it.

So mostly, it was Bridget. Poor Bridget has really earned her place in this book.

Approximately 40 Covers Later...

I’m not exaggerating when I say I probably looked at 40 different cover options. Different photos, different layouts, different colors, different combinations. Somewhere fairly early in all of those iterations, we started gravitating toward the idea of using multiple photos, and that actually solved a lot of the problems we’d been running into.

Instead of asking one photograph to somehow communicate everything the book was about, we could show a mix. Cleaning. Painting. Indoor projects. Outdoor projects. We could show my hands actually doing the work without necessarily making my face the star of the cover.

And because every photo was one Bridget had taken, I knew the photography itself was going to feel beautiful and cohesive. The publisher got what they needed: a cover that actually communicated what the book was about, even as a tiny thumbnail online. And I got what I needed: something that still felt clean and elevated.

But even once we landed on that general direction, I still cared about every. little. thing. Shocking, I know.

I really fought for the colors to coordinate with the inside of the book, and I loved the navy spine we landed on. The back cover ended up featuring some of the amazing blurbs I received along with a photo of my dining room. Originally, we’d tried a photo of my office built-ins back there, but the navy on the cabinets didn’t quite match the navy on the spine. Nope. Couldn’t do it.

Once I noticed it, I could not unsee it. We switched it to the dining room, and suddenly the whole thing felt much more cohesive.

The Things I Had to Let Go

There were also plenty of things from my original dream that simply weren’t going to happen. The textured cover. The embossing. My beloved ribbon bookmark.

And this was another publishing lesson for me: all of those pretty little details cost money.

From pretty early on, the publisher was very committed to keeping Your Home Playbook at $29. I remember thinking, Can’t we just make it $32? Or $34? If someone is already buying a hardcover book, would a few extra dollars really make that much of a difference?

But they felt strongly that $29 was the right price point, and every little upgrade I wanted affected the cost of producing the book. A more expensive cover material, embossing, a ribbon...it all adds up. So suddenly these weren’t just design decisions. They were business decisions, too.

That was hard for me because I was looking at it from the perspective of, How do we make this thing as beautiful and special as possible? They were looking at it from the perspective of: How do we make this beautiful AND keep it at a price people will actually pay?

And again...neither side was wrong.

That was one of the harder parts of the cover process for me. I know my brand and my audience really well. I’ve spent thirteen years figuring out what they respond to and what feels like The DIY Playbook. But this was also my first book. The publisher knows how books sell. They know what works on a bookstore table and what needs to be legible in a tiny thumbnail online.

I had to figure out where to push and where to let them do their jobs.

We did find other places to bring in some of those special details. The endpapers, for example, have this beautiful linen-inspired stripe that I absolutely love. At one point, we’d actually played around with using that pattern on the outside of the book, but paired with all of the photography, it was just too busy. Moving it inside ended up being perfect, and it’s one of those little details that makes the physical book feel special to me.

So...Was There a Big Reveal?

After approximately 40 options, multiple photo shoots, countless emails, lots of calls with Bridget, and yes, a few tears, you’d think there would be this big movie moment where the final cover appeared on my screen, and I gasped.

There wasn’t. I wish I had a better story.

We were on a call, we’d narrowed everything down to a couple of options, and eventually I basically said, “Okay...yeah. I guess let’s go with that one.”

And then we did.

GET YOUR COPY :)

I remember getting off the call and thinking, Okay. I guess that’s my book cover.

It was incredibly anticlimactic after spending so much time thinking about it, but I think that moment sums up much of what I learned during this process.

If you’d given me complete creative control from day one, would I have designed this exact cover? Probably not. I still think about my pretty journal idea. I still wish we could’ve had that ribbon bookmark. I still think it would’ve been really cool.

But I also wasn’t creating a book just for myself.

The cover needed to sit on a bookstore table and work as a tiny thumbnail online. It needed to make sense to someone who’s followed me for thirteen years and someone who’s never heard my name. It needed to communicate home maintenance without looking like a cleaning book, an interior design book, or a traditional DIY manual. And somehow, I still wanted it to look pretty when it sat on your coffee table.

That’s a lot to ask of one book cover.

Looking at it now, I like where we landed. I’m not going to pretend I opened the final version and cried tears of joy and thought, This is the cover I’ve always dreamed of! That’s just not what happened. But I like it. I think it does what it needs to do. It tells you what the book is about, it showcases Bridget’s gorgeous photography, the colors feel cohesive with everything inside, and I really love that navy spine.

Maybe that’s what this part of publishing taught me more than anything. Sometimes your favorite creative choice isn’t necessarily the best business choice. There were things I needed to speak up about, and there were things the publisher needed to push me on. Both sides had to concede on certain things, and somewhere in the middle of all of that, we landed on the cover you see today.

I still would’ve loved that ribbon, though.

What’s Next?

And with that, the book was done. Well...the making of the book was done.

After nearly two years of proposals, contracts, writing, photography, copyedits, design changes, cover debates, and more PDFs than I ever want to look at again, Your Home Playbook was finally headed to the printer.

Which feels like a pretty good place to pause this series.

Because the next chapter of Behind the Book isn’t really about making a book anymore. It’s about figuring out how the heck you get people to buy one.

Preorders. Publicity. Book tours. Events. Marketing plans. All things I am currently learning about in real time.

So Behind the Book isn’t over. I’m just going to give you a little break while I actually live the next part of the story.

And trust me...I’ll report back.

And just like that, we are back to school! Rory started first grade on Monday, and Ellis headed off to his new preschool on Tuesday. After a summer of camps, travel, and very loose routines, it feels good to get back into a rhythm…but also a little bittersweet.

I’ll miss the laid-back vibes of summer, but I definitely won’t miss a new camp every week, packing endless lunches and snacks, and trying to work around some truly wild camp hours. A 9:30 a.m. start time?! I feel like I’ve lived ten lives by then!

Looking back, we managed to squeeze a lot of fun into August (amidst the crazy Chicago weather). The kids headed to my dad’s lakehouse in Beverly Shores for “Pops Camp”…three days of beach time, boating, hot tubbing, and even a county fair.

