new month, new moon (in Virgo), same you

BIG back to school energy ✏️

happy September, lovers 🤍

as a September Virgo, this has always been my favorite month of the year. the fact that I’m an unapologetic birthday person (more on this next week) is part of it. but even deeper than celebrating my birthday and the birthdays of all the Virgos in my life, I adore September because I’m a sucker for the burst of energy that comes with ‘back to school’ season. while most of us are not be returning to the classroom, I think there’s a distinct beauty that lies in seeing yourself as a lifelong student, and there’s no better time to reestablish your openness to learning new things than September.

I'm not sure about you, but the chill in the air makes me want to pull out my sweaters and break out a box of freshly sharpened pencils. I genuinely wish I had a reason to need to go buy a bunch of color-coded folders! instead, I’ve been going to Fedex to print things off as I try to get organized with a bunch of boring administration stuff—it really made me feel like an adult to go back into the West Village Fedex this week and be recognized based on my previously printed DMV paperwork (lol). speaking of, Virgo season is a PRIME TIME to tackle that list of life admin you’ve been putting off…I swear.

for me, this week will entail diving into the appointment Olympics that I indulge in before every trip, but this round is on steroids considering I won’t be back in New York for six weeks. beyond the cursory stops, I have some extra fun ones (DMV and dentist!!) on deck too. do you guys care about where I do all my girlie pop appointments? I’m deeply invested in how other gals approach the realm of self-care, so if this is of interest, let me know, and I can round up where I go and who I love for eyebrows, hair, waxing, mani/pedi, massage, facials, and more.

september glory

otherwise, let’s dive into the goodness that is this month! while scrolling my Notes here on Substack (if you just read this newsletter in your inbox, that works, but the platform it’s hosted on, Substack, acts as its own version of a social network, including a ‘Notes’ function that helps you discover other writers and newsletters), I found this Note shared by Elle—who’s behind what I think is one of the smartest publications you could subscribe to, postcards by elle—fitting. she, too, is an autumn (IYKYK, if not now you do). either way, her snippet from Sylvia Plath below has me feeling all the feels on the basis of ‘no rushing around’ alone. unfortunately, I’ll be doing a whole lot of rushing until next Sunday, but from there, the following few weeks are most certainly ‘a brief respite of leisure’ for me as I get out of the New York rat race and spend time in Colombia and France.

things to look forward to in september

in case you weren’t already excited about this month, here are a bunch of reasons I think you should be!!

• your feed is no longer full of people slamming spritzes on the Amalfi coast (hopefully, for all of sakes)

• ^absence of the above generally allows you to no longer feel like you need to be stationed on the Mediterranean to properly function as a person in the world

• speaking of the above, most people are back in the office and you can actually get work done! except me, I’ll be OOO starting Friday until September 17th because I dutifully respect my birthday trip boundaries each year :)

• blazer-as-a-jacket weather on a crisp day is upon us

• sweatshirt and biker shorts season, Princess Diana style

• pumpkin everything is baaaaack for all my fellow basic bitches

• being basic in general: fall is the best time of year for it!!!! you can’t tell me otherwise

• that first walk where leaves are underfoot is coming soon

• there are no major holidays you need to be stressing about!!!! except your Virgo friends’ birthdays (hehe, that’s a joke…kinda)

• with there being no major holidays, also a great month to experiment with sobriety/go damp so you can feel amazing pre-festive season gluttony

• sexy season for date outfits IMO. open-back sweaters with no coat…mesh flats still in play…you can be cute and flirty without needing to be practically naked because it’s so hot. makeup also not melting off! setting spray actually working is HOT.

• ideal time of year to rewatch Gilmore Girls, especially these fall episodes

• ideal time of year to take yourself to the movies…it just is, I don’t make the rules.

• cozy season has begun, which is all the more reason to host your friends versus feeling like you have to go out!

• football season restarting = you can have chips and buffalo dip for dinner on a lazy Sunday

• football season restarting = Taylor watch at the Chiefs games is SO BACK, baby

• the bliss of seeing burgundy lipstick stains on wine glasses that just doesn’t happen in the summer

• you may now stay indoors on the weekends for extended periods without feeling guilty

• prime ‘let’s stop at the bookstore’ vibes

• library card holder? let’s tighten up your library/Libby holds strategy based on your “To Read” list on Goodreads

• on that note…now’s the time of year when you have the time and mental space to dig into some heavier books after a season of beach reads

• also a great time of year to learn something new! that language you’ve been wanting to pick up? enroll in a class? that workout that intimidates you? try it.

new moon on september 2nd

Virgo season energy leaves us with a blank slate and the energy to introspect, including embracing change intentionally. with the new moon on September 2nd occurring in the realm of Virgo, meticulous, detail-oriented, and mature attitudes shift our decisions. what is a new moon, you may ask? while a full moon happens when the moon is on the opposite side of the Earth from the sun, so the entire side facing Earth is lit up, a new moon happens when the moon is between the Earth and the sun, so the side facing Earth is dark and the moon is not visible. I’ll allow the fine folks at People Magazine to tell you all about it in their breakdown, All About September's New Moon and What It Means for Your Zodiac Sign.

okay! keeping it short and sweet today. as a heads up, I’m going to start paring back on how much I include in my complimentary Substacks while I shift towards having a paid tier of my newsletter set to launch next week. paid subscribers will receive enriched content, including more personal shares and recommendations curated by me! if you feel so inclined to support my writing and the investment of time I make in sourcing recommendations and compiling content that’s valuable to you, it would mean the world for you to pledge your support to the sunday series. part of my September looks like recognizing the worth in my work and cheering on others doing the same. so thank you to the creators on this platform who’ve paved the way! looking forward to all the evolution to come as fall unfolds xKD