Michelle Slatalla

Mill Valley

Writer and Columnist at Freelance

Columnist at The Wall Street Journal

Columnist @wsjoffduty

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Articles

5 Summer Decorating Refreshes That Didn’t Cost Me a Penny

1 week ago | wsj.com | Michelle Slatalla

Reluctant just now to spend money on seasonal updates, our décor columnist found ways to usher in the warm weather with stuff she already ownsI’m as nervous as anybody these days about the uncertain economy, the seesaw stock exchange and on-off-on-again tariffs. I get it: This is not the time to spend money on seasonal decor. But that doesn’t mean I don’t yearn to summer-ize my house and garden.
10 Easy Pieces: Outdoor Bistro Table and Chair Sets

1 week ago | gardenista.com | Michelle Slatalla

Tiny bistro tables and and compact chairs are eminently more practical for outdoors than big hulking monster pieces, because you can easily carry them from patio to lawn and back, to follow the sun. And if you don’t have much room? Even the smallest sliver of a balcony will try to accommodate a table for two.
Can AI Save Me the Cost of an Interior Designer?

4 weeks ago | wsj.com | Michelle Slatalla

Our decor columnist set out to learn whether an AI tool could suggest tasteful interior-design ideas she wouldn’t think of herself. Then it started getting weird. There’s nothing really wrong with my living room—except that it’s been a month since I spent what some hysteric in my family would describe as “way more than we can afford” on decor.
Would You Pay $500 for Bed Sheets? I Finally Did, and Here’s Why

2 months ago | kanebridgenews.com | Michelle Slatalla

Why are we willing to spend that much for, say, nice boots, yet consider bed linens that cost that much unconscionably indulgent? Our columnist fights her way past this double standard.
Would You Pay $500 for Bed Sheets? I Finally Did, and Here’s Why

2 months ago | wsj.com | Michelle Slatalla

The other day I threw open the windows, ready to spring-clean and flip the mattress. Then I started to strip my bed only to see…sheets shredded by my husband’s toenails. How long has this situation been developing? I spend eight hours a day physically interacting with my bedsheets, so how did I miss this? We all have private, recurring bedroom fantasies. Mine is that every night I tuck myself into crisp, unwrinkled, lavender-smelling sheets.
Redecker Plant Brush

Jan 22, 2025 | gardenista.com | Michelle Slatalla

Retailer: Nickey Kehoe $63.00 USD at time of publication Buy from Nickey Kehoe Available Colors: White Wood Materials: Steel Wood Description from Nickey Kehoe Product Information Handcrafted using oiled, FSC-certified pearwood and Chinese goat hair bristles, this Burstenhaus Redeker brush is the perfect tool to gently and thoroughly clean dust and debris from your plant’s delicate leaves. Based in Germany, Burstenhaus Redecker is a family owned manufacturer of fine brushes and utilitarian...
What Our Pets Can Teach Us About the True Spirit of Giving

Dec 17, 2024 | wsj.com | Michelle Slatalla

Guess who probably won’t care that I rushed out at the last minute to buy their holiday gifts? My dogs. That’s one of the many things I love about my tiny papillons. I also love that if Pigeon feels I haven’t scratched him long enough, he gently pushes my hand back into position with a tiny cottonball paw.
How to Bring Fun Back to the Holidays? Simplify Every Single Thing.

Nov 29, 2024 | wsj.com | Michelle Slatalla

Your browser does not support the audio tag. 00:00 / 08:51This article is in your queue. IN RETROSPECT, last year’s over-the-top Christmas party was the one that broke me. After years of increasingly elaborate holiday seasons, last December my husband and I crazily got up on step ladders to create a magical Hogwarts Christmas-themed spectacle. Like set designers, we suspended 200 battery-powered “floating candles” on fishing line, sticky-tacked to the ceiling. In concept, great.
What to Do in the Garden in February

Nov 2, 2024 | gardenista.com | Michelle Slatalla

What to do in the garden in February–is this some kind of a joke? Here’s a thing I like to do in February: sit by the fire and look at the garden through a window. However.
My Husband Wants a Japanese Toilet. Is He On to Something?

Oct 10, 2024 | flipboard.com | Michelle Slatalla

Tampa Bay was spared catastrophic storm surge from Hurricane Milton. Here's why. Water in Tampa Bay was returning to normal levels Thursday. The area experienced 'reverse storm surge' that drove water away from the shoreline. Water in Tampa Bay was returning back to normal levels Thursday morning following the passage of Hurricane Milton, which briefly caused "reverse storm …