Safe to say they had a blast, and we’ll absolutely be doing it again next summer!

Rented this polka dot number from Nuuly

Finn and I even snuck in a date night while they were away. Glorious!

Speaking of the weather…August was the pits. So much rain and so many thunderstorms and tornadoes! One day, we had plans to head to the beach but had to pivot at the last minute. We ended up getting tickets to a Monster Truck show at the United Center, and it was actually pretty awesome. The kids had a blast!

On the home front, we gifted our outdoor playhouse to a neighbor with little kids, since it was getting too small for my kiddos. Now we’re scheming up something new for that spot in the yard. I’ve also been staring at wallpaper samples for Rory’s room and can’t wait to tackle that project in the coming weeks.

September is shaping up to be jam-packed. Ellis turns five, soccer season starts (we’re coaching again!), I’m heading out of town for a DIY girls’ weekend, and we’ve got a Notre Dame game on the agenda. It’s gonna be a fun fall…

CREATIVE

• I’ve added a few new things around the house, including this cute set of bird prints. I stacked three in our dining room and love the little touch of whimsy they add. I also discovered this new-to-me home brand where everything is under $25! I picked up this breakfast mug, textured vase, and large vase, and I’m seriously impressed with the quality for the price.

• I’ve always been intrigued by filtered shower heads (better skin? better hair?), but I never pulled the trigger because it’s surprisingly hard to find one in brass. Then I stumbled upon this one! It took about 30 seconds to install—seriously, just unscrew your old shower head and screw this one on.

• This teacher’s bathroom glow-up is so good!

ADVOCACY

• Running women’s-only workshops makes men uncomfortable.

• Maybe I just don’t want to be thin.

• @sharonsaysso always knows what to say…

STYLISH

• Finn purchased a larger fruit bowl because we go through an absurd amount of fruit in this house, and I was pleasantly surprised by his pick. Who knew he had such good fruit-bowl taste?!

• I recently got an upgraded engagement ring (thanks, Mr. Finn!), so I’ve been playing around with what band to wear with it. My old wedding band felt a little too big and clunky next to the new larger diamond, but I’ve been wearing this simple band and really like how they look together.

• Rory was matching from head to toe for her first day of school. This backpack, this lunchbox, and this twirl dress. The dress is definitely a new favorite…it’s incredibly soft and she said she wants to wear it as pjs too!

ENTERTAINING

• We finally watched Project Hail Mary and OMG, we loved it. Amaze, amaze, amaze! IYKYK.

• I haven’t been watching much lately (except the new season of Ted Lasso!), but so many of you recommended Sterling Point that I’m officially adding it to my list.

• We got a piano! Rory has been interested in learning for a while and starts lessons this fall. We ended up choosing this one because it looks nice, you can plug in headphones (key!), and it connects to Bluetooth. For now, it’s living in our basement play area.

YUMMY

• I swear I’m not a stoner, but brands tend to send me a surprising amount of THC products to try. 😂 I recently tried the gummies from High Confectionary, and I really like that they’re only 1mg of THC…a teeny tiny amount. Plus, they actually taste sooo good, which I feel like is a rarity in the weed world…

• Sheet pan grilled cheese. Yes, please!

• A great hack to keep your kids’ lunches hot all day.

This month’s Community Spotlight is for anyone planning a celebration in the Chicagoland area!

Meet Gina from Midwest Marquees

Gina is the woman behind Midwest Marquees, a local business creating those big, light-up letters and numbers you see at parties, weddings, school events, and celebrations. The coolest part? Every letter is handmade and hand-painted!

Gina started the business in 2017 and handles everything from delivery and setup to pickup, making it an easy way to add something extra to your event. She’s based in Roselle and serves the Chicagoland area

.If you have a celebration coming up, check out Midwest Marquees.

• Behind the Book Series

  • Part 1: There was almost a book in 2016…

  • Part 2: The cold email that got me a book deal.

  • Part 3: Why we took all of the photos before I even wrote the book

  • Part 4: When the book in my head didn’t match the one on my screen…

• How I became the VIP house guest at my sister-in-law’s farm this summer

• Bestselling products from July

• What my mom really thinks of each of her kids (this ended up going pretty viral)

• Helping Jan install weatherstripping in this house call

• Things I’ll always splurge on

• The story of our DIY built-ins

• Have a trip to Chicago coming up? Read this first!

That’s it for this month’s recap. Have a wonderful weekend, and good luck with the back-to-school chaos…

When I turned in my manuscript in the fall of 2025, I felt this huge sense of relief. It had been over a year of outlining, writing, photographing, revising...and finally, I hit “send.”

In my mind, I was basically done.

Well...not done done. I knew there would be edits. But I pictured what you see in the movies. My editor would read through the manuscript, we’d hop on a call, she’d tell me where something wasn’t landing, maybe ask me to add another story here or cut something there, and together we’d shape the final version of the book.

That’s what I thought happened after you turned in a manuscript. Looking back, it’s funny how confidently wrong I was about pretty much all of it.

About six weeks later, I got this email from my editor:

First of all...what an incredible email to receive. I remember reading it twice because I wasn’t expecting that at all. But then another thought crept in.

Wait...does this mean we’re skipping the whole editor part?

The answer was yes.

Because the manuscript was already in really good shape, they decided to send it straight to copyediting instead of developmental edits.

Which, I know, sounds like a weird thing to be disappointed about. Great feedback. Less work for me. Every author should want that, right?

And I did. But I was also kind of sad.

I’d been looking forward to having someone challenge me a little. Ask questions. Push me to make certain sections stronger. I was excited for the collaboration, and instead I basically got an email that said, “Looks great! Let’s move on.”

Again...not a bad problem to have. Just not what I’d imagined.

Turns Out, I Didn’t Know How Publishing Worked

One thing I’ve learned throughout this whole process is that I had a lot of assumptions about publishing. Most of them were wrong.

For example, I thought an editor and a copy editor were basically the same thing. They’re not.

Developmental editing is the big-picture stuff. Copyediting is all about consistency. Grammar. Capitalization. Making sure you’re calling things the same thing throughout the entire book.

