Welcome back to a Ten Vibes edition of The Vibes, a fortnightly culture newsletter. I recently wrote about fashion and teen films which you can read here. All other posts can be found here.
Good morning!
I am aware that ^this^ may be me but no Coastal Media Elite snatched up this Substack URL before me so If I don’t “understand” what vibes are it’s on them!
With that being said, let’s get on to August’s Ten Vibes—
The art of Ellsworth Kelly. I’m a little art dummy (never will forget I asked “Who’s that?” after FoTV Nadia said “I really like the impasto” thinking she meant the Impasto the way people say the Picasso— impasto is, in fact, a paint texture) so it’s not surprising that the art that does grab my attention is mostly just shapes and colours. Sure, I like a still life and can appreciate some good painting but give me a blue arrow on a green background and oo baby! You got me!
usps stamps featuring art from ellsworth kelly (source) Brussels sprouts. Still kind of annoys that it’s Brussels and not Brussel because it seems like a waste of an ‘S’ but that is neither here nor there!
a perfect cross-section! On the eve of the above photo I rustled up some of these (recced in Haley Nahman’s newsletter) and they were amazing. Have had them another time since. It must be said that everybody needs to get more Brussels sprouts in the rotation. Also! They grow on a fun stem thing!
Dressing in a way I can only describe as She Doesn’t Care But She Knows. I do care so part of this is implicitly flawed but if you get it you get it. It’s about the Vibe!! If you see me at any sort of social event in there is a 90% chance I will be wearing (inspired by this GQ piece and this newsletter from Winnie Wang) some combo of straight-leg pant (just found a pair of 90s YSL black ones that fit perfectly for $70!)/plain top (maybe t-shirt, maybe ribbed long sleeve mock-neck)/open shirt. At the moment, I am only the owner of one soft white linen button-down shirt (Glassons circa. 2018 lol) but am currently on the lookout for a slightly creamy, crisp cotton shirt ala this.
This still from When Harry Met Sally.
i think it’s funny that in nearly every Ten Vibes image folder on my laptop i have an image w the saved title ‘king’ as a joke to myself. previously has belonged to ethan hawke, steve buscemi + stanley tucci (image from rob reiner’s when harry met sally) A timeless Vibe! The posture! The chair! The socks! Need to find a perfect fisherman’s jumper like this one— if anyone has any leads let me know.
Some Shoe Vibes— the (sold out) Jil Sander Birkenstock collab—
these are the berlin and i’m obsessed (source) —these Post Sole Studio shoes—
kind of school-shoe-ish but Cooler (source) 
the only vaguely chunky loafers i have seen that i like (source) —and fancy fisherman sandals—
in love w these (not unaffordable) ones by shop-pêche but alas only come in sizes 6-8 and i am an 8.5 😪 (source) I am in a strange shoe purgatory at the moment because for whatever dumb reason my gut is saying NO to new shoes despite the fact my everyday sneakers look like this—
🙃🙃🙃 —and my 6-year-old Docs have a split across the sole. If money were no object I would simply purchase the above pairs of shoes to give off rich, cosy, utilitarian vibes (aka She Doesn’t Care But She Knows) but I think I’m looking at getting a pair of Reebok Classics (just white/gum but I don’t hate this Victoria Beckham collab), and some Birkenstock Bostons, maybe also some sort of leather sandal when summer comes along.
The fact that the whole Vibe of The Vibes may have been inadvertently influenced by the back of this Vince Jones album which has subtly been on display near the TV for months. I have no plans to listen to the music but I can only congratulate VJ on the inspired choice of stretched-out serif in a perfect blue paired with a buttery yellow.
luckily i knew better than to do this sort of papyrus-esque decaying letter design but everything else is Quite Cool Ceramics by Dominque Ostuni (aka @droseos). These mugs and sconces and little bowls and candle holders are the dreamiest objects I can imagine. They feel very ‘that bit in Normal People when they’re in Italy in summer’.
I have been taking ceramic lessons for the past couple years and have tried the hand-drawn look on my pots but alas none of them quite have the ‘I didn’t try and this perfect Vibe just fell out of the pencil/brush onto the mug and it’s messy but it’s not’ energy that Ostuni manages to get into each piece. One day I’d love to own a mug of hers and sometimes drink coffee out of it but also sometimes put a little snack in there.
This is me shoehorning in the strangest thing to have happened to me in recent memory. Almost 2 years ago, the book Three Women came out. It was getting a lot of hype and I had been meaning to buy and read it but I hadn’t yet. One day I was walking down a street in Northcote and passed one of those little book boxes where people can drop off unwanted books, and there it was. Three Women by Lisa Taddeo! Apparently brand new! In early July of this year, the exact same thing happened with Lisa Taddeo’s recent book, Animal. Same book box and everything. And I’d just been at Neighbourhood Books on High Street this close to buying the book! Crazy! A Vibe???
I don’t want you to think I am repeating Vibes but I need to expand on a mini-Vibe from The Third Ten Vibes and that is the egg salad sandwich. Let me take you through my recipe which makes two sandwiches. 4 cornichons (maybe 5 because I always end up eating one), 1 tsp capers (preferably brined but have used rinsed salted capers and it’s fine), half tbsp dijon mustard (usually end up adding a tiny bit more), half tbsp whole grain mustard, 2 tbsp mayo, salt, pepper, a tiny bit of lemon zest + squeeze of lemon juice, and some olive oil. Mix this together with 2 chopped up 9-minute-eggs (perfectly set, still a tiny bit jammy), season to taste (maybe more acid, maybe more salt or pepper) and spread on some sourdough, top with rocket to even out the acidity and that’s it!
Sometimes I serve with a pickle or extra cornichons or, if I’m feeling very indulgent (and we have them in the house), I’ll add some plain chips on the side. Can’t believe the egg salad sandwich has come back round to being ever so slightly cool again! Very exciting time for me!
The song “When I Said I Wanted To Be Your Dog” from the album of the same name by Jens Lekman.
I’m 17 years late to it but I think this album and Saint Cloud are my most consistently listened-to albums of the year. I love how the songs straddle the line between cheesy-sincere and cheesy-ironic. The cheesiness is satisfied by his voice which is actually good and the sincerity and irony balance each other out so you have the strange experience of having a little laugh at a lyric or Vibe while also being slightly moved. In the case of this specific song, there’s a real comfort to the nature sounds that open the song and then they’re paired with a soft electric guitar that sounds like it’s been taken out of the concept of a French Film. Whenever I listen I feel instantly transported to the time of day he sings about—“after work just before the sun sets”.
I’m not sure what I’ll write about in the next long-form. Hopefully I won’t use the word ~authenticity~ but I cannot make a promise that I’m sure to break!
Until next time :)
Bianca