Reviews
Field Notes
Experience
The best little notebooks. The pocket size means I can always have it on me, and while the different covers are fun, I generally stick to the matte black with dot grid paper.
Akron Street
Experience
I bought a Tenon Coffee Table and I absolutely love it. It's solid hardwood, and that really makes a difference. Plus, the "DIY" construction is really fun. Makes you feel like a craftsman even if you have no skill whatsoever. Finally, it's just asymmetric enough — I can't stand the 'wiggly' furniture trend but I appreciate the subtle, organic shape of the table.
Feedback
I wish they would release more products, faster! And that they had better inventory because it feels like they're out of stock often.
Askov Finlayson
Experience
Askov makes the single best parka you can buy if you're someone living in the colder part of the world. It is phenomenally warm; I couldn't have made it through all of those icy days deep in the pandemic when we all just agreed to sit outside under the glow of a wimpy heat lamp. It keeps you so, so warm. It's also a great looking jacket! You don't want to be yet another person wearing North Face or Canada Goose, do you? And of course, the climate positive mission really seals the deal. Keep the North Cold!
Feedback
I don't have any negative feedback about the parka. I think I would like them to apply the same sustainable design approach to other winter products, though: an Askov pair of chopper mittens would be great, and I've loved their North hats for many years now.
Mother Plants
Experience
Love Mother. If you're in the Twin Cities, their stores are an absolute treasure.
Graza
Experience
The oil is genuinely very good, and I appreciate that they're taking insights from professional kitchens and making them available to home cooks (two oils, and squeeze bottles). I am a dork, so I already had squeeze bottles and kept two different oils in my pantry (Fat Gold for my 'drizzling' and California Olive Ranch for my 'sizzling') but it was fun to try Graza, and I expect to reuse their bottles.
Feedback
I would prefer a better refill system. I intend to refill my Drizzle bottle with the Fat Gold olive oil I get by subscription, but I did really like the Drizzle. Unfortunately the only way to get more is to buy another bottle, which means tossing the old one. This is admittedly a tough problem, because you can't just ship people a giant aluminum canister of olive oil, because it would go bad. But perhaps Graza could look into post-consumer plastics or a type of plastic that is easier to recycle.
Ursa Major
Experience
Every product I've tried from Ursa Major has been a hit. In particular, the Golden Hour Recovery Cream, the Fortifying Face Balm, the Forest Alchemy Eye Cream, and the Fantastic Face Wash are all essential parts of my skincare routine. I love that they're trying to put sustainability at the forefront of their business, and I appreciate that it's not the most expensive skincare line out there — but it still absolutely works.
Feedback
Continue working to reduce plastic packaging and the ability to refill and reuse pumps. The subscription management is a little tough, because I really struggle to know how often I need to order more. I also like the free sample/travel size bottles, and it would be nice to make refillable versions of those available.
Seed
Experience
Seed is one of the few health and wellness products that you can actually tell is doing something. I noticed changes in my digestion when I started taking it, and on the occasions (like a vacation) where I forget to take them for a few days. I think overall it is beneficial, though hardly a magic wonder drug, and I trust that it is helping my microbiome stay healthy.
Feedback
It's wildly expensive. Every single month I reconsider whether it's worth it. I switched to the 'more sustainable' refill cadence of once every three months, which I don't mind doing at all, but it does feel like I should get a discount for that since I'm saving Seed money on shipping. I also wonder what a 'low dose' regimen would be like, taking a single capsule each day instead of two.
Davines
Experience
Smells great, works great, very expensive.
Cometeer Coffee
Experience
Cometeer makes remarkably good coffee. I was skeptical of these flash-frozen pods, but truly, the end result is an extremely fresh-tasting, high quality cup of coffee. I prefer using them to make iced coffee, which I do by letting a pod defrost in the fridge the night before, but they're good for hot coffee too. I just prefer my decidedly inefficient pour-over method for that.
Feedback
I tried to convince my office to replace our janky coffee with Cometeer, but it's too pricey for that. I think it might be possible to convince them if there were some sort of bulk discount or bigger subscription deal, but approx. $2 for every cup of coffee an employee drinks is a lot for most companies.