Guess who had a few issues with that? This girl.

One of my biggest edits was figuring out what counted as a “tool” versus a “supply.” Somewhere along the way I’d decided a rag belonged in one category for one tutorial and a different category for another. Things like that had to be standardized across the entire book.

There were hundreds of Track Changes waiting for me. None of them were huge. But there were a lot of them.

Then came the thing that completely blew my mind. I had to place every single photo in the manuscript myself.

I genuinely thought the designer did that. Nope.

Bridget and I had taken more than 2,000 photos over the summer, and every single one had a file name. I had to go through the manuscript page by page, deciding exactly where each photo belonged.

Should this section have one image? Would four step-by-step photos make more sense? Wait...didn’t I already use that one?

I spent three or four days living inside Microsoft Word, constantly using Ctrl+F to make sure I hadn’t accidentally referenced the same image twice.

Again...something I had absolutely no idea was part of making a book.

The Sample Chapter

Once all of that was finished, I finally got the email I’d really been waiting for. The sample chapter. This was the first time I was actually going to see the book.

I remember sitting in my office, opening my laptop, genuinely excited. It felt like this huge milestone. All these words and all these photos I’d been living with for months were finally going to come together.

I don’t think I made it past the second page. My stomach just dropped.

It wasn’t ugly. It wasn’t poorly designed. It just...wasn’t the book I’d been carrying around in my head.

The colors were brighter than I’d imagined. There were pink accents. The fonts felt more playful and script-y. It leaned a little crafty. Almost scrapbook-y. And that's a really strange feeling, because I had been looking at one version of something in my head for a year and a half, and then someone else showed me their version.

And I want to be careful how I say this, because I honestly think it could’ve been a beautiful design for a different book. It just wasn’t this book.

For the last year and a half, I’d been picturing something calm. Clean. Elevated. The kind of book you’d actually leave sitting on your coffee table.This felt like a completely different personality.

I immediately called Bridget in tears. I remember saying something like, “They don’t get it.”

Looking back now, that’s probably not entirely fair. They weren’t in my head. They were looking at a design questionnaire I’d filled out and interpreting it through their own experience. I was looking at it through thirteen years of building The DIY Playbook.

Neither of us was necessarily wrong. We just weren’t seeing the same thing.

Bridget listened to me spiral for a while before she finally said, “Call Nicole.”

Showing Instead of Explaining

Nicole has designed so many things for me over the years. Gift guides. PDFs. Marketing materials. If you’ve followed me for a while, you’ve seen her work even if you didn’t realize it.

She knows my brand incredibly well and basically helped build the look of The DIY Playbook from the ground up.

So I called her and asked, “If this project landed on your desk, what would you do?”

She spent the entire weekend creating her own sample chapter. When she sent it over that Sunday, I opened the PDF and immediately felt this wave of relief.

Yes. This was the book I’d been picturing.

Not because she’d copied exactly what I had in my head, but because she’d captured the feeling I was trying to create.

Calm. Approachable. Beautiful enough that you’d leave it sitting on your coffee table.

The same vision Bridget and I had talked about all summer while we obsessed over things like...whether a red shovel belonged in a photo.

Instead of sending the publisher an email saying, “I don’t like this,” we sent something much more helpful.

We put the two sample chapters side by side. Here’s what you created. Here’s what we envisioned. Here’s why. That changed everything.

To the publisher’s credit, they immediately understood what I was trying to communicate. They asked if they could use Nicole’s design as the foundation for the book's interior, and she even received design credit in the finished book.

Looking back, I think that was the biggest lesson of this whole stage.

Sometimes the best feedback isn’t saying what’s wrong. It’s showing people what you mean.

Learning to Collaborate

I’ve thought about this part of the process a lot. For thirteen years, I’ve run my own business. If something doesn’t feel right, I change it. If I have an idea, I try it.

I don’t spend a lot of time working through layers of approvals or collaborating with big teams.

Publishing was a whole different ball game.

Suddenly there were editors, designers, production people, marketers...all incredibly talented people whose jobs were to make the best book possible.

I had to figure out when to trust their expertise. I also had to figure out when to speak up. That balance was harder than I expected.

I never wanted to be the difficult author.

But I also knew I had a responsibility to advocate for the vision I’d been carrying around in my head for the last year and a half.

Looking back, I don’t think those two things are mutually exclusive. You can be collaborative. You can trust the experts. And you can still speak up when something doesn’t feel right.

Side note: If I could go back and do one thing differently, I think I’d ask for more phone calls and fewer emails. It’s amazing how quickly a twenty-minute conversation can solve something that would take fifteen emails to untangle. Once everyone was talking through the same vision instead of trying to describe it over email, everything became so much easier.

At this point, I thought we’d worked through the hardest creative challenge of the entire project.

I was very, very wrong.

Because next came the cover. And let’s just say that’s a saga…

Next Wednesday in Behind the Book...

• The cover that almost looked nothing like the one you see today

• Why I cried more than once during the cover design process

• The fine line between trusting the experts and trusting your gut

• How we finally landed on the cover that will eventually be on your coffee table

P.S. If you've been enjoying these behind-the-scenes stories, I'd be so grateful if you'd preorder a copy of Your Home Playbook. Knowing what went into creating it makes finally getting to hold it feel even more special. ❤️

I’m not sure I’d describe myself as a big spender or particularly frugal. I think I’m just very specific about what I’m willing to spend money on.

I would happily pay more for the “good version” of some things. If I use it every single day; if it makes my life easier; if it gives me back time; or if it genuinely makes me happy? Take my money!

Then there are other categories where I just...don’t care. You will never find a $300 pajama set in my closet; I’ve never owned a designer handbag; and despite the amount of skincare that arrives at my house, I use the same handful of products over and over again, and gift the rest to my girlfriends.

The older I get, the more I realize that I’d rather spend generously in the areas that matter to me and save without guilt in the ones that don’t.

So today, I thought it would be fun to share both.

