10 Things That Delighted Us Last Week: From Amy Tan’s Birding Gear to Tinted Balms

Author Amy Tan has loved wildlife all her life, but she says it wasn’t until 2016 that she began to notice the nature around her. Unnerved by the state of the country, Tan turned to the natural world and spent hours nature-journaling, leading to her newest book,The Backyard Bird Chronicles. For a while, Tan had a problem with crows taking over the feeders in her backyard. “I know that they mourn their dead comrades,” she told us — so she bought a fake crow from Wild Birds Unlimited. “I hung it upside down, the crows came and screamed and screamed, then they stopped coming to the yard,” Tan says.

Red lipstick isn’t for everyone, and if you’re like contributor Emma Firth — who appreciates a beauty look that doesn’t take itself too seriously — the perfect smudgy French lip might be more your speed. After trying tons of tints over the years, fromVaselineto Chanel’s Rouge Coco Baume, Firthfinally discoveredthe ultimate winner:Refy’s Lip Blush, which is hydrating and has the ideal blurred, almost worn-in effect. “It is like the perfect slip dress in makeup form: a little underdressed and so lightweight you barely notice you are wearing it,” Firth explains, adding that she never leaves the house without it.

“Half of my beard is gray,” says comedianMatteo Lane, who can’t live without this beard-dye kit. When recording his podcast, Lane realized the gray hair was creating an optical illusion that made his chin look thinner, which he says is “like the same thing when you put highlighter on your nose.” Now Lane uses this kit that has a mascara-like brush almost every day to prevent having a “witch chin,” he says.

In our latest installment ofSteal My Vacation, we heard from Juno DeMelo, who spent three weeks in northern Italy on the other side of the Alps with her husband, their 7-year-old, and some close friends. DeMelo included this backpack in her packing list because it has many compartments, such as a padded one for her laptop that can be unzipped from the front. “This one was heavy-duty enough for hiking but sleek enough to be my personal item on future trips,” she says.

As seen in this week’s edition ofDon’t Dillydally, we spotted another collection from Ecco and designer Natasha Ramsay-Levi. Their previous collaboration included Ecco ballet sneakers, which Chloë Sevigny sported and, of course, became a hot topic in the Strategist Slack chat. The latest drop has a shoe with a very similar silhouette to the ones worn by Sevigny, this time without laces.

As our resident expert on all things fitness, writer Jeremy Rellosa goes through a lot of protein (protein powdersespecially). Still, his protein intake is nothing compared to his brother’s and sister-in-law’s, who are some of the most active people Rellosa knows:Gianis a weightlifter and lifelong martial artist who practices muay thai, whileIlanais a gym rat who never misses a workout. To hear more about their regimen, Rellosainterviewed them bothto find out what snacks are on their current rotation. Gian is a fan of these protein chips, which he describes as super flavorful. “It has that sweet and salty combo — a strong savory flavor, but then it tastes like maple too,” he says.

With the holidays around the corner, this time of year can feel overwhelming. So, for herStrategist Brain roundup, senior writer Liza Corsillo walked us through her new solution for staying organized. Instead of apaper planner, Corsillo opted for a combination whiteboard/wall calendar/to-do list, which she installed above her desk to ensure that “all the important stuff would be literally in my face at all times,” she says. This one from Navy Penguin was easy to hang and has the right ratio of calendar to bulletin board to notes section. Corsillo also says, “The logo is a cute but stern penguin that I like to imagine is my personal assistant.”

For our new seriesNow Open, our kitchen and dining writer Emma Wartzman gathered her favorite items from JOC Goods, an online store from Namiko Chen, creator ofJust One Cookbook. Chen has stocked the shop with Japanese-made ceramics, kitchen tools, knives, and more. We especially like this wood-handled vegetable peeler, which is “quite nice-looking for such a utilitarian product,” Wartzman says.

Stomach sleepers can rejoice because our sleep writer Amelia Jerden has created alist of the best pillowsthat will keep your neck from overstraining. The softest version of the Buffy Cloud is our top overall pick because it features a lower loft, and the down-alternative fill easily compresses. When Jerden tested the Buffy Cloud, she was able to nestle her head into it without her neck flexing backward or feeling like the pillow was choking her. Other winning features include itscoolingTencel cover, recycled plastic filling, and relatively affordable price.

There’s nothing quite like cooking warm, fluffy pancakes on a crisp fall morning — and to do that, you’ll need anelectric griddle, especially one that’s durable and easy to clean. The lightweight Dash Deluxe is our best less expensive option because it heats evenly and also makes aperfectpancake thanks to the nonstick surface, which releases food easily. If you plan to make a big breakfast for several people at once, we think it’s a great choice.