Photo illustration: The strategist. Photo: Will
If you’re like us, you’ve probably wondered what famous people put in their shopping carts. Not the JAR brooch and the Louis XV chair, but the hairspray and the electric toothbrush. We asked actress Judy Greer – the founding partner of the women’s nutritional supplement brand will – about her family Pen“chic” olive oiland lip balm she hides around her house.
My husband always brings some pens home from the office. When he brought home the varsity ball, we committed to it. To be cheesy, it’s our “family pen” now – we don’t mess around with other pens. It lasts really long, writes fast and the ink is super black, like black on black, which I like. My husband and I do morning pages and journaling, so this is an important part of our morning routine. And in general, I’m still someone who writes by hand. I love it when I open the kitchen drawer and the little pen compartment is filled with these Uniballs. I’m an idiot for school supplies.
I was introduced to the Post-It by my parents in the 80’s before computers and phone reminders existed. Post-Its were all over the house. When I first started living alone in college and after, I would keep post-its as a reminder of growing up. I had one by the door reminding me to turn off the heat. In my first car, one reminded me to turn off the lights because I was always draining my battery.
Now I use them to take notes while on the phone or reading a book. I’ll put them in my journals and notebook for work. I wish I always had a small moleskin book with me, but no, I have Post-Its. I jot down funny passages. I have a quote from Sloane Crossley in my kitchen: “You have to be a millionaire in New York to bar the back of your furniture.”
To be absolutely gross when we were all quarantined in 2020 I all stopped using deodorant together because I wasn’t going anywhere. I wanted to give my body rest. But then I started working again and I thought: Oh, I’ll be on set with people. I have to carry deodorant. I came across Real Purity years ago at the Larchmont Beauty Center while looking for the best natural deodorant. The owner said, “People buy cases of it.” It actually works and doesn’t have a strong smell.
Before filming mable Last summer, the makeup artist texted me to ask if it was okay to use Burt’s Bees, her favorite lip balm, on me. I wrote back to clarify, yes, but I love the original version. It’s waxy. I like the flavored ones too, but they’re a lot lighter. I’ve hidden them in drawers and under statues in every room of my house. I’m a lip balm aholic. Mandarin in the kitchen, watermelon in the TV room, lime in the living room. I always have the original in my handbag.
It was a big hassle, but I love it. My husband and I use it every night. It has a red light, blue light, and a mix of both. I only use the red light and it makes my skin firmer and brighter. I recently went to the movies in Wilmington and left it at home for my husband. (I justified it because my character was going through a rough patch.) After a month I could see the difference. I’ve been back for three days and have been using it every day. I was like Oh yes, that’s what I really look like. I also like that it’s fast. There are similar LED wands that you have to hold around your face for 20 minutes. I just wash my face with it, lie in bed with it for three minutes and pet my dog and then it’s done. I pay a little more for that.
I should get a commission for this product because all my friends and makeup artists can’t trust my lashes. A makeup artist wanted to shorten them because they are so long. I could direct traffic with them. I use this product every night and it has made my lashes long and beautiful. It’s not a recipe, so it doesn’t do scary things. I have very light sensitive eyes and this has never irritated her.
I love browsing book summaries. Fiction writer has an interesting taste. I recently read The disappearing half, by Brit Bennett, from her list. I was late for this party but I couldn’t put it down. I’m proud of anyone who tries to inspire other generations to read as much as I do. It’s hard to pick up an old-fashioned book when you’re constantly holding this little thing that can play movies and see other people’s whole lives. I also love that their lists link you to local bookstores, so don’t support…you know what I’m talking about.
I’m a huge bookworm, but when I’m traveling it’s difficult to get caught up in a novel for a few minutes at a time. I love the Paris review, because I can read something short on the way. That’s what people do New Yorker, but that scares me because I can never keep up. I was just working with actress Alison Pill and I was like, ‘Are you reading everyone? New Yorker every week?” She looked at me like I had ten heads and was like, “Of course I do. Don’t you?” That Paris review is more my speed. I can do that in a quarter.
These are my sneakers forever. I buy a new pair every year on my birthday. They are obviously easy to put on and take off as they are slip ons and go with everything. I like the black and white. I can wear them with jeans, dresses and on the plane. I always bring them with me when I travel. They look good on everyone. I feel like the checkerboard ones don’t make my feet look as big as pure white ones.
I work with health coach Daphne Javitch, and she’s a big fan of using just olive oil and lime in salads. So now I have two olive oils on our counter: one for cooking and one for flavoring. A lot of people have been doing this for a while, but I’ve only just started cooking and learning the art of olive oil. This was a gift from Rachel Bloom and I’m addicted to it. It’s very fancy and very tasty. It has a really rich olive flavor. I’m also taken by how beautiful it is and keep it on my counter. My husband was like, “Why don’t we just get a funnel and put it in a bottle?” And I was like, “You’re missing the point.”
This tea comes from a family-run farm in Montana. I mix this with Wile’s Stave the Crave Chai Flavored Powder to get a double chai situation and it tastes amazing. I have a sensitivity to caffeine so I drink it in the afternoon instead of coffee.
A few hours after lunch and before dinner I get really hungry and just want to eat crap. That mixed with the tea keeps me from eating a handful of chips. I also love the ritual of it. My mornings go by so quickly that I don’t even sit and enjoy my coffee. When I wake up I feel like I’ve been shot out of a cannon. This is sometimes the first moment of the day when I can really sit down. I take a few minutes to prepare myself a nice warm drink and do a few Duolingo lessons. I try to do this every day while enjoying my cup of tea. I’m on a 47 day streak.
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