The Things I’ll Always Splurge On

A Really Good Mattress + Bedding

I am a girl who prioritizes her sleep. I get a minimum of eight hours a night and, honestly, I’m happiest with nine or ten. I know that sounds like an absurd amount to some people, but sleep affects everything for me. My mood, my energy, my workouts, my patience...all of it.

So please, if your mattress sucks and you wake up uncomfortable every morning, BUY A NEW MATTRESS. You spend way too much of your life in that thing to hate it. This is the one we have and love.

Same goes for bedding. I love soft sheets, a fluffy duvet, and a bed that feels really freaking good when I crawl into it at night.

A Good Sleep Mask

Sticking with the sleep theme...

My sleep mask is expensive. I’m not going to pretend otherwise. But it is literally on my face every. single. night.

Whenever I sleep without it, I notice a difference. Plus, the silk is so soft and doesn’t leave me with a giant crease across my face in the morning. Is it also preventing wrinkles? I have absolutely no evidence of this, but I choose to believe it is.

It is so cozy, I use it constantly, and the cost-per-use at this point has to be pennies. Finn has the same one too.

My Retainer Cleaner

This is specific, but hear me out. I wear retainers/night guards every single night. I’m a teeth grinder, and I also had Invisalign (more about that journey here), so after going through all of that, I am NOT letting these teeth move.

I used to clean my retainers with a toothbrush, which worked fine. Then I got this retainer cleaner, and it’s magic.

I use it every single day. My retainers get actually clean without me standing at the sink scrubbing them. For something that goes into my mouth every night, it is 100% worth it.

My Espresso Machine

This one is newer to me, but it has already made the list.

I bought an espresso machine and have officially reached the point where I think my latte at home tastes better than the latte I get at a coffee shop. WHO AM I?!

There was definitely a learning curve, and I wrote an entire post about the machine and my experience with it if you’re curious. But now I genuinely look forward to making my coffee every morning.

Anything That Buys Back Meaningful Time

This is probably the biggest one on this entire list.

At this stage of life, I’m very willing to spend money when what I’m actually buying is time. I can always clean my own house or mow my own lawn. I can’t get a Saturday with my family back

Our house cleaners come every two weeks, and they are AMAZING. There is nothing better than walking into the house after they’ve been here and everything is sparkling and smells so good.

Same with our lawn. We have someone mow it instead of spending our weekends keeping up with that chore.

Good Paint + Quality Brushes

You knew there had to be some DIY on this list.

When it comes to paint, I’m actually not that loyal to any one brand. But whatever brand you choose, buy the best line of paint they offer.

Do not spend hours prepping, taping, cutting in, rolling, cleaning up, and doing the whole dang project only to save a few bucks on the paint itself.

The good stuff covers better, goes on better, and makes the entire process easier.

Same goes for brushes. I’m a Purdy girl all the way. Give me a good Purdy brush and my Pelican paint pail, and I am ready to go.

Giant, Soft Towels

Tiny, scratchy towels are the worst. I am firmly “Team Bath Sheet”. I want a towel so large I practically disappear into it.

Bath sheets are ginormous, soft, cozy, and one of those little everyday luxuries that I absolutely think is worth paying for.

The only downside? You absolutely cannot wrap one around your head unless you want your neck to give out.

For my hair, I use these microfiber towels instead. They’re lightweight, stay put, and are so much better than attempting to balance five pounds of wet bath sheet on top of my head.

A Good Vacuum

I’m a Dyson girl all the way, and we own this V15 model.

For me, a vacuum needs to be EASY. I don’t want to drag something giant out of a closet, plug it in, wind up the cord, and make vacuuming into an entire production.

I want to grab it, do a quick zip around the kitchen, suck up a DIY mess, hit the stairs, and put it away.

A good cordless stick vacuum is one of those things that makes keeping up with the house so much easier, and ours gets used constantly.

Hair, Color + Botox

I get my hair cut and colored about four times a year. I get Botox about four times a year.

And I will happily continue paying for both.

I absolutely adore the woman who does my hair and would probably pay her anything she asked me to at this point. I leave feeling like myself, only much better.

Same with Botox. It’s something I choose to spend money on because I like it and it makes me feel good.

Family Photos

Every year, we do a professional family photo shoot in the fall. It can be a big pain to figure out clothing, reserve a date, and bribe the kids into smiling. But every year, I’m so glad we did it.

Our annual photo shoot guarantees that once a year, I get beautiful pictures of our entire family together.

Yes, I use them for our Christmas card. But I also use them all year long—in frames, photo books, gifts, random projects, you name it.

My kids are changing so fast, and I know there will come a day when these annual photos are some of my favorite things we own.

Hosting People

This isn’t really one specific thing, but it is absolutely something I’m willing to spend money on. We love being the house.

I want the neighborhood kids to know they can wander over. I want friends to be able to stop by. I want to be able to text people, “Come over!” without immediately thinking, Crap, we have nothing here.

So our fridges are pretty much always stocked. Juice boxes, waters, Poppi, snacks, and drinks for the kids. Wine, THC drinks, and all the things for the adults.

Could we spend less in this category? Ohhhh yes. But having a house full of people is one of my favorite things, and this is one of those expenses where I know exactly what I’m paying for.

Our Gym Membership

Our gym membership is definitely a splurge, but it has become such a huge part of our family’s life.

It’s less “gym” and more “club.” There’s childcare, a pool, a restaurant, and plenty for all of us to do. On a gross, rainy Chicago day when everyone needs to get out of the house? We can go to the gym.

And personally, my fitness has improved so much since we joined. We use it constantly, the entire family benefits from it, and it makes it easier for me to prioritize something that’s really important to me.

Worth every penny.

Things I Don’t Splurge On

And now for the other side of this equation.

Because apparently I’ll spend good money on a silk sleep mask...and then crawl into my expensive bedding wearing a T-shirt from college. We all contain multitudes, right?!

Pajamas

I love nice bedding. I could not care less about nice pajamas.

I am an old-T-shirt-and-shorts girl through and through. I have a T-shirt from COLLEGE that I still wear multiple times a week. Throw in some comfy shorts in the summer or soft pants in the winter, and I am set.

Expensive Skincare

This one may be surprising considering I just told you that I happily pay for Botox. But I really don’t spend a lot on skincare. You can read more about the skincare I use in this post.

I have a prescription retinol that is very inexpensive, vitamin C, and a few other products that I know work for my skin. Overall, my routine is pretty simple.

I do not subscribe to the idea that I need a 12-step skincare routine.

I actually get sent a TON of skincare products through my job, and most of the time, I give them to my friends. I already have what works for me. I don’t need to constantly introduce something new just because it exists.

Getting My Nails Done

I am just not a nail person. I’ll get the occasional pedicure, but you will not find me at the nail salon every two weeks.

Most of the time, I keep my nails short and paint them myself once a week using my beloved nail concealer.

And hilariously, this nail concealer has become one of the most popular products I’ve ever shared with you guys. Apparently my greatest contribution to the beauty world is coming from someone who barely cares about her nails.

Designer Handbags

I have never owned a designer handbag, and I honestly don’t think I ever will.

I know people who LOVE bags and absolutely light up over them, and I totally get spending money on something that brings you joy. It just doesn’t do it for me.

I cannot imagine myself spending thousands of dollars on a handbag. If you can, enjoy her. I will admire her from afar.

Seasonal Decor

I don’t really decorate for seasons. I know. Home blogger blasphemy!

I don’t have bins of Valentine’s Day decor, Easter decor, spring decor, Fourth of July decor, fall decor, Halloween decor...

At Christmas, I’m in. Let’s do the tree. Let’s hang the garland. Let’s make it festive.

But the rest of the year, I mostly want my house to look like...my house. And I’m very happy not to have another 47 bins of stuff to store in the basement.

Kids’ Clothes

Our kids wear their clothes HARD. They play in them. They spill things on them. They get muddy. They grow out of things approximately a week after we buy them.

So we don’t buy a lot of precious clothes for them.

Finn actually wrote an entire post about where we shop for the kids and what we buy, so I’ll link that here if you’re interested.

They have plenty of cute clothes. I just don’t need to be stressed because somebody got ketchup on a $90 sweater, which will absolutely happen in three minutes.

Clothes for Weddings + Events

This one has changed a lot for me because of Nuuly.

I don’t want to buy a new dress every time we have a wedding, event, work thing, party, or vacation. Inevitably, I’d wear it once or twice, and then it would hang in my closet forever.

Instead, I get six pieces a month through Nuuly.

If I have an event coming up, I rent something fun. I wear it. I send it back.

If I end up absolutely loving something, I can usually buy it for a pretty significant discount.

But for the most part, it has completely eliminated that feeling of, I have an event coming up, so now I need to go buy an entirely new outfit.

Looking at this list, I think my spending philosophy is actually pretty simple. I’ll spend on sleep. I’ll spend on time. I’ll spend on things I use constantly, taking care of myself, making memories, and making our house a place where people want to gather.

But I’m also very happy to save in the categories I just don’t care about. I don’t need fancy pajamas just because I love fancy bedding. I don’t need expensive skincare because someone tells me I should. And I certainly don’t need a designer handbag just because it’s considered an “investment.”

I think that’s the real takeaway for me: spend generously on the things that make your life better, and stop feeling like you’re supposed to spend money on everything else.

Now I want to hear yours. What’s something you’ll happily splurge on every single time? And what’s one thing you absolutely refuse to spend good money on?

My house had turned into book headquarters. There were bins of tools, racks of clothes, stacks of props, and copies of the nerdiest spreadsheet I’ve ever created scattered about.

Some mornings I’d be writing a chapter about January. That afternoon I’d be outside wearing a puffer coat while it was 90 degrees. The next day we’d be photographing summer projects. Then fall. Then back to winter.

It was complete chaos.

It was also one of the happiest summers of my life.

The first phone call

The moment the book deal became real, there was one person I had to call.

If you read Part One, you know Bridget and I dreamed about writing a book together more than ten years ago. Back then, we were two twenty-something bloggers with a big idea and absolutely no clue what we were doing.

That book never happened. Life had other plans.

Bridget became a professional photographer. I kept building The DIY Playbook.

But the second this book became official, I never considered another photographer. Actually...I called her before the contract was even signed.

During the contract negotiations, I wanted to make sure she was available, talk through her rates, and figure out whether we could actually make this work. I knew if everything came together, we’d only have one chance to photograph the entire book.

Thankfully, she was in. And looking back now, I can’t imagine it any other way.

Not just because she’s an incredible photographer (she is), but because she already understood exactly what I wanted this book to feel like.

Yes, I wanted people to learn how to maintain their homes. But I also wanted them to want to pick the book up. Beautiful photography. Calm colors. A book you’d leave on your coffee table instead of hiding on a bookshelf.

I never had to explain that to Bridget. She already knew.

Planning for the impossible

Here’s what made everything a little crazy...

Bridget is a teacher, so we only had June and July before she went back to school. Which meant we were going to photograph the entire book...while I was still writing it.

So May 2025 became planning month.

I mapped out every chapter, decided which projects belonged in each month, and then built the mother of all spreadsheets.

Finn helped me make it functional, but I populated the whole thing with every single detail. (Shocking absolutely no one.)

Every photo in the book lived there. The room. The project. The date. The supplies. The outfit. The location. Whether it was inside or outside. Nothing was left to chance.

Every morning I’d print that day’s shot list for the group. We’d each walk around with our own copy and a highlighter, crossing things off as we went.

Life on set

Once June arrived, we hit the ground running. One day I’d be wearing a chunky sweater pretending it was January. The next I’d be barefoot photographing a summer project.

Then we’d jump to October. Then back to March.

I even hired a stylist because I suddenly needed enough outfits to represent an entire year...all within about eight weeks. You can read more about hiring a stylist in this post.

We also hired a college student, Maddie, to intern with us for the summer. Bridget and I spent the next two months trying to convince her that our generation was actually pretty cool.

We’d tell her stories about life before Instagram. Before smartphones. Before everyone documented every second of their lives.

Maddie mostly humored us...while making it very clear she thought we were old ladies.

In return, she’d teach us whatever word Gen Z was saying that week so we could pretend to stay relevant. I’m still not convinced it worked.

Every day was an adventure

One day we rented a photography studio to knock out headshots, tool photos, and all those little detail images.

Other days we’d spend an embarrassing amount of time debating whether one tiny object belonged in a shot. We’d fluff a towel. We’d debate whether a screwdriver looked better angled left or right.

Case in point: the infamous red shovel.

We had everything set up, and one of us finally looked at the photo and said, “The red doesn’t work.” So the shovel got cut.

Will a single reader ever notice? Absolutely not.

But that’s kind of the point. Nobody notices one tiny decision.

They notice how the whole book feels. And those tiny decisions are what created that feeling.

Photo days. Writing days.

People ask me all the time how I found time to write a book.

I wrote on the days we weren’t photographing. Those became my quieter days.

I’d spend the mornings writing one or two chapters, working my way through the calendar month by month.

Then I’d spend the afternoons steaming clothes, buying supplies, packing bins, running to Home Depot, and getting everything ready for the next shoot.

By the time my head hit the pillow every night, I’d already be mentally walking through tomorrow’s shot list.

Photo day. Writing day. Photo day. Writing day.

Repeat.

We decided to make it fun

Before our very first shoot, Bridget and I made a promise. We knew this summer was going to be exhausting.

We also knew we’d probably never get another summer quite like it.

So no matter how stressful things got, we were going to have fun. And we did.

Every morning started with Kelly Clarkson, Nelly Furtado, Natasha Bedingfield...basically the soundtrack of our high school and college years. (Someone had to educate Maddie.)

By 11:30 am, we would all be saying, “What are we ordering for lunch?”

We had this tiny window every day to wrap up before I had to race and pick Rory and Ellis up from camp. Somehow we’d go from complete chaos to looking like a relatively normal house in record time.

Finn mostly stayed in the basement, wisely keeping his distance from whatever production we had taken over upstairs. But right around lunchtime, he’d wander up the stairs, look around at the ladders, tools, camera gear, and outfit racks that had completely consumed our house, quietly submit his lunch order...and disappear back downstairs. It became part of the routine.

Every day wasn’t perfect

One morning Maddie and I were driving to my brother’s house in the suburbs for a shoot. I was borrowing my mom’s car while she was in Greece, and out of nowhere it completely died.

On the highway. We sat there for three hours waiting for a tow truck. I had to pee on the side of the road.

We were both convinced we were going to get hit by a semi.

Meanwhile, Bridget was sitting at my brother’s house with an entire day’s shoot planned. Somehow we still got everything photographed. I honestly have no idea how.

Looking back, I don’t remember how many chapters I wrote that week. I remember laughing until we cried.

Not the stress. Not the deadlines. Just the fun.

Every once in a while I’d stop in the middle of a shoot and look around.

Bridget behind the camera. Maddie checking the shot list. Tools scattered across the floor.

And I’d think...I can’t believe this is my job.

We weren’t just making a book. We were building something we’d talked about for more than a decade.

Together.

Looking back now, I realize that was the dream all along.

A dream...just not the one we imagined

Somehow, without really noticing, the dream Bridget and I had talked about more than a decade earlier had quietly become real. Just not in the way we originally imagined.

Back then, we thought we’d write a book together.

Instead, she told the story through her camera while I told it through the pages.

I think this was always the story we were supposed to tell.

A few weeks later, I turned in the manuscript. I hit “send,” closed my laptop, and remember thinking...The hard part is finally over.

Spoiler alert. It wasn’t even close.

Next Wednesday in Behind the Book...

I thought turning in my manuscript meant I was done.

Instead, it kicked off months of edits, revisions, design decisions, and more “final” versions than I can count.

I’ll take you behind the scenes of what really happens after you finish writing a book.

I grew up in the Chicagoland area (aka the suburbs, and yes, we’re very particular about making that distinction). When I was a kid, going “into the city” felt like the coolest thing in the world.

We’d pile into the car a few times a year for a White Sox game, a museum visit (our high school prom was at the Field Museum!), Christmas shopping, or just a fun day downtown. I remember seeing the skyline come into view and thinking, People actually get to live here?

Then, in our twenties, Finn and I became two of those people.

We’ve lived in Chicago since 2013, and I can’t imagine calling anywhere else home. We’ve experienced this city as newlyweds, as first-time homeowners, and now as parents raising two little kids. I loved Chicago before we moved here, but living here has made me appreciate it in a completely different way.

Over the years, I’ve gotten hundreds of messages asking the same questions.

“We’re coming to Chicago for a few days. Where should we stay?”

“What’s good to do with kids?

“How do you get around the city?”

So I figured it was finally time for an updated guide.

I actually wrote a couple Chicago posts on my blog more than 10 years ago, but a lot has changed since then. Some of my favorite restaurants have closed. We’ve moved neighborhoods. We have kids now. And I experience the city differently than I did in my twenties.

So instead of giving you a giant list of attractions, I thought I’d write the email I’d send a friend if they texted and said, “We’re coming to Chicago next month.”

Let’s get into it.

Come when Chicago is showing off

If you have flexibility, I’d plan your trip sometime between May and October.

Everyone talks about Chicago summers, and for good reason. The patios are packed; there are festivals every weekend; the beaches are full; and it feels like the entire city collectively decides, “We’re going outside.” It’s just...fun.

But here’s my hot take. I actually think September and October are even better.

The humidity finally disappears, the trees start changing colors, and it’s cool enough that you can spend hours walking around without feeling like you’re melting. It’s patio weather during the day, sweater weather at night, and hands-down my favorite time of year in the city.

Spring is fine, but it can be pretty rainy and gray.

And January? I love Chicago, but I probably wouldn’t recommend planning your dream vacation then.

Now...December is a different story. Chicago does Christmas really, really well.

Walk through Christkindlmarket; check out the Macy’s holiday windows; and if you’re looking for one thing to splurge on, book afternoon tea at The Peninsula. It’s one of my favorite holiday traditions in the city, and it feels so festive.

O’Hare or Midway?

People ask me which airport to fly into all the time, and the answer is...whichever flight is cheaper.

O’Hare is our big international airport, and it’s where we almost always fly because we live about 15 minutes away. It’s also connected to the Blue Line.

Midway is smaller and usually a little easier to navigate. That’s connected to the Orange Line.

Both are easy to get to with Uber, taxi, or the train. But speaking of transportation...

Skip the rental car

Trust me on this one. Chicago traffic is no joke, parking is expensive, and unless you’re planning to spend a lot of time outside the city, I don’t think it’s worth it.

Instead, ride the L.

I know public transportation can feel intimidating if you’re not used to it, but it’s one of my favorite ways to get around. We ride the Blue Line often (yes, even with the kids), and it’s an easy (and inexpensive) way to see different parts of the city.

Which brings me to what is probably my biggest piece of advice...

Please don’t spend your entire trip downtown

I know. It feels backward because that’s where all the hotels are.

You’ll definitely want to see The Bean, walk Michigan Avenue, and spend time on the Riverwalk. Do all of that.

But then...leave.

Chicago has 77 community areas, and what makes this city so special is that every neighborhood has its own personality.

If you spend your whole trip in the Loop (or River North), you’re missing the best part.

West Loop feels completely different than Wicker Park.

Wicker Park feels completely different than Logan Square.

Lincoln Park has a different vibe than Andersonville.

One of my favorite ways to spend a Saturday is simply picking a neighborhood, grabbing coffee, wandering into a few shops, finding a great patio for lunch, and seeing where the day takes us.

Chicago rewards that kind of exploring.

If you only do one touristy thing...

Make it the architecture boat tour. I know it sounds like something only tourists do.

I’ve lived here for 13 years, and I’ve probably already done it half a dozen times. I would happily go tomorrow.

It’s one of those rare attractions that actually lives up to the hype. Afterward, grab lunch on the Riverwalk, sit outside for a while, and just enjoy being there.

It’s one of my favorite places to bring visitors, and you will look at the gorgeous buildings with a whole new appreciation.

Don’t forget about the lake

This is probably the thing that surprises people the most. Lake Michigan doesn’t really feel like a lake. It feels like you’re standing next to an ocean.

If the weather is nice, rent a Divvy bike or go for a run along the Lakefront Trail. Pack a towel and spend an afternoon at the beach. Even if you’re not planning to swim, just walking along the water is worth it.

It’s one of the things that makes Chicago feel so unique.

Come hungry

I honestly think Chicago has one of the best food scenes in the country. And yes, I’m biased. But I also think I’m right.

Whether you’re looking for a cozy neighborhood restaurant, a Michelin-star dinner, incredible cocktails, or late-night pizza, you’re going to eat well here.

One piece of advice: if there’s somewhere you’ve been dying to try, make reservations early! The good places book up fast.

We’re a little spoiled when it comes to restaurants, and I don’t take that for granted.

A few things I’d add to your list

If there’s a Cubs game while you’re here, go. Even if baseball isn’t really your thing. There’s just something about spending an afternoon at Wrigley Field that feels quintessentially Chicago.

If you’re more into comedy than sports, see if you can catch a show at Second City—or one of the many comedy clubs around the city. Some of the biggest names in comedy got their start here, and it’s such a fun night out.

Traveling with kids? Don’t skip Maggie Daley Park. It’s one of my favorite playgrounds. Oh, and the Lincoln Park Zoo. It’s free and so fun to explore!

Pair that with The Bean, the Shedd Aquarium, the Museum of Science and Industry, or the Adler Planetarium, and you’ve got a fantastic day.

People always ask me if Navy Pier is worth visiting, and my answer is...only if you have kids. The Chicago Children’s Museum is fantastic and has kept my two entertained for hours. Otherwise, I’d spend that time exploring a neighborhood instead.

Before your trip, check to see what temporary exhibits are in town. We recently took our kids to the Balloon Museum, and they absolutely loved it. Chicago is always hosting something fun, so it’s worth taking a look.

Oh, and try to visit the new Obama Presidential Library. We snagged tickets for December, and I cannot wait to see it. I’ve heard even the outdoor playground (no ticket required) is phenomenal!

My final piece of advice

Don’t try to see everything. Seriously. Chicago isn’t the kind of city you “finish” in a weekend.

Walk more than you think you should. Take the train. Eat somewhere that requires a reservation. Spend an afternoon in a neighborhood you hadn’t heard of before planning your trip. Sit by the lake.

And leave yourself a reason to come back.

Chicago friends, I’d love to hear from you.

What’s the one place you always tell visitors not to miss? Or, if you’ve visited Chicago before, what surprised you the most?

Let’s build the ultimate local’s guide together in the comments!

After years of putting the dream of writing a book on the shelf, I got an email that changed everything.

Well...almost. Because I didn’t actually see the email at first.

Like many website owners, I get plenty of spam through the contact form on my website. Every so often, though, something legitimate sneaks in there, so every couple of weeks I’ll scroll through my spam folder just to make sure I didn’t miss anything important.

Good thing I did.

The email I almost missed

Buried in my spam folder was this message:

I still remember reading it, thinking, "There's no way this is real."

So I did what any mildly suspicious person would do…I looked the sender up on LinkedIn. She was real.

Every once in a while, I think about what would've happened if I hadn't checked my spam folder that week. It's kind of wild to think this entire book started because I have a slightly obsessive habit of cleaning out junk email. My type-A tendencies helped me out this time!

I wrote her back, and we set up a Zoom call. Going into that meeting, I really had no idea what to expect. I figured we’d chat about ideas, and maybe she’d tell me if they thought there was a book there.

Instead, I spent most of the conversation talking about my digital guide.

If you’ve been around for a while, you probably remember it. It was a digital home maintenance guide I’d created earlier that year, and thankfully, people really seemed to love it. Thousands of homeowners had purchased it, and I told her I thought there might be an opportunity to turn that concept into a traditional book.

The conversation went really well. She connected me with one of their editors.

And that’s when I got my first reminder that publishing doesn’t work quite the way I thought it did.

Not exactly a book deal

Even though the publisher had reached out to me, I still had to pitch the book.

My literary agent (Judy) explained that when authors have a proposal ready, agents usually send it to several publishers at the same time. Each gets a couple of weeks to review it and decide whether they want to make an offer. If multiple publishers are interested, the agent can compare offers and negotiate the best fit.

My situation was a little different.

Because Countryman had reached out to me first, we decided to give them the first opportunity to review the proposal. If we couldn’t come to terms or their offer wasn’t the right fit, Judy could always take the proposal to other publishers afterward. (Thankfully, we never had to.)

I knew what a proposal was because of my first attempt at writing a book years earlier (if you missed Part One, you’ll want to read that first), but I had forgotten just how much work goes into one.

Building the pitch

Because I already had the digital guide, I wasn’t starting from scratch, but putting the proposal together still took weeks.

One thing I probably spent too much time on? Making it pretty.

I built the whole thing in Canva because I wanted the proposal to reflect the vision I had for the finished book. Yes, I wanted it to be practical and packed with information, but from the very beginning, I also wanted it to be beautiful. I imagined gorgeous photography and something people would actually want to leave out on their coffee table.

The proposal was my first chance to communicate that vision.

Of course, it wasn't just about making it look nice. I had to map out the entire book, write a sample chapter, research comparable titles, explain why this book deserved a place on bookstore shelves, and share how I planned to help market it. I quickly realized I wasn't just pitching a book. I was pitching myself.

By early November, I had finished my draft and sent it to my literary agent, Judy.

She made some minor edits, and while I was recovering from my hip replacement surgery, we finished it up together.

On December 1, we officially submitted it to the publisher. Then we waited.

The waiting game

It actually didn’t take very long. On December 20, Judy called to tell me we had an offer.

I remember thinking, That’s it! I have a book deal! This is the best Christmas gift ever!

Except...I didn’t. At least not yet.

This was another part of publishing I knew absolutely nothing about. An offer is not the same thing as a signed contract. There were still months of negotiations ahead.

Judy negotiated the deal with the publisher, but I also hired my own attorney.

Not because I didn’t trust Judy, but I’d spent more than a decade building The DIY Playbook, and I wanted someone whose only job was making sure I was protecting everything I’d already built, too.

I remember being in Florida with my family in February, taking Zoom calls with my attorney as we worked through the contract line by line. It was overwhelming.

There were pages of legal language I didn’t understand. We went back and forth on different terms. More than once, I remember thinking, What am I doing? This feels way over my head.

Finally, it was official

After months of negotiations, we reached an agreement. In April 2025, I signed the contract.

After dreaming about writing a book for more than a decade, I officially had a book deal. It was exciting. It was surreal. And it also meant there was no turning back.

Because now, I actually had to write the thing. And it was due in six months…

Next Wednesday in Behind the Book...

• What it’s really like to write a book while running a business

• Why we photographed the book before it was written

• The giant spreadsheet that kept the whole thing organized

• And why writing the proposal was actually the easy part

P.S. If you’ve been enjoying these behind-the-scenes stories, I’d be so grateful if you’d preorder a copy of Your Home Playbook. Knowing what went into creating it makes finally getting to hold it feel even more special. ❤️

Welcome to The Playbook Edit…your monthly roundup of reader faves, recent buys I’ve been loving, sales worth browsing, and little things that simply caught my eye. Think of it like chatting with a friend who always has a good recommendation up her sleeve.

• I have these air purifiers in our kids’ rooms and with the recent wildfires, they’ve been working overtime. They’re compact, so I can easily tuck one onto the shelf of their nightstands.

• I recently got this dress and wore it to my niece’s baptism. Holy moly compliments! It was fun, flirty, but also very elegant. Highly recommend!

• I’m still overwhelmed by your response to my book’s preorder. Thank you for every single purchase and message! You can find it at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Bookshop.

• My sister shared her best travel tips and this wrap scarf was a popular find.

• My current perfume is the ultimate summer scent and so many of you have scooped it up too. Code DIYPLAYBOOK15 gets you 15% off.

• I am happy so many of you added this velvet chair to your homes. It’s my new favorite spot in my office for answering DMs and taking calls.

• These eye patches are new to me and I’ve been wearing them for my on-camera days. I think they really work to hydrate and brighten up my under-eyes.

• I’ve worn my beloved Dior concealer for years, but I recently tried this concealer and I have to say…”RIP Dior.” This new one is soooo good. Creamy, hides every imperfection, and melts into my skin.

• This strawberry gum hair grip has been great for styling slicked-back buns & ponytails during summer heat. It keeps every hair in place.

• I upgraded to this phone case and love the marbled pink coloring.

• This kaleidoscope necklace easily elevates even the most simple outfit. I like wearing it with a white tee and jeans.

• It’s hard to believe back-to-school season is on my mind, but this board is going to be a sweet way to mark the new chapter.

• We love Grove Collaborative and I snagged a few of these bandaid kits. We’ve got one in the kids’ bathroom, our bathroom, the car, and our to-go bag. You can never be too prepared with little ones.

• This menstrual disc is incredibly popular with my community (and for good reason!). My code, DIYPLAYBOOK15, gets you 15% off.

• I added three of these bird frames from this print set to our dining room corner and love the touch of whimsy they add. This small business has lots of beautiful home finds.

• The kids eat lunch at school most days, but this container is handy for snacks and meals on the go.

• These high-quality waffle towels would be ideal for any bathroom. Code DIYPLAYBOOK15 is good for 15% off your purchase.

• This SaltyFace bronzer melts into your skin and gives you the best glow. The brand came highly recommended in this self-tanner crowdsourcing post. Code DIYPLAYBOOK10 saves you 10%.

• The Nordstrom Anniversary sale is still going strong! I don’t buy nearly as much as I used to, but here are a few basics I ordered…

  • I wear these Hanky Panky thongs every single day.

  • These Bombas ankle socks are a great deal.

  • My favorite luxurious cleansing balm is $40 off. I stocked up!

  • I wear a little color on my lips every day and this Pillow Talk lip set is the perfect natural-looking shade.

As always, I keep my ShopMy page and Amazon Storefront updated with discounts, purchases, and products I share on different platforms. So be sure to check there for any link you